Tristane Banon’s lawyer says she is in ‘a fighting mood’ as US prosecutor drops charges based on Nafissatou Diallo’s claims The French writer and journalist who claims Dominique Strauss-Kahn attempted to rape her eight years ago is more determined than ever to bring him to justice, her lawyer said on Tuesday. Tristane Banon claims the former IMF chief sexually assaulted her when she went to interview him for a book she was writing in 2003. Banon, 32, who was friends with Strauss-Kahn’s daughter Camille and is a goddaughter of his second wife, described his behaviour as “like a rutting chimpanzee”. Her lawyer David Koubbi, who travelled to New York to see prosecutor Cyrus Vance and meet Nafissatou Diallo, said he was dismayed by the New York prosecutor’s decision to drop the sexual assault charges against the politician. “I regret this outcome. I regret it for Nafissatou Diallo because I believed what she said,” he said. “I spoke to Tristane on Monday evening by telephone, then during the night, then this morning [Tuesday]. She is in a fighting mood. She isn’t ready to let this drop. But she feels sorry for what has happened to Nafissatou Diallo because she also believed her.” He added: “The credibility of my client is not, and has never been, called into question because of this.” Banon’s allegations are the subject of a preliminary inquiry that Koubbi said had “not yet been completed”. Strauss-Kahn’s Paris lawyers have dismissed her accusations as “fantasy”. “The DSK affair in France has only just begun,” Koubbi said, adding that the “self-congratulatory” statements from members of Strauss-Kahn’s Socialist party who defended their former presidential hope, showed a “crass indecency”. Dominique Strauss-Kahn IMF France Europe Kim Willsher guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Sounds like January Jones is as icy as the mom she portrays on Mad Men. Kid actor Jared Gilmore, who plays the son of Don Draper and Jones’ Betty had some dissing words of advice for his replacement. “Be careful around January. She’s not as approachable as the others,” he…
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High court refuses judicial review of decision to remove 5,000-year-old ‘royal’ remains from Stonehenge for analysis A druid leader who claims to be the incarnation of a legendary British king has suffered defeat in the latest legal skirmish of his long-running battle over the removal of ancient remains from Stonehenge . King Arthur Pendragon appeared at the high court in London to argue that the “royal” remains should be returned to their age-old resting place in Wiltshire. Pendragon, a 57-year-old former soldier and biker who changed his name by deed poll, wanted the high court to give permission for a judicial review of the government’s decision to allow the remains to be taken away for analysis. But Mr Justice Wyn Williams refused King Arthur, ruling there was insufficient evidence to show the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) had acted unreasonably. Outside court Pendragon, who styles himself as battle chieftain of the Council of British Druid Orders and “titular head and chosen chief” of the Loyal Arthurian Warband druid order, remained defiant. Wearing white flowing robes, he called for a day of action on Monday to draw attention to the cause. He said: “Even though on this occasion my appeal has been dismissed I am still very much hopeful that I can win in the future. “I wasn’t asking for the bones to be put back straight away, I simply wanted confirmation that they will be returned to the site as soon as possible.” He said druids felt the remains were “guardians” of the site. The judge heard that the cremated remains of more than 40 bodies – thought to be at least 5,000 years old – were removed from a burial site at Stonehenge in 2008 , with ministers giving researchers from Sheffield University permission to keep the bones until 2015. Pendragon, who represented himself, said the bones were remains of members of the “royal line” or “priest caste” who could have been the “founding fathers of this great nation”. He told the judge he feared the remains would never be returned, but moved to a museum, adding that the MoJ had “unreasonably” failed to take account of his views. The MoJ denied the allegation. Researchers say their work on the remains is yielding “fascinating insights” into the history of the site. After the decision English Heritage, which manages the site , said the scientists wanted to keep the remains until 2015 so full analysis could be carried out. “Otherwise we will lose an opportunity to learn more about this important site,” a spokesman added. A spokesperson for the University of Sheffield said: “Research on the cremated bones is beginning to yield fascinating insights about the people of Stonehenge. “Due to the large number of remains and the fact many of them were mixed together by archaeologists in the 1920s, study of them has been difficult and time consuming. However, we will now be able to apply new scientific techniques, developed only in the last few years, to find out more about who these people were. “Human remains are an important part of our shared past and they should be treated with respect. The benefit of the research is balanced with any ethical concerns that may be caused by excavations.” Stonehenge Heritage Research Anthropology Archaeology Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …If the election were held today, it would be too close to call between President Obama and any of the GOP front-runners, according to the latest Gallup poll . Obama would be in a dead heat within the margin of error against Michele Bachmann, Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, or Rick Perry,…
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Police watchdog investigates after man who was arrested for alleged affray in Widnes falls ill and dies in hospital The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is investigating after pepper spray was used to arrest a 25-year-old man who became ill and died in hospital less than two hours later. The man, who has not yet been identified, is understood to have struggled during his arrest at 5.15pm on Monday in Lacey Street, Widnes, Cheshire. The arrest was for alleged affray. He was detained and restrained and taken by police van to Runcorn police station. Shortly afterwards, he became ill and paramedics were called. He was taken to Warrington general hospital by ambulance, where he was pronounced dead at 7.09pm. Investigators from the IPCC have been sent to Widnes to begin gathering evidence and gain initial accounts from police officers. A spokesman for the IPCC said: “During the course of the arrest it is understood police deployed pepper spray.” The man, who has not yet been named, was “restrained” and taken by police van to Runcorn police station, the spokesman said. He added: “Shortly after arrival he became unwell and paramedics were called.” A postmortem is due to be carried out on Tuesday. The man’s parents have been informed and investigators will be speaking to them to explain the IPCC’s role and what is known at this stage. Cheshire police have not made any comment about the death. It is the second time in a week that someone has died following their arrest. Last week in Cumbria, 27-year-old Dale Burns died after he was Tasered and sprayed with pepper spray at his home in Barrow. The IPCC is investigating his death and appealing for witnesses. A postmortem failed to establish a cause of death. Police Independent Police Complaints Commission Helen Carter guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Titanic star Kate Winslet appears to be a good person to have around during a real emergency. All 20 guests escaped unharmed after a fire ripped through Richard Branson’s luxury home on a private Caribbean island early yesterday—including the billionaire’s 90-year-old mother, who was carried to safety by Winslet….
