Bulgaria to lodge formal charges in Bourgas terrorist bombings in early 2014 – Prosecutor-General

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Bulgaria knows the whereabouts of two of the suspected perpetrators of the terrorist bombing at Sarafovo Airport in Bourgas in July 2012, and by March 2014 will lodge formal charges in court, Prosecutor-General Sotir Tsatsarov told reporters on September 12 2013.

In the Bourgas bombing terrorist attack, which was directed against a group of Israeli tourists, five Israelis, a Bulgarian and the bearer of the bomb died.

A Bulgarian-led investigation established a trail back to members of the Hezbollah’s military wing, leading EU foreign ministers to declare the Lebanon-based group a terrorist organisation.

Tsatsarov said that the suspects were in a country from which extradition would be possible. “Whether the extradition request will be respected depends on the country where these people are.”
Tsatsarov said that the indictment regarding the terrorist attack could be lodged in court in the first three months of 2014.

He said that he was keeping head of state President Rossen Plevneliev informed on developments in the investigation, given the bearing on national security.

Tsatsarov said that if the suspects were handed to the Bulgarian authorities, they would be tried in Bulgaria. If they were not handed over, they would be tried in absentia.

He said that his office did not believe that there was a need to use the provision in the Penal Code for court proceedings to be suspended pending the accused being found.

“We should give a clear signal that this terrorism meets with zero tolerance in Bulgaria and eventually receives a punishment under the law,” Tsatsarov said.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said on August 8 2013 that it is seeking information on two suspects, Hassan El Hajj Hassan and Meliad Farah, who are wanted for questioning in connection with the bus bombing.

Gunmen Burn Down Police Station, Kill Three Officers

 Police Headquarters

Tragedy struck Wednesday night in Yola as unknown men burnt down a police station and killed three officers in Yola, Adamawa State.

Police Public Relations Officer of the State Police Command, DSP Ibrahim Mohammed,   who confirmed the incident said the gunmen  also  burnt  a police patrol van at Lale Town.

The incident occurred   in Gombi Local Government Area of the state.

10 Boko Haram Members Killed, Two Terrorist Camps Destroyed in Air Strike in Borno

 Defence Headquarters

The Nigerian Army yesterday confirmed that 10 members of the outlawed terrorist group, Boko Haram, were killed in an air strike on two of their camps in Borno State.
The military, who revealed that the two camps of the terrorist group in Mada, within Konduga Local Government Area of the state were destroyed during the air strike, lamented that a soldier was injured in the onslaught.

The spokesman of the 7 Division of the Nigerian Army, Maiduguri, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa, in a statement, said: "Following an air strike and subsequent destruction of two Boko Haram terrorist camps at Mada in Konduga Local Government Area of Borno State, some troops of 231 battalion of the 7 Division on their way to Biu had an encounter with the fleeing Boko Haram terrorists on Maiduguri-Damboa road at about 10p.m. on Tuesday, September 10, 2013."

Musa revealed that 10 terrorists lost their lives and some ammunition, including four AK47 rifles, five AK 47 magazines and 250 rounds of assorted ammunition were recovered from them.

He equally revealed that 10 motorcycles belonging to the sect members were destroyed in the air and land raid.

In a related development, the Borno State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) yesterday said no church was marked for demolition in the state.

The umbrella body of christians in the state also said there was no tension brewing in the state as a direct fallout of any falsely reported demolition of churches in Maiduguri.

A few days ago, some media had reported that the state government was planning to demolish about 20 churches and some schools to make way for a planned housing estate.

But in a statement Wednesday, the Chairman of Borno CAN, Reverend Titus Pona, said: "The attention of CAN, Borno State chapter has been drawn to reports in some national dailies to the effect that tension was brewing in Maiduguri, following alleged plans to demolish churches and schools in and around the state capital, at the site of planned housing estate.

"We feel duty bound to correct the erroneous impressions created by the said media reports which was credited to CAN, and wish to disown it. We believe that the national CAN office acted in the interest of christian community in Borno State based on the information contained in a letter dated August 20, 2013 from the Ministry of Land and Survey to some churches around the area of the said estate."

In a post 9/11 world, the European Union needs a terrorism taskforce

The EU needs new and inventive procedures to detect, identify and unmask the ever-adapting organism of global terrorism

The remains of the World Trade Centre at ground zero following the terrorist attack of 11 September 2001. Photograph: Alex Fuchs/AFP

