As Libya’s revolutionary forces continue to fight Moammar Gadhafi for control, a spokesperson for Gadhafi said yesterday that 17 “mercenaries” have been captured in regime stronghold Bani Walid. That number includes what he called mostly French “technical experts” and “consultative officers.” Two are English, one Qatari, and one Asian, Reuters…
Continue reading …Our money is still on “publicity stunt,” but nonetheless, the Divorce of the Decade marches on. Now that Tareq Salahi has filed for divorce , TMZ gleefully reports that Michaele could find herself broke: Their prenup strips her of the right to any money or property accumulated during their marriage if…
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Able Seaman Ryan Donovan, who murdered an officer on a submarine, had been fascinated with violent video games A sailor fascinated with violent video games and gangsta rap is beginning a life sentence for shooting dead an officer on board a nuclear-powered submarine. A court heard on Monday that Able Seaman Ryan Donovan was angry over losing the chance of deployment on a surface ship after disobeying an order to help scrub HMS Astute. He volunteered to take first sentry duty while Astute was docked at Southampton on a goodwill visit in April and, armed with an SA80 assault rifle, shot dead the weapons engineering officer, Lieutenant Commander Ian Molyneux. Donovan, 23, shot and badly injured a second officer, Lieutenant Commander Christopher Hodge, and his “murderous onslaught” was only stopped when two civilian dignitaries leapt on him in the submarine’s control room. Detectives later discovered Donovan had spoken of carrying out a “massacre” and discussed taking part in the sort of killing sprees depicted in video games. It emerged at Winchester crown court that Donovan had been seen drunk in the early hours before the attack, breaking rules that forbid sailors from drinking for 10 hours before handling a firearm. The court also heard that concerns had been raised about Donovan’s attitude but doctors had judged him fit to carry on serving. He admitted murdering Molyneux and attempting to murder Hodge and two other men who escaped unhurt, Petty Officer Christopher Brown and Chief Petty Officer David McCoy. He was told he will spend at least 25 years in prison. The court heard that four days before his rampage, Donovan had retired to his bunk when he should have been helping scrub part of the submarine. His disobedience meant his planned deployment on a surface ship was cancelled. Astute docked in Southampton on 6 April this year. On shore leave Donovan visited bars, restaurants, clubs and strip joints, drinking heavily. He got back to his hotel at 3.30am on 8 April – the day of the killing – and staggered out of his taxi. Eight hours later, just before going back on board, he told a colleague: “I’m going to kill somebody. I’m not fucking kidding. Watch the news.” Donovan asked if he could do the first sentry duty. He seemed “cheery” as he ate fish and chips in the mess and before he left he squirted vinegar into his mouth, possibly to hide the smell of alcohol, the court was told. At noon, less than nine hours after Donovan had arrived back at his hotel drunk, Brown carried out a “sniff and eyeball” check to judge if he was fit. He passed – though the prosecution said he would have failed a drink-drive test – and was issued with the SA80 rifle. As he walked off towards the submarine’s control room along a narrow corridor, Brown called Donovan to tell him he had not signed for the weapon. Donovan swivelled and, with the rifle at hip level, fired four times. Brown dived for cover and Chief Petty Officer McCoy, who was standing nearby, ran down stairs and hid in a storage cupboard with eight others. The court was told it was a “miracle” the men were not hit. Molyneux came from the control room, where he was entertaining dignitaries, put his head down and tried to tackle Donovan. When Donovan opened fire Molyneux was just a few centimetres from the muzzle. He was shot in the side of the head and died instantly. Donovan stepped over Molyneux and carried on to the control room, where his sixth shot hit Hodge, leaving him with serious kidney and liver injuries. The leader of Southampton city council, Royston Smith, and the chief executive, Alistair Neill, seized Donovan. A seventh shot was fired, but Donovan was overpowered. The spree lasted just 13 seconds. Neill later said he thought Donovan was a terrorist. His eyes looked “wild but faraway”. It was as if he was “in a dream” or “doing this in a video game”. When they investigated his background, police found Donovan was interested in violent games such as Grand Theft Auto, particularly the “kill frenzy” feature. He wondered out loud about the best way to get the biggest “kill count” on board Astute and discussed carrying out a “massacre” in the control room. He boasted he would be famous. Police also found out that Donovan had an alter ego, a rap star called Reggie Moondog. Among the lyrics he wrote was: “Tell the quartermaster I caused disaster. SA80 – more palaver.” Defending, Christopher Parker QC said Donovan had no mental illness, disorder or disability but