Six Italian scientists and an ex-government official have been sentenced to six years in prison over the 2009 deadly earthquake in L’Aquila.
A regional court found them guilty of multiple manslaughter.
Prosecutors said the defendants gave a falsely reassuring statement before the quake, while the defence maintained there was no way to predict major quakes.
The 6.3 magnitude quake devastated the city and killed 309 people.
Many smaller tremors had rattled the area in the months before the quake that destroyed much of the historic centre.
It took Judge Marco Billi slightly more than four hours to reach the verdict in the trial, which had begun in September 2011.
Lawyers have said that they will appeal against the sentence. As convictions are not definitive until after at least one level of appeal in Italy, it is unlikely any of the defendants will immediately face prison.
The seven – all members of the National Commission for the Forecast and Prevention of Major Risks – were accused of having provided “inexact, incomplete and contradictory” information about the danger of the tremors felt ahead of 6 April 2009 quake, Italian media report.
In addition to their sentences, all have been barred from ever holding public office again, La Repubblica reports.
In the closing statement, the prosecution quoted one of its witnesses, whose father died in the earthquake.
It described how Guido Fioravanti had called his mother at about 11pm on the night of the earthquake – straight after the first tremor.
“I remember the fear in her voice. On other occasions they would have fled but that night, with my father, they repeated to themselves what the risk commission had said. And they stayed.”
The judge also ordered the defendants to pay court costs and damages.
Reacting to the verdict against him, Bernardo De Bernardinis said: “I believe myself to be innocent before God and men.”
“My life from tomorrow will change,” the former vice-president of the Civil Protection Agency’s technical department said, according to La Repubblica.
“But, if I am judged by all stages of the judicial process to be guilty, I will accept my responsibility.”
Another, Enzo Boschi, described himself as “dejected” and “desperate” after the verdict was read.
“I thought I would have been acquitted. I still don’t understand what I was convicted of.”
One of the lawyers for the defence, Marcello Petrelli, described the sentences as “hasty” and “incomprehensible”.
The case has alarmed many in the scientific community, who feel science itself has been put on trial.
Some scientists have warned that the case might set a damaging precedent, deterring experts from sharing their knowledge with the public for fear of being targeted in lawsuits.
Among those convicted were some of Italy’s most prominent and internationally respected seismologists and geological experts.
Earlier, more than 5,000 scientists signed an open letter to Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in support of the group in the dock.
• Franco Barberi, head of Serious Risks Commission
• Enzo Boschi, former president of the National Institute of Geophysics
• Giulio Selvaggi, director of National Earthquake Centre
• Gian Michele Calvi, director of European Centre for Earthquake Engineering
• Claudio Eva, physicist
• Mauro Dolce, director of the the Civil Protection Agency’s earthquake risk office
• Bernardo De Bernardinis, former vice-president of Civil Protection Agency’s technical department
Ann Romney cooled off on a Florida beach this weekend as her husband got fired up for the final presidential debate.
As Mitt Romney indulged in a beach football game between his staffers and invited reporters, Ann Romney took advantage of the Florida sunshine in her fetching floral suit, going for a swim with her family at Delray Beach.
Ann Romney, 63, looked glamorous in the brightly-colored, halterneck suit with matching sarong.
She splashed around in the water with her sons, their wives and her grandchildren, before she grabbed a towel and headed for a sun lounger.
Hours before they hit the beach, Mitt Romney and wife Ann were pictured attending church in Boca Raton on Sunday where she grabbed attention in a scarlet dress with full-length zip and chunky jewellery.
The latest poll has Mitt Romney neck-and-neck with Barack Obama as they each have 47% of likely voters ahead of their debate this evening.
Today’s face-off represents one of the last major opportunities for Barack Obama and Mitt Romney to capture the attention of millions of voters – especially that small but sought-after group who haven’t yet made up their minds.
And while the former Massachusetts governor was relaxing on the beach, Barack Obama was holed up in Camp David in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains.
The President had arrived on Friday to prep for the debate, a 90-minute encounter focused on international affairs.
British restaurant Smokey’s Joint has unveiled the largest chilli cheese hotdog in Europe with 13,000 calories – that’s six times a woman’s recommended daily intake.
At over one metre-long and filled with 1.5 kgs of beef sausage, a whole pound of homemade chilli and lashings of cheese, the Monster Dog at Smokey’s Joint in Walsall, near Birmingham, contains an estimated 13,000 calories.
It is more than five times the daily recommended allowance of 2,500 calories for a man.
The gastronomic gauntlet is the latest in what the eatery hopes will be a long line of food challenges and follows the creation of the 3 lbs cheeseburger, which has yet to be successfully tackled by any contender.
Dean Key, 30, director of Smokey’s, said he began seeking out a new challenge following his customers failed attempts to complete the Monster Burger.
He said: “I’ve had people asking us for weeks when it’s going to come out and if it’s ready yet.
“We’ve spent ages developing the prototypes and we’ve had a lot of fun trying them out. The most any of the guys here have managed to eat is about half of one.
“The real struggle was in sourcing a really big sausage and eventually we got a local butcher to supply the meat which he uses to fill extra large sausage skins ordered especially from Holland.
“It’s pure beef sausage. We wanted to make sure the ingredients were of a really high quality because if you’re going to eat that much of something it has to taste good.”
Europe’s largest chilli cheese hotdog has 13,000 calories
The Monster Dog boasts a massive 1,000 grams of fat as opposed to the modest 70 grams recommended as part of woman’s recommended daily intake, and 100 grams recommended for a man.
It also contains a whopping 34,274 mgs of salt.
With 80 people so far having attempted – and failed – to overcome the gut-busting burger, it is unlikely anyone will manage to complete a whole Monster Dog in the near future.
Dean Key said: “Both the burger and the hotdog are £29.95 or free if you eat it in an hour.
“When we made the burger I had a load of T-shirts printed that said “I conquered the Monster Burger” and I still have all of them.
“I wish I’d got a bunch that said, <<I was defeated by the Monster Burger>> because I could have sold dozens of them.”
The restaurant launched the challenges after enjoying the hit American show Man vs. Food, in which presenter Adam Richman travels the US seeking out the biggest food challenges.
Dean Key, who runs the restaurant with business partners Jonathan Caddick, 31, Dale Key, 27 and Stefan Hilton, 22, believes the Monster Dog is the biggest in Europe, dwarfing the competition.
However, it has a long way to go to beat the current world’s longest meat hot dog record holder, measured at 203.8 m and manufactured by Ochsi of Paraguay.
As we age, we’re tempted to plaster on more make-up in a bid to hide lines, hollow cheeks and sagging eyes.
Yet as supermodel Cindy Crawford, 46, has revealed, her secret to looking youthful is to do the opposite.
“I wear less make-up,” she tweeted.
