Japan to Cover Damaged Nuclear Reactors with Giant Tents

Giant polyester covers will soon be placed around the damaged reactor buildings at Japan's Fukushima nuclear complex to help contain the release of radioactive substances into the atmosphere, the plant operator said Friday.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) will install the first cover at the No. 1 reactor, the focus of recent stabilization efforts, starting next month.

Workers will erect a steel framework and place a giant polyester tent-like cover around the reactor building. Similar covers will be placed around units No. 3 and 4. The work is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

A series of hydrogen explosions blew off the roofs and upper walls of the three reactors in the days after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami knocked out their cooling systems, triggering the overheating of the reactors.

The explosions scattered a large amount of radioactive debris in the area around the reactors. Workers will have to clear the debris near the No. 1 unit so that cranes and other heavy equipment can approach the reactor. TEPCO said it began shifting debris from the area around the unit Friday. (read more)

Greek PM Says Borrowing Costs Not Sustainable

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said on Friday that current spreads in Greek bond yields over those of other euro zone states were not sustainable in a monetary union.

"We are in an incomplete...economic union which does not have all the tools to deal with the wider issues. The most simple one, which every Greek understands, is 'spreads'", he told a meeting of center-left politicians in Oslo.

He said that borrowing rates were far higher than those of Germany and many other European countries.

"That is not sustainable in a monetary union," he said.

European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny earlier said Greece seemed not to have met the terms of its international rescue package recently. Euro zone finance ministers meet on Monday although a resolution on the Greek crisis is not anticipated.

"Greece has apparently not fulfilled the conditions sufficiently of late. The issue of privatizations will be the most sensitive point here," Austria's Kronen Zeitung quoted him as saying. (read more)

Rand Paul: Right To Health Care Is Like Believing In "Slavery"

"With regard to the idea of whether you have a right to health care, you have realize what that implies. It's not an abstraction. I’m a physician. That means you have a right to come to my house and conscript me. It means you believe in slavery."

Ron Paul to run for U.S. presidency

Texas Representative Ron Paul announced Friday that he will run for the GOP nomination for president in 2012, the third attempt for the man known on Capitol Hill as "Dr. No" for his enthusiasm for bashing runaway spending and government overreach.

"Time has come around to the point where the people are agreeing with much of what I've been saying for 30 years. So, I think the time is right," said the 75-year-old Paul, who first ran for president as a Libertarian in 1988.

Paul made his announcement in an interview on ABC's Good Morning America from New Hampshire, where he planned his first event for his presidential campaign on Friday.

Three years ago, the former flight surgeon and outspoken critic of the Federal Reserve became an Internet sensation — and a prodigious fundraiser — when he made a spirited but doomed bid for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.

First elected to Congress in 1976, he is known for holding unconventional views while keeping a smile on his face, espousing a sort of modern Republican populism. The obstetrician has delivered more than 4,000 babies and is personally against abortion, but he doesn't think the federal government should regulate it. That's a function of state government, he says.

He has also said he wants to abolish the Internal Revenue Service, favors returning the United States to the gold standard in monetary policy and wants the U.S out of Iraq and Afghanistan. (read more)

Fermi gamma-ray image updates 'extreme Universe' view

The Fermi space telescope has yielded the most detailed gamma ray map of the sky - representing the Universe's most violent and extreme processes.

The telescope's newest results, as well as the map, were described at the Third Fermi Symposium in Rome this week.

Gamma rays are the highest-energy light we know of, many millions of times more energetic than visible light.

The Fermi collaboration will soon release a full catalogue of all the gamma ray sources discovered so far.

The space telescope was launched in 2008, and the Rome meeting gathered together the hundreds of scientists who worked with the data it produces.

Every three hours, the telescope gathers up a full scan of the sky, spitting out 40 million bits of information each second that it beams back to the Earth.

One of its two instruments, the Large Area Telescope (Fermi-Lat), has already identified some 1,400 gamma ray sources - a number that will jump significantly with the publication of the next catalogue.

Meanwhile, its Gamma Ray Burst Monitor has caught hundreds of the bursts - occasional outpourings of gamma ray energy that can release in hours more energy than our Sun will ever produce.

"When you look at the Universe with gamma-ray eyes what you're seeing is the 'extreme Universe'," said Julie McEnery, Fermi project scientist. (read more)

Russia warns West against 'Libya scenario' in Syria

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday warned against foreign intervention in Syria, calling on the Syrian opposition not to seek a repeat of the "Libya scenario".

Lavrov's comments, on a visit to the central Asian nation of Kazakhstan, underlined growing Russian concern that Western powers have overstepped the mark in Libya and the situation in Syria may also spill out of control.

"We are very worried that the process of reconciliation, the process of the start of dialogue -- all healthy forces in Syria including the Syrian leadership are in favour of that -- is being slowed down by a desire of some participants to attract foreign forces to support their actions," Russian news agencies quoted Lavrov as saying.

He warned against a repeat of the "Libya scenario", where a Western coalition is carrying out air strikes against regime targets in a campaign that is increasingly troubling Moscow.

"The betting is that outside players will appreciate the problem and will not only discuss but also subsequently repeat the Libyan situation, for example, interfere using methods of force among other things," Lavrov said.

"It is a great pity that the Libyan situation has created a huge temptation for many opposition members in that region to create a similar situation and expect that the West will not stand aside but will be interfering in the conflict in favour of one of the sides." (read more)

Apocalypse Angst Adds to Terrorist Threat as Rich Russians Acquire Bunkers

Terrorism can be good for bunker builders. An apocalypse can be even better for business.

Danila Andreyev started building “panic rooms” three years ago, when fears of terrorist attacks and commercial disputes turning violent created demand in Russia. Now he’s selling “survival bunkers” for as much as $400,000 each to capitalize on angst over theories the world will end next year.

“I myself am not a believer in doomsday scenarios,” Andreyev, 31, whose Spetsgeoproekt company is completing 15 bunkers at hidden locations across Russia, said at his office in central Moscow. “But when you start hearing clients talking about the end of the world, it gets you thinking.”

While Russia has been a target for terrorists, with 37 people dying in a blast at Moscow’s busiest airport in January, more people are looking to protect themselves from what Andreyev calls a “global cataclysm” in 2012 based on predictions such as interpretations of the ancient Mayan calendar.