It is depressing how quickly human behaviour can change. When in 2001 two planes hit the twin towers in New York, the whole world remained glued to the TV screens for hours, eagerly gulping down every word uttered by the ground zero reporters. Yet when an Iraqi suicide bomber detonates his device these days, most of us switch channels to something "more juicy". Terrorism has become a part of our everyday lives. Unless, of course, the bomb goes off in our own backyard.
This summer, terrorists hit my country, Slovakia, twice: first in Pakistan, when a group of militants executed two of our mountaineers. Then, a couple of days later in Afghanistan, when a local army trainee named Lamber Khan shot one and seriously injured two other members of the Slovak contingent to the international security assistance force (Isaf) mission. We have been handed a hard lesson on how terrorism does not care for nationality, citizenship, religion or the colour of one's skin.
How did we respond? By calling on the authorities to catch the perpetrators; by appealing to the local powers to investigate the crimes; by trusting their assurances that justice will be served. And yet I keep wondering: when in 1988, the Scottish town of Lockerbie was devastated by the terrorist bombing of the Pan Am flight 103 that killed 270 people, it took 13 years for an ex-minister of the Libyan government to state that Muammar Gaddafi ordered the bombing. As for 9/11, even after 12 years, doubts still remain whether it was Osama bin Laden who ordered the strike, or whether it might have been someone else. If we accept this mathematical progression, how long will it take for the culprits of the two terrorist acts that have shaken my country to be brought to justice? Five years? 10? 20? And what can we do about it?
Since the Lockerbie tragedy, 25 years ago and since the terrorist attacks on New York in September 2001, the face of terrorism has undergone a dramatic change – a plastic surgery of sorts: hijacked aircraft went out of fashion and were replaced by kamikaze zealots wired with plastic explosives, and by shots fired from ambush.
The world community responds predictably: diplomacy, sanctions, supporting the internal dissent in the terrorist "safe haven" countries, eventually ordering special military units to deploy and retaliate. In other words: we do not, as yet, have an adequate response mechanism, an ability to eliminate the threat of terrorism the way decisive steps undertaken by the British SAS, the German GSG-9 and other units succeeded in reducing the number of cases involving hijacked aircraft to almost nil.
So here is what I propose: how about we create a terrorism taskforce (TTF) as an EU strategic thinktank/analytical centre – a tool similar to that used on a national level by the US or the UK? Its task, as opposed to the Europol "muscle" counter-terrorism force, would be in putting more thought behind the action, in enforcing the PPPR rule (prevention, protection, pursuit and response), in keeping pace with the ever-adapting organism of international terrorism networks, in employing new and inventive procedures to detect, identify and unmask hatching terrorism schemes, collecting relevant human source intelligence (Humint) and yes, taking maximum advantage of the so massively scandalised and criticised electronic intelligence (Elint).
Slovakia stands ready to deploy its experts to such a taskforce, should it become the order of the day. To put it plainly: I truly believe we need new tools to counter old threats. TTF could be such a tool.

3 soldiers among 7 killed in Iraq attacks

An Iraqi man inspects a burnt-out moped at the site of an explosion on September 12, 2013 that went off the previous day near a Shiite mosque in Baghdad's northern neighbourhood of Kasra. A suicide attacker staged a double bombing near a Shiite mosque in the capital as worshipers were leaving following evening prayers. AFP PHOTO/AHMAD AL-RUBAYE

BAGHDAD: A spate of attacks across Iraq killed seven people on Thursday, including three who died when a suicide car bomber struck as recruits were leaving a military base, officials said. The attacks come amid Iraq's worst bloodshed since 2008, with more than 4,000 people killed already this year. At least one soldier was among three people killed by the car bombing, in the parking lot of a military base in the northern city of Kirkuk, the medical and security officials said. Another soldier died and two were hurt when a roadside bomb blasted their convoy near the oil town of Baiji, north of Baghdad, while an army captain was killed at a military post in the northern city of Mosul. Also in Mosul, two civilians were killed in separate attacks on their homes during the night, officials said. Late on Wednesday, a suicide bomber struck as worshippers streamed out of a Shiite mosque in Baghdad, killing 30 people and wounding 55. A second suspected suicide bomber spotted at the mosque in the north Baghdad neighbourhood of Waziriyah was shot dead by locals, who then set his body on fire, witnesses said. The surge in bloodshed has sparked concerns that Iraq is slipping back into the all-out sectarian war that plagued the country in 2006 and 2007, leaving tens of thousands dead. Experts say militant groups are exploiting political infighting in Iraq and regional sectarian tensions fuelled by Syria's civil war to recruit and to carry out attacks.

Obama Holds Fire on Syria, Waits on Russia Plan

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama told Americans Tuesday he would pursue a newly energized diplomatic course to try to resolve the standoff with Syria, but he insisted that the U.S. must conduct military strikes, if needed, in response to the Assad regime's alleged use of chemical weapons.
Mr. Obama said in a televised address that he asked Congress to postpone a vote on a resolution to authorize military force, which he looked likely to lose. Instead he said he would reserve the option of military strikes while pursuing a Russian proposal for Syria to hand over its chemical weapons under an international agreement.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Richard Murphy joins the News Hub to discusses Obama’s address to the nation on Syria and possible next steps. Photo: AP

"It's too early to tell whether this offer will succeed," Mr. Obama said, "and any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments."
Mr. Obama's address, which showed no immediate sign of changing minds in Congress, came on a day of fast-moving developments in which U.S. lawmakers and officials from France, Russia and other nations scrambled to develop proposals under which Syria would relinquish its chemical weapons.
Syria for the first time directly admitted that it possesses chemical weapons and said it would cease their production and disclose the locations of the stockpiles to the international community, including the United Nations and Russia, which is at the center of the negotiations.