“It can make you look older.”
Since then, Sharon Stone, 54, and Carol Vorderman, 51, have been seen looking bare-faced and beautiful.
“Too much make-up shrinks your features and makes skin appear dry,” says make-up artist Kim Jacob.
Here, we reveal how to reduce the signs of ageing:
EYES
Problem: Eyes become lined and appear smaller. Powder eyeshadows accentuate crepiness, while dark make-up closes up the eyes.
Turn back the years: Opt for brown or grey liners, and stick to paler eyeshadow. Use color sparingly on the outer corners of the lid and as a liner. Plum is in fashion and looks good with green and blue eyes.
Try Wild About Beauty’s Eyeshadow Pencil Duo or Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Colour Eye Shadow.
LIPS
Problem: Lips become thinner and wrinkles form. As we mature, lips can lose definition and dark colors accentuate this.
Lipstick can also bleed into fine lines. Older skin can be dry, and matte lipsticks make them look worse.
Turn back the years: Draw outside your natural lip line with a nude, matte lip pencil. Fill in the rest of the lip with a light color and add a dab of gloss. Try Pixi Lip and Line and Bobbi Brown Brightening Lip Gloss in pink.
EYEBROWS
Problem: Brows start to droop, while lashes fade and thin. Many of us overpluck, leaving brows looking sparse.
Daily use of waterproof mascara can dry out lashes, so they become fragile.
Turn back the years: Defined, high arches lift the face. Use a brow shadow to cover any grey hairs and fill out the shape. Tint lashes dark brown to make them appear fuller.
CHEEKS
Problem: Cheeks lose volume and the face gets thinner. Dark bronzers can make the face can look gaunt. Blush worn too high can make eyes looks smaller and accentuate any crepiness.
Turn back the years: Apply a warm blush to the plumpest part of your cheeks to create youthful fullness. Use a rosy pink or peach-toned creamy blush and smooth it out towards the ears for a full, fresh look. Try Clinique Blushwear sticks in Peachy Blush.
SKIN
Problem: Skin gets dull and wrinkled. Powdery make-up sits in lines and large pores, exaggerating them. Thick, matte make-up dulls the complexion.
Turn back the years: Make sure your foundation is exactly right for your skin tone. It’s best to avoid powder as this can be too matte – using a primer under foundation is a better way to reduce shine.
Try Yves Saint Laurent Le Teint Touche Eclat foundation and Pore-fessional primer, or Miracle Glo, which makes tired skin look fresh and radiant.
Donald Jr. and Vanessa Trump have welcomed their fourth child.
The baby boy joins older sister Kai, 5, and brothers Donald Jr., 3, and one-year-old Tristan.
Donald Trump Jr. tweeted: “It’s a BOY!!! @MrsVanessaTrump and baby are doing great.”
The businessman, who advises his father on The Apprentice, had earlier teased: “I actually never really got to bed. More on that later.”
And he joked that his son would soon be joining the family business, saying he’d be in the boardroom in “2 maybe 3 weeks;)”.
Donald Jr. and Vanessa Trump had taken their oldest two children to the Disney premiere of Secret Of The Wings in New York on Saturday.
Donald Jr. and Vanessa Trump have welcomed their fourth child
Vanessa Trump huge bump could clearly be seen as she posed in her black maxi dress.
On her return home Vanessa Trump joked she was lucky she hadn’t gone into labor.
“Made it back home! I’m so thankful I didn’t go into labor!,” she wrote.
“He’s very lucky! We are counting the days till we meet the little 1!”
The newborn makes a fifth grandchild and third grandson for business magnate Donald Trump Senior.
His daughter, Ivanka Trump, welcomed a daughter Arabella last year.
Donald Jr. and Vanessa Trump only welcomed their third child in October last year, with Vanessa conceiving again just three months later.
Vanessa Trump had been keeping her Twitter fans updated about the pregnancy’s progress, tweeting this week: “So I would love to hear what people think I’m having a boy or a girl?
“We won’t know till the little one is born but let’s see who’s right!”
Cyclist Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles by the International Cycling Union.
UCI has accepted the findings of the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s (USADA) investigation into Armstrong.
UCI president Pat McQuaid said: “Lance Armstrong has no place in cycling. He deserves to be forgotten.”
Pat McQuaid added Armstrong had been stripped of all results since 1 August, 1998 and banned for life for doping.
On what he called a “landmark day for cycling”, the Irishman, who became president of UCI in 2005, said he would not be resigning.
“This is a crisis, the biggest crisis cycling has ever faced,” he said.
“I like to look at this crisis as an opportunity for our sport and everyone involved in it to realise it is in danger and to work together to go forward.
“Cycling has a future. This is not the first time cycling has reached a crossroads or that it has had to begin anew.
“When I took over [as president] in 2005 I made the fight against doping my priority. I acknowledged cycling had a culture of doping. Cycling has come a long way. I have no intention of resigning as president of the UCI,” Pat McQuaid said.
“I’m sorry that we couldn’t catch every damn one of them red-handed and throw them out of the sport at the time.”
Lance Armstrong, 41, received a life ban from USADA for what the organisation called “the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programme that sport has ever seen”.
The American, who overcame cancer to return to professional cycling, won the Tour de France in seven successive years from 1999 to 2005.
He has always denied doping but chose not to fight the charges filed against him.
USADA released a 1,000-page report earlier this month which included sworn testimony from 26 people, including 15 riders with knowledge of the US Postal Service Team and the doping activities of its members.
USADA praised the “courage” shown by the riders in coming forward and breaking the sport’s “code of silence”.
Lance Armstrong, who retired in 2005 but returned in 2009 before retiring for good two years later, has not commented on the details of USADA’s report. His lawyer Tim Herman, however, has described it as a “one-sided hatchet job”.
Pat McQuaid said he was “sickened” by what he read in the USADA report, singling out the testimony of Lance Armstrong’s former team-mate David Zabriskie.
“The story he told of how he was coerced and to some extent forced into doping is just mind-boggling,” he said.
“It is very difficult to accept and understand that that went on.
“But cycling has changed a lot since then. What was available to the UCI then was much more limited compared to what is available now. If we had then what we have now, this sort of thing would not have gone on.”
Pat McQuaid was quizzed over the $100,000 donation made by Armstrong to the UCI in 2002, one year after the American cyclist had had a suspicious test for EPO at the 2001 Tour of Switzerland.
The management committee of the UCI will meet on Friday to discuss whether to reallocate Lance Armstrong’s Tour de France titles and prize money.
US President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney are set to meet in their third and final debate ahead of 6 November’s presidential election – focusing on foreign policy.
Libya and Iran will likely feature, as well as terrorism, a rising China and the wars in Afghanistan and Syria.
The 90-minute televised event in Boca Raton, Florida will be their last head-to-head clash before the election and is expected to draw 60 million viewers.
