5.7 Magnitude Earthquake KOMANDORSKIYE OSTROVA, RUSSIA REGION - 29th May 2012

A magnitude 5.7 earthquake has struck Komandorskiye Ostrova, Russia Region at a depth of 36.5 km (22.7 miles), the quake hit at 02:40:57 UTC Tuesday 29th May 2012
The epicenter was 207 km (128 miles) ESE of Nikol'skoye, Komandorskiye Ostrova, Russia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake OFF THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 29th May 2012

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake has struck off the East Coast of Honshu, Japan at a depth of 40.6 km (25.2 miles), the quake hit at 01:56:05 UTC Tuesday 29th May 2012
The epicenter was 307 km (190 miles) East of of Morioka, Honshu, Japan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA - 29th May 2012

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake has struck Kepulauan Talaud, Indonesia at a depth of 71.8 km (44.6 miles), the quake hit at 01:15:25 UTC Tuesday 29th May 2012
The epicenter was 287 km (178 miles) North of Ternate, Moluccas, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.8 Magnitude Earthquake TONGA - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake has struck Tonga at a depth of 226.6 km (140.8 miles), the quake hit at 21:47:11 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 158 km (98 miles) NNW of NUKU`ALOFA, Tonga
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Zhang Yongming: Chinese serial killer sells chopped bodies to unsuspecting public

A man has been arrested on suspicion of killing 11 men in China, the official Xinhua news agency confirmed on Sunday, breaking its silence over the capture of a loner dubbed the "cannibal monster".

News reports from China and Hong Kong on Friday alleged the 56-year-old, a convicted murderer who was released from prison in 1997, had chopped up the bodies of the dead and sold the flesh to unsuspecting consumers.

Zhang Yongming was detained more than two weeks ago in his village in southwest China, where he was known as the "cannibal monster", the Guangxi News website reported last week.

It quoted residents as saying they had seen green plastic bags hanging from his home, with what appeared to be white bones protruding from the top.

The influential Xinhua made no mention of cannibalism in its "exclusive" story on Sunday of the arrest of the man it called "the alleged serial killer" and made few of the graphic revelations contained in the earlier reports.

A previous Xinhua report said only that Beijing had dispatched a team of experts to Yunnan province, where the accused lives, to supervise an investigation into missing teenagers.

Almost all last week's reports on the grisly case -- which made headlines around the world -- were later removed from Chinese websites and online searches for the words "missing in Yunnan" were also blocked.

Chinese media normally face few restrictions on reporting about non-political crimes, and it was not immediately clear why details of the Yunnan case had been originally censored. more

Fukushima radiation seen in tuna off California

Low levels of nuclear radiation from the tsunami-damaged Fukushima power plant have turned up in bluefin tuna off the California coast, suggesting that these fish carried radioactive compounds across the Pacific Ocean faster than wind or water can.

Small amounts of cesium-137 and cesium-134 were detected in 15 tuna caught near San Diego in August 2011, about four months after these chemicals were released into the water off Japan's east coast, scientists reported on Monday.

That is months earlier than wind and water currents brought debris from the plant to waters off Alaska and the U.S. Pacific Northwest.

The amount of radioactive cesium in the fish is not thought to be damaging to people if consumed, the researchers said in a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. more

Spain has "run out of money" -- and may be leaving the Euro next after Greece

El Mundo reports that the country can no longer resist the bond markets as 10-year yields flirt with 6.5pc again, and the spread over Bunds – or `prima de riesgo' — hits a fresh record each day.

Premier Mariano Rajoy and his inner circle have allegedly accepted that Spain will have to call on Europe's EFSF bail-out fund to rescue the banking system, even though this means subjecting his country to foreign suzerainty.

Mr Rajoy denies the story, not surprisingly since it would be a devastating climb-down, and not all options are yet exhausted.

"There will not be any (outside) rescue for the Spanish banking system," he said.

Fine, so where is the €23.5bn for the Bankia rescue going to come from? The state's Fund for Orderly Bank Restructuring (FROB) is down to €5.3bn, and there are many other candidates for that soup kitchen.