Northwest Shelter Systems, a company based in Sandpoint, Idaho, that specializes in nuclear bomb shelters, has seen the number of inquiries from potential customers rise as much as 60 percent since the March tsunami and earthquake in Japan, Allen Thompson, vice president, said by e-mail. (read more)

US Debt Limit Talks Embroiled in Chaos

Rival plans to cut the U.S. deficit emerge almost daily: gangs, panels and commissions all trying to reach an elusive deal. There are splits between Republicans and Democrats, and mixed messages from all sides.

With pressure mounting in Washington for a budget agreement that can clear a path to raise America's debt limit, only one thing is clear: nobody yet knows how to get there, and a deal appears as far off as ever.

"Nobody can get a handle on this because there is no handle," said a veteran Republican strategist. "The overall picture really is as muddied and unclear as it looks. Anybody who says they know what's going to happen here is lying. They don't."

The United States is set to reach its $14.3 trillion debt limit on Monday, and will only be able to avoid default until Aug. 2, according to the U.S. Treasury. Efforts to forge a bipartisan deficit-reduction package as a step towards Congress raising the borrowing limit are in turmoil.

A thicket of plans to cut the deficit, which is expected to hit $1.4 trillion this year, have emerged in recent days with virtually no chance of passage in Congress. (read more)

US Inflation hits 2-1/2 year high

Inflation hit the highest level in 2-1/2 years as food and energy prices moved higher, but there was little sign of a broader pick-up in inflation that would trouble the Federal Reserve.

The Labor Department said on Friday its Consumer Price Index increased 0.4 percent in April from March after rising 0.5 percent in March.

The rise, which was in line with economists' expectations, took the year-on-year inflation reading to 3.2 percent, the highest since October 2008.

The core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy costs, rose a mild 0.2 percent from March, and the 12-month increase, at 1.3 percent, was at its highest level since February 2010.

The Federal Reserve, however, would like to see that move closer to 2 percent over time.

"This is not enough to prompt an immediate response from the Federal Reserve but they're certainly watching this," said Dana Saporta, an economist at Credit Suisse in New York.

The stiff gains in food and energy costs in recent months has squeezed consumers, who are enjoying only tepid wage gains.

The department said that when adjusted for inflation, average weekly earnings fell 0.3 percent in April after declining 0.4 percent in March. (read more)

Residents flee surging Mississippi river as officials await word on spillway

The bulging Mississippi River pushed south Friday, sending hundreds of residents scrambling to get to higher ground as officials warned of a torrent of water if a major Louisiana spillway is opened.

In the Arkansas town of Helena, the river crested at 56.4 feet, according to the National Weather Service, 12.4 feet above the flood stage there.

The river's slow pace has given emergency responders more time to prepare, forecasters said.

In Louisiana, the National Guard worked around the clock to construct a flood barrier in Morgan City, where the Atchafalaya River was already 3.15 feet above flood stage, according to the National Weather Service.

"When you have really high levels like this, it can add up to several weeks (for the flood waters to move through)," said Amanda Roberts of the National Weather Service. While that gives residents extra time to get ready, it also means that land could remain under water for some time, she said. (read more)

New oil spill in Gulf of Mexico being reported

NATIONAL RESPONSE CENTER 1-800-424-8802
*** For Public Use ***
Information released to a third party shall comply with any
applicable federal and/or state Freedom of Information and Privacy Laws

Incident Report # 975816

INCIDENT DESCRIPTION

*Report taken at 10:08 on 10-MAY-11

Incident Type: PLATFORM

Incident Cause: UNKNOWN
Affected Area: GULF OF MEXICO


The incident was discovered on 10-MAY-11 at 08:45 local time.

Affected Medium: WATER GULF OF MEXICO
____________________________________________________________________________

SUSPECTED RESPONSIBLE PARTY

Organization: TAYLOR ENERGY

ORLEANS, LA

Type of Organization: PRIVATE ENTERPRISE
____________________________________________________________________________

INCIDENT LOCATION
BLOCK 20 County: MISSISSIPPI CANYON 20
State: LA
Latitude: 28° 56' 00" N

Longitude: 088° 58' 00" W
PLATFORM INCIDENT
__________________________________________________________________________
RELEASED MATERIAL(S)

CHRIS Code: OUN Official Material Name: UNKNOWN OIL

Also Known As:
Qty Released: .23 GALLON(S) Qty in Water: .23 GALLON(S) (read full report here)

This post was reader contributed.

EU moves to end passport-free Schengen travel

The European Union has moved toward reversing passport free travel across the continent amid fears of a wave of migrants fleeing unrest in north Africa.

At a special meeting of EU interior ministers in Brussels, a majority of member states backed changes that would allow individual nations to restore controls at their borders.

Unfettered travel across Europe, not including Britain or Ireland, was established by the Schengen agreement and has been a signature accomplishment of the EU for 16 years.

But at the closed meeting of ministers on Thursday, 15 states voted for the temporary return, as a last resort and under strict conditions, of border guards to deal with any sudden surge in migration.

They also supported reintroduction of guards if an EU state fails to control its frontier with non-EU nations. Only four nations were against, according to diplomats.

French Interior Minister Claude Gueant said: "A very wide consensus, if not near unanimity, was reached on the commission proposals." (read more)

Fukushima No.1 reactor is in a "meltdown" state

Tokyo Electric Power Company says the No.1 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is believed to be in a state of "meltdown".

The utility company said on Thursday that most of the fuel rods are likely to have melted and fallen to the bottom of the reactor. Earlier in the day, it found that the coolant water in the reactor is at a level which would completely expose nuclear fuel rods if they were in their normal position.

The company believes the melted fuel has cooled down, judging from the reactor's surface temperature.

But it suspects the meltdown created a hole or holes in the bottom of the reactor causing water to leak into the containment vessel.

It also suspects the water is leaking into the reactor building. (read more)

World radioactive fallout levels fly off scale as global monitoring stations begin shutting down: Fukushima disaster grows

This post was reader contributed.

Headless bodies piling up in Mexico as violence intensifies

The bodies of eight decapitated men were dumped Thursday along roads in Durango, a drug-gang-plagued northern Mexican state already grappling with the horror of discovering mass graves where 196 corpses have been unearthed so far.

Six of the naked bodies were found along a highway leading out of the state capital of Durango city, their heads lying nearby, according to a statement from the state attorney general's office.

The two other bodies were found in another city street. One was identified as the remains of Gerardo Galindo Meza, the deputy director of a city prison who had been kidnapped Monday. Galindo's head was on a different street corner, accompanied by a threatening message signed by a drug gang, the statement said.

