Monday, January 30, 2012

Mid Day International News

Mid Day International News

French minister can't keep hands off Shakira at awards ceremony

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Shakira became the focus of unwanted attention of a French minister as he pinned a medal on her chest

After the French culture minister Frederic Mitterand, 64, put the medal in its place, he fiddled with the ribbon and made another grab for the Colombian singer's top before finally holding his hands up, the Mirror reported.

Shakira, however, kept her cool throughout the incident.

The 34-year-old was being rewarded with the medal of knight of the Order of Arts and Letters Cannes, as part of the music world's largest annual trade fair, Midem.

The Order of Arts and Letters Cannes came two months after she released a cover of French song 'Je l'aime mourir'. Past recipients include Tim Burton, Kylie Minogue, George Clooney and Jude Law.

Criminals in jails using Facebook to taunt victims

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In a shocker, nearly 350 criminals in British jails have been found using Facebook with some of them taunting victims and threatening to seek revenge.

All the profiles were closed by Facebook following investigations by prison officials.

In the past two years, nearly 350 people have been caught posting entries on Facebook while serving a sentence; UK Ministry of Justice figures show.

Violent criminals have been using Facebook to taunt victims and their families from jail, it was disclosed yesterday, the Daily Telegraph reported.

It is likely that hundreds more have successfully used the site without authorities being made aware. Inmates are banned from using the internet but access the web through mobile phones smuggled into jails.

Two years ago it emerged that Colin Gunn, one of Britain's most dangerous gangsters was using Facebook to threaten his enemies from a high security prison cell.

"I will be home one day and I can't wait to look into certain people's eyes and see the fear of me being there. It's good to have an outlet to let you know how I am, some of you will be in for a good slagging and some have let me down badly and will be named and shamed....," Gunn had posted. The 44-year-old was jailed in 2006 for the revenge killings of John and Joan Stirland.

Recently a teenager who killed a shopkeeper posted a series of pictures on Facebook showing him making gangster salutes.

"If something is happening which violates our use policy we will be very active and robust in removing it," a Facebook spokesman said.

Singer Deepali Joshi killed in car accident in Kuwait

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Renowned Indian singer Deepali Joshi died in a tragic road accident in Kuwait on her way from the airport to the hotel on Friday night.

According to Kuwait Times, the singer arrived in Kuwait for a show on Saturday, January 28, organised by an exchange Company in cooperation with the Indian embassy to present a 'Patriotic Song Only' music programme' as part of India's 63rd Republic Day celebrations, Gulf News reported.

The tragedy struck the singer and her manager after their arrival from Mumbai when a speeding vehicle hit their car from behind off the Airport Road, wrecking one side and killing Joshi on the spot.

The report said her manager Ishaal Naqvi, who sustained serious injuries in the accident, is battling for his life at Farwaniya Hospital intensive care unit.

The car driver and a companion were also injured in the accident.

"It is a very tragic and unfortunate incident," Indian Ambassador Satish C Mehta told Kuwait Times.

The singer's body will be flown to Mumbai once formalities are completed, said Mehta.

The concert was cancelled as a mark of respect for the popular singer who hails from Dharwad region of Karnataka. She is survived by husband Paresh Shah, a well-known Gujarati music composer, a sister and a brother.

Groomed by Pandit Sunil Borgaonkar, Joshi was recognised by music director Khayyam in the 'Awaz ki Dunia' show.

Inspired by India's legendary singers Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle, Joshi gave countless performances across India and abroad.

Her performances in Baltimore, Washington DC and New York earned her big fame in the US as well. She also brought out numerous music albums and videos, the daily said.

Before leaving for Kuwait, Joshi posted on her Facebook wall, "Off to Kuwait for two concerts � will be back on 29th to perform at Dinnanath, Vile Parle..Gonna be hectic � but I am excited."


British police ex-staff faces jail for child porn

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An employee of the British police has admitted in court to have collected over 110,000 child porn images.