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Labour MP Tom Watson wants Electoral Commission to investigate whether payments and benefits to former No 10 communications director amounted to political donations The Electoral Commission is being asked to investigate whether News International payments to Andy Coulson after he started working for the Conservative party may have broken the law. Tom Watson, a Labour MP and a member of the Commons culture committee, said he wanted the Electoral Commission to investigate whether the payments and benefits – which reportedly included private health insurance and a company car – should have been declared because they amounted to a political donation. MPs on the committee are also angry because the reports appear to contradict evidence given to it by Coulson himself. The former News of the World editor, who worked as David Cameron’s communications chief from July 2007 until January this year, is expected to face further questioning from the committee about the payments. On Monday night, the BBC’s Robert Peston said Coulson had received several hundred thousand pounds from News International after he started working for Tories. Coulson was known to have received a payoff after he resigned from the News of the World in January 2007 following the conviction of the journalist Clive Goodman and the investigator Glenn Mulcaire for phone hacking. But Peston said Coulson received his severance pay in instalments, and that he continued receiving money from News International until the end of 2007. Peston also said Coulson continued to receive his News International work benefits, such as healthcare, for three years and that he kept his company car. The report casts doubt on the reliability of the evidence that Coulson gave to the culture committee in 2009. Coulson, who at the time was working for the Conservative party on a reported salary of £275,000 – roughly half what he was thought to have been earning at the News of the World – said he did not have any “secondary income”. Watson asked: “So your sole income was News International and then your sole income was the Conservative party?” Coulson replied: “Yes.” Rebekah Brooks, the former News International chief executive, appeared to confirm this when she gave evidence to the committee in July. Asked if the company had “subsidised” Coulson’s salary after he left the News of the World, she said: “That’s not true.” On Tuesday, John Whittingdale, the Conservative MP who chairs the culture committee, said Coulson and News International should have been more open with the committee about the nature of this arrangement. “As I understand it, these were staggered payments from a severance package. So, arguably, that’s just delayed pay,” Whittingdale said. “But if it is also true that Coulson was provided with a car and health insurance, then I would have expected him to have made that clear. And I would have expected News International to have made that clear when we asked them about it.” The committee is not meeting until September, but Whittingdale said it may decide to demand further clarification on these matters from Coulson and News International. Watson said on Tuesday the committee would have to establish whether it had been “misled”. But he said that the Electoral Commission also had to establish whether the payments and benefits constituted donations to the Conservative party that should have been declared. “If it transpires that these payments were made in a discretionary fashion, rather than honouring the commitments of Mr Coulson’s contract, then I think they probably do form a donation and they should have been declared,” he said. “Every single day there seems to be a new revelation that contradicts what has previously been said. I want the Electoral Commission to try and get to the facts of this case. They have powers of investigation.” Watson also said that Cameron should have been embarrassed to learn that Rupert Murdoch was still paying for Coulson’s car and for Coulson’s health insurance several years after Coulson started working for the Tories. “I just pose the question – if Alastair Campbell when he was working for Tony Blair had had his car paid and his health insurance paid – what would the reaction of the Murdoch papers be?” Watson asked. The commission said it had not yet received a complaint about the individual allegations and refused to spell out whether such payments might have been considered undeclared donations, directing inquiries to their rules regulating donations. According to the rules, staff of political parties are not considered regulated donees in their own right unless they are a member of the party and they receive money for use in their political work. Payments to a member of staff could however be considered a donation in kind to a party if it saved the party paying for items itself. As such, if the payments were in anyway considered a co-payment or top-up to subsidise his party wage it could count as a donation. Alternatively if the health insurance or company car he reportedly enjoyed for three years after leaving News International subsidised the party paying for such items itself, it could also be considered a donation. In July, the Conservatives denied Coulson was paid by News International while he was working for the party or the government. A senior Conservative party official told the Guardian: “We can give categorical assurances that he wasn’t paid by any other source. Andy Coulson’s only salary, his only form of income, came from the party during the years he worked for the party and in government.” Labour’s culture spokesman, Ivan