It was the second time this week that beheaded bodies have been found in Durango state. Eleven corpses were found Monday, including six left across from a middle school in the capital. Investigators have announced no arrests or possible motives. (read more)

Greece Economy Grows Faster Than UK - 13th May 2011

Portugal has slipped back into recession as Greece's economy overtakes the UK, according to the latest GDP figures.

In the first three months of 2011, Portugal saw a 0.7% reduction in GDP, following a 0.6% drop in the last quarter of 2010.

It comes a week after Portugal reached a deal with the European Union and the IMF over a 78bn euro bailout.

However, Greece saw a GDP growth of 0.8% to emerge from recession - even more than the UK, which saw a 0.5% rise over the period.

Greece is widely expected to need more financial help, beyond the £95bn bailout that saved it from bankruptcy last year.

As a whole, the Eurozone saw GDP rise by 0.8%.

Germany was the star performer, with growth of 1.5%.

Austria, France and Slovakia announced growth of 1% in the same period.

The Netherlands saw growth of 0.9%, while Spain lagged behind, with just a 0.3% rise reported.

Italy reported just a 0.1% rise in growth in the period.

Last month, the Italian government cut its growth forecast for the whole of 2011 from 1.3% to 1.1%.

The rise in Spain's growth rate to 0.3% from 0.2% in the previous quarter is more encouraging as the country tries to avoid a third consecutive year of contracting GDP.

“These figures expose how, since George Osborne’s spending review and VAT rise, Britain’s economy has gone from the economic fast lane to the slow lane. Read More

Gaddafi says he is at a place where NATO cannot kill him - 13th May 2011

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said in an audio recording broadcast on state television on Friday that he was in a place where NATO cannot reach and kill him.

"I am telling the coward crusaders that I am at a place you cannot reach and kill me," he said in the recording broadcast on al-Jamahiriya television.

NATO bombed Gaddafi's Bab al-Aziziyah compound in Tripoli on Thursday. Source

Rare tornado hits Xindian in New Taipei - 13th May 2011

TAIWAN - Many people in downtown Xindian in New Taipei City could not believe their eyes when they witnessed a tornado, an extremely rare phenomenon on the island.

The 20-floor high tornado lasted about two minutes and hurled objects in its path into the air in downtown Xindian, including some trees. A van was lifted from the ground and smashed a motorcycle when it fell. No casualties were reported.

"It's the first time in my life that I saw a tornado," said a local witness, who was woken up by the swirling storm.

The whole process of the tornado's formation and disappearance was recorded by a local resident, who posted the video on YouTube.

According the Central Weather Bureau (CWB), the storm will not be included in the official record of natural disasters as it was not recorded by the bureau's weather station.

As the local insurance industry usually relies on CWB records for damage claims, the ill-fated owner of the brand-new van may not be able to receive compensation for the damaged vehicle.

According to the CWB, the violent storm may have been caused by strong thermal convection, a process when cold dry polar air meets warm moist tropical air.

While typhoons are common tropical storms in Taiwan, the occurrence of tornado in Taiwan is extremely unusual.

A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with the surface of the earth. Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes, but are typically in the form of a visible condensation funnel, whose narrow end touches the earth and is often encircled by a cloud of debris and dust.

Most tornadoes have wind speeds less than 110 miles per hour, are approximately 250 feet across, and travel a few miles before dissipating. Source

Nuclear Event - Small fire detected in Swedish nuclear plant - 13th May 2011

STOCKHOLM -- Officials say a small fire broke out in Sweden's Ringhals nuclear power plant earlier this week as workers carried out maintenance on a reactor containment unit.

The unit, which contains one of Ringhals' four reactors, had been shut down for maintenance since April 2 and all radio active material had been moved to another building, said Officials. Radiation levels within the unit were not heightened by the incident and no one was injured.

Ringhals spokesman Gosta Larsen said Thursday the small blaze, detected through a small temperature rise inside the containment, broke out amid a pressure test at around midnight between Tuesday and Wednesday.

It is not clear what caused the near 20 minute long fire and the test has been suspended while the incident is being investigated. Source

Vatican's scientists back 'dodgy' UN climate change report that even the author admitted was WRONG - 13th May 2011

Vatican scientists have sparked a climate change row after backing a discredited UN report that claimed ice on the Himalays could melt by 2035.

The Pontifical Academy of Science, which report directly to the Pope, said glaciers were evaporating and called for urgent action to stem damage to the environment.

But lead author, Rajendra Pachauri, based it upon his own 2007 UN climate panel report, which he later admitted had ‘poorly substantiated estimates’ following an international furore.

The scientist's latest call for a reduction of carbon dioxide and methane emissions has sparked anger among climate-change sceptics.

Don Easterbrook, an emeritus professor of geology at Western Washington University. said: 'The [UN]-predicted warming of one degree between 2000 and the present has not happened - instead it's gotten cooler. Read More

Etna explodes: Stunning close-ups of Europe's most violent volcano that nearly cost the photographer his life - 13th May 2011

Vomiting fountains of glowing lava from its molten core, Sicily's Mount Etna never looked more glorious.

When Europe's most violent volcano erupted this week, one daring photographer clambered towards the seething cauldron to watch nature flex its muscles in this sublime display of seismic power.

On Sunday the Mediterranean Island was rocked by the mammoth explosion of Europe's most active volcano spewing tons of molten rock up to half a mile away.

As soon as he heard of the eruption intrepid photographer, Marco Fulle, 53, from Trieste in Northern Italy, flew to the scene of the volcanic explosion.

He was luckily not to be injured or killed during his madcap photo shoot - as fist sized lumps of volcanic ash, called lapilli or volcanic bombs, rained down around him. Read More

Boy, 7, takes kitchen knife to school hidden down his trousers and terrifies classmates with threats - 13th May 2011

Primary school pupils were left terrified after a classmate brandished a kitchen knife in their faces and threatened them to keep quiet.

The seven-year-old boy had smuggled the knife into school down his trousers.

But one student who had been intimidated was so frightened that he broke his silence and told his teacher.

Staff at Sinclair Primary School in Southampton, Hampshire, immediately stepped in and the boy was excluded.

The circumstances of the incident were being investigated by the authorities.

Head teacher Gerida Montague also informed the parents of all 195 pupils at the school for four to 11-year-olds.

Pupils have been offered specialist counselling to help them deal with any trauma they may have suffered.

