Sabrina Moss: Kilburn Shooting Suspect Held

Police investigating the death of nursery teacher Sabrina Moss, who was shot dead as she celebrated her 24th birthday, have arrested a man on suspicion of murder.

Ms Moss was gunned down near a fast food restaurant in Kilburn, north London, and died in hospital from her injuries.

A second 24-year-old woman was injured in the shooting and remains in hospital, where her condition is described as stable and non-life threatening.

A police spokesman said a 22-year-old man was arrested at St Pancras International train station on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.

He remains in custody at a police station in central London.

Ms Moss's parents John and Andrea described their daughter as a "fun-loving girl who made friends wherever she went".

"Our family has been devastated by this horrific incident that has changed our lives forever," they said.

"Sabrina was a lovely daughter and a perfect mother to her young son, whom she adored.

"She cherished working as a nursery teacher and treasured working with the children, who undoubtedly will miss her dearly."

More follows...

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

China: Boy's Eyes Gouged Out By Woman

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

A six-year-old boy is recovering in hospital after his eyes were gouged out in an horrific attack in China.

The child, who has been named as Guo Bin, went missing from his home in the country's Shanxi Province on Saturday evening.

He had failed to return home for dinner after playing outside.

Five hours later, the child was discovered by his parents with both eyes missing.

The young boy's mother said she found her son near their home.

His face was covered with blood but he was conscious and spoke to her, reportedly claiming that he had been attacked by a female who spoke with a strange accent.

Speaking from the hospital where he is being treated, the youngster's father explained what he said happened.

"[He was] walking down the street, then someone just carried him away. This is what my son told me. We asked him on the way [to hospital].

"He knew exactly what was happening. He said there was a person gouging his eyes with 'a thing', and he cried.

"The person then told him: 'Don't cry. If you stop crying I'll stop gouging your eyes'."

The boy says his eyes were removed by a woman with a strange accent

An initial suggestion in the Chinese media claimed the child's eyes were found nearby with the cornea missing.

Uncorroborated reports said that the attack may have been connected to China's illegal trafficking of human organs.

However, local police have now said they do not believe the attack was in any way related to organ trafficking and that while the eyes were found near the boy, the cornea had not been removed.

It remains possible that authorities are denying the link to trafficking in order to cover-up an embarrassing problem.

The director of Shanxi Eye Hospital, where the boy is being treated, has said that the child is now making a recovery but that his sight will never be recovered.

"The boy's general condition is stable. We conducted a three-hour check on his eyes yesterday, mainly on the trauma his eyes suffered," Yang Caizhen said.

"Our hospital established a treatment group for this case, and it's been confirmed that the boy is definitely going to be blind.

"His eyeballs are gone. Current medical technology has no means to help a patient whose eyeballs are gone by installing artificial eyes. There is no such technology in the world yet."

A local police chief, named only as Liu, said that he could not speculate on a motive for the attack.

"We are sparing no efforts trying to solve this case," he added.

A reward of RMB100,000 (£10,000) has been offered to anyone with information about the attack.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Peru: Plea Decision Looms For British Women

A lawyer for one of the British women accused of drug smugling in Peru says they will have to decide soon whether they are going to plead guilty or continue to maintain their innocence.

Peter Madden, who is representing Michaella McCollum, 20, from Northern Ireland, said she and co-accused Melissa Reid, also 20, from Scotland, are scared and confused but will have to decide within weeks what to plead.

"They are basically confident enough that what they have told the authorities will be eventually proved," Mr Madden said.

"The Peruvian system is still that they are innocent until proven guilty but in reality they have to try to prove that what they said happened to them did happen."

Reid's father went to Peru to support his daughter

Mr Madden, a well-known human rights solicitor from Belfast who has acted for high-profile republicans, has just returned from South America.

He added: "They are frightened. They are unsure of their future. They are in a prison in which they are the only two foreigners."

Mr Madden said that, under new laws soon to take effect in Peru, they could be released after two years if they accept responsibility for their crime.

He added: "The position is that at some stage there will have to be a decision made by Michaella and Melissa as to whether or not, in our terms, they plead guilty, or plead not guilty and go to trial.

The women were found with 11kg of cocaine in their luggage

"That stage hasn't been reached yet."

Mr Madden told BBC Radio Ulster: "Anybody who is arrested and found in possession of drugs goes straight into prison. There is no bail.

"If they want to protest their innocence in a trial that may take up to or over two years, whereas if they accept their responsibility, as it is put, it could be over in six months.

"The law is changing so they could actually serve just over two years and be released.

"There is a new law going through the Peruvian Congress which states that any foreigner who has a sentence of less than seven years will get two-thirds remission and be removed from the country after a period of one third.