While Mr. Obama agreed to explore the possibility of a Syrian chemical-weapons handover, his administration expressed skepticism that a deal could be reached, and a dispute emerged quickly among members of the U.N. Security Council over how such a measure could be enforced, with France seeking language that leaves military action on the table and Russia rejecting such a move.
Secretary of State John Kerry, who will meet Thursday with his Russian counterpart in Geneva to continue talks, told Congress Tuesday that reaching any agreement on details of a chemical-weapons plan would be "exceedingly difficult."
Mr. Obama made the possibility of a military strike a central element of his 15-minute address as he discussed the Syrian regime's alleged chemical-weapons attack on Aug. 21 that the U.S. says killed more than 1,400 of its own citizens, including children, outside Damascus.
"Let me make something clear: The United States military doesn't do pinpricks,'' he said. "Even a limited strike will send a message to Assad that no other nation can deliver." He said he had ordered the military "to maintain our current posture and to be in a position to respond if diplomacy fails."
At the same time, Mr. Obama acknowledged that the limits of U.S. power to resolve the Syrian civil war and that military action, "no matter how limited, is not going to be popular'' after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said any U.S. action would be constrained: "I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria,'' he said. "I will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan…This would be a targeted strike to achieve a clear objective: deterring the use of chemical weapons and degrading Assad's capabilities."
Initial reaction to Mr. Obama's speech suggested that he hadn't changed minds in Congress, where support for a resolution authorizing force had been eroding.
Rep. Trey Radel (R., Fla.) said the speech hadn't altered his stance that taking military action against Syria would be a mistake. "It still leaves me and the American people confused," Mr. Radel, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said after the speech, pointing to what he described as conflicting descriptions from the administration of how much force would be used in Syria. "Is this a slap on the wrist or is it an actual bombing campaign?"
Sen. Joe Manchin (D., W.Va.), who had opposed a Senate resolution authorizing military force in Syria, said his position hadn't shifted. "If you think military might and money will change the outcome in that part of the world, then we'd have done it by now," Mr. Manchin said in an interview after the speech. He said he was encouraged by the president's talk of diplomatic options.
Senate Armed Services Chairman Sen. Carl Levin (D., Mich.) said he supported the president's diplomatic efforts but that Congress should still vote to support a military strategy to keep up pressure on Syria.
After the diplomatic opening materialized Monday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) canceled an initial test vote in the Senate for Wednesday. On Tuesday, after meeting with the president and Senate Democrats at the Capitol, Mr. Reid said the vote has been put on hold indefinitely, pending the outcome of diplomatic efforts.
The timing of any Senate vote will be dictated by international "developments taking place, not some artificial timeline," Mr. Reid said.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D., Ill.) said the president asked senators to give him time to size up the diplomatic opportunity. "He needs a number of days," said Mr. Durbin. "The president was not overly optimistic about it."
U.S. military officials said Tuesday that the latest developments wouldn't prompt them to move any forces or take American ships off alert. "We aren't taking a deep breath," said a military official. "If we stand down, this whole thing evaporates."
Pentagon officials said they were aware of potential plans for a U.N. resolution, but they didn't know that it would materialize.
The reaction showed that Mr. Kerry's off-the-cuff comments Monday—which opened the door to the latest diplomatic scramble by saying the U.S. would be receptive to a plan under which Syria turned over its chemical weapons—wasn't coordinated across the government.
"It was an accident on one hand, and not an accident on the other," said a senior U.S. official.
Amid the move to delay votes in Congress, a bipartisan group of senior senators began reworking the language of a potential resolution on the use of force, reacting to eroding support among lawmakers and developments at the U.N.
They were drafting an amendment that would call for the U.N. to pass a measure declaring that Syria had used chemical weapons and to remove them by a certain date, which lawmakers were still negotiating, a person familiar with the effort said. If the weapons weren't removed by that deadline, the resolution would authorize the president to launch limited military action.
"This is a way of both keeping the pressure on Syria and on Russia to get rid of the chemical weapons, which is the goal of this whole effort. But, secondly, if they fail, then it would keep the authority to launch a strike," said Sen. Carl Levin (D., Mich.), one of the lawmakers working on the measure.
The bipartisan group included John McCain (R., Ariz.), Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), and Bob Menendez (D., N.J.).
Authors of the bill hoped that the changes would build support among lawmakers who were opposed to force, or on the fence, by putting more emphasis on diplomatic efforts. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D., N.D.), who had opposed the initial Senate resolution, said she was open to an alternative.
"While I'm still waiting to learn additional details about this new resolution, if it means we're closer to a diplomatic solution addressing the use of chemical weapons in Syria, that's a good thing," she said.
The rapid turn of events from Moscow to Damascus to Washington followed two weeks of remarkable twists in Mr. Obama's push to follow through on a red line he set last year against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad using chemical weapons.
The U.S. was on the brink of unilateral military strikes against Syria when Mr. Obama made the surprise announcement on Aug. 31 that he would seek the backing of Congress.
Then, on Monday, the White House found itself inadvertently in negotiations with Russia over a diplomatic endgame after Mr. Kerry opened the door to the talks in unscripted comments.
U.S. lawmakers and administration officials remain skeptical any such proposal would work.
Mr. Kerry cautioned Tuesday that the U.S. wouldn't delay action indefinitely for Syria to meet the international community's conditions for giving up its chemical weapons. "We're waiting for that proposal, but we're not waiting for long," he said in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said in a statement he read to a pro-regime Lebanese TV station, al-Mayadeen, that Damascus would cease production of chemical weapons and disclose the locations of its stockpiles to the United Nations, Russia and others.
France said it would submit a resolution to the U.N. Security Council aimed at forcing Syria to give international inspectors full access to its chemical stockpile and allow for its swift dismantlement.
Russia called the resolution "unacceptable," citing the French proposal's use of a U.N. measure that would potentially authorize the use of force, as well as language that laid blame for using chemical weapons on Syria's government. Russia said it would instead propose a draft declaration backing an initiative to put Syria's chemical weapons under international control.
The White House, although skeptical, embraced the overtures from Damascus and Moscow. Mr. Obama spoke separately with President François Hollande of France and U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron Tuesday.
All three agreed to work "closely together, and in consultation with Russia and China, to explore seriously the viability of the Russian proposal to put all Syrian chemical weapons and related materials fully under international control in order to ensure their verifiable and enforceable destruction," a White House official said.