It is believed the boy intended to use the knife to vandalise property. He has now been withdrawn from school.

Mrs Montague said child safety is the school's 'top priority', and appropriate action was taken straight away after the incident, which happened on April 28. Read More

The everchanging Story Continues: Navy Seals helmet cam DID film whole Bin Laden raid - 13th May 2011

Tiny cameras fixed to the helmets of the 25 U.S. Navy Seals who found Osama Bin Laden did record the moment the terror leader was killed, it emerged today.

The high-tech devices captured every second of the 40-minute mission to find the terrorist chief at his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan on May 1.

One clip shows how Bin Laden's young Yemeni wife lunged forward at the Navy Seals - but investigators believe she may have been pushed forward from behind.

The detailed footage reveals how the Navy SEALs first saw Bin Laden when he appeared on the third floor landing to see what was going on after the commandos stormed into the compound.

Shots were fired at him, but they missed.

Bin Laden, visibly shaken, then dashed back inside his bedroom. The first soldier through the bedroom door pushed aside Bin Laden's children.

His wife then rushed at the soldiers, although she could also have been pushed at them by Bin Laden, according to CBS News.

The soldier tossed aside the wife and shot Bin Laden in the chest. A third Navy Seal then blasted him in the head.

The footage shows that Bin Laden was standing a few feet behind Amal Ahmed Abdel-Fatah al-Sada, 29, when he was shot in the chest and then head. He was dressed in a white undershirt and tan robe. Read More

Moment a brand new £12million super yacht went up in flames – as its billionaire owner ate in restaurant on quayside - 12th May 2011

This is the dramatic moment a £12million super yacht was destroyed by a fire that may have been started by a bolt of lightning hitting Poole Quay in Dorset.

The 112ft long Sunseeker boat was ripped apart by flames that leapt 60ft into the air, lighting up the night sky, as its billionaire owner ate in a restaurant dockside.

Crowds gathered around the inferno that gutted the yacht's three decks and left just the hull a smouldering wreck.

The luxurious craft was all but complete having been built for a Mexican tycoon who had just arrived in Britain last week to take delivery of it.

It is understood the 40-year-old businessman was on the dockside at Poole, Dorset, to witness the blaze that took place at approximately 11pm on Friday 6 May.

A spokesman for Poole lifeboat station based on Poole Quay, said: ‘The owner and three of his crew were here at the time.

‘He was sat in a restaurant on the other side of the quay having a meal when the fire started.

‘He went out and watched it all unfold. There was nothing anyone could do.’
Read More

Madeleine McCann Mystery - PM Tells Cops To Join The Hunt For Madeleine - 13th May 2011

Scotland Yard are to "bring their expertise" to the search for Madeleine McCann after a personal request from the Prime Minister.

A Home Office spokesman said: "The Prime Minister and the Home Secretary have today agreed with Sir Paul Stephenson that the Metropolitan Police will bring its particular expertise to this case."

The spokesman added that the Government hopes Scotland Yard can bring a new perspective to the case and the Home Office will be providing "the necessary financial support".

He went on: "The Government's primary concern has always been and remains the safe return of Madeleine.

"Although she disappeared in Portugal, and the Portuguese retain the lead responsibility in the case, law enforcement agencies here have continued to follow up leads and pass information to the Portuguese authorities as appropriate."

He added that it would not be appropriate to discuss details at this stage.

The move comes after Kate and Gerry McCann hit out at the actions of the Home Office, saying it had offered "words, but no action" to assist them in the investigation. Read More

Ronald Reagan shooter to be let out of psychiatric hospital... to spend more time with his mother - 12th may 2011

It seems even men who try to assassinate presidents still miss their mothers.

John Hinckley Jr., who stalked and shot President Ronald Reagan 30 years ago, has been granted more time away from his psychiatric hospital to visit his mother's home.

The 55-year-old, who lives at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington D.C., has been allowed to make more visits to Jo Ann Moore Hinckley in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity after shooting President Reagan in 1981 as he left a Washington D.C. hotel to impress actress Jodie Foster.

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman approved the extra visits on Wednesday and will discuss the number at an October hearing, a U.S. attorney’s office spokesman said.

Hinckley, 55, who was diagnosed with major depression and psychotic and narcissistic personality disorders in 1982, last had visits approved two years ago.

Judge Friedman put restrictions on him in 2009, such as limiting the time he could spend alone to two hours a day and making him carry a GPS-enabled mobile phone.

He was also required to see a doctor locally, had his internet access restricted and was barred from seeing a former girlfriend. Read More

Wet Dwarf: Icy surface of mini-planet Haumea discovered - 13th May 2011

A ‘dwarf planet’ in the deepest reaches of our solar system is covered in crystalline ice, it has been revealed.

Haumea was discovered in 2004 but new findings from European scientists have now offered new details of the tiny planet orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune.

According to the European Southern Observatory, the mini-planet is the shape of a ‘flattened rugby ball’ and 75 per cent of its surface is covered with a reflective surface of water ice.

The entire surface of Hi’iaka, one of Haumea’s two satellites along with Namaka, is also covered in this icy shell.

The surface of the dwarf planet and its moon is unusual as it is crystalline and possesses an ordered structure, rather than being shapeless, amorphous ice.

The ESCP team believe this means Haumea has a frozen outer surface and a largely rock inner structure.

‘Since solar radiation constantly destroys the crystalline structure of ice on the surface, energy sources are required to keep it organised,’ said Benoit Carry, co-author of the study and a researcher at the ESAC Centre of the European Space Agency in Madrid.

‘The two that we have taken into consideration are that able to generate radiogenic elements (potassium-40, thorium-232 and uranium-238) from the inside, and the tidal forces between Haumea and its satellites (as seen between the Earth and the Moon)’ he told Spanish outlet SINC. Read More

Stone tools found near Russia's Arctic Circle may prove Neanderthals lived 8,000 years longer than previously thought - 13th May 2011

Scientists have identified what may be one of the last northern refuges of Neanderthals, a spot near the Arctic Circle in Russia with artefacts dated to 31,000 to 34,000 years ago.

Experts currently believe that the Neanderthals died out between 37,000 and 40,000 years ago, so the latest stone artefacts may mean they actually lived for a further 8,000 years than previously thought.

Stone tools and flakes found there look like the work of Neanderthals, the stocky, muscular hunters who lived in Europe and western Asia until they were replaced by modern humans, researchers reported in the journal Science today.