was “radically disordered” at the time of the spree. Parker said Donovan joined the navy at 18 but never felt comfortable as a submariner. The prospect of joining a surface ship had been a relief and it was a “calamity” when his own disobedience wrecked that. He felt unable to see “a way out” and intended to kill himself that day. Sentencing Donovan, Mr Justice Field told him that in murdering Molyneux, “you robbed him of a bright future with a loving family and of a most promising career”. Outside the court, Molyneux’s wife, Gillian, said: “Nothing can ever replace Ian – my husband and soulmate and the father of our four beautiful children. To Jamie, Arron, Bethany and Charlie – your Daddy and I love you very much and our future will always be guided by him.” A navy spokesman said it had no legal right to breath test service personnel, but a new law to allow the armed services to do so had been mooted even before the attack. Crime Military Gun crime Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Members of a Florida church leapt into action yesterday, when a former member walked in during prayers and started shooting. The pastor and the associate pastor were both shot from behind before Jeremiah Fogle was wrestled to the ground by two men. The pastors remain hospitalized today. Fogle, who had…
Continue reading …A disturbing trend: Child abuse rises in recession, a new study from Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Washington shows. From 2004 to 2007, 8.9 out of 100,000 children under five ended up in the hospital each year with severe brain injuries. From the December 2007 crash to 2009, that…
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Hospitals in Sana’a unable to cope with the number of casualties as security forces clashed with anti-government groups For the past few weeks Change Square in Sana’a has belonged to Yemen’s young revolutionaries. It has been filled with dancing and singing to protest against the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. But there was no singing on Monday. Instead, the square was filled with the echoes of gunfire and screams as the young demonstrators carried their injured friends to safety, their blood dripping in a long crimson trail that led to the field hospital. It was the bloodiest day yet in Yemen’s nine-month uprising, with more than 22 killed and at least 350 wounded. The carnage followed an attack on Sunday that left 30 dead and set the scene for the violence that has broken new ground in the stand-off between anti-government groups and loyalist security forces. On Monday night Sana’a’s hospitals said they were unable cope with the number of casualties. Demonstrators were urgently calling for blood donors and trying to ferry the wounded to hospitals on Sana’a’s outskirts. Many of the wounds appeared to have been caused by high-calibre rounds fired into the crowds from anti-aircraft guns. One protester, Ridwan al-Sabahi, was mourning his comrades on the outskirts of Change Square. “They were amongst us yesterday and are dead today,” he said. “We were all laughing and dreaming of the day when Yemen will be democratic and free.” The blood of the “martyrs” had not been spilt in vain, he said, adding: “We will never forgive Saleh and his family.” Saleh, who was wounded during an explosion as he prayed in a mosque earlier in the year, remains in Riyadh as the guest of the Saudi Arabian monarch, King Abdullah, who on Monday received him in his palace. The day’s violence was vividly illustrated by a live video stream from a field hospital set up by protesters after skirmishes with forces loyal to the president. A dead 10 month-old girl with a head wound brought to the hospital was identified as Anas al-Suaidi, shot by a sniper. Soon afterwards a screaming man with no right arm arrived. At another hospital around 23 bodies were laid out in a makeshift morgue. As night fell the shooting appeared to have spread across Sana’a as rebel units clashed with loyalist forces in a series of running battles across the city. There were reports that security forces loyal to Saleh’s son, Ahmed, were stationed near several of the hospitals treating the defected soldiers. The road to the airport was closed and flights were delayed. Mohammed al-Sabri, the spokesman for the opposition dialogue committee, said: “The massacre that the Saleh regime is continuing will not be forgotten and those who kill protesters will stand trial, sooner or later.” Ahmed Qurshi, president of a Yemeni children’s rights organisation, said: “Tens of children were shot over the last two days by government troops. Is this the democracy the Saleh regime claims it is seeking?” Anti-government activists in the capital blame state media for the chaos in Yemen, claiming they openly provoke attacks. “Open government media outlets and you will see why the government is portraying these youths as outlaws rather than seekers of democracy,” said Ali Abdul Jabbar, director of the Sana’a based Dar al-Ashraf Research Center. Yemen’s government blamed al-Qa’ida elements it claimed were inciting trouble inside the anti-government movement for sparking Monday’s violence. “The government of Yemen expresses