Spain must somehow rustle up €20bn or more on the debt markets. This will push the budget deficit back into the danger zone, though Madrid will no doubt try to keep it off books – or seek backdoor funds from the ECB to cap borrowing costs. Nobody will be fooled. more

European firms plan for Greek unrest, euro exit

(Reuters) - British electrical retailer Dixons has spent the last few weeks stockpiling security shutters to protect its nearly 100 stores across Greece in case of riot.

The planning, says Dixons chief Sebastian James, may look alarmist but it's good to be prepared.

Company bosses around Europe agree. As the financial crisis in Greece worsens, companies are getting ready for everything from social unrest to a complete meltdown of the financial system.

Those preparations include sweeping cash out of Greece every night, cutting debts, weeding out badly paying customers and readying for a switch to a new Greek drachma if the country is forced to abandon the euro.

"Most companies are getting ready and preparing for a Greek exit and have looked at cash, treasury and currency issues," said Roger Bayly, a partner at advisory and accountancy firm KPMG. Read More

Powerful "Flame" cyber weapon found in Iran

(Reuters) - Security experts have discovered a highly sophisticated computer virus in Iran and other Middle East countries that they believe was deployed at least five years ago to engage in state-sponsored cyber espionage.

Evidence suggest that the virus, dubbed Flame, may have been built on behalf of the same nation or nations that commissioned the Stuxnet worm that attacked Iran's nuclear program in 2010, according to Kaspersky Lab, the Russian cyber security software maker that claimed responsibility for discovering the virus.

Kaspersky researchers said on Monday they have yet to determine whether Flame had a specific mission like Stuxnet, and declined to say who they think built it.

Iran has accused the United States and Israel of deploying Stuxnet. Read More

U.S. has learned "hard lessons" from Vietnam War: Obama

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama honored Vietnam War veterans on Monday, saying the United States had learned "hard lessons" from the conflict and promising not to send U.S. troops back into harm's way without a clear mission and strategy.

Obama did not mention rising tensions with Iran and Syria or other potential threats in his remarks to veterans and military families on a hot, sunny Memorial Day, focusing instead on his efforts to wind down the Iraq and Afghanistan wars started by his predecessor George W. Bush.

The president noted that many Vietnam War veterans have gone to airports to personally greet soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, many of whom joined the military in response to the September 11, 2001, attacks that triggered the now-unpopular wars.

"Across America, communities have welcomed home our forces from Iraq, and when our troops return from Afghanistan, America will give this entire 9/11 generation the welcome home they deserve. Read More

4.9 Magnitude Earthquake SABAH, MALAYSIA - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake has struck Sabah, Malaysia at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), the quake hit at 16:44:11 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 31 km (19.2 miles) South of Lahad datu, Malaysia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Obama pledges no more wars ...............unless "absolutely necessary"

(Reuters) - President Barack Obama honored veterans on Monday by noting "the light of a new day" of having U.S. troops home from Iraq and returning soon from Afghanistan, while promising not to send soldiers back to war without a clear need.

Obama did not mention tension with Iran and Syria in his remarks to veterans and military families at a hot, sunny Memorial Day ceremony, focusing instead on the wars started by his predecessor, George W. Bush, that he wound down as president.

"After a decade under the dark cloud of war, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon," he said at Arlington National Cemetery, drawing applause when he noted the "milestone" of it being the first Memorial Day in nine years without Americans fighting and dying in Iraq. Read More

Euro's long-time doubters say 'I told you so'

(Reuters) - They were dismissed as prophets of doom. Now, as the euro struggles to survive, long-standing critics of Europe's single currency are more like prophets in their own time.

But when they say ‘I told you so', many do so with a regretful shake of the head, knowing the chaos and contagion that could ensue if austerity-weary Greece, at the epicentre of the crisis, quits the euro after a new election next month.

"I feel a deep sorrow that things could develop like they have in the euro zone considering that the fundamental mechanisms at play now were there for everybody to see," said Leif Pagrotsky, a former Swedish trade minister.

He said it had been obvious to him from the outset that a single interest rate for 17 countries with different inflation rates was a recipe for real estate bubbles and banking crises.