The site lies along the Pechora River west of the Ural Mountains, about 92 miles south of the Arctic Circle.

Researchers dated it from animal bones and sand grains.

Nobody has found any human bones or DNA that could provide stronger evidence that Neanderthals lived there, report the scientists, from Russia, France and Norway.

The artefacts had been collected during various expeditions.

Neanderthals first appeared more than 200,000 years ago.

They died out sometime after modern humans arrived in Europe, which occurred some 40,000 years ago. Read More

Aids virus vaccine 'could remove ALL traces of disease from sufferers for the rest of their lives' - 12th May 2011

An experimental drug helped monkeys with a form of the Aids virus control the infection for more than a year, suggesting it may lead to a vaccine for people, or even a cure.

Researchers said Cytomegalovirus (CMV) works by priming the immune system to quickly attack the HIV virus when it first enters the body, a point at which the virus is most vulnerable.

Dr Louis Picker of the Oregon National Primate Research Centre, whose study appears in the journal Nature, said he thinks it will be possible to have a vaccine ready to test in people within three years.

CMV enables the immune system to be constantly on the alert for HIV.

Researchers used different versions of the vaccine against a monkey form of the Aids virus, SIV (Simian Immunodeficiency Virus) with outstanding results.

More than half the rhesus macaques treated responded to the point where even the most sensitive tests detected no signs of SIV.

To date, most of the animals have maintained control over the virus for more than a year, gradually showing no indication that they had ever been infected. Read More

13 injured in jackal's attack - 12th May 2012

Bhopal/Chhindwara (MP), May 12 (PTI) A jackal mauled 13 persons who were sleeping outside the houses at Sonpur village of Chindi Forest Range of Chhindwara last night, a top forest official said.

"All of them have sustained minor injuries," said Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF), R K Dave.

PCCF said the jackal had entered the village from the nearby forested area. All the injured had been given anti-rabies injection, he said . Source

Rebecca Coriam Mystery - Murder? Suicide? Or did Rebecca WANT to disappear? The girl who set sail on a Disney dream but vanished into thin air

With her broad smile and infectious enthusiasm for life, Rebecca Coriam was always going to be the perfect candidate for a job with Disney.

Little wonder that from among the hundreds of hopefuls interviewed for jobs as ‘children’s counsellors’ on board one of the three family-themed cruise ships in the Disney fleet, it was Rebecca who stood out.

The 24-year-old could hardly have been better qualified for the role, which involved organising children’s activities on board the 83,000-ton cruise ship Disney Wonder.

She studied sports science and childhood studies at university, was a volunteer with the Army cadets, loved children and anything even remotely sporty.

‘She had to travel to London for the interview. It was evening by the time she rang. I knew straight away it was good news,’ says her mother, Annmaria. ‘I felt so incredibly proud and happy that I think I rang everybody I knew.’

Sitting next to her husband, Mike, in the conservatory of their cosy bungalow on the outskirts of Chester — where they raised Rebecca and her sister Rachael, 26, and cared for dozens of foster children — Annmaria’s face falls at the memory. For the Disney dream that began amid such excitement almost exactly a year ago has become a living nightmare.

Seven weeks ago, Rebecca disappeared without a trace from the 11-deck cruise liner as it sailed along the Mexican Riviera.

She was last seen on board at 5.45am on March 22 by a young male colleague who was concerned that she appeared upset, but when he approached to check if she was OK she insisted she was fine and on her way to bed.

Rebecca, however, apparently never reached her cabin. The alarm was raised when she failed to appear for work at 9am the following day.

Both the Mexican Navy and U.S. Coast Guard scoured the waters, but no trace of Rebecca was found. Read More

Ian Tuckley a SAS soldier accused of raping girls as young as SIX over a 13-year period - 13th May 2011

An SAS soldier who served in Iraq and Afghanistan is go on trial accused of 12 rapes against young girls - aged as young as six.

Corporal Ian Tuckley allegedly carried out 31 assaults between July 1997 and July 2010.

The 31-year-old soldier, who served with the 22-regiment of the elite fighting force and is believed to be a dog handler, has been remanded in custody ahead of his trial later this year.

Tuckley can be named after a judge overturned a gagging order which had protected his identity.

There had been fears that if all the evidence went before an open court it would represent a risk to 'national security'.

But lawyers argued that there was no risk with naming Tuckley, from Walsall, West Midlands, and the order had only been issued to protect reputations.

The serviceman had also served in Britain and had been involved in preparations to halt a terror attack like the one carried out in Mumbai.

Tuckley, who was based at the SAS headquarters in Hereford, spent five years in Afghanistan.

Martin Finney, 40, is due to stand trial alongside his brother-in-law Tuckley - accused of 24 offences including rape of a female under 17, sexual assault and assault.

Finney, also from Walsall, is accused of drugging one of his victims with nitrous oxide - or laughing gas - which has a euphoric effect. It works within seconds and makes users feel light-headed, relaxed and drowsy.

The former St John Ambulance paramedic is alleged to have carried out the offences between July 2002 and July 2010.

Both men deny all the charges.

The pair were arrested and charged at the end of last year after an investigation involving West Midlands and West Mercia Police and the Royal Military Police.

The case is due to be heard at Worcester Crown Court in July. Read More

Liam Parrish wields Caught on Camera Threatening to Stab Innocent Victims with a Carving Knife - 13th May 2011

These are the chilling moments a thug is captured on a cameraphone threatening terrified passers-by with a huge carving knife.

Liam Parrish wields the blade in a park in Peterborough as a witness captures this graphic example of knife crime at its most terrifying.

Parrish is shown brandishing the knife and screaming ‘I'll stab the lot of you’ and ‘I'll stab you right in the neck’.

One image shows Parrish threatening a blonde girl with the blade during the incident.

Parrish approached two separate groups during the outburst, both in the park to celebrate birthdays.

His friend Josh Budd is also seen running at the cameraman, staring down the lens with the knife in his hand.

Parrish, 23, and co-defendant Budd, 19, both from Peterborough, were jailed for 12 months for the incident.

A third defendant, Tai Burrows, 22, from Oakham, Rutland, was given a suspended 12 week jail term.

All three were sentenced on April 28 at Peterborough Crown Court - but footage of the incident has only recently come to light.

Charles Kellett, prosecuting, said the knife had come from a barbecue that 18-year-old Luke Sansby was having with friends in Ferry Meadows park in Peterborough, and had been picked up by Parrish during a scuffle.