I Want to Go Home and Study Engineering, Stowaway Boy Pleads

Ricky Daniel Oikhena

Sixteen days after his arrest and detention, Ricky Daniel Oikhena, the stowaway teenager who hid in the wheel compartment of an Arik Air flight from Benin to Lagos is tired of staying in custody. He desperately wants to be reunited with members of his family, the same people he wanted to escape from.

Daniel told his unsolicited hosts, the State Security Service (SSS), when he was asked yesterday that he wants to go home and continue his education.

Daniel, since he was brought back from Lagos two weeks ago, has been detained in a building at the Government House, Benin City, in the company of security personnel. He has become lonely and somewhat depressed.

The boy who answered questions in mono syllabics in the lonely facility told newsmen that he was happy with the award of scholarship granted to him by the Edo State Government.

Daniel also said he did not know that he took a risk when he hid in an airplane’s wheel compartment saying, “I will not do it again.”

“I regret it,” he said with a solemn and helpless expression, adding, “I want to go home. I am tired. I will be happy to train as an Engineer.”

Daniel who also said he was terrified when he was arrested on arrival in Lagos from Benin said he was not mistreated but had been given good food where he was kept.
According to him, “Even on the return trip to Benin and at this present place, I am treated well with good food, but since school has resumed, I want to go home.”

Asked if he was questioned in Lagos and since he was brought back to Benin, the teenager answered in the affirmative, adding that he returned to Benin by road with three armed security men.
Fortunately, in a move aimed at facilitating his engineering dream, the Edo State Government has secured admission in one of the state’s top secondary schools for 13-year-old Daniel.   

The state governor, Adams Oshiomhole, made this disclosure during the visit of Mr. George Uriesi, Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), and members of his management team at the Government House  Wednesday.

The governor said: “Without meaning to encourage anyone else, we decided to support him by sending him to one of the top secondary schools in Edo State that is owned by the government.

“The reason for opting for a boarding school is that we think that they need to closely watch him which his parents could not do.

“He is an intelligent young man with uncommon challenges, but one that has a vision. We had him examined by people who should know and the result confirmed that he is normal.”

“This incident was probably the kind of trigger that we needed to improve the facilities at our airports. You are never going to have all the money you need to do all you have to do. You should start from somewhere,” he noted.

Oshiomhole added that the stowaway incident was a security issue that had exposed the fact that there are no runway security lights at the Benin Airport.

“It is a security issue because a plane can take off, is flying into Benin airspace, it has mechanical faults, but it cannot land.

“Politically, there could also be an emergency in Edo State and the president needs to visit and he cannot land at the airport at night. You cannot spend the kind of money you are spending on remodelling and the little one you have to do is to ice the cake and you have a complete project.  You should take this as something more urgent,” he informed the FAAN delegation.

Earlier, Uriesi said they were in Benin City to assess the stowaway incident, which had forced FAAN to review and improve on its security arrangements.

He said: “We are responding to the incident of the stowaway of that young boy a few weeks ago which was a big surprise to all of us.
“We want to inform you that we have taken strenuous measures to ensure that a similar incident does not happen. It was a serious and miraculous event, because prior to that day, I would have told you it was a suicidal mission.

“We are trying to create awareness that this is suicidal and young people should not attempt it at all. The likelihood of survival is slim.”

To check the recurrence of stowaways, Uriesi said FAAN planned to acquire security vehicles for the take-off and arrival of planes and that security teams made up of the Nigerian Air Force and airport security would now patrol the airports.

“We have a plan to fence the airport and it is an onerous task. The smallest airport perimeter fence in the country is 14 kilometres and the biggest one is about 33 kilometres. Altogether, it is about 500 kilometres. It is a huge capital outlay. But we need to secure the airports.

“We also wish to enlighten youths that they should not try it. This boy is a miracle,” he said.

Toddler Badly Burned After Falling Onto BBQ

The barbecue was stuck to the two-and-a-half-year-old's stomach because of the heat but her parents managed to pull it off.

Luii suffered serious burns after the 'horrifying' accident

A toddler has been scarred for life after falling face-first onto a smouldering barbecue in a "horrifying" case.

Luii Duncan suffered burns to her face, arms, chest and hands and is likely to need a skin graft.

The barbecue was so hot it stuck to the two-and-a-half-year-old girl's stomach.

Her mother, Rosemary Duncan, of Morden, south London said she cannot get that image out her head.
She said: "I'm trying to block it out, but I want to warn people about the dangers of leaving hot barbecues in parks."

"It's horrifying to see a man holding up your child and seeing her with a barbecue stuck on her stomach. Everyone was throwing water on her and trying to pull it off."

The metal barbecue had been left smouldering by its owners, despite being asked by friends of Luii's parents to put it out before they left Beddington Park in Sutton.

Moments later, as she was playing with a group of children nearby, she fell on to the red hot coals and suffered serious burns.

Her parents and their friends managed to pull the barbecue off Luii after dousing her with water.

She was taken by ambulance to nearby St Helier Hospital before being transferred to a specialist burns unit at Chelsea Children's Hospital.

The youngster remained in hospital under observation but is now back home.

Mrs Duncan said: "It's a long journey to recovery for her. We're just thankful she is going to be OK.
"She will have a scar for life on her stomach, and burns on her arms. She is still having trouble sleeping."
Mrs Duncan said more needed to be done to prevent another such accident. "There need to be more wardens around to enforce the rules. Next time a young child might be killed."

Luii's father, Nathan Duncan, said: "Our daughter has been subjected to untold agony and trauma due to negligence, inconsideration and a deep lack of care for others."