An NBC poll on Sunday put the men in a dead heat, each with 47% support.
Monday’s debate at Lynn University will begin at 21:00 EDT and see the candidates seated at desks in a contest moderated by CBS News’ veteran anchorman Bob Schieffer.
Barack Obama will be aiming to stress his commander-in-chief credentials as the man who neutralized Osama Bin Laden and ended the Iraq war, analysts say: He will be trying to portray Mitt Romney as lacking the experience to steer the nation through a crisis.
For his part, Mitt Romney is expected to push his campaign’s position that US foreign policy is “unravelling before our very eyes”.
At a confrontational second debate in New York last week, Mitt Romney said the 11 September attack on the US consulate in Benghazi – which killed four Americans including the US ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens – and wider anti-American violence in the Middle East were symptomatic of that decline.
The Republican candidate accused Barack Obama of initially downplaying the role of radical Islamists in the Benghazi attack – in order to protect a successful anti-terrorist track record.
Barack Obama countered that he had denounced the killing as “an act of terror”, snapping that Mitt Romney should “check the transcript” rather than trying to score political points from the tragedy.
The former Massachusetts governor has accused the president of not being firm enough in support of America’s principal Middle Eastern ally, Israel.
Barack Obama has a chilly relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and has refused to bow to Israeli pressure to issue ultimatums to Iran over its nuclear programme.
But while the president routinely says a nuclear-armed Iran is unacceptable, he also praises the people of Iran.
On such issues, Mitt Romney has not spelt out what he would do differently – except be tougher. He has raised Iran’s quest for nuclear weapons – which Tehran denies – as evidence of President Barack Obama’s lack of leadership.
During the weekend, reports surfaced that the White House was open to one-on-one talks with Iran – but that there were no talks planned.
Mitt Romney will likely use the reports to show Barack Obama as weak.
While Barack Obama sees China as a competitor in the global market, Mitt Romney has been more outspoken on the emerging global superpower, saying Beijing cheats by manipulating the value of its currency against the US dollar – and that he will crack down.
But the millionaire businessman has also stumbled on international issues, managing to upset as many people as he impressed during a tour of Europe and Israel this summer.
Barack Obama spent the weekend preparing for the debate at the presidential retreat in Camp David in Maryland’s Catoctin mountains.
His opponent acclimatized in Florida with the same intensive preparations that have taken up much of his time this month.
A lackluster performance by Barack Obama in the opening debate in Denver, Colorado, on 3 October gave Mitt Romney a campaign boost, with polls perceiving the challenger as having won the debate by a wide margin.
But in their second face-off in New York last week, a more aggressive Barack Obama buried the memory of a poor first showing as he came out swinging on the economy, tax and foreign policy.
After Monday night’s showdown, both candidates will be returning to the campaign trail for a grueling final two weeks of wooing voters in swing states.
While analysts suggest the contests in some 40 states are as good as over, battles in states like Ohio, Florida and Virginia remain in the balance – and the key issues for many would-be voters remain the economy and jobs.
Much as Monday’s debate is about foreign policy, the candidates will use any opportunity to highlight the strengths of their economic policies, analysts say.
A group of leftists in China have written an open letter asking parliament not to expel disgraced leader Bo Xilai.
The letter, signed by more than 300 academics and former officials, was carried on the left-wing Chinese-language website Red China.
It said the move was legally questionable and politically motivated.
China’s leftists are a small but vocal group to whom Bo Xilai’s populist policies appealed.
Expulsion from parliament would remove Bo Xilai’s immunity, meaning he could be prosecuted over the scandal that has seen his wife Gu Kailai jailed.
Gu Kailai was given a suspended death sentence earlier this year over the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood.
Bo Xilai’s former police chief and right-hand man Wang Lijun has also been jailed in connection with the scandal.
More than 300 academics and former party officials signed the letter in support of the former Chongqing Communist Party leader.
“What is the reason provided for expelling Bo Xilai? Please investigate the facts and the evidence,” the letter said.
“Please announce to the people evidence that Bo Xilai will be able to defend himself in accordance with the law.”
Those who signed include Li Chengrui, former director of the National Bureau of Statistics, a law professor at Peking University, local legislators, members of the now-closed online leftist forum Utopia, as well as a rights activist in Zhejiang.
Many Chinese internet users cannot access the Red China website, which has supported Bo Xilai, and the letter so far does not appear to have been reported in state media.
But the letter exposes the deep divisions that continue to exist within the party over the Bo Xilai affair.
Bo Xilai’s flamboyant populist style – including the promotion of old party songs and his policies for state-led growth – pitted him against reformist colleagues.
He has not been seen in public since mid-March, shortly after the scandal erupted and it was announced he was under investigation.
Bo Xilai was suspended from his party posts in April and expelled from the Communist Party in September. State media says he faces charges related to corruption, abuse of power and bribe-taking.
His wife Gu Kailai was convicted of killing Neil Heywood after a multi-million dollar business deal turned sour.
But supporters maintain that Bo Xilai’s enemies have used this scandal to end his career for political reasons.
Bo Xilai, 63, had been a prime candidate for a top post in the leadership handover set for next month before the scandal broke.
Donald Trump announced today that he has a gigantic bombshell about President Barack Obama that he will reveal on Wednesday.
Donald Trump told Fox & Friends this morning that he had “something very, very big concerning the president of the United States”.
“It’s going to be very big. I know one thing- you will cover it in a very big fashion,” he added.
Donald Trump wasn’t giving away any clues, however, but only went on to say that it could “possibly” play a role in the election.
The billionaire said he is waiting to Tweet the “large, bordering on gigantic <<news>> sometime probably Wednesday”.
Donald Trump has been one of the most outspoken critics of President Barack Obama and has also threatened to run against him.
He has also toured New Hampshire and said very clearly that he was seriously contemplating a presidential run.
Later he became something of a political touchstone for the various Republican candidates and eventually endorsed Mitt Romney.
Donald Trump has been extremely vocal as a so-called birther conspiracy theorist, claiming that Barack Obama was born outside of the United States making him unable to run for President.
He believes that his Hawaiian birth certificate is fake or non-existent.
In April 2011, Donald Trump announced that he paid to have a team of investigators to Hawaii to truly delve into the issue.
In response, Barack Obama released the long form edition of his birth certificate after spending years refusing to do so.
“Normally, I would not comment on something like this…I’ve got other things to do,” Barack Obama said at the time.
This is the second time in as many months that Donald Trump has said that he has a big surprise that would be damaging to the President, though the last time he said so – in the days leading up to the Republican National Convention – nothing came of it.
Donald Trump’s announcement comes the same day as another surprise: a mysterious website called “The October Surprise” says that it will release documents at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.