He added that in addition to the use of a knife, bottles were thrown between the groups using the park.

The incident came to an end when Mr Sansby suffered a badly broken jaw, which required surgeons to insert metal plates into his face. Read More

A Sea of Magma Feeds Hundreds of Volcanoes on Jupiter's Moon - 12th May 2011

New data confirms that an ocean of magma under the surface of Jupiter's moon, Io, feeds the moon's many active volcanoes.

Io is the most volcanically active body in our solar system, with about 100 volcanoes erupting at any one time. New measurements containing the first direct evidence of a sea of magma help to explain this phenomenon, along with the moon's high heat flow and unusual pattern of volcanic activity. The data was captured by the spacecraft Galileo during four flybys and published on Thursday in the journal Science.

"We used Jupiter's magnetic field as a sounding signal," said Krishan Khurana professor of geophysics and planetary physics at UCLA, and lead author of the study. "The principle we used is the same as what is used in metal detectors at the airport."

Metal detectors work by bouncing magnetic waves off metal objects, like metallic coins in your pocket, he explained. Similarly, while Jupiter's magnetic field penetrates most dry rock, it reflects off molten rock, which is an excellent conductor of electricity.

"We were looking for bounced-off signals from Io," Khurana said. We found them about 30 to 50 kilometers under the surface." Read More

Robert Fitzpatrick a ex subway worker sinks $140,000 life savings into campaign advertising the end of the world...- 13th May 2011

A retired MTA employee has pumped his $140,000 life savings into an ad campaign warning that the world will end on May 21.

Robert Fitzpatrick, a follower of the notorious California Evangalist Harold Camping, has posted his Doomsday message on 1,000 subway car placards and at bus shelters throughout New York city.

The foreboding advert reads: 'Global Earthquake! The Greatest Ever - Judgement Day: May 21,' above a night time Jerusalem skyline and a clock ticking towards midnight.

Speaking to the New York Daily News, 60-year-old Mr Fitzpatrick said:'I'm trying to warn people about what's coming.

'People who have an understanding [of end times] have an obligation to warn everyone.'

The Doomsday merchant began his campaign in 2006 after hearing the 'End of days' message from well known Armageddon promoter Harold Camping.

He also outlines the wacky theories in a book, appropriately titled, 'The Doomsday Code'.

Mr Camping, along with his Family Radio road show, travel the country spreading the end of the world message.

According to the predictions of the Family Radio ministry, on May 21 a massive earthquake will shake the world apart, littering the ground with 'many dead bodies'.

Despite his conviction, Camping has predicted the world would end before - on September 4 1994.

That, he says, was a mistake, a misreading of the biblical codes used to decipher the exact date of the 'rapture'.

In order to get the warning out in time he fudged his calculations, a mistake he maintains he did not make this time.

Despite this, Mr Fitzpatrick is adamant the beginning of the end is starts next week.

He said: 'It'll start just before midnight, Jerusalem time: It'll be instantaneous and global.

'There are too many scriptures talking about 'sudden destruction.' Read More

Zohura Islam, 15, who dreamed of becoming a doctor found dead on morning of crucial exam - 12th May 2011

A high-achieving schoolgirl who was on track to get 11 A stars in her GCSEs was found dead in her home on the morning of a crucial exam, an inquest heard.

Aspiring doctor Zohura Islam, 15, was discovered on the stairs of her family home in Chippenham, Wiltshire, by her horrified mother Rejwana.

The inquest heard how Zohura died from neck injuries. However, it is unclear whether the death was a terrible accident or if the teenager took her own life.

The hearing was told how the promising student was happy, content and eager to do well in her exams at the time of her death.

She was discovered on the morning that she faced a vital biology exam which could have helped her achieve her dream of becoming a doctor.

Zohura's sister, Noorjahan Islam, described the intelligent schoolgirl - who wanted to be a paediatrician - as her 'best friend'.

She said: 'She was a sister and a best friend rolled into one. We confided in each other all the time.

'She was like an angel; kind, generous, pretty much perfect. She wanted to be the best that she could be.'

Her tearful father, restaurant owner Nurul Islam, told the inquest his daughter was hoping for straight A stars in all 11 GCSEs.

He was awoken on May 21 last year to the screams of his wife, Rejwana, who had found Zohura about three steps from the top of their stairs.

In a statement, Rejwana said: 'I could see my daughter's head as if she was sleeping on the stairs. She had no history of sleepwalking so I knew something was wrong.

'I put her on my lap. I was in a hazy panic and I let out a scream.'

Mrs Islam told how her daughter had laid out her school bag for the day and asked her father for an early lift in the morning so she could revise with friends.

She added: 'Only Zohura will know what happened.' Read More

100 families a day lose their homes as repossessions soar 15% in the UK - 13th May 2011

Around 100 families every day are being kicked out of their homes because they can’t afford to pay their mortgage, it emerged yesterday.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders has revealed a sharp rise in repossessions, the first in more than two years.

Meanwhile millions of homeowners face higher mortgage payments if, as expected, interest rates start to rise from an historic low of 0.5 per cent.

Experts warned homeowners are ‘buckling under the pressure’ of tax rises, benefit cuts, record bills and pay freezes.

Between January and March 9,100 people lost the battle to keep their home, up 15 per cent on the previous three months and the first rise since 2009.

Nearly 250,000 homeowners have fallen behind with their mortgage, with the worst hit suffering arrears equal to more than 10 per cent of the value of their loan.

This means a homeowner with a mortgage of £150,000 – the average taken out to buy a home – has at least £15,000 of unpaid mortgage bills. And around two-thirds of homeowners have a variable rate mortgage, which means repayments will rise when rates go up.

David Birne, an insolvency expert at the accountants HW Fisher & Company, said: ‘It will be the end of the road for many over-stretched households.

‘Once rates rise, even by as little as half or one percentage point, they will be tipped over the edge.’

Experts warned yesterday the number of repossessions is set to rise even higher, with the CML predicting 40,000 this year. Read More

Laura Wilson, 17, a teenage mother stabbed to death and dumped in canal after having baby with married Muslim - 13th May 2011

A white teenage mother was stabbed repeatedly and her body dumped in a canal after she clashed with the Asian family of her lovechild, a court has heard.

Laura Wilson, 17, had a brief relationship with Ishaq Hussain, 22, who lived close to her before giving birth to their daughter in June last year.

Sheffield Crown Court was told that Hussain failed to acknowledge the child as his own and did not offer any support, leading to friction between Laura, her family and Hussain.