its sorrow and condemnation for all acts of violence and bloodshed as those that happened yesterday in Sana’a,” foreign minister Abu Bakr al-Kurbi told the UN human rights council. “The government will investigate and hold accountable all those who were in charge of these acts,” he added. As he spoke government helicopters patrolled the skies of Sana’a and reportedly targeted homes and property of senior opposition leaders. The youth of Yemen, who have been a driving force behind attempts to remove Saleh and his regime from office after three decades, this week lamented that their revolution had persistently played second fiddle to the events in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, which had captured international imagination and won broad regional appeal. “Nine whole months protesting in the streets under the burning sunlight, and still no one appreciates our peaceful efforts,” said Nujood Saleh, a youth activist in Sana’a. “The Libyan revolution succeeded by the use of force while we are still suffering. We insist on peaceful strategies to achieve freedom and democracy.” Another activist had a different take on events from here. “We are not scared to use weapons, said Abdullah Mujalli. “But we know that the crisis is like a matchstick. When it burns it will burn everything around it – and quickly.” Yemen Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Martin Chulov guardian.co.uk
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Rupert Murdoch’s company in negotiations over payout that will set new benchmark in phone-hacking scandal Milly Dowler’s family have been made a £3m offer by Rupert Murdoch’s News International in an attempt to settle the phone-hacking case that led to the closure of the News of the World and the resignation of the company’s chief executive, Rebekah Brooks. The money on the table is understood to include a £1m donation to charity and contributions to the family’s legal costs. But the publisher has not yet reached final agreement with the Dowler family, whose lawyers were thought to be seeking a settlement figure closer to £3.5m. The seven-figure sums under negotiation are far larger than other phone-hacking settlements reached – and amount to one of the largest payouts ever made by a newspaper owner – reflecting the fact that the phone-hacking case affected a family who were victims of crime. Milly Dowler went missing aged 13 in March 2002 and was later found murdered. The terms of any final settlement are not expected to be confidential. It is less clear, however, whether more detail will emerge about how and when the phone was targeted. The family and their lawyers declined to commenton Monday. The hacking of Milly Dowler’s mobile phone after her death emerged in July. Voicemails were accessed on behalf of the News of the World and messages left for her were deleted to make room for more recordings. This gave the family false hope that she was still alive. On Monday afternoon there was growing speculation that a deal was close, with some involved in the negotiations suggesting a deal could come as soon as this week. However, other sources familiar with the negotiations indicated that there are still enough matters unresolved to mean that a final settlement will be delayed further. The actor Sienna Miller accepted £100,000 from News International after the publisher accepted unconditional liability for her phone hacking and other privacy and harassment claims in May. A month later football pundit Andy Gray accepted £20,000 plus undisclosed costs. Other lawyers bringing phone-hacking cases have privately indicated that they would be advising many of those bringing actions to try to reach a settlement rather than take their cases to lengthy and expensive trials. A handful of cases have been taken forward as lead actions by Mr Justice Vos, to establish a benchmark for settlements in future lawsuits. However, with the amount of damages alone offered to the Dowler family expected to amount to well over £1m, the settlement easily exceeds other high-profile payout made by newspapers by way of apology. In 2008, Kate and Gerry McCann, the parents of the missing Madeleine McCann, accepted £550,000 in damages over more than 100 “seriously defamatory” articles published by Richard Desmond’s Express newspapers, including both the Daily Express and Daily Star . This year, eight newspapers paid an unspecified six figure sum to Chris Jefferies , the landlord of the murdered Joanna Yeates over allegations made against him over the her death. The titles made public apologies to him, and another man Vincent Tabak has been charged with her murder, with a trial due next month. Rupert Murdoch personally met the Dowler family in July, shortly after the story about hacking into her phone broke, making what the family’s lawyer, Mark Lewis, said was a “full and humble” apology . The News Corporation chairman and chief executive “held his head in his hands” and repeatedly told the family he was “very, very sorry”. On Monday night, News International confimed it was “in advanced negotiations with the Dowler family regarding their compensation settlement. No final agreement has yet been reached, but we hope to conclude the discussions as quickly as possible.” Sources close to News International said the publisher had initiated the offer of compensation, although at a level lower than the £3m settlement. Phone hacking Newspapers & magazines National newspapers Newspapers Milly Dowler News International News of the World Dan Sabbagh guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …When the Beatles toured the United States, the band had a few concert demands: at least 150 uniformed police officers, a $40,000 fee—and no segregated audiences, according to the contract for the Beatles’ 1965 concert at Cow Palace in California, reports the BBC . The contract is set to…