Nicholas White, 27, has admitted 20 counts of possessing indecent images and two of possessing extreme images at Cambridge Crown Court, the Daily Mail reported. White, from Royston town in Hertfordshire county, had been employed since June 2008 and resigned after his arrest in last February. He worked as a communications officer employed by Cambridgeshire police.

He has been slapped with charges covering over 110,000 images including photographs and videos of eight-year-olds and extreme pictures of children engaged in sex acts with animals. Nerida Harford-Bell, defending White, asked for a psychiatric report to be compiled before sentencing, as White had a history of self harm.

"He is a very isolated individual who found himself with a growing addiction," she added. Judge Gareth Hawkesworth said: "This report should not be taken as any indication of the likely sentence. "I keep all options, including custody, open." White, whose elderly father attended the hearing, will be sentenced at Cambridge in March.


It's the Queen v/s Mike Tyson

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The Queen takes on boxing legend Mike Tyson -- in a pigeon race dubbed The Flight of the Century

Queen Elizabeth and Mike Tyson are birds of a feather. Her Royal Highness and ex-con and ex-heavyweight boxing champ Iron Mike share a passion for pigeon racing. They've both got birds in the Sun City Million Dollar Pigeon Race in South Africa -- and both would consider the $200,000 (Rs 99 lakh) prize a crowning achievement.


Face off: The Queen's Royal Desire, the only regal bird of the
Queen, will race against Tyson's thoroughbreds for the grand
prize. File Pics/Getty Images

Her Majesty's racing bird Royal Desire will battle Iron Mike's thoroughbred fliers in the race. The regal entry is the sole survivor of six sent to Africa from the Queen's loft near Sandringham, Norfolk. The rest were lost or picked off by birds of prey during training.

Her Majesty's bird will join ex-world heavyweight champ Tyson's hopefuls among 3,479 pigeons being released in Hopetown for the 342-mile race back to Sun City. The race -- the richest and most prestigious in the pigeon world -- draws entries from 37 countries. The Queen is said to be "very keen" on pigeon racing. Tyson claims his love of the birds kept him sane after he quit fighting. He is said to have several birds in the event -- having entered them under the name of an unidentified syndicate.



Oprah Winfrey and Barbara Walters in bidding war for Pippa
Pippa Middleton is caught up in a � 300,000 (Rs 2.32 cr) US TV bidding war for her first interview. Rival chat show heavyweights Barbara Walters and Oprah Winfrey are "pulling out all the stops" to secure her as a guest. They regard Pippa - about to start promoting a new book about how to throw the perfect party - as the biggest prize among their 'dream guests'.

Pilot fired over fears he might copy 9/11

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A Muslim airline pilot who claims his religion cost him his job has told an employment tribunal that his bosses feared he might copy the September 11 attacks. The Heathrow-based pilot, who cannot be named for legal reasons, worked for a well-known British carrier but was judged a security risk after he was arrested over an alleged terror plot.


Tearful: The pilot, who cannot be identified, cried as he told a
tribunal he thought bosses believed he would 'fly planes into
buildings'. Representation pic

According to the airline, he was 'in a position to divert or sabotage an aircraft'. Asked by his barrister what he thought this meant, the pilot, who is British, replied tearfully, "I felt they believed I was going to fly planes into buildings. I believe the basis they had for that was my race and religion, because of the actions of other people of a similar race and religion."

The pilot strongly denies the airline's claim that he was unsuitable to fly because of his links to two alleged extremists suspected of 'planning to use an aircraft as part of a hostile or terrorist act'. Both men were detained under the Terrorism Act. However, charges against one of them were later dropped while the other was cleared by a jury.

The pilot and his brother - an active member of the Islamist extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir -- were also arrested but never charged. During a subsequent investigation by the airline, the pilot was questioned about comments it was claimed he had made on a flight deck in 2005 about the September 11 attacks.

He is alleged to have said that those killed in 2001 were 'not innocent victims'. But he denied making the remark and the matter was not pursued. Despite clearing the pilot of misconduct, the airline's operations manager decided that he might still pose a security risk.