A council spokesman said: "We are sorry this unfortunate incident occurred and we wish the little girl a speedy recovery.

"Sutton is proud of its parks and open spaces and we do all we can to make sure they are safe for residents to enjoy.

"We would like to draw attention to the park bylaws which forbid anyone from lighting a fire for a barbecue or any other reason unless it is in a designated area on one of the stands provided.
"In this incident the barbecue was not on a stand."

Police have said that after investigating the issue they would not bring any criminal charges but will increase patrols in parks by PCSOs (community support officers) while the hot weather continues.

Saudi Princess Accused Of Human Trafficking

Meshael Alayban is charged with human trafficking after a Kenyan woman escapes and alleges she was held against her will.

Meshael Alayban flew to California from Saudi Arabia in May

A Saudi princess is facing up to 12 years in prison in California after being accused of holding a servant against her will.

Meshael Alayban, 42, has been charged with one count of human trafficking at her home in Gramercy, Irvine, around 40 miles from Los Angeles.

Her alleged victim, a 30-year-old woman from Kenya, previously worked for the Alayban family in Saudi Arabia, where she claimed she was forced to work excessive hours and paid only a fraction of the salary she was promised.

She said that while in Saudi Arabia, Alayban took her passport and refused to return it when she complained about working conditions and asked to leave.

The woman travelled with the family to California but fled Alayban's apartment and flagged down a passing bus.

Alayban has an apartment on this development in Irvine, California

She was carrying a Department of State leaflet, given to her at the American Embassy in Saudi Arabia where she was issued with a travel visa, describing her rights and warning about the dangers of human trafficking.
A passenger on the bus saw the woman was in distress and called the police.

Detectives who searched Alayban's home found four other women, all from the Philippines, who also claim to have had their documents taken.

They are believed to be stored in a safe deposit box at a local bank.

A spokesman for Irvine Police Department said all five women are in good health.
There are no signs of any physical abuse and authorities are helping them find alternative accommodation.
Alayban is being held in Orange County Jail in lieu of a $1m (£660,000) bail.

Taser Death: Jordan Begley Dies In Manchester

Police say the 23-year-old "suffered a medical episode" after police fired a Taser stun gun at him in Manchester.

Video: Police used a Taser on Mr Begley (Pic: Facebook)

A man who died after police shot him with a Taser has been named locally as Jordan Begley.

The 23-year-old suffered a "medical episode" and died after police fired at him with the stun gun in Manchester.

Police were responding to a disturbance in Beard Road, Gorton, at about 8.15pm where a man was armed with a knife.

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan said: "Officers were dispatched immediately and arrived in eight minutes.

"On arrival, a Taser was discharged to detain a 23-year-old man.

"At this time it is unclear what happened but at some point afterwards the man suffered a medical episode.
"Paramedics performed first aid on the man at the scene before he was taken to hospital where he sadly died."

ACC Shewan said help has been provided for Mr Bagley's family.
"Specially trained family liaison officers are supporting his family during this very difficult time," he said.

A forensic tent was put up in the road

A friend of Mr Bagley's said: "I think he has some problem with his heart."
The friend, who did not want to be named, also said that eight armed response officers attended the family home.

"They turfed his mum outside and then went in and battered him," said the friend.

"There were about eight armed response officers went in.
"He didn't have a knife though. I know for a fact he would not have had a knife.
"There was no need to use a Taser on him."

A neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: "There's a lot of bad boys around here but Jordan was one of the good guys."

Another neighbour, Kirstie Porter, said she saw Mr Begley being brought out of the house and put into an ambulance.

A police cordon surrounded 10 houses in the street

"Paramedics were working away on the CPR with the doors open," she said.
"Everybody was out in the street, all the neighbours.

"There was police everywhere, loads of vans turned up, there was police all over with guns all over.

"The ambulance was there for about five or 10 minutes and then it drove off.
"His mum and brother were sobbing in the street."

After Mr Begley's death, a police cordon surrounded 10 terraced houses at the end of Beard Road.
A forensic tent was put up in the road within the cordon which was guarded by uniformed officers, a police van and two patrol cars.

Mr Begley's death has been reported to the coroner and to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

Marriage: Love Is Gone For One In Four

Do the vows "till death do us part" still apply? Research finds many Brits are trapped in marriages because of money or children.

One in six wish they had not got married in the first place, the study said

Many married couples are trapped in loveless marriages and are only sticking together either for the sake of the children or for financial reasons, a survey has found.

The study of more than 2,000 people revealed that one-quarter of husbands and wives admit they are not "in love" with their partner.

And the same number admitted they only stay together for the sake of the children and would consider separating once the children leave home.

One-third wished it had worked out with someone else instead, while one in five admitted that they have been unfaithful.

The research by lawyers Slater and Gordon also revealed that one in six wish they had not got married in the first place.

But almost half still said that getting married was the best thing they ever did and three-quarters said they would still wholeheartedly advise young people to get married.

For unhappy couples, arguments over money, sex and spousal control were given as the main reasons cited for the breakdown in relationships.

Finance was the number one reason, the survey found.

One in five said they would end their marriage if they could guarantee they would be comfortable financially.
However, husbands and wives gave different reasons for staying in a loveless marriage.

The number one reason to stay for women was that they would be unable to sustain themselves financially in the event of a split.

Men said the negative impact a divorce would have on the family was their main reason for not leaving.

Herbie Hide Faces Arrest After Court No-Show

The former heavyweight champion of the world is in breach of his bail terms as a court hears he is in Nigeria instead of Norwich.