Very little is known about the creators of the site, the type of documents that they are referring to, or even their intended target.
The Twitter bio for the site simply reads: “One of your presidential candidates isn’t being honest with you. Stay tuned to find out which one it is.”
The big reveal will take place just hours before the third and final debate which is dedicated to foreign policy. As a result, spectators believe that the documents- which allegedly are muzzed and used as the picture on The October surprise sites- relate to a foreign issue.
“We can’t predict media/campaign reaction, but the content is irrefutable,” the creators wrote to one Twitter inquiry.
Sensing a playful competition between the two reveals, The October Surprise tweeted at Donald Trump, saying that they beat him by making a big announcement. There is no telling if the two announcements are related in any way.
While The October Surprise is keeping both candidates in the dark, Donald Trump was not as impartial.
The billionaire businessman-turned-reality star and Barack Obama have a barbed relationship on both sides. Donald Trump repeatedly called Barack Obama “the worst president ever”, and Obama referred to Trump as a “carnival barker” once he released the long form birth certificate.
Barack Obama also spent a portion of his speech at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner in April 2011 taking jabs at Donald Trump.
“Now, I know that he’s taken some flak lately, but no one is happier, no one is prouder to put this birth certificate matter to rest than the Donald,” Barack Obama said in the speech.
“And that’s because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter – like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?”
Over the past year, Donald Trump’s birther rhetoric has died down significantly and he has focused his attention to the Republican primary race, eventually supporting Mitt Romney’s bid.
Though his endorsement came in May, the latest endorsement from the Trump clan came just three days ago. Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka is married to Jared Kushner, the owner of The New York Observer. While there was no mention of the paper’s ties to the real estate mogul, it did surprise some to see the paper reverse it’s 2008 endorsement of Barack Obama and come out in favor of Mitt Romney just three days ago.
The world’s oldest undeciphered writing system, which has so far defied attempts to uncover its 5,000-year-old secrets, could be about to be decoded by Oxford University academics.
This international research project is already casting light on a lost bronze age middle eastern society where enslaved workers lived on rations close to the starvation level.
“I think we are finally on the point of making a breakthrough,” says Jacob Dahl, fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford and director of the Ancient World Research Cluster.
Dr. Jacob Dahl’s secret weapon is being able to see this writing more clearly than ever before.
In a room high up in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, above the Egyptian mummies and fragments of early civilizations, a big black dome is clicking away and flashing out light.
This device, part sci-fi, part-DIY, is providing the most detailed and high quality images ever taken of these elusive symbols cut into clay tablets. This is Indiana Jones with software.
It’s being used to help decode a writing system called proto-Elamite, used between around 3200 BC and 2900 BC in a region now in the south west of modern Iran.
And the Oxford team think that they could be on the brink of understanding this last great remaining cache of undeciphered texts from the ancient world.
Dr. Jacob Dahl, from the Oriental Studies Faculty, shipped his image-making device on the Eurostar to the Louvre Museum in Paris, which holds the most important collection of this writing.
The clay tablets were put inside this machine, the Reflectance Transformation Imaging System, which uses a combination of 76 separate photographic lights and computer processing to capture every groove and notch on the surface of the clay tablets.
It allows a virtual image to be turned around, as though being held up to the light at every possible angle.
These images will be publicly available online, with the aim of using a kind of academic crowdsourcing.
He says it’s misleading to think that codebreaking is about some lonely genius suddenly understanding the meaning of a word. What works more often is patient teamwork and the sharing of theories. Putting the images online should accelerate this process.
But this is painstaking work. So far Dr. Jacob Dahl has deciphered 1,200 separate signs, but he says that after more than 10 years study much remains unknown, even such basic words as “cow” or “cattle”.
He admits to being “bitten” by this challenge.
“It’s an unknown, uncharted territory of human history,” he says.
But why has this writing proved so difficult to interpret?
Dr. Jacob Dahl suspects he might have part of the answer. He’s discovered that the original texts seem to contain many mistakes – and this makes it extremely tricky for anyone trying to find consistent patterns.
He believes this was not just a case of the scribes having a bad day at the office. There seems to have been an unusual absence of scholarship, with no evidence of any lists of symbols or learning exercises for scribes to preserve the accuracy of the writing.
The world’s oldest undeciphered writing system could be about to be decoded by Oxford University academics
This first case of educational underinvestment proved fatal for the writing system, which was corrupted and then completely disappeared after only a couple of hundred years.
“It’s an early example of a technology being lost,” he says.
“The lack of a scholarly tradition meant that a lot of mistakes were made and the writing system may eventually have become useless.”
Making it even harder to decode is the fact that it’s unlike any other ancient writing style. There are no bi-lingual texts and few helpful overlaps to provide a key to these otherwise arbitrary looking dashes and circles and symbols.
This is a writing system – and not a spoken language – so there’s no way of knowing how words sounded, which might have provided some phonetic clues.
Dr. Jacob Dahl says that one of the really important historical significances of this proto-Elamite writing is that it was the first ever recorded case of one society adopting writing from another neighboring group.
But infuriatingly for the codebreakers, when these proto-Elamites borrowed the concept of writing from the Mesopotamians, they made up an entirely different set of symbols.
Why they should make the intellectual leap to embrace writing and then at the same time re-invent it in a different local form remains a puzzle.
But it provides a fascinating snapshot of how ideas can both spread and change.
In terms of written history, this is the very remote past. But there is also something very direct and almost intimate about it too.
You can see fingernail marks in the clay. These neat little symbols and drawings are clearly the work of an intelligent mind.
These were among the first attempts by our human ancestors to try to make a permanent record of their surroundings. What we’re doing now – my writing and your reading – is a direct continuation.
But there are glimpses of their lives to suggest that these were tough times. It wasn’t so much a land of milk and honey, but porridge and weak beer.
Even without knowing all the symbols, Dr. Jacob Dahl says it’s possible to work out the context of many of the messages on these tablets.
The numbering system is also understood, making it possible to see that much of this information is about accounts of the ownership and yields from land and people. They are about property and status, not poetry.
This was a simple agricultural society, with a ruling household. Below them was a tier of powerful middle-ranking figures and further below were the majority of workers, who were treated like “cattle with names”.
Their rulers have titles or names which reflect this status – the equivalent of being called “Mr. One Hundred”, he says – to show the number of people below him.
It’s possible to work out the rations given to these farm laborers.
Dr. Jacob Dahl says they had a diet of barley, which might have been crushed into a form of porridge, and they drank weak beer.
The amount of food received by these farm workers hovered barely above the starvation level.
However the higher status people might have enjoyed yoghurt, cheese and honey. They also kept goats, sheep and cattle.
For the “upper echelons, life expectancy for some might have been as long as now”, he says. For the poor, he says it might have been as low as in today’s poorest countries.