Things came to a head last October when she went to Hussain's house and told his family he was the father of the child, prosecutor Nicholas Campbell QC said.

Hussain and his friend, who also had an affair with her and was said to be her first love, plotted to kill her, it is alleged.

They sent a flurry of text messages to one another.

They adopted the language of the cult British film 'Four Lions' about Islamic terrorists and mounted a 'mission to kill Laura Wilson', said Mr Campbell.

Asghar allegedly sent a text message to Hussain which said: 'I'm gonna send that kaffir bitch straight to hell.'

He later told a friend that Laura and her friends had brought trouble to his door and he was 'very angry'.

Mr Campbell said Asghar sent text messages to the friend using words to the effect of 'I'm going to kill Laura.'

'She was a loose cannon and they had to get rid of her,' he said.

Hussain, of Ferham Road, Rotherham, and Ashtiaq Asghar, also from Rotherham, deny murdering Miss Wilson some time between October 8 and October 11 last year.

The teenage student went missing from her home in Holmes and her body was found two days later in a canal.

Mr Campbell told the jury: 'The two defendants are jointly responsible for her murder.' Read More

The town that faces being wiped off the map: Flood waters engulf every single home in Mississippi community - 13th May 2011

It’s a terrible waiting game for around 350 people evacuated from the camps at Tunica Cutoff.

With the Mississippi River 10ft out of its banks and heading towards a crest (peak) of 48ft on the Memphis gauge, county planners and emergency management officials fear that flood waters will enter nearly all the now-abandoned homes on the unprotected side of the levee.

On the bloated Mississippi River, the town of Tunica Cutoff, sits an hour's drive south of Memphis - recent flood waters have done significant damage to the town's housing and has left residents wondering if they'll have a community to return to when the water recedes.

CBS News reports that there are about 300 homes in the small town, and they have all been flooded.

Other swamped communities may rebuild, but Tunica Cutoff may not owing to new housing codes that suggest raising new homes above the 100-year flood plain.

Tunica County, which contains the unincorporated Tunica Cutoff community, has little more than 10,000 residents, and a median family income of around $30,000, about half the U.S. national average, according to Census estimates. Read More

Death threats to women who don't wear veils. Gays attacked in the streets. And all in a borough at the heart of Britain's capital... - 13th May 2011

His promise to turn last month’s Royal Wedding into a ‘nightmare’ may not have materialised — but that won’t stop Richard Dart from peddling his views about Britain’s monarchy online.

‘Prince William, Prince Harry and the Queen of England are guilty of funding and supporting the terrorist attacks that take place in Muslim lands,’ he says adamantly in an internet video broadcast.

A Briton from Dorset who converted to Islam in 2009 and renamed himself Salahuddin (the son of teachers), Dart is one of several extremist Muslim preachers operating in the Tower Hamlets area of East London.

This vocal minority, who are causing increasing concern in the area, have lent this corner of the capital a new nickname — the Islamic republic of Tower Hamlets.

Recently, it was reported that a 31-year-old Asian woman who works in a local chemist’s had received death threats for refusing to wear a veil, even though she’s not a practising Muslim. Four weeks ago, the woman’s boss was apparently approached by an Asian in his 40s who told him his employee must cover her head and wear longer robes.

‘If she keeps working here and continues to dress like that, we will boycott you because this is a Muslim area,’ the shop’s owner was told.

Subsequently another, younger, Asian man came into the pharmacy and started shouting at the employee.

‘He said: “If you keep doing these things, we will kill you,”’ recalls a Bangladeshi-born man who witnessed the scene. Read More

Video of alleged attack on Syrian civilians by security forces prompts Clinton to condemn Assad's 'weak' regime - 12th May 2011

Fresh footage allegedly showing Syrian civilians being targeted by government security forces has been released, sparking further condemnation of President Bashar Assad's regime.

But in a propaganda counter-attack, the administration later released a photo of a soldier it claimed was killed at the hands of violent demonstrators.

The amateur videos purport to show several civilians attempting to recover the body of an unconscious man from an exposed street. The incident allegedly took place in the town of Daraa on April 24.

number of men use ropes and poles in a desperate bid to prod the unconscious man to the safety of a nearby doorway.

Although they are eventually successful, it is not known if the victim, who was lying in a pool of blood, survived.

Another clip allegedly shows the same men dragging an unconscious woman to safety. News reports claim that the victims were a mother and son who were allegedly targeted by army snipers.

Yesterday U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned Syrian authorities for their 'barbaric' use of force to repress the demonstrations. Read More

European Union debt crisis is in danger of spreading, warns IMF - 13th May 2011

The European debt crisis could spread across the continent in a major blow to the single currency, leading economists warned last night.

Turmoil in Greece, Ireland and Portugal may engulf the wider eurozone despite the billions of pounds already spent in emergency aid, according to the International Monetary Fund.

It urged European leaders to fix the banking system and slash national deficits to restore confidence to the region.

In its latest report on Europe, it said economically weak countries could still drag their stronger neighbours down.

The report said: ‘Strong policy responses have successfully contained the sovereign debt and financial-sector troubles in the euro area periphery so far. But contagion to the core euro area and then onward to emerging Europe remains a tangible risk.’

European finance ministers are set to approve a £68billion rescue plan for Portugal on Monday, including around £4billion from Britain. This follows the £96billion bailout of Greece and the £75billion bailout of Ireland last year.

But fears are mounting that Greece still cannot afford to pay back its debt of £285billion and may require more support to prevent default.

Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo, of the European Central Bank, said: ‘A default would have extreme adverse consequences, many of an irreversible nature, for the Greek economy.’ Read More

Crazed knifeman decapitates British woman in busy Tenerife shopping centre and runs through the streets with her head - 13th May 2011

A British woman was today decapitated by a madman with a machete on the holiday island of Tenerife.

The crazed killer attacked the 62-year-old without uttering a word in a shopping centre in Los Cristianos, in Tenerife.

Witnesses said he then fled the store with the severed head in his hands, with blood dripping to the ground.

As the 28-year-old attacker ran through the streets of the holiday island carrying the victim’s head, security guards and a number of witnesses gave chase.

He was eventually cornered after a passing Italian motorcyclist, named only as David, hurled his helmet at the man’s face.

The knifeman stumbled, dropped the head and the biker jumped on him. He struggled to break free but was held by the motorcyclist and other pursuers until police arrived.

