| Virgin Atlantic staff sacked over Taliban donkey sex e-mail claims Posted: Virgin Atlantic has sacked four airport workers for e-mailing a video said to show a Taliban fighter having sex with a donkey.
They lost their jobs at Gatwick for circulating the footage, which is believed to have been filmed by US special forces in Afghanistan.
The clip has become an internet hit and carries the caption: "What the Taliban do when they are not making improvised explosive devices."
Bosses were alerted when David Armstrong, who works as a turnaround co-ordinator, accidentally sent it to everyone in the company's IT department.
Armstrong and three others were sacked last April for gross misconduct and warned they may have been in breach of the Obscene Publications Act.
But they are claiming they were unfairly dismissed because they say more senior Virgin staff regularly sent pornography to the airline's staff.
A Gatwick source said, "To sack these people was way over the top." A Virgin Atlantic spokeswoman said: "The claimants were dismissed for serious breaches of company IT policy."
A panel chairman is due to view the alleged donkey sex film at an employment tribunal which starts today. 
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| Wills-Kate to get down and dirty in LA Posted: William and Kate are to shun Hollywood's gold-paved streets for a trip to Los Angeles' legendary Skid Row next month, it emerged yesterday.
The downtown district - home to an estimated 8,000 down and outs - is said to be one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods in the US.
Catherine and Prince William wait for the start of the Epsom Derby at Epsom Downs racecourse on June 4 in Epsom, England
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge amid massive security are due to visit a mission at the heart of the four-square-mile makeshift town of tents and cardboard boxes from where Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker, claimed most of his 14 victims.
Media charity expert Mike Raia said, "Supporting inner city outreach causes is one thing but actually setting foot in Skid Row is a very brave move by the young royals. Parts of it are extremely dangerous.
Seeing the army of vagrants and crazies who exist side by side is definitely not for the faint-hearted."
In Britain, William is patron of the homelessness charity Centrepoint and once slept rough in a cardboard box on London's streets to help highlight the care group's work.
Details of the royal couple's LA diary were leaked on American TV news giant CBS's website - and then hastily withdrawn.
Last night, a St James' Palace spokeswoman would only say, "We can't comment on anything about their itinerary in the USA."
Diana factor
Prince William and Kate are to make Kensington Palace, the former home of Diana, Princess of Wales, their official London residence. The couple are expected to move into the Palace within weeks, ahead of their 11-day tour Canada and California from June 30. 
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| Yemen rejoices Prez's departure Posted: Thousands celebrate on the streets of Yemen after Ali Abdullah Saleh flees country to be treated for rocket wounds in Saudi Arabia
Thousands celebrated on the streets of Yemen after the country's authoritarian leader fled the country after an attack on his presidential palace.
Yemenis pray as they celebrate the departure of President Saleh. Women flash the V for victory sign after Saleh left for Saudi Arabia
President Ali Abdullah Saleh flew to Saudi Arabia for urgent treatment after he was hurt in a rocket attack on a mosque in his compound.
Saudi-owned television network Al-Arabiya reported he was was undergoing surgery, but did not say for what.
One of Saleh's allies said the president, in his late 60s, was hit by jagged pieces of wood that splintered from the mosque pulpit when his compound was hit by a rocket on Friday.
In Sanaa, protesters danced, sang and slaughtered cows to celebrate Saleh's departure.
Some soldiers in their military uniforms joined those dancing and singing patriotic songs. Many in the jubilant crowd waved Yemeni flags, joyfully whistling and flashing the V for victory signs.
Women in black veils joined demonstrators carrying banners that hailed Saleh's departure. One read: 'The oppressor is gone, but the people stay.'
In Taiz, Yemen's second largest city, dozens of gunmen attacked the presidential palace, killing four soldiers in an attempt to storm the compound, according to military officials and witnesses.
A Yemeni official said Saleh had left secretly with most of his family. He said he and others had been kept in the dark about the president's plans until after he had left.
Yemen's acting president previously the vice-president who under the constitution replaces Saleh in his absence Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, has taken over.
He is to meet members of the military and Saleh's sons. He has held talks with the US ambassador in Yemen in what will be seen as support for the handover of power. 
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| Facebook party spins out of control Posted: Better check your Facebook settings before posting a party invitation online.
A teenage girl in Germany who forgot to mark her birthday invitation as private on Facebook fled her own party when more than 1,500 guests showed up and around 100 police officers, some on horses, were needed to keep the crowd under control.
Eleven people were temporarily detained, one police officer was injured, dozens of girls wearing flip-flops cut their feet on broken glass and firefighters had to extinguish two small fires at the 16th birthday party in Hamburg, police spokesman Mirko Streiber said yesterday.
The birthday girl, identified only as Thessa, went into hiding, Streiber said, but "nonetheless the party was a hit."
Thessa had initially only wanted to ask some friends over to her home in Hamburg-Bramfeld when she posted her invitation on Facebook, but mistakenly she published it so that everyone on Facebook could see it.
The invitation quickly went viral, and some 15,000 people confirmed online they would come to the party without even knowing the girl.
When Thessa's parents found out, they made their daughter cancel the party, informed police and hired a private security service to protect their home on Friday night.
Despite public announcements that the party had been cancelled, some 1,500 teenagers showed up on the street in front of Thessa's home.
"We had cordoned off the house, some 100 police were on the ground, four of them on horses but that did not keep the kids from celebrating," Streiber said.
As for Thessa she was nowhere to be seen. Police confirmed she "was not at home that night". 
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| Curry makes merry at Phuket eateries Posted: With over 25 Indian restaurants in this tourist town in Phuket, eateries like Tantra, Indian Curry Club and Ali Baba are adding much variety to the international cuisine already available here, keeping their cash registers ringing.
There are 25 Indian restaurants doing brisk business at Patong in Phuket
"We are seeing a boom among Indian restaurants here," says Kolkata-born Aaffzal Khan (39) the proprietor of the largest Indian food chain in this town located in the southern province of Thailand, who started his operations here around five years ago.
"Currently there are over 25 restaurants serving Indian food here alone. All are stand-alone restaurants. This trend started two-three years ago when thousands of Indians started coming here. These eateries are a rage among the people," Khan said.
A walk around the famous Bangla street, known for a Thai kick-boxing stadium, night life and massage parlours, gives a glimpse of the dozens of eateries with the familiar Indian names. The clientele is cosmopolitan, though the flow of Indians has helped.
"This year, we expect 60,000 Indians in Phuket double the number from last year. In the next few years it is expected to go up to 1 lakh-plus," said Bangornrat Chinaprayoon, director of state-run Tourism Authority of Thailand.
Andre A Gomez, general manager at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort, said weddings and receptions being hosted by Indians were also making Indian food popular since chefs are being trained to handle the diverse Indian cuisine.
"Last month, we had a grand Indian wedding here. Everyone wanted Indian food, even the non-Indian guests. Why them alone? Even our guests from other countries like Indian food and want it for variety," Gomez said.
David Lance, operations director of Courtyard Marriot in Patong, said Indian food was in such high demand that his hotel was not just recruiting Indian chefs but also training some of its own by asking those from the Marriots in India to come by for short stints. 
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