Similarly, a single-currency area without central decision-making or fiscal transfers and coordination of budgets - political union in short - was bound to lead to trouble.

"The sadness is that, in spite of that, this was allowed to happen. Millions and millions of people are suffering. Read More

China Cracks Down in Wake of Tibetan Protest

Witnesses say Chinese forces have clamped tight controls on community life in the Tibetan capital after two young men set themselves on fire in an apparent protest of Chinese rule. China says one of the protesters, a 19-year-old male, died at the scene Sunday, while the other remains hospitalized.

Sources tell VOA's Tibetan service there have been an undetermined number of arrests since the incident near Lhasa's Jokhang temple, as Chinese authorities seek to control the spread of anti-government self-immolation protests. Those protests have rocked Southwestern China and the neighboring Tibetan Autonomous Region for the past 14 months, as Buddhist monks, nuns and their supporters push their demands for freedom and the return of their exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

Witnesses say firefighting equipment arrived at the scene of Sunday's self-immolations within minutes, underscoring tensions in the capital described by Lhasa residents and reported by the New York Times as "a boiling situation" in the central city. Read More

Doha Shopping Mall Fire, Qatar: 13 Toddlers among the 19 Dead

Thirteen toddlers are among 19 people dead after a fire ripped through a large shopping centre in Doha, the Qatari government has said.

Seven girls and six boys were killed after the blaze broke out at a day care centre at the Villaggio mall earlier today.

They were aged between one and three and were trapped in the day care centre for more than two hours, local journalists who attended an official news conference told Sky News. Read More

Grandmother Being Treated For Rabies Dies

A grandmother who was being treated for rabies after reportedly being bitten by a dog while on holiday in India has died.

The identity of the woman, who is thought to be in her 50s and from Greater London, has not been disclosed.

She was reportedly turned away twice by doctors at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford, Kent before being diagnosed.

A statement from University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: "We regret to announce that a patient being treated for rabies by the Hospital for Tropical Diseases and colleagues at University College Hospital died over the weekend.

"The patient's family have kindly requested for the media to respect their privacy during this very difficult time and we will not be releasing any further details, nor will the family be making any statements.

"Our sincere condolences go out to them." Read More

JORDANIAN TERROR SUSPECT ABU QATADA WILL REMAIN IN PRISON WITHOUT BAIL AHEAD OF HIS DEPORTATION APPEAL....Wonders will never Cease!

More to Follow

5.3 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR THE EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake has struck near the East Coast of Honshu, Japan at a depth of 62 km (38.5 miles), the quake hit at 16:36:46 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 30 km (18.6 miles) East of TOKYO, Japan
No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Families demand release of Iranians abducted in Syria

Massive military drills held in Jordan

Former Japan PM apologises for nuclear crisis

'Assad & rebels both to blame for Houla massacre'

OWS to Assange: Outbreak of democracy US govt's biggest fear

Guns & Prayers: Syrian rebels 'major clients' of Lebanese arms dealers

Doha Shopping Mall Fire: 20 People Dead including 14 Children, Qatar

Fourteen children are among 20 people dead after a fire broke out at a large shopping centre in Doha, the Qatari government has said.

More to follow...

4.3 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTHERN GREECE - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 4.3 earthquake has struck Southern Greece at a depth of 16 km (9.9 miles), the quake hit at 15:44:12 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 12 km (7.4 miles) Southwest of Káto mazarákion, Greece
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.0 Magnitude Earthquake SOUTH OF THE FIJI ISLANDS - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake has struck South of the Fiji Islands at a depth of 506.2 km (314.6 miles), the quake hit at 15:39:46 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 484 km (300 miles) NNW of Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Cambodian girl, 10, dies from bird flu: WHO

AFP - A 10-year-old Cambodian girl has died from bird flu, the World Health Organization said Monday, the country's third fatality from the virulent disease this year.

The child developed a fever and shortness of breath on May 20 and died on Sunday, the WHO said in a joint statement with the Cambodian health ministry.

Hospital tests confirmed she had contracted the H5N1 strain of avian influenza.

"There is evidence of recent deaths among poultry in the village and the patient prepared sick chicken for food prior to becoming sick," the statement said.