The pair say they were forced to travel from Ibiza to Peru

"This is a fairly complex decision but at some stage they will have to make that decision."

The women were stopped with 11kg (24lb) of cocaine, with an estimated street value of £1.5m, hidden in food packets in their luggage while trying to board a flight to Spain earlier this month.

Officials said they had confessed to investigators that they knew there were drugs in their bags but that they had been threatened at gunpoint and forced to smuggle the cocaine by a criminal gang.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Syria: Father Reunited With His 'Dead' Son

A Syrian father's nightmare is over after he learned the son he thought had been killed in a chemical weapons attack is alive.

Video has emerged of the moment the pair are reunited in a suburb of Zamalka, surround by friends and relatives.

The heart-warming film uploaded to YouTube shows the boy first being handed over to someone who appears to be a relative before his relieved father is given the news his son is alive.

Safe: the little boy is reunited with his father

As they are about to be reunited he is so overcome with joy and shock that his legs buckle and he bursts into tears.

Those around him shout "Allahu akbar" (God is great).

The man is so distraught and emotional his son has to be momentarily taken away from him while he composes himself.

Later in the video the boy is seen in his father's arms as he is kissed and hugged.

Some 1,300 Syrians are reported to have been killed in the attack in Damascus, with a further 3,600 treated for neurotoxic symptoms.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

La Tomatina Festival: Spain Town Charges

Thousands of revellers have pelted tomatoes in an annual Spanish food fight - but for the first time they paid for the pleasure.

Some 20,000 people from around the world joined Wednesday's hour-long street party, known as La Tomatina, in a square in Brunol.

This time round, participants paid a minimum of 10 euros (£8.50) to take part, but 5,000 free tickets were set aside for the eastern Spanish town's residents.

It was also the first time in the history of the festival, inspired by a children's food fight in 1945, that it rained as the tomatoes were pelted.

The weather conditions or the entry cost did not appear to spoil anyone's fun however.

Many wore shower caps and goggles to protect their eyes from the acidic juice of the tomatoes, which must be squashed before they are hurled at fellow participants.

"It is one of the most famous festivals in western Europe and it is safer than running with a bull," said 22-year-old Brad Fisher, from Sydney, who came with a group of 700 people.

"One hundred and thirty tonnes of tomatoes is a lot but it's still better than a 500-kilo bull."

English participant Becky Charlton said: "This is our first time here, it's amazing, it's crazy, crazy, crazy. It's really good. I will come again next year."

Some 130 tonnes of tomatoes were thrown in the fight, although this year the city council reduced the number of people taking part from 45,000 to 20,000 due to safety concerns.

After the fight, many of the revellers traditionally head to a local river to wash off the pulp. But in this year's rain, that was not necessary.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tributes Paid To Boy, 12, Found In River Cam

A 12-year-old boy found dead after going into the River Cam near Cambridge has been named as Andrew Collings.

Cambridgeshire Police confirmed his body was recovered at around 3am following a major search operation.

Witnesses had reported seeing him enter the water on Tuesday evening.

Police and other emergency services began searching after reports the boy did not resurface after going into the river at Lammas Land, the Fen Causeway, at about 6pm.

Two boys look at flowers left at the scene at Lammas Land

Andrew attended the Cambridge's Netherall School. His headteacher spoke of her sorrow at his death after his body was discovered.

Principal Caroline McKenney said: "The school extends its deepest condolences to Andy's family. When the time is right we will speaking to his family and students at the school to find a suitable way of remembering him."

According to the Cambridge News, the boy's family watched as officers, paramedics, fire crews and a police helicopter searched the water. Rescue teams were seen dredging the river bed.

One witness told the paper: "The police helicopter was up and the firefighters were everywhere. They were going up and down the river looking for a child.

"We heard that four boys had gone into the river but only three came out and one didn't."

Donna Frost said her son Charlie had been playing with Andrew and others earlier in the evening.

She said: "Apparently two or three of them jumped in and one managed to get hold of him but couldn't save him.

"Charlie feels terrible because he had been playing with him but came home for his tea.

"He thinks if he'd stayed he may have been able to save him but perhaps he would have got in trouble himself."

"Kids always jump in the river here but it's not dredged and there are no life rings. We're all cut up about it, he was such a lovely lad."

School friends have left flowers on a bench near the river bank.

A spokesman for East of England Ambulance Service said: "We received the call at 6.11pm to an incident involving a 12-year-old boy in water.

"We sent three ambulances, a rapid response vehicle and a land crew from East Anglia Air Ambulance."

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Mosque Arson Attempt Suspects Caught On CCTV

Police have released CCTV footage of three men apparently spraying highly flammable insulation foam under the door and window shutters of a mosque in Essex.