The tablets also have surprises. Even though there are plenty of pictures of animals and mythical creatures, Dr. Jacob Dahl says there are no representations of the human form of any kind. Not even a hand or an eye.
Was this some kind of cultural or religious taboo?
Dr.Jacob Dahl remains passionate about what this work says about such societies, digging into the deepest roots of civilization. This is about where so much begins. For instance, proto-Elamite was the first writing ever to use syllables.
If Macbeth talked about the “last syllable of recorded time”, the proto-Elamites were there for the first.
And with sufficient support, Dr. Jacob Dahl says that within two years this last great lost writing could be fully understood.
Tablet technology:
• Proto-Elamite is the name given to a writing system developed in an area that is now in south-western Iran
• It was adopted about 3200 BC and was borrowed from neighboring Mesopotamia
• It was written from right to left in wet clay tablets
• There are more than a thousand surviving tablets in this writing
• The biggest group of such texts was collected by 19th Century French archaeologists and brought back to the Louvre
• While other ancient writing, such as Egyptian hieroglyphics, Sumerian and Mesopotamian, have been deciphered – attempts with proto-Elamite have proved unsuccessful
International media watchdog Committee to Protect Journalists has accused Turkey of waging “one of the world’s biggest anti-press campaigns in recent history”.
The CPJ says it has identified 61 journalists imprisoned because of their work – more than in any other country in the world.
Those detained face charges including terrorism and denigrating Turkishness.
Turkey claims most of the detainees are being held for crimes that have nothing to do with journalism.
It described that CPJ’s claims as exaggerated.
But the organization’s director, Joel Simon, said Turkey’s tendency to equate critical journalism with terrorism was not justified by its security concerns.
About 70% of Turkish journalists being held are Kurdish, an ethnic minority which has been seeking self-rule in areas of the south and east of the country.
“Turkish authorities conflate support for the Kurdish cause with terrorism itself,” the CPJ says.
More than 30,000 people have been killed in a 30-year conflict between the PKK rebels and the Turkish state.
The CPJ also warned that the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan used various forms of pressure to engender a culture of self-censorship in the press.
It said that Recep Tayyip Erdogan has publicly deprecated journalists, urged media outlets to discipline or fire critical staff members, and filed numerous high-profile defamation lawsuits.
Among the cases highlighted in the report are those of two prominent investigative reporters, Ahmet Sık and Nedim Sener, who were detained for more than year while on trial, accused of involvement in a plot against the government.
The two journalists told the CPJ they had both published or were writing books about sensitive topics, including the murder of the prominent journalist Hrant Dink.
But they have denied the charges that they were aiding the Ergenekon, a secret organization led by senior Turkish military officers, which has been accused of trying to overthrow the government.
Fidel Castro has written a strongly-worded article condemning persistent rumors that he is on his death bed.
The 86-year-old attacked international media “lies”, and published photos of himself in Cuba’s state media.
Fidel Castro said he was in good health, and could not even remember the last time he had a headache.
Venezuelan politician Elias Jaua said on Sunday he had a five-hour meeting with Fidel Castro the previous day.
Elias Jaua presented a photo of the encounter, and said the former Cuban leader was “very well, very lucid”.
The last images of Fidel Castro to be made public had been from March, when the Cuban ex-leader briefly met Pope Benedict XVI during the pontiff’s visit to the Communist island.
Elias Jaua presented a photo of the encounter with Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro’s long absence from the public stage had fuelled rumors on social media sites that his health had deteriorated, or that he may even have died.
“Although a lot of people in the world are taken in by the organs of information, almost all of which are in the hands of the privileged and the rich that publish these stupidities, people are increasingly believing less and less in them,” Fidel Castro said in his article.
He went on to say that he was keeping himself busy writing and studying, but had decided to step back from public life “because it certainly is not my role to occupy the pages of our newspaper”.
Fidel Castro finished off by saying: “I don’t even remember what a headache is. To show what liars they are, I’m offering these photos to accompany this article.”
A series of photos, taken by his son Alex, show him outside wearing a cowboy hat and a checked shirt. In some photos, he is reading Friday’s copy of the Communist Party newspaper Granma.
Fidel Castro led Cuba after the revolution in 1959, first as prime minister (1959-1976) and later as president.
In 2006, surgery took Fidel Castro out of public view. His brother Raul became acting president.
In February 2008, Fidel Castro officially handed over power to Raul who has been leading the country since then.
Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore divorce has reportedly turned nasty.
Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher separated last November after six years of marriage following the actor’s affair with 22-year-old San Diego-based administrative assistant Sara Leal.
They are now said to be locked in a bitter battle over their enormous fortune.
A source told the New York Post: “[They] are trying to negotiate a settlement out of court and out of the public eye. They still haven’t reached an agreement over money, because Ashton earned substantially more during the final years of their marriage, but he doesn’t want to pay a large settlement.”
Ashton Kutcher – who is currently the highest paid star on TV and earns $690,000 per episode and is estimated to have banked $23 million since taking over the sitcom from Charlie Sheen – is worth $136 million, while Demi Moore, 49, is worth $147 million.
Another source close to the pair said: “The discussion could boil over into a public court battle.”
Ashton Kutcher, 34, was previously said to be refusing to budge on the financial terms of their separation and how they should divide their assets.
A source said the actor is “so cheap” and is refusing to sign off on the paperwork so they can finally go their separate ways.
Ashton Kutcher has already moved on from the actress and is reportedly living with his new girlfriend Mila Kunis, whom he has known for 14 years as they previously starred in the hit comedy series That 70s Show together.
Kim Kardashian turned 32 on Sunday and seemed completely unfazed about a birthday she previously admitted to dreading as she strolled round Venice with lover Kanye West.
Kanye West surprised Kim Kardashian with the Italy trip a few days before her birthday and the pair have spent in Rome, and now Venice, where they stayed at the plush Hotel Cipriani.
Kim Kardashian looked effortlessly stylish in a clinging chocolate-colored dress, elegant floor-length overcoat and peep-toe ankle boots. She wore her brunette hair loose and carried a camera over her shoulder.
Kanye West looked sharp all in black but was wearing exactly the same outfit he wore out for dinner in Rome a few nights before.
Kim Kardashian told E! News in the run up to the big day: “I’m not so into a 32nd birthday. Doesn’t do it for me, so I don’t really care.”
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West in Venice on her birthday
But she’s clearly changed her mind, on Friday Kim Kardashian, who splashed out on a $720,000 luxury Lamborghini for Kanye West’s birthday in June, Tweeted: “Italy is so beautiful! Best Birthday ever!!!”
And it might get even better. There has been heavy speculation that Kanye West, 35, is going to propose any minute even though Kim Kardashian’s divorce from Kris Humphries is not yet finalized.