During cross-examination last week, the manager accepted there was nothing in the investigation file to indicate that the pilot would do anything 'hostile' with any aircraft. But when the pilot's barrister, Clive Sheldon QC, asked if the manager thought the pilot might 'fly a plane into a tall building', he replied that it was a possibility. He added: "The possibility is there for anybody if they are that way inclined. It's about having 100 per cent confidence in your pilot."

Cruise victim died after she gave life jacket to old man

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A young Peruvian waitress whose body was recovered from the shipwrecked Costa Concordia off the Tuscan island of Giglio has been hailed a heroine. Erika Fani Soriamolina's body was found by divers on the sixth deck of the vessel wearing the ship's uniform but no life jacket.


Braveheart: Witnesses say they saw Erika Fani Soriamolina
(inset) helping several other passengers aboard the ship.
File pic

Witnesses said Soriamolina had helped dozens of terrified passengers into lifeboats on the night of the disaster before giving the life jacket to an elderly man. A tourism graduate, Soriamolina was working on only her third cruise on the Costa Concordia .

The recovery of the young woman's body ended a desperate search by her parents and sister Madeleine who were among the family members of passengers and crew waiting for news of their loved ones on Giglio.

Toll rises
On Saturday, the body of a woman found several days ago was identified as German passenger Inge Shall.
Seventeen people are now confirmed dead after the cruise ship struck rocks and ran aground with 4,200 passengers and crew on board and more than 15 people are still missing.

Eco concerns
There are fresh concerns on yesterday about a potential environmental disaster after experts discovered the ship had moved 1.4 inches over a six-hour period. Search and salvage operations were suspended after the move was detected while heavy seas and strong winds also made it unsafe to continue operations.

A barge carrying pumping equipment that was attached to the capsized ship was withdrawn on Saturday and it was unclear when operations might resume. One of the scientists monitoring the ship, Professor Riccardo Fanti from the University of Florence, said the ship's latest movement was of serious concern. Until now the ship has been moving 3 to 4 millimetres an hour.

"This is much higher than before," Prof Fanti said. "It is the highest rate we have recorded. We are very concerned about this acceleration." Experts are concerned that the ship may slide off the rock shelf where it is perched into deeper water before salvage teams can recover the 2,400 tonnes of fuel on board and avert an environmental disaster in Giglio. Franco Gabrielli, the head of the Costa Concordia emergency operation, yesterday said it would take "seven to 10 months" to remove the wreckage of the ship.

Cher falls victim to Twitter death hoax

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Cher laughed off rumours of her death and assured fans that she is very much alive and kicking.

False news of the pop star's death hit Twitter on Friday and the prank managed to fool a number of celebrity fans including socialite Kim Kardashian.


Not going anywhere: Pop star Cher laughed off the rumours of
her death and joked that she had a new song titled RIP. File pic

"Did I just hear Cher has passed away? Is this real? Omg (oh my God) .... I hope this is a Twitter joke and not true. I don't see it on the news anywhere. I'm praying its (sic) not true ....," Kardashian tweeted.

The rumours soon reached Cher herself and the singer was so amused by the story, she even joked on the social networking site about writing a song called RIP for her new album.

"Well here I am tweeting from the hereafter! It's very blue up here and thank God they gave me a view of the sea, palm trees and a Balinese house � Lovelies," she said.

"I'm not going anywhere till i finish this f****ng (sic) album! The only rip I know how 2 (sic) do is 'Rip it up! Kick a** and take no prisoners! � Just had great idea .... I'm going to ask (my songwriter) to write a song 4 (sic) album!" she added.

Celebs who 'died'
British singer, Adele, became the latest victim of a death hoax that began trending on Twitter on Saturday. Canadian teen singing sensation Justin Bieber also joined the list of celebrities who have become victims of the latest round of Twitter death hoaxes.
Posted by Harshad at 7:23 AM

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