Hide was arrested after being filmed by undercover reporters

Former world champion boxer Herbie Hide is facing arrest after he failed to turn up in court on drug charges, saying he was suffering malaria in Nigeria.

The 41-year-old, who is accused of conspiring to supply cocaine, was supposed to be at Norwich Crown Court on Thursday morning.

With his client apparently thousands of miles away, his barrister Michael Clare had to tell the court: "His wife Helen telephoned my instructing solicitor to say he was suffering from malaria and was in a clinic in Nigeria.
"Last night a doctor who said he was treating Mr Hide in Nigeria called and said he would email a medical report this morning.

"No medical report has been forthcoming yet."
Hide, 41, was given permission to leave the country for seven days at an earlier hearing, the court heard.
However, his failure to appear in court means he is now in breach of his bail terms.

Herbie Hide with his WBO belt in 1995

Recorder Maureen Baker issued a warrant saying that Hide had been warned before that he would need a doctor's report if he had to miss court because of illness.

It means Hide faces being arrested, detained and brought before the court at the earliest opportunity.

Hide's co-defendant, Ben Sharman, 22, of Howe Lane, Poringland, Norfolk, admitted conspiracy to supply a class A drug, offering to supply a class A drug and offering to supply a class B drug.

Sharman, who was remanded in custody, denied supplying cocaine to Hide.

Hide, of Long Lane, Bawburgh, near Norwich, held the World Boxing Organisation version of the heavyweight title twice.

He was arrested earlier this year after being filmed by undercover reporters from The Sun.
The pair are expected to stand trial in October.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed's Vacuum Challenge

The 9/11 mastermind reportedly spent time in a secret CIA jail redesigning the vacuum cleaner - to stop him going mad.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and how his design may have looked (File)

The mastermind of the 9/11 terrorist attacks may have been given an unusual mission while confined to a CIA secret prison ... to redesign the humble vacuum cleaner.

A former secret service official has revealed to the AP news agency that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed asked his American jailers in Romania whether he could use his expertise in mechanical engineering to rework the household appliance.

He had endured the most brutal interrogation methods, including being forced to stay awake for 180 hours and 183 instances of waterboarding in Poland.

In that time, he had confessed to a career of atrocities.

But as his intelligence value diminished, the CIA in Romania tried to find ways to occupy him.
"We didn't want them (CIA prisoners) to go nuts," the former official said.

He was given assignments about his knowledge of al Qaeda, or "homework," as CIA officers called it.

He received Snickers bars as a reward and was allowed to read the entire Harry Potter series.

But it remains unclear whether Mohammed was really interested in designing a better vacuum or had ulterior motives.

He may have been inspired by Graham Greene's spy thriller Our Man in Havana, in which a vacuum salesman in Cuba dupes MI6 into believing his designs are military installations.

And it is a mystery how far Mohammed got with his designs.

His military lawyer, Jason Wright, said he was prohibited from discussing his client's interest in vacuums.

"It sounds ridiculous, but answering this question, or confirming or denying the very existence of a vacuum cleaner design, a Swiffer design, or even a design for a better hand towel would apparently expose the US government and its citizens to exceptionally grave danger," he said.

The CIA told the AP that the plans, "should they exist," would be considered classified operational files of the CIA and therefore exempt from ever being made public.

However, the CIA did apparently succeed in keeping Mohammed sane. He appears to be in good health, according to current military records.

The secret CIA prison in Romania was closed in 2006 and he was transferred to Guantanamo Bay - most likely without his blueprints.

 

CCTV Shows Cop Killing Child Snatcher

A stand-off filmed by surveillance cameras ends when the officer fires a single shot at the hostage taker's head.

CCTV images have been released of a child hostage situation in an Oklahoma supermarket, which ended with a policeman shooting dead the suspect.

The surveillance video released by police in Midwest City shows a man snatching a two-year-old girl from a shopping trolley and then holding a knife to her throat.

The toddler's mother, Alicia Keating, frantically pleads with the man, identified as Sammie Wallace, 37, as other shoppers crowd around.

The man snatches the child as her mother's back is turned

She is seen and heard calling 911 for help. Local police are quickly on the scene and clear the store.
After 30 minutes of tense negotiation, police said Wallace began talking about a satanic cult and counting down from 60.

One of the officers, Captain David Huff, determined that the only way to ensure the safety of the toddler would be to take drastic action.

On the video he is seen moving quickly towards the hostage-taker and preparing to fire a single shot at his head.

The pictures stop at that point, but the police commentary continues and confirms Wallace was killed. The child was unharmed.

The mother pleads for her child to be let go

"Obviously, our goal was to talk him down to get him to release the child,"  Police Chief Brandon Clabes told reporters.

"I mean, we waited until the last second to use deadly force. No one wants to take a life, especially in the line of duty."

The Oklahoma County district attorney said the shooting on June 17 was justified, and hailed Captain Huff as a hero.

Wallace served time in a Texas prison from 2000 to 2011 on drug and assault charges. He was known to have a long history of mental illness.

 

Runaway Train Blast: Town Mourns Victims

Most of the 50 people believed to have died - including several members of one family - were partying at the time of the blast.

The identities of up to 50 people killed when a runaway train carrying crude oil exploded in Quebec have started to emerge as police admitted the missing were presumed dead.

Twenty bodies have been recovered following the blast in Lac-Megantic, according to officials, which has been blamed on the train's engineer failing to set the train's brakes properly.

Quebec police inspector Michel Forget said he told a meeting of families of the dead and missing "of the potential loss of their loved ones".