American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, who is also the executive producer on Kim Kardashian’s show Keeping Up With the Kardashians, has predicted that Kanye West will pop the question before the holiday is over.
A source close to the couple also told RadarOnline that Kanye West has been deliberating over a ring for some time.
The insider said: “It’s only a matter of time before Kanye pops the question.”
Fidel Castro has appeared in public for the first time in months, refuting persistent rumors that he was gravely ill.
Staff at a top hotel in the capital, Havana, said Cuban revolutionary leader had dropped off a Venezuelan politician on Saturday.
Venezuelan ex-Vice-President Elias Jaua confirmed he had had a five-hour meeting with Fidel Castro, who is 86.
Speculation about Fidel Castro’s health has been constant since his brother Raul took over the presidency in 2006.
Elias Jaua told journalists gathered at the Hotel Nacional in Havana that Fidel Castro was “very well, very lucid”.
The Venezuelan politician, who served as vice-president until elections earlier this month, also showed a photograph of the encounter.
The last images of Fidel Castro to be made public had been from March, when the Cuban ex-leader briefly met Pope Benedict XVI during the pontiff’s visit to the Communist island.
Fidel Castro’s long absence from the public stage had fuelled rumors on social media sites that his health had deteriorated, or that he may even have died.
But Elias Jaua said the Cuban ex-leader was on good form.
“We talked for five hours about agriculture, history, international politics and, well, Fidel is doing fine,” he said.
Elias Jaua said Fidel Castro accompanied him to the Hotel Nacional after the meeting: “He had the courtesy of bringing me to the hotel.”
Hotel Director Antonio Martinez said he had found Fidel Castro “very happy, constantly smiling and talking about a lot of things”.
However, Fidel Castro did not personally cast his vote in the local elections which were held in Cuba on Sunday. Instead, he filled in his ballot paper at home, and it was delivered to a polling station on his behalf.
Fidel Castro led Cuba after the revolution in 1959, first as prime minister (1959-1976) and later as president.
In 2006, surgery took Fidel Castro out of public view. His brother Raul became acting president.
In February 2008, Fidel Castro officially handed over power to Raul who has been leading the country since then.
• 2 free-range medium egg whites, at room temperature
• groundnut oil for oiling
To serve
• 100 g/3 1/2oz blackberries
• 60 g/2 1/2oz raspberries
• 80 g/3oz blueberries
• 4 sprigs mint (optional)
Oat pancakes with fruit and vanilla yogurt
METHOD
1. Core the apple, leaving the skin on, and cut into eight segments. Place it in a heavy-based saucepan with the cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves, nutmeg and pomegranate and grape juices and cook over a medium heat for 3 minutes. Remove the apple with a slotted spoon and reserve. Continue to boil the juice and spices for 12-15 minutes until reduced to a thick syrup, then pass through a fine sieve to remove the spices. Return the syrup to the pan with four of the apple pieces. Cook over a medium heat for 2 minutes. Using a hand-held blender, blitz to a smooth purée. Set aside.
2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C/160C fan/Gas 4. Sprinkle the oats over a non-stick baking sheet and toast in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. (Alternatively toast the oats in a dry pan on the hob for 3-4 minutes or until lightly golden).
3. In a small bowl, mix the yogurt and vanilla paste or extract together.
4. Place the oats, rice flour, baking powder, apple juice and cinnamon in a food processor and blitz to a smooth paste. Transfer to a mixing bowl. In a clean, grease-free bowl, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Using a large metal spoon, carefully fold the egg whites into the pancake paste, keeping as much air in the mixture as possible.
5. Heat a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Brush with oil and drop a large tablespoonful of batter per pancake into the pan. This will make pancakes about 6cm across, so you can make four at a time. Cook for about 2 minutes, until small bubbles appear on the surface, then turn and cook for a further 2–3 minutes until golden. Transfer to a warmed plate and cover with kitchen paper while you make another batch. You should have enough batter for 8-10 pancakes.
6. Either stack the pancakes together on a serving dish or arrange two on each plate. Pour over the pomegranate and apple purée and top with the vanilla yogurt. Spoon over the reserved poached apple segments and sprinkle the blackberries, raspberries and blueberries around the plate. Scatter over the toasted oats and decorate with the mint, if liked.
Preparation time 15 minutes. Cooking time 25 minutes.
This car is made of 17 naked men and women who have been painted and positioned to create this bizarre work of art.
Body-painting artist Emma Hack etched colors and markings on her models and arranged their arms, legs and heads into the shape of a small hatchback.
She designed the car down to the smallest detail including alloy wheels and a number plate by covering each model in shades of blue, white, black and silver paint.
Emma Hack even made it look like the car had been pranged in a small accident by exposing the “engine” and leaving the front “bumper” hanging off.
Creative Emma Hack – who painted singer Gotye in his video for number one hit single Somebody That I Used To Know – spent 18 hours creating the car.
It was produced by advertising agency Clemenger BBDO for a road safety campaign by the Motor Accident Commission of South Australia.
Emma Hack said: “The inspiration of the design was a low-level speeding crash. The front of the car is quite affected but the back is still in slick condition. We had to make the car anonymous and generic looking.”
Creative Emma Hack spent 18 hours creating the car
She started with a photo of a crashed car and planned her project by sketching the position of bodies over the top of it.
Emma Hack said: “Some were really obvious, such as the tyres, face as side mirror and the front bumper as the arm. Then I started piling up the bodies to create shape.
“At first we thought we would need 15 people to create the car but it turned out to be 17. That is five women and 12 men.
“I wanted an equal number of men and women but needed the strength and width from men to make the structure work. They were wearing g-strings.”
She added: “Technically, it’s probably the most difficult job I have ever done. It’s quite magical how it’s turned out.”
Emma Hack, from Adelaide, South Australia, used a make-up based paint with a brush and sponge to give her work a “genuine painted artwork feel”.
The job was completed in five stages, starting with the base colors and gradually adding more detail. Each time the models had to get back into exactly the same position, while being careful their paint did not smudge.
At least 22 people have died in days of fighting in Libya’s town of Bani Walid, state news agency Lana says.
It says that some 200 people were injured in the clashes between pro-government militia and gunmen in former leader Muammar Gaddafi’s bastion.
Libya’s new government has struggled to stamp its authority on a country awash with weapons.
Meanwhile, confusion remains about reports that Moussa Ibrahim, Col. Muammar Gaddafi’s ex-spokesman, has been captured.
The prime minister’s office said on Saturday that government forces had arrested Moussa Ibrahim south of Tripoli.
But Nasser al-Manaa, the prime minister’s spokesman, later said there was no proof of the capture.
A recording purportedly by Moussa Ibrahim later appeared on the internet denying the news.
And on Sunday, Deputy Prime Minister Mustafa Abu Shagur said that the announcement about Moussa Ibrahim’s arrest had been made without confirmation of the news.