The Harlow Islamic Centre was targeted in an apparent arson attack early on Monday and the attempt was discovered by mosque leaders as they arrived for morning prayers.

Security footage showed three men approaching the building on Paringdon Road, Harlow at 1:24am.

The suspected attacker were caught on the centre's CCTV cameras

One of the men can be seen holding a drill and another what police believe to be a canister of insulation foam.

Later, the men leave carrying their tools away with them.

"It is clear from the CCTV footage this was a premeditated, deliberate attempt to cause serious damage to the Islamic centre," Essex Police Superintendent Trevor Roe said.

"The three men come equipped to carry out the damage and also take everything they brought with them away again."

No-one was hurt in the attack but there was some damage to doors and walls.

The attack damaged doors and windows at the Islamic centre

Police have asked anyone who can identify the men to come forward.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at Harlow CID on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

The mosque was set up 18 years ago when the Muslim community in Harlow grew in numbers and now serves a 2,000-strong community, according to the centre's website.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dromore Police Review Fourth Woman's Death

Police investigating the deaths of three women in Dromore, Co Down, are to probe the death of a fourth woman in the town.

Detectives from the PSNI's serious crime branch are looking into the death of Margaret Stronge, 58, who was found dead at Moss Lane in Dromore in July 1982.

Detective Chief Inspector Richard Harkness said: "My officers have advised the Stronge family of this development. I believe it is an appropriate and necessary step, given our current understanding of events in the town.

"We will progress the review as quickly as possible. I would like to repeat my appeal to the community in Dromore for information about all these deaths.

"My officers are keen to speak with anyone who may have any information which could assist our inquiries."

Leslie Ross, 66, has been charged with murdering two of his girlfriends in the market town with a population of 5,000.

He appeared in court last week accused of murdering 47-year-old Michelle Bickerstaff in April last year and 50-year-old Margaret Weiss in August 2007.

A file on the third death, that of 52-year-old Lily McKee, who died in December 2002, has been referred to the Public Prosecution Service.

Mr Ross has also been charged with indecently assaulting a woman between January 1979 and June 1990, committing an act of gross indecency with a child and indecently assaulting a female child between July 1979 and June 1990.

A lawyer for Mr Ross said he had "categorically and vehemently" denied the charges during three days of questioning.

Mr Ross is due to appear at Banbridge Magistrates' Court on September 19.

More follows...

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Zeta-Jones And Douglas 'Taking Time Apart'

Hollywood couple Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas are "taking some time apart" after 13 years of marriage.

The actress, who married Douglas in 2000 and has two children with him, shot to fame in Britain in the early 1990s, playing fresh-faced Mariette Larkin in the television series The Darling Buds Of May.

A spokeswoman for Zeta-Jones said: "Catherine and Michael are taking some time apart to evaluate and work on their marriage. There will be no further comment."

People magazine reported Douglas and Zeta-Jones - both Oscar winners and one of Hollywood's most high-profile couples - have had holidays apart in recent months and appeared at red carpet events without each other.

Douglas, 68, and Zeta-Jones, 43, have also both struggled with health issues.

He battled throat cancer in 2010 and made headlines this summer when he spoke out about one potential cause, oral sex.

And in April, the Welsh actress said she was seeking help for type two bipolar disorder.

​It was her second known trip to a healthcare facility for the condition since 2011.

The couple married in 2000

She has previously said of having bipolar: "This is a disorder that affects millions of people and I am one of them.

"If my revelation of having bipolar two has encouraged one person to seek help, then it is worth it.

"There is no need to suffer silently and there is no shame in seeking help."

The pair met in 1998 at the Deauville Film Festival in France, got engaged on New Year's Eve in 1999 and starred together in the 2000 Oscar-winning film Traffic.

Zeta-Jones won her best supporting actress Oscar for her performance in 2002's Chicago as vampish killer Velma Kelly. She was made a CBE in 2011.

Douglas has won Oscars as a producer of the 1975 best picture film One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and as best actor in 1987's Wall Street.

Jenny Priestly, editor of Entertainment News, told Sky News: "We haven't seen them as a couple on the red carpet together since April.

"Catherine didn't support Michael when he was in Cannes back in May for the premiere of the feature film Behind The Candelabra which is very unusual, they've always been a very supportive couple.

"It's important to stress that neither party has filed for divorce or legal separation at the moment."

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More

Syria: 'Britain Encouraged Chemical Attacks'

Britain, the US and France helped "terrorists" use chemical weapons in Damascus, Syria's deputy foreign minister has claimed.