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Tens of thousands join Fukushima protest march in Tokyo amid continuing fears over radiation Tens of thousands of people marched in Tokyo on Monday in the biggest show of public opposition to nuclear power since the start of the Fukushima Daiichi crisis in March. The protesters, who included residents of Fukushima prefecture, called for the immediate closure of all of Japan’s nuclear reactors and a new energy policy centred on renewables. The demonstration was the biggest the country has seen in years. Police said 20,000 people had taken part, while media reports put the number as high as 60,000. Among the protesters were the Nobel literature laureate Kenzaburo Oe, musician Ryuichi Sakamoto and actor Taro Yamamoto, who was forced to leave his production company earlier this year because of his opposition to nuclear power. “We already have enough electricity, even without nuclear plants,” Yamamoto said. “If we don’t act, Japan will become a disposal site for nuclear waste.” Almost three-quarters of Japan’s 54 nuclear reactors are inoperative due to emergency safety checks and regular maintenance. Pro-nuclear groups, including Japan’s biggest industry lobby, Keidanren, have warned that the country faces power shortages unless idle reactors are brought back online. Oe told protesters: “We need to let leaders of major parties and the Japan Business Federation know that we intend to resist [nuclear power].” Before the Fukushima accident, Japan depended on nuclear for just under a third of its power supply. The government has abandoned plans to increase its share to 50%. The prime minister at the time of the disaster, Naoto Kan, came out in favour of phasing out nuclear power. In recent media interviews he said that at the height of the crisis he had feared Japan would cease to function as a nation and that 30 million people would have to be evacuated from Tokyo. His successor, Yoshihiko Noda, has hinted that reactors that pass newly introduced stress tests will go back on line, although he accepts that Japan must also look to other sources of energy. According to a poll by Associated Press and the market research firm GfK, 55% of Japanese want to reduce the number of reactors, while 35% believe the number should be kept the same. Only 4% wanted an increase, while 3% supported abolition. Six months after three of Fukushima Daiichi’s six reactors suffered core meltdowns, the plant continues to release radiation. The leaks have contaminated the water supply and food chain, and forced the evacuation of 100,000 people living in or around a 12-mile radius of the plant. Residents of towns closest to the facility have been told it could be years, perhaps decades, before radiation levels are low enough for them to return . Japan’s environment minister, Goshi Hosono, said on Monday that the plant’s operator, Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco) would stabilise the reactors earlier than planned. Tepco, which has been heavily criticised for its handling of the crisis, had said it would bring the reactors to a safe state known as “cold shutdown” by mid-January. “We will move up the existing target period and endeavour to achieve cold shutdown by the end of this year,” Kyodo quoted Hosono as telling an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference in Vienna. Hosono, who oversees the government’s response to the crisis, confirmed Japan would accept a team of IAEA inspectors due to arrive next month to advise on how to clean up the area surrounding the plant. Japan disaster Japan Energy Nuclear power Renewable energy Pollution Justin McCurry guardian.co.uk
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Celebrations after high court grants emergency order restraining Basildon council from clearing site Residents due to be evicted from the Dale Farm Traveller site won an 11th-hour reprieve on Monday after being granted an emergency injunction restraining Basildon council from clearing structures on the site pending a further hearing at the high court on Friday. There were cheers from the barricade shortly after 5pm when the news arrived that bailiffs, who were due to begin evicting 86 families from the site built on a former scrapyard, would not be able to enter legally until after the hearing. The council will also not be able to cut off utilities to the site, something that had concerned residents, who argued that the lives of sick people of on the site could be