The girl, from southwestern Kampong Speu province, is the 21st person in Cambodia to become infected with the H5N1 virus since 2003. Nineteen of those cases have been fatal.

The H5N1 strain has killed 357 people worldwide since 2003, according to WHO statistics.

Concerns about avian influenza have risen in the region with China, Vietnam and Indonesia all reporting deaths from the virus this year. Read More

4.8 Magnitude Earthquake OFF EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake has struck off the East Coast of Honshu, Japan at a depth of 5 km (3.1 miles), the quake hit at 14:39:05 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 276 km (171.1 miles) East of Kamaishi, Honshu, Japan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Was Facebook's botched IPO a conspiracy?

(CNN) -- A week into Facebook's debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange, its initial offering price of $38 per share dropped to $31.91. Retail investors' fears deepened as they realize they are losing a lot of money.

The Facebook IPO did not follow the usual script. Instead of launching the largest social media company in the world as a legitimate and valuable business, the IPO has laid bare all of the questions and doubts about its potential performance.
So why did the Facebook IPO bomb as badly as it did?

In a lawsuit filed last week, some investors contend that Morgan Stanley, the lead underwriter of the IPO, withheld key information about a negative financial forecast from them while sharing it with their institutional clients.

In this conspiratorial tale, the bad guys are the insiders at Facebook, the investment bankers and the favored institutional clients of these bankers. The bankers set the offering price at $38, knowing that the stock was not worth that much, the insiders in the company unloaded their shares at the offering price and institutional investors stayed on the sidelines. Individual small investors who bought at the offering price suffered as the price collapsed. In other words, the suckers are the rest of the world. Read More

Annan in Syria with message for 'everyone with a gun' to Halt the Violence

(CNN) -- Upon his arrival in Damascus, Syria, joint U.N.-Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan called Monday for those responsible for Friday's massacre of 108 people in the town of Houla to be held responsible and for his six-point plan to be implemented.

"This was an appalling crime, and the Security Council has rightly condemned it," he said in a statement.

"Those responsible for these brutal crimes must be held accountable. I understand that the government is also investigating. It is the Syrian people, ordinary citizens of this great country, who are paying the highest price in this conflict.

"Our goal is to stop this suffering. It must end and it must end now." Read More

What really happened in Houla?

"Flame" cyber weapon found in Middle East

(Reuters) - Security experts have discovered a new data-stealing virus dubbed Flame they say has lurked inside thousands of computers across the Middle East for as long as five years as part of a sophisticated cyber warfare campaign.

It is the most complex piece of malicious software discovered to date, said Kaspersky Lab security senior researcher Roel Schouwenberg, whose company discovered the virus. The results of the Lab's work were made available on Monday.

Schouwenberg said he did not know who built Flame.

If the Lab's analysis is correct, Flame could be the third major cyber weapon uncovered after the Stuxnet virus that attacked Iran's nuclear program in 2010, and its data-stealing cousin Duqu, named after the Star Wars villain. Read More

Spanish debt costs spiral as crisis deepens

(Reuters) - Spanish 10-year borrowing costs neared the 7 percent danger level and Bankia shares hit record lows on Monday after the government, struggling to sort out its finances, proposed putting sovereign debt into the struggling lender.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy pinned the blame for the rising borrowing costs - the spread over Germany reached the highest since the euro's launch - on concern about the future of the single currency. He again ruled out seeking outside aid to revive a banking sector laid low by a property boom that has long since bust.

"There are major doubts over the euro zone and that makes the risk premium for some countries very high. That's why it would be a very good idea to deliver a clear message there's no going back for the euro," Rajoy told a news conference.

"There will not be any (European) rescue for the Spanish banking system." Read More

Johnny Tapia is found dead in his home aged 45

Five-time world boxing champion Johnny Tapia has been found dead in his Albuquerque, New Mexico, home.

The star fighter, whose turbulent career was marked by cocaine addiction, alcohol, depression and run-ins with the law, was found by a family member who called police to the house at about 7.45pm on Sunday. He was 45.

The death didn't appear to be suspicious, Police spokesman Robert Gibbs said.