"You have to understand that it's a very emotional moment," he said.
Many of the victims had been at the Musi-Cafe, a popular late night bar and live music venue on the town's rue Frontenac.

The disaster scene with the remains of the Musi-Cafe in the foreground

A 40th birthday party for Josee Lafontaine had been taking place attended by her friends and family, with live music played by Guy Bolduc and Yvan Ricard.

But just after 1am the celebrations came to a sudden halt when the train derailed and exploded in flames just metres from the venue.

One of the guests at the party was Gaetan Lafontaine who had stepped outside moments before the blast occurred.

He immediately rushed into the inferno to look for his wife, Joanie Turmel, but neither of them survived. The couple left behind two children.

The crude oil freight train was out of control when it crashed

Mr Lafontaine's brother, Pascal, and his sister-in-law, Karine Lafontaine, who also had two children, were in the cafe at the time of the first explosion and have not been seen since.

Raymond Lafontaine lost a son, two-daughters-in-law and an employee.

"I cannot tell you what my heart is feeling,” he told the National Post.

"The more you scratch, the more it hurts. As long as I am active and keep moving, I will be able to talk. But the day I stop, I am going to cry all the tears in my body."

Parts of the town were completely destroyed by the wall of fire

Mr Ricard had briefly left the venue to smoke a cigarette during an interval in the music, a move which saved his life.

But his colleague, who had gone to the bar for a drink just before the blast, was unable to escape. Mr Bolduc was married with two children.

"The last words he said to me were, 'Yvan, I really like playing with you. We have so much fun together,'" Mr Ricard told TVA.

Local resident Geneviève Breton had finished work at a local pharmacy and had one to the Musi-Cafe to meet her boyfriend.

Ms Breton was training to be a teacher and was well known in the town after her appearance in a Quebec singing competition.

Although her boyfriend escaped the inferno, Ms Breton died in the blast.

“Everybody loved her," her mother Ginette Cameron told the National Post. "She sang like an angel."
Just across the road from the Musi-Cafe lived Jimmy Sirois with his partner, Marie-Semie Alliance, and their 18-month old daughter, Milliana.

The accident was Canada's worst railway tragedy in 150 years

The couple were killed when the blast flattened their apartment, but Milliana had a miraculous escape as she had been staying with Mr Sirois' parents that evening.

Three of the cafe's employees were also killed in the blast, including Andrée-Anne Sévigny and Jo-Annie Lapointe. Stephane Lapierre, who lived in an apartment above the cafe, also died.

Lucie Vadnais was unable to escape the explosion as it ripped through the bar. She ran a daycare centre according to Josée Lemieux, a neighbour who often left her son there during the day and who described her as an "angel".

Henriette Latulippe, who worked in a beauty parlour on rue Frontenac,  was believed to have been asleep at home a hundred metres from the accident when she was caught in the blast.

The disaster forced 2,000 of the town's 6,000 residents from their homes and was Canada's worst railway tragedy in 150 years.

 

MPs Pay: Watchdog Backs Hike To £74,000

The Commons' expenses watchdog is attacked on all sides for recommending an inflation-busting rise as part of wider changes.

MPs have turned on the Commons' expenses watchdog after it recommended an inflation-busting rise in their pay to £74,000.

Education Secretary Michael Gove led a growing backlash against the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority's (Ipsa), calling it "silly".

As part of a wider overhaul, Ipsa proposed a pay hike of more than £6,000 or 9.26%, taking effect in 2015 and costing the taxpayer an extra £4.6m.

The regulator insisted the overall cost would only rise by £500,000 once changes to MPs' pensions, "golden goodbyes" and expenses are enforced.

And chairman Sir Ian Kennedy insisted it was "wrong" to keep MPs' pay low, blaming the 2009 expenses scandal on too much restraint.

However, the move to increase salaries at a time when millions of ordinary Britons are battling to stay afloat left members of the public disgusted.

Ipsa boss Sir Ian Kennedy: Changes are "fair"

Callers to a radio show as Sir Ian justified the changes called it "obscene" and asked "what planet are you on?"
Unions immediately demanded a matching increase for their members and threatened strike action and MPs rounded on Ipsa for exposing them to public vitriol.

All three party leaders criticised the proposal and Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg vowed to shun the extra money if the rise goes ahead.

Downing Street insisted it would be wrong for politicians to receive more cash when the public sector faces pay curbs until beyond 2015.

A spokesman for Number 10 said: "The cost of politics should go down not up and MPs' pay shouldn't go up while public sector pay is, rightly, being constrained.

"Ipsa is consulting on its proposals, which it will review after the next election as it is obliged to do by statute. It is independent, but the Government will repeat our view on the need for restraint."

Mr Miliband said: "I don't think MPs should be getting a 10% pay rise when nurses and teachers are facing either pay freezes or very low increases and people in the private sector are facing similar circumstances."

Mr Clegg added that a time when millions of public sector workers were working hard despite pay restraint was "about the worst time to advocate that MPs should get a double digit pay increase".

Mr Gove delivered the most blunt response yet from a senior figure during a school visit.
Asked if the rise should go ahead, he said: "Absolutely not. MPs are incredibly well paid at the moment anyway, as are ministers.

"It is an absolute privilege to be an MP or a minister. This organisation Ipsa, it is a bit of a silly organisation anyway. And as far as I am concerned, pay rise - they can stick it."

Tory MP Andrew Bridgen was one of the few prepared to speak out publicly in favour of the rise.

All three parties have suggested MPs should not get the pay rise

"MPs are paid about the same as a junior school headmistress or headmaster. I've got lots and lots of those in my constituency, there is only one MP," he said.