Colin Kirkby, a 50-year-old British journalist who witnessed the attack, told MailOnline that the man probably picked up the knife inside the shop – and there was no apparent motivation.

‘A middle-aged English couple in the shop said it came out of the blue and there was no real disturbance, there are security guards in the centre that would have been on the scene quickly,’ he said.

‘The shop sells cheap souvenir sword-like blades and I think if he had walked into the shop with the blade he would have been stopped by security and that’s what people are thinking.’ Read More

Expert says eruption of Mount Etna volcano linked to earthquake in Spain - 13th May 2011

The eruption of the Etna volcano in southern Italy early Thursday is connected to the earthquakes that rocked the Spanish region of Murcia, killing 12 people and injuring more than 170 others, a seismology expert said Thursday.

"We are currently witnessing an intense seismic activity in the entire Mediterranean area from Spain all the way to Malta which has a certain impact on regional volcanoes," said Domenico Patane, director of the Sicily office of Italy s National Geophysics Institute.

Patane said volcanoes are like windows from where underground magma surfaces and it's normal that they respond to earthquakes occurring in a geographic proximity.

"The Spanish eastern coast hit by the quake, after all, lies close to Italy, in the Mediterranean. Both Spain and Sicily are on the same earth plate," he said.

The earthquakes in Spain on Wednesday, which could be felt in Madrid, reportedly had their epicenter near the towns of Lorca and Totana in the Murcia region. The initial tremor of 4.4 magnitude was followed by a quake of about 5.2 magnitude.

Around 2 a.m. Thursday people in Sicily felt the earth slightly tremble and heard the sound of an explosion coming from Etna's pit crater. < The eruption sent flying massive quantities of lava and volcanic ash, which spilled on the main town of Catania and other nearby villages but luckily caused no serious damage.

The central airport was forced to close after it was submerged by the ash. Read More

'Colonel Gaddafi is wounded and has left Tripoli' claims Italian foreign minister - 13th May 2011

Colonel Gaddafi has very likely left the Libyan capital and is probably wounded, an Italian government minister has claimed.

Foreign minister Franco Frattini said he believed reports from Giovanni Innocenzo Martinelli, the Catholic Bishop in Tripoli, that the despot had been wounded by Nato airstrikes.

He told reporters in Tuscany that 'Gaddafi was most probably outside Tripoli and probably even wounded'. The Libyan government has denied the reports.

Mr Frattini stressed that Italy has 'no hard information on the current fate of Gaddafi'.

Still, 'I tend to take as credible the words of the Tripoli Archbishop (Giovanni) Martinelli who tells us that Gaddafi is very probably outside of Tripoli and probably also wounded,' the ANSA news agency quoted Mr Frattini as telling reporters in Rome.

In comments during a TV interview posted on the Corriere della Sera newspaper's website, Mr Frattini added that 'international pressure has likely provoked the decision by Gaddafi to seek refuge in a safe place.'

'I lean toward the solution of an escape from Tripoli, not an escape from Libya,' he said.

'Libya is a big country, with desert areas.' Read More

Nato Strike Hits Gaddafi Compound In Tripoli - 13th May 2011

Nato airstrikes have again targeted Muammar Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli, just hours after the Libyan leader appeared on state TV.

The fortified Bab al Aziziya site, which doubles as a military base, was hit around 4am on Thursday.

After daybreak on Friday, Libyan officials took Western journalists to the compound to show off the aftermath of the Nato missile attack.

Sky News reporter Mark Stone, who is in Tripoli reporting under the supervision of the authorities, described what he saw.

"We've all been brought down here with our minders to Colonel Gaddafi's compound to see what damage there has been.

"There's pretty significant damage - three, perhaps four, craters and a building as well, which has been pretty heavily damaged.

"We've asked what it is, and all we're being told is it's an administrative building."

He added that Libyan officials declared three people were killed in the bombing - a claim that is very difficult to verify.

Stone queried why loyalist Libyan protesters at the site appeared to be shielding a stairwell leading underground.

An irate resident refused to explain where the stairs led to and instead questioned claims of bloodshed in the rebel town of Misratah.

The Nato strike came hours after Col Gaddafi appeared on state TV. Read More

Wanted: International arrest warrant for Colonel Gaddafi is issued after first public appearance in weeks proved he IS alive - 12th May 2011

The International Criminal Court is set to issue an arrest warrant for Colonel Gaddafi, it has been announced.

Italy's Foreign Minister said the warrant issued at the end of the month would be a 'key moment' in the Libyan crisis, as the dictator today made his first public appearance in weeks.

Franco Frattini said the warrant would make it 'impossible' for the Libyan leader to leave the country in exile as 'all the international community would have legal obligations'.

Colonel Gaddafi has made his first public appearance for weeks after a NATO air strike on Tripoli killed his youngest son and three grandchildren.

The Libyan dictator - who was filmed talking with tribal leaders in a hotel in the capital - was last seen in public on April 9.

A projection screen behind him showed a morning chat show on state al-Jamahirya TV which displayed yesterday's date in one corner.

It seemed a very deliberate move to spike rumours - helped along by an official Nato spokesman yesterday - that he may have been killed by an air strike.

And there were more strikes directed at his compound this afternoon.

Gaddafi has been in hiding since the rocket attack which struck a house in Tripoli. The Libyan government said he and his wife were unhurt in the attack.

It comes as the leader of the rebels visited London this morning to drum up more aid for the conflict.

Mustafa Abdel Jalil, chairman of the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC), met Prime Minister David Cameron, Foreign Secretary William Hague and Chancellor George Osborne.

The Foreign Office said the sides discussed providing more non-lethal equipment to the rebels and opening a permanent NTC office in London.

Britain has already sent body armour and telecommunications equipment to the rebels. Read More

Pakistan: 80 Killed In Osama 'Revenge' Blasts - 13th May 2011

At least 80 people have died after double suicide bomb blasts at a Pakistani paramilitary police training centre, said to be in revenge for Osama bin Laden's killing.

Pakistani Taliban militants have said they carried out the attacks, according to Reuters news agency.

"It's the first revenge for the martyrdom of... bin Laden. There will be more," Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan said by telephone from an undisclosed location.

The atrocity has been condemned by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and British Foreign Secretary William Hague.

It was the bloodiest attack in the country since a US raid killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden earlier this month.

Police officer Liaqat Ali Khan said 66 of the victims were recruits for the Frontier Corps, who were about to be bussed home from the centre. Read More