endangered. Speaking at the high court in London, Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart granted the order because there were concerns that measures carried out by Basildon borough council “may go further” than the terms of the enforcement notices. The case hinges on the argument that residents have not been sufficiently informed about what is allowed on each pitch, and what must be removed. Despite the scale of the operation by Basildon council, which includes a camp to accommodate bailiffs, police, council staff and the hundreds of journalists from around the world covering the case, it took three individuals, without the aid of a lawyer, to put a stop to their plans. Candy Sheridan, vice-chair of the Gypsy Council of North Norfolk, resident Mary Sheridan and volunteer Stuart Carruthers appeared at three courts on Monday, including the high court, before the injunction was granted. Speaking after the decision, Sheridan said: “This is a victory for residents who have been shown a glimmer of respect today from a judge who listened to our reasoned arguments.” The leader of the council, Tony Ball, said he was “extremely disappointed and frustrated” by the judge’s decision. “I am absolutely clear that on this issue, on Friday, the court will find in the council’s favour and that the site clearance will be able to continue,” he said. “But until then, as always, this council will comply with the law and we will comply with the judgment that has been put before us.” The judge ruled that Basildon council must tell residents on a plot-by-plot basis what enforcement measures are proposed. Residents must respond to the proposals by noon on Thursday. The judge will then decide at 11.30am on Friday if there are any remaining legal issues that could extend the injunction further. Physical structures including cars and caravans will not be able to be moved by bailiffs and electricity and water will not be cut off unless they pose a danger “to life and limb”. But the judge said further protest – which has included several protesters chained to the gates, to concrete blocks and to each other – should be discouraged and that the 20ft (6m) high barricade, festooned with banners of support, should be taken down. “It is in nobody’s interests that we have a riot on this site,” he said. “There’s got to be a bit of give and take over a limited timeframe to see if the problems can be dealt with in an orderly rather than disruptive way.” Council representatives should be allowed on site to discuss the arrangements with individual residents, he said. He told the Dale Farm representatives: “I appreciate it is a deeply unpleasant situation but unfortunately this is a road which is reaching its end and there is sadly no mileage in prolonging the agony.” Some protesters were not in favour of bringing down the barricade. “I think it’s tactical on their side and therefore it needs to be tactical on ours,” said Carol Stuart McIvor, a writer on the site. “But the decision must be the Travellers’. It’s their gig – we are only here to support them.” The council’s barrister, Reuben Taylor, told the judge a lengthy delay to the eviction could cause losses to the public purse “running into millions”, he said. Any damages granted would not come “anywhere near” meeting the council’s costs for the thousands of police officers on special duty, compounds, plant hire and bailiffs, he said. “The consequences would be enormous.” The judge responded that there was “a lack of clarity” as to which properties would be affected and to what extent. He said: “They are entitled to know whether their home is on the list for permanent removal or not, or whether just a little bit of their plot is to be removed.” There was delight at Dale Farm as the news came through after a tense day that saw bailiffs jeered as they issued a final warning to protesters and residents. Bailiffs were called “scum” and “fascists” as they told residents the council was concerned for their safety as a result of the blocking of the site gate. Tom Berry, a resident at the site, said the injunction was a stay of execution and a relief for families. “I’m over the moon. Especially for my family and the other residents on here. At the end of the day, we’ve got another week for them to sort something out for us or somewhere to go to.” He had a personal message for the leader of the council who had, earlier in the day, insisted that delaying tactics from residents were unacceptable. “Tony Ball should go back to school,” he said. Meanwhile, it has emerged that the government refused help from the United Nations to help broker an agreement between the Travellers and the council. Jan Jarab, the European representative of the UN high commissioner for human rights, said the UN had offered to help negotiate a “less dramatic” solution. “There was communication between the British government and our headquarters, but it was made clear to us that we would receive a letter that that offer was rejected,” he said. Dale Farm Roma, Gypsies and Travellers Protest Housing Communities Human rights Local politics Alexandra Topping Johnny Howorth guardian.co.uk
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