"I can't think of another job where there's only 650 of those roles in the whole of Great Britain that are paid on this sort of level,"
Ipsa rejected claims the current salary was putting off candidates or failing to attract those of a high enough quality, insisting there was no "compelling evidence" to back this view.

And it said any dissatisfaction with the job is more likely to be down to other factors because most politicians regard their work as a vocation and were well aware of the pay packet.

But under the recommendations, MPs will see their pay increase from £66,396 to £74,000 in May 2015. They will then rise annually in line with average UK earnings, in a move designed to ensure the issue is resolved for the long-term.

Other changes would see the existing final salary pension scheme downgraded to career average, putting it in line with the rest of the public sector.

The retirement age will also be the same as for the state pension and death in service benefits will be slashed from 4.25 times salary to double.

Ipsa claims the pension changes will save £2.5m in the first year.

"Golden goodbyes", paid out when MPs lose an election, will still be paid in 2015 and be worth up to £33,000 per politician.

But by 2020 defeated MPs will only be entitled to two weeks' pay for every year of service if they are under 41 and three weeks if they are older.

Expenses face a further clampdown, which Ipsa says will save £178,000 in 2015 with a £15 dinner allowance axed and tighter rules on the use of taxis and hotels.

MPs will also no longer be able to claim for the cost of TV licences and contents insurance on their second homes.

Sir Ian said all MPs would be paid the higher salary, and it would be up to them whether they kept the money.

"We are not going to run 650 employment schemes, that would be daft," he said. "MPs can do what they want to do."

I"The aim is to have as transparent a system as possible. The public will know what MPs get for their costs and expenses, their salaries and pensions, and what they have done.

"There is no easy way forward on this. We have put together a package of reform which we think is fair and which ends the anomalies of the past."

The watchdog claims changes already made to expenses have saved the taxpayer £35m and that its regime will be £7m-a-year cheaper than the one they inherited.

It is now putting its proposals out for consultation before they are finalised in the autumn. Party leaders cannot stop the watchdog without changing the law.

TaxPayers' Alliance chief executive Matthew Sinclair called the hike "totally unpalatable" and branded Ipsa an "unaccountable quango putting up two fingers to the British public".

"Ipsa is right to be reforming the gold-plated parliamentary pensions and cutting golden goodbyes for retiring or defeated MPs, but it beggars belief that they have come up with a plan that will increase the cost of our politicians when everyone's budgets are under such pressure," he said.

RMT general secretary Bob Crow warned: "Be in no doubt, RMT will be fighting for pay rise parity with MPs in all of our negotiations and will have no hesitation in striking to get for our members what the politicians have got for themselves.

"If inflation-busting pay increases are good enough for the political class then they are good enough for nurses, transport workers, firefighters and the rest of the working class."

 

San Francisco Crash Pilot 'Blinded By Light'

A pilot learning to fly a Boeing 777 when it crashed says he saw a flash before impact -as 911 calls from passengers are released.

The pilot of a plane which crashed at San Francisco airport, killing two people, may have been temporarily blinded by a bright light as he came into land.

Lee Kang Kuk, who was making his first landing at the airport and had just 43 hours' experience at the controls of the Boeing 777, said he saw a bright flash as he approached the runway.

It happened around 35 seconds before impact when Asiana Airlines flight 214 was around 500ft (150m) off the ground - the point at which the aircraft began to slow down and drop steeply.

Deborah Hersman, who chairs the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said the use of lasers had not been ruled out.

Passenger Eugene Anthony Rah took this photo of the aftermath of the crash

It is not clear whether the flash of light caused the crash or whether other factors were to blame.

The pilot's claim came as phone calls to the emergency services made by passengers on board the plane were released, demonstrating the confusion caused when the Boeing 777 hit the runway.

Pleading for ambulances to be sent, one woman can be heard saying: "There are a lot of people that need help ... We have people over here who weren't found and they're burned really badly."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that passengers were initially told not to evacuate the aircraft.

The airline stewardesses at a press conference following the crash

The plane hit a sea wall as it came into land, causing its tail fin to break off and the rest of the fuselage to spin across the runway.

However, the NTSB found people did not begin leaving the plane until a fire erupted 90 seconds after impact.

"We don't know what the pilots were thinking, though I can tell you in previous accidents there have been crews that don't evacuate, they wait for other vehicles to come to be able to get the passengers out safely," Ms Hersman said.

She suggested that the pilots in the cockpit may not have been in a position to spot the fire outside the plane.

Air crash investigators at the site in San Francisco

At least one of the emergency escape slides opened inside the aircraft, pinning down two flight attendants.
Three other crew members were flung from the aircraft onto the runway but survived.

The NTSB is using pilot interviews, cockpit recordings and control tower communications to piece together the moments leading up to the crash.

They found both Mr Lee and his co-pilot, Lee Jung Min, who was on his first flight as an instructor, both thought the aircraft's speed was being controlled by an autothrottle, which was set to 157mph.

Wreckage from Asiana Airlines flight 214 was strewn across the runway

When they realised the plane was approaching the waterfront runway too low and too slow, they both reached for the throttle.

Passengers heard a loud roar as the pilots made a desperate attempt to abort the landing.

Two Chinese students were killed in the crash, which left 180 people injured. The students, who began their journey to the US in Shanghai, were on their way to a 15 day camp to study English.

Families of around 20 survivors who remain in hospital have begun arriving to care for their loved ones.
Flight 214 was a direct flight from Incheon in South Korea to San Francisco.