Pro-government militia, many of whom are from the rival town of Misrata, have been shelling Bani Walid for several days.
The government claims that Bani Walid is harboring a number of Gaddafi loyalists – a claim denied by the militia in the town, about 140 km (90 miles) south-east of Tripoli,
In addition, Misrata fighters are reportedly seeking to capture the men who allegedly kidnapped and tortured the man credited with capturing Muammar Gaddafi last October.
Omran Ben Shaaban, a fighter from Misrata, died last month after allegedly spending two months in detention in Bani Walid. His death enraged Misrata’s militia.
On Sunday, Bani Walid militia leader Abdelkarim Ghomaid said that “the attacks are continuing”.
“The shelling is coming from all sides,” he was quoted as saying by Reuters.
The fighting comes around the first anniversary of Gaddafi’s capture in Sirte, on 20 October 2011. He was later killed near his hometown.
Interim leader Mohammed Magarief has admitted that one year on, the country has not yet been fully liberated.
McDonald’s is revealing how a potato makes it from the farm to the fast food joint.
A new video chronicles the plants’ journey to become the tasty fried strip and aims to quash the rumors circulating about where the restaurant chain actually gets its food.
Scott Gibson, who works for McDonald’s Canada, stepped forward to explain the process and set the story straight.
“We’ve received so many questions about our french fries we thought we’d take you on a behind the scenes tour from the farm all the way to the fryer,” Scott Gibson, who works as a manager in the supply chain of McDonald’s Canada, said.
In the five minute video on YouTube, Scott Gibson explained the process and he answered questions from customers.
The first question asked was about where the potatoes actually came from and further inquired if the tasty fries were even made from real potatoes.
Scott Gibson enlisted the help of farmer Angelo Levesque, from Levesque Family Farm, a potato supplier for McDonald’s Canada.
Cameras accompanied Angelo Levesque as his team harvested the potatoes, sorted them and then shipped them to a processing plant in nearby Grand Falls, New Brunswick.
“The process of producing a Mac fry is relatively simple,” said Mario Dupuis, the production manager at the McCain Processing Plant, where the potatoes are processed.
McDonald’s is revealing how a potato makes it from the farm to the fast food joint
Upon arrival from the farm, the potatoes are received and washed to remove dirt and rocks. They are then peeled and pushed through a cutting machine where they become the standard strips.
The match-stick like strips are then pushed through a blancher, that removes the natural sugar from the fries that prevents a variation in color once they are cooked.
The strips are treated with a solution, so they retain their even coat, and lastly an ingredient is added to prevent the fries from greying during the process.
They are dried and then fried for 45 to 60 seconds.
Once cooked, they are frozen, packaged and sent to your local McDonald’s where they are fried until tasty perfection and served.
The French translation of British erotic novel Fifty Shades Of Grey was only released on Wednesday, but has already become the fastest selling book in French publishing history.
The astonishing sales figures – of around 75,000 every day – come after the book was panned by French critics as “crass pseudo-porn” that reads like a Mills & Boon novel.
One high-brow reviewer even wrote: “It’s as close to literature as Whiskas cat food is to gastronomy.”
But despite the torrent of critical abuse, E.L James bestseller has now overtaken the Harry Potter novels as France’s favorite book.
French high street giant FNAC said copies of the novel had been “flying of the shelves”.
A spokesman for FNAC – which accounts for around a fifth of all book sales in France – said: “It is amazingly popular. We have never stocked a book that has sold so fast.
“We sold 15,000 copies on the day it was released. In some shops there were just none left.”
But the scathing views of critics from major newspapers and magazines have not matched the huge popularity of France’s latest publishing phenomenon.
Fifty Shades Of Grey has become the fastest selling book in French publishing history
Daily newspaper Le Figaro wrote: “It has no intellectual construction. It is Fifty Shades of Boredom.”
The paper compared the book – first released in the UK in May 2011 – to French classic erotic writing by the Marquis de Sade and Anais Nin’s The Story Of O.
It added: “Alongside them, this is soda-masochism <<lite>>, full of insignificant, consensual and clichéd content.”
Les Inrocks music magazine said: “It is exposes the cultural gulf between the Anglo-Saxon hypocrisy and the old authentic sado-masochism of the French.”
News magazine L’Express wrote: “The female character’s multiple orgasms are laughably unbelievable. This crass, pseudo porn might prove to be a massive boost to the sex toy industry, but it’s got nothing to do with good writing.
“This may be what pleases the British public, who can identify with the character Ana’s conflict between her <<conscience>> and her <<inner goddess>>, but it remains to be seen if the French will regard the book with anything more than curiosity.
“Some couples may say it has helped their sex lives by reading it, but it’s as close to literature as Whiskas cat food is to gastronomy.”
And the 20 Minutes news website added: “It’s a load of Mills & Boon-style rubbish.”
Meanwhile, the French publisher JC Lattes has already ordered 500,000 copies – one of the biggest print runs of any French publishing house in recent years.
It has also become the fastest-selling book of all time, shifting more than five million copies in the UK and 40 million around the world.
Snooki is already back to her pre-pregnancy weight after eight weeks and she has posted a self portrait on her Twitter page.
The Jersey Shore star showcased a tiny waist and enviable legs as she pouted and posed for the camera.
Emphasizing her trim figure by putting her hand on her waist, Snooki, 24, already appears to have a figure most new mothers can only dream of.
And becoming a mum to baby son Lorenzo doesn’t seem to have held the star – real name Nicole Polizzi – back in the style stakes.
Snooki looked sexy and chic in a black military-inspired jacket with shoulder pads, a matching high-waisted miniskirt and a simple white vest.
The diminutive New Jersey resident completed her look with a gold belt, dramatic drop earrings, lashings of gold jewellery and a top knot hairstyle.
Alongside the photo, Snooki wrote: “Buntastic.”
Snooki is already back to her pre-pregnancy weight after eight weeks
Since welcoming her little boy into the world at the end of August, Snooki has made sure to keep her fans constantly updated with her progress when it comes to shedding her baby weight.
And the pint-sized beauty hasn’t been able to hide her delight at being able to fit into her clothes once again.
Snooki recently wrote on her Twitter page: “I fit in my skirts again WAHOOOO.”
Petite Snooki – who is engaged to Lorenzo’s father, Jionni LaValle – gained a healthy 35 lbs during her pregnancy but already looks to have lost most of the weight.
She told People magazine after the birth: “I’m definitely trying to eat healthier – grilled chicken and vegetables – and I can’t really work out for six week, but then I’ll start hard-core training.
“I’ll get a trainer or I’ll try a boot-camp or go back to hot yoga.
“I gained 35 lbs, but I’ve already lost 10. I’ll bounce back.”