Lewis, put out a statement on Tuesday demanding more “transparency” from Cameron and News International. “David Cameron needs to say whether he knew about the payments to Andy Coulson. The details of Mr Coulson’s termination agreements with News International must be published and we need to know whether these payments, in the form of honouring a two-year contract of employment after he had been forced to resign in disgrace, were declared to the parliamentary authorities,” Lewis said. “It must be explained why Mr Coulson was getting these payments when he resigned from the News of the World. “The longer these questions are unanswered the more damage will be done to the prime minister’s reputation.” Andy Coulson News of the World Newspapers & magazines National newspapers Newspapers News International Conservatives Tom Watson Ivan Lewis Phone hacking Andrew Sparrow Polly Curtis guardian.co.uk
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Nato to resume bombing campaign after ‘tactical pause’ as it emerges that rebels are being advised by SAS soldiers British and Nato military commanders are planning what they hope will be a final onslaught on Colonel Gaddafi’s forces to put an end to all resistance from troops loyal to the Libyan leader. Heavy fighting raged around Gaddafi’s Bab al-Aziziya compound, in Tripoli, on Tuesday afternoon as rebels rained artillery rounds, mortar shells and missiles on loyalist positions. Columns of grey smoke billowed over the Libyan capital as witnesses reported a buildup of rebel troops and vehicles to the east of the compound. Large convoys of rebel vehicles raced through deserted streets in an apparent show of strength after Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam claimed the government had “broken the backbone” of the opposition . After being caught by surprise by the speed of the rebel advance on Tripoli, Nato chiefs have ordered what defence officials described a “tactical pause” in the bombing campaign. But the pause will not last long, and the bombing of what strategic targets are left in Tripoli will resume, possibly as early as Tuesday night, alliance officials said. The Guardian has learned that a number of serving British special forces soldiers, as well as ex-SAS troopers, are advising rebel forces, although their presence is officially denied. Two thousand rebel reinforcements arrived in Tripoli on Monday night after breaking through government lines near Zlitan, according to Guma al-Gamaty, the London representative of the rebel National Transitional Council. “They should make a difference,” he said. More rebel fighters arrived by boat, and a separate convoy of jeeps and artillery was heading west from Misrata, according to rebels in the eastern city, which had been besieged by government forces for five months. The sudden advance on the capital suggests co-ordination between the rebels and Nato planners is not as effective as had been widely assumed. On Tuesday, Nato commanders were analysing photographic and signals intelligence provided by spy planes looking at what defence chiefs call “patterns of life” – movements of people and vehicles in and around Gaddafi’s compound. British, Danish and Norwegian aircraft have been particularly active in striking targets in Triploi. RAF jets have attacked the compound with 500lb Paveway bombs, but they have so far been directed at its perimeter walls and control towers. The decision facing Nato commanders on Tuesday was whether the compound’s core and underground tunnels could be regarded as legitimate targets and weighing up the risks involved, notably to the lives of civilians and rebels. British defence chiefs are also aware of the dangers of being seen to be sanctioning assassination. Nato planes can more easily spot groups of Gaddafi forces ambushing rebel convoys on the streets of Tripoli, but defence officials say bombing them from the air would be far too risky. Pilots are continuing to seek targets that are more clearly defined as military, including command and control facilities, radar and surface-to-air missiles which are still being operated by troops loyal to Gaddafi, the latest strike figures put out by Nato indicate. British aircraft are seeking what pilots call “dynamic” targets – targets seen by chance – as well as “deliberate” planned targets. The Guardian has previously reported the presence of former British special forces troops , now employed by private security companies and funded by a number of sources, including Qatar. They have been joined by a number of serving SAS soldiers. They have been acting as forward air controllers – directing pilots to targets – and communicating with Nato operational commanders. They have also been advising rebels on tactics, a task they have not found easy. Britain’s international development secretary, Andrew Mitchell, said there would be a “bumpy ride” over the coming days. “There was a lot of confusion. There are quite long lines of communication involved,” he told the BBC. “It’s inevitable in this situation, with the warfare going on as it is, that there will be some confusion.” Libya Nato Military Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Africa Richard Norton-Taylor Julian Borger Chris Stephen guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A California cop is hit in the neck in a dramatic video of a shootout outside a family home where a suicidal father killed his baby daughter and mother-in-law, according to investigators. Police officer Jarred Slocum can be seen sprinting to safety, clutching his neck, before collapsing on an El…
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