Tapia won five championships in three weight classes, including the WBA bantamweight title, the IBF and WBO junior bantamweight titles and the IBF featherweight belt.

He was regarded as the consummate underdog by his fans.

The more trouble he found outside the ring - including several stints in jail - the more they rallied around him. Read More

Chris Hayes says he is 'uncomfortable' describing fallen soldiers as 'heroes'

An MSNBC broadcaster has caused outrage by saying he feels 'uncomfortable' branding soldiers who have died in battle 'heroes'.

Chris Hayes, a liberal commentator who hosts Up with Chris Hayes, said the word is used to justify further war.

His stuttered comments - made on Memorial Day weekend - have sparked outrage among veterans organisations and across the internet.

The TV host said: 'I think it is very difficult to talk about the war dead and the fallen without invoking valor, without invoking the words "heroes".

'I feel... uncomfortable, about the word because it seems to me that it is so rhetorically proximate to justifications for more war.'

He went on: 'I don't want to obviously desecrate or disrespect memory of anyone that's fallen, and obviously there are individual circumstances in which there is genuine, tremendous heroism: hail of gunfire, rescuing fellow soldiers and things like that. Read More

Euro 2012: 'You could end up coming back in a coffin': Sol Campbell warns England fans to stay away from Euro 2012

Former England footballer Sol Campbell has warned fans to stay away from the European Championships because they 'could end up coming back in a coffin'.

The former Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur defender fears supporters could be targeted by gangs of violent neo-Nazi racists in host nations Poland and Ukraine.

Campbell, who won 73 caps for England, has insisted UEFA were wrong to award such a prestigious tournament to the two countries.

The 37-year-old told the BBC’s Panorama: ‘Stay at home, watch it on TV. Don’t even risk it ... because you could end up coming back in a coffin.

'I think they were wrong (to award Euro 2012 to Poland and Ukraine), because what they should say is that if you want this tournament you sort your problems out. Read More

Abu Qatada could be freed on bail today, as judges decide on his appeal

Jordanian terror suspect Abu Qatada could once again be freed onto Britain's streets today as his bid for bail is heard.

Qatada, described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, will have his application for bail heard by a senior immigration judge in London.

The radical cleric is being held in a high-security prison while he fights deportation to Jordan on terror charges.

The hearing will be held before Mr Justice Mitting at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (Siac) this afternoon.

Qatada's 10-year battle against deportation is in the hands of the British courts after the 51-year-old lost his attempt to make a final appeal to Europe's human rights judges earlier this month. Read More

Angler baffled by catch with the body of a goldfish, head of a roach and the fin of a bream

When angler Mark Sawyer went fishing in Cambridgeshire, all he wanted was to catch a carp.

Instead he ended up with a goldfish, a roach, and a bream - but, bizarrely, all in one fish.

The Frankenfish even manages to put the cartoon-y Blinky the Fish from The Simpsons to shame when it comes to bizarreness levels.

But unlike Springfield's most famous fish, which is the product of Mr Burn's toxic dumping, there is nothing in the water to suggest this mutant is a result of a nuclear mutation.

At first Mark, 53, thought it was a common brown goldfish but when he looked closer he realised it was no normal catch.

He said the fish appears to have the head of a roach, the body and tail of a brown goldfish and the rear fin of a bream. Read More

Lindsay Sandiford faces death penalty in Bali after being caught 'carrying £1.6million of cochttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifaine into Bali'

The British middle-aged woman facing the death penalty for allegedly trafficking cocaine worth £1.6 million into Bali has been branded a 'neighbour from hell'.

Housewife Lindsay Sandiford, 56, was allegedly caught with 4.7kg of the Class A drug hidden in a suitcase when she landed on the Indonesian island.

The mother-of-two is currently understood to be living in Redcar, Cleveland, but was previously a tenant in a £275,000 detached property in Cheltenham, Glos.

Neighbours described how she outwardly appeared to be a respectable middle class mother - but was actually a nuisance neighbour.

A 63-year-old man who lived next door said she was evicted around five years ago for allegedly failing to pay rent.