"The terrorist groups are the ones who used them with American, British and French encouragement. This encouragement should stop," said Faisal Al-Miqdad.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said "all the evidence" pointed to Bashar al Assad's regime being behind the chemical weapon attack, a response to which he said would be discussed at a meeting of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

"We believe that it's time the United Nations Security Council shouldered its responsibilities on Syria, which for the last two and a half years it has failed to do," he said.

"We're clear that if there isn't agreement at the United Nations, we and other nations still have a responsibility on chemical weapons.

"We have to confront something that is a crime against humanity. If we don't do so we will have to confront even bigger war crimes in the future.

David Cameron cut short his holiday to return for the talks

He repeated David Cameron's statement that the National Security Council (NSC) had "agreed unanimously that the use of chemical weapons by Assad was unacceptable - and the world should not stand by".

Military commanders in the council, which held talks chaired by the Prime Minister at Downing Street, were helping draw up plans for missile strikes against Syria.

The NSC also "agreed unanimously on a recommendation" to be considered by the Cabinet tomorrow, while the UN Security Council meeting in New York later will look at Britain's draft resolution condemning the attack and "authorising all necessary measures".

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged all sides to prioritise a diplomatic solution and said his team needs until Sunday to establish the full facts of the alleged chemical attack.

This afternoon's NSC meeting at Downing Street was expected to discuss the intelligence gathered by UN inspectors from their initial visit to Mouadamiya, the site of last week's suspected chemical weapons attack that allegedly killed more than 1,300.

General Sir Nick Houghton, chief of the defence staff, was also expected to outline a series of options for targeted attacks.

A UN weapons inspector visits wounded Syrians after the alleged gas attack

It is understood the most likely military response would be a strike launched from US Navy warships against targets such as command and control bunkers.

The US Navy is repositioning several vessels in the eastern Mediterranean, including four cruise missile-carrying destroyers and a missile-firing submarine.

Military analysts have also suggested a British Trafalgar class submarine might be used as a potential launch platform.

However, some experts remain sceptical about whether limited strikes on tactical targets would provide a strong enough deterrent.

Defence analyst Francis Tusa told Sky News: "I'm not necessarily sure it puts any particular pressure on the regime to change its behaviour.

"Losing the odd bit of hardware that the Russians will replace for free doesn't seem to be that much of value."

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has also responded to the rising tensions, reportedly saying that US military intervention would be "a disaster for the region".

"The region is like a gunpowder store and the future cannot be predicted," Iran's ISNA agency quoted him as saying.

More than 1,300 are said to have died as the result of the alleged attack

Turkey and Iraq both say they have placed their military on high alert.

Mr Cameron and US President Barack Obama have agreed that "all the information available confirmed a chemical weapons attack had taken place", a Downing Street spokesperson said on Wednesday morning.

"They both agreed they were in no doubt that the Assad regime was responsible," said Number 10.

Nato has also given its support for tough action against Syria, "condemning in the strongest possible terms these outrageous attacks".

"Those responsible must be held accountable," it added.

Parliament will be recalled on Thursday for a final vote on what action the UK should take.

Sky sources say a government motion is expected to call for "appropriate measures" but will not contain a timetable for action.

Foreign Secretary William Hague was at the NSC meeting

Speaking yesterday, Mr Cameron said action must be "proportionate, have to be legal, would have to specifically be about deterring the use of chemical weapons".

Decisions about British involvement have not been taken, he said on Tuesday, adding Parliament was the "right place to set out all of the arguments".

"We shouldn't stand by when we see this massive use of chemical weapons and appalling levels of suffering," he said.

"But I would say this to people - there is never 100% certainty, there is never one piece or several pieces of intelligence that give you absolute certainty.

"But what we know is this regime has huge stocks of chemical weapons. We know they have used them on at least 10 occasions prior to this last widescale use."

Labour leader Ed Miliband has indicated that his party would consider supporting international action if it was legal and had "clear and achievable goals".

While political momentum towards intervention mounts, the British public has yet to be persuaded.

A child is treated after the alleged chemcial attack

A YouGov survey for The Sun revealed that nearly three-quarters of people oppose the deployment of British troops to Syria.

And a majority of 3-1 believe the Government should be bound by Parliament's vote tomorrow.

UN weapons inspectors arrived at the site of the alleged attacks on Wednesday morning, a day after suspending their mission over safety concerns.

The inspectors came under sniper fire when they began their operation on Monday.

Russia has confirmed it has started to pull its citizens out of Syria as the likelihood of military action increases.

It flew 89 people out of the country on Tuesday night and 28 more on Wednesday morning.

Russia and China both strongly oppose the intervention, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov believing it would seriously destabilise the region.

23.22 | 0 komentar | Read More