Yash Chopra, one of India’s most influential film-makers, has died from dengue fever in Mumbai, aged 80.
Over five decades, Yash Chopra, dubbed the King of Romance, gave Bollywood some of its biggest blockbusters.
His film studios Yash Raj Films helped establish some of Indian cinema’s biggest names, including Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan.
In his tribute, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described Yash Chopra as an “icon of Indian cinema”.
Yash Chopra will be remembered as the man behind some of Bollywood’s most watched films, known not just in India but around the world.
He died in Mumbai’s Lilavati Hospital on Sunday and was also suffering kidney ailments, according to Dr. Prakash Jiyavani.
“It is sad news that Yash is no more among us,” close family friend Amit Khanna, chairman of Reliance Big Entertainment, told AFP news agency.
Singer Lata Mangeshkar said: “He made me sing in all his films. He was a jovial person… Even when he was angry, he simply kept quiet.”
Yash Chopra, one of India’s most influential film-makers, has died from dengue fever in Mumbai, aged 80
In his tribute, Prime Minister Singh said Yash Chopra had entertained many generations “with his rare creativity”.
“His flourish to essay romance and social drama was unmatched,” the prime minister said, adding that the filmmaker had established the international reputation of Indian cinema.
Yash Chopra started his film career working for his brother before establishing Yash Raj Films and going on to produce more than 40 movies – 12 of them as director.
Yash Chopra was behind major hits including Deewar (Wall), Dil To Pagal Hai (Heart Is Mad) and Chandni (Moonlight).
On his birthday last month, he said Jab Tak Hai (Till I am Alive) – being released next month – would be his last movie as a director.
Former Senator George McGovern, who stood as the Democratic presidential candidate against Richard Nixon in 1972, has died, aged 90.
George McGovern was in a hospice in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and slipped out of consciousness three days ago.
A liberal standard-bearer, George McGovern was a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War, but lost to Richard Nixon by a landslide.
He was first elected to Congress in 1956. During the World War II, he served as a US Air Force pilot.
“We are blessed to know that our father lived a long, successful and productive life advocating for the hungry, being a progressive voice for millions and fighting for peace,” said a statement released by his family.
George McGovern was admitted to hospice care earlier this month with a “combination of medical conditions, due to age, that have worsened over recent months”, his family said at the time.
His bid for the presidency in 1972 was marred by what later emerged as a dirty-tricks campaign by President Richard Nixon’s re-election committee, including the break-in at Democratic National Headquarters in the Watergate Hotel, in Washington DC.
Former Senator George McGovern, who stood as the Democratic presidential candidate against Richard Nixon in 1972, has died, aged 90
Richard Nixon, who already enjoyed an advantage throughout the campaign, won a second term in one of the biggest landslides in modern US history.
George McGovern had made two other brief attempts to obtain the Democratic nomination in 1968 and 1984.
At the time, he was seen as a leading voice of the Democratic party’s liberal wing.
After four years in the House of Representatives, he was one of the senators for South Dakota from 1963 to 1981.
George McGovern helped create the Food for Peace program, which sent US food overseas as a form of international aid, and became its first director in 1961.
Despite his failure to unseat Richard Nixon, he left an enduring mark on US politics: among his campaign workers in 1972 was a young Bill Clinton.
“I believe no other presidential candidate ever has had such an enduring impact in defeat,” Bill Clinton said in 2006 at the dedication of George McGovern’s library in Mitchell, South Dakota, according to the Associated Press.
“Senator, the fires you lit then still burn in countless hearts.”
Clashes have erupted outside Lebanese government offices in Beirut after thousands attended the funeral of security chief Wissam al-Hassan who was killed by a car bomb on Friday.
A group of protesters tried to storm the HQ, after a new call for Prime Minister Najib Mikat to resign. Police fired warning shots and tear gas.
Friday’s attack also killed one of Wissam Hassan’s bodyguards and a woman nearby.
Opposition figures have blamed neighboring Syria for the attack.
Many have protested against Syria and its Lebanese allies amid fears the Syrian conflict could spill over.
The confrontation outside the prime minister’s office lasted for a few minutes.
Two former prime ministers – Saad Hariri and Fouad Siniora – intervened to urge their supporters to remain calm.
Lebanon’s religious communities are divided between those who support the Syrian government – including many Shias – and those mostly from the Sunni community who back the rebels.
Lebanon’s Shia militant group Hezbollah – a close ally of the Syrian government – condemned the bombing.
Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi called it a “cowardly, terrorist act”. He said such incidents were “unjustifiable wherever they occur”.
Syrian troops withdrew from Lebanon in 2005 after a 29-year-long presence, in the wake of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Wissam Hassan, 47, was close to the 14 March opposition and the Hariri family, part of the anti-Syrian opposition.
President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Mikati – who has faced calls for his resignation over the killing – greeted Wissam Hassan’s coffin at an earlier ceremony at the headquarters of the Internal Security Forces (ISF).
Wissam Hassan headed up the intelligence branch of the ISF. The car bomb exploded close to its offices in the east Beirut neighborhood of Ashrafiya.
He was to be buried alongside former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Wissam Hassan led an investigation into Rafik Hariri’s assassination, which implicated Damascus.
He also recently organized the arrest of a former minister accused of planning a Syrian-sponsored bombing campaign in Lebanon.
A day after the bombing, Prime Minister Najib Mikati suggested the attack had been connected with that case.
Many mourners at Sunday’s funeral waved the light blue flag of the Sunni-based opposition Future Party, while others carried Lebanon’s national flag.
Many people described Wissam Hassan as a martyr who was killed trying to protect his country.
“We came for Lebanon’s future to show that we will not be scared,” said one of the mourners.
The prime minister offered to stand down as prime minister on Saturday, but President Michel Suleiman asked him to stay on in the national interest.
A prominent Lebanese opposition MP, Ahmad Fatfat, said the conflict could escalate into civil war.
“What Mr. Assad is trying to do now is transfer his problem to all the countries around Syria – to Turkey, to Lebanon, to Iraq, to Jordan, and Lebanon is the most fragile in this story,” he said.
“And maybe Assad will do what he can to transfer Lebanon into a hell situation so he can think later on that what is going on is a general war in the Middle East and not a revolution in Syria.”
Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi said he hoped the situation in Lebanon would be settled, with calm returning.
“It’s very delicate what’s going on and I hope the Lebanese, as usual, will be able to get through this difficult time,” Nabil al-Arabi said.
Wissam al-Hassan
• Head of the intelligence branch of Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces
• Sunni Muslim born in the northern city of Tripoli in 1965
• Responsible for the security of former PM Rafik Hariri
• Viewed as being close to the Hariris and the opposition 14 March coalition
• Responsible for the August arrest of pro-Syrian politician and ex-information minister Michel Samaha