He said: 'She gives off the impression that she's a well-to-do middle-aged woman, but she's not at all. She was a real neighbour from hell.' Read More

Kenya blast 'was terrorist attack': PM

NAIROBI — A blast that wounded dozens in central Nairobi Monday was a "terrorist" attack, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga said, contradicting earlier police reports it was caused by an electrical fault.

"This is terrorism... this is a heinous act, we are under threat but we will not be cowed," Odinga told reporters at the site of the blast in Nairobi's commercial heart.

Kenya has been hit by a wave of grenade attacks the police have repeatedly blamed on Somalia's Al-Qaeda linked Shebab insurgents or its supporters.

Last month the hardline Shebab warned Kenya of revenge attacks for sending tanks and troops into Somalia in October.

The blast, which ripped through a small shopping complex on Nairobi's Moi Avenue in the early afternoon, left around 30 people wounded.

Minutes after the blast the pro-Shebab Twitter site Al-Kataib reported a "huge explosion in Nairobi" although did not specifically claim any responsibility. Read More

Two Monks Self-Immolate in Tibetan Capital

BEIJING — Two men set fire to themselves Sunday outside the holiest temple of Tibetan Buddhism in the center of Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, and one died, according to Xinhua, the Chinese state news agency.

The act was apparently in protest of Chinese rule over Tibet, and it signaled that the wave of self-immolations that had occurred in eastern Tibet had spread to the capital.

The self-immolations took place outside the Jokhang Temple, during the holy month known as Saga Dawa, when followers of Tibetan Buddhism celebrate the birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha. The self-immolations were the most significant act of protest to take place in Lhasa since the uprising in 2008, when security forces clamped down on rioters and protesters and kept Lhasa in a state of permanent lockdown afterward, particularly in the central market area known as the Barkhor. The Jokhang is a pilgrimage destination that lies at the area’s heart. Read More

Russia: both sides are to blame for Syrian atrocity

Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, insisted on Monday that "both sides" in Syria's conflict were responsible for the Houla massacre, and gave little sign that the Kremlin will use its leverage to rein in President Bashar al-Assad.

"It is not as if the alternatives in Syria are the Annan plan or the Assad regime retaking control of the country," Hague said after talks in Moscow with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

"The alternatives are the Annan plan or ever increasing chaos in Syria and the descent closer and closer to all-out civil war and collapse."

Hague said he urged Russia to put more pressure on the government of its Soviet-era ally to keep to the terms of Annan's six-point proposal.

"It is urgent to make every effort to start the political process and to encourage - of course, we must all encourage - the Assad regime to implement the plan they have not yet implemented. Read More

Christopher McGuire Jailed For Tampering With Nurofen

A codeine addict who contaminated packets of Nurofen Plus in a ruse to fund his habit has been jailed for 18 months.

Christopher McGuire cost the manufacturers £2.5m and saved himself just £7 by placing strips of an anti-psychotic drug in empty packets of the painkiller and swapping them for new packets at pharmacies.

A judge jailed him at Southwark Crown Court for the "carefully thought out and skilfully executed" scheme, which created a "good deal of public fear and anxiety".

More to follow...

Protester Storms Blair's Leveson Hearing

A protester has branded Tony Blair a war criminal after storming the Leveson Inquiry hearing where the former prime minister is giving evidence.

The man, who told reporters his name was David Lawley Wakelin, managed to evade security and access the court room through a secure corridor.

The 49-year-old appeared to catch security at the Royal Courts of Justice off guard and was able to hurl accusations at Mr Blair before he was bundled away.

As Mr Blair looked on, he said: "JP Morgan paid him off for the Iraq war. Three months after he invaded Iraq, they held up the Iraq bank for 20 billion.

"He was then paid six million dollars every year and still is from JP Morgan six months after he left office. This man is a war criminal." Read More

5.0 Magnitude Earthquake SULAWESI, INDONESIA - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake has struck Sulawesi, Indonesia at a depth of 149.2 km (92.7 miles), the quake hit at 13:15:03 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 78 km (48 miles) Southeast of Gorontalo, Sulawesi, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.1 Magnitude Earthquake SANTIAGO DEL ESTERO, ARGENTINA - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake has struck Santiago del Estero, Argentina at a depth of 592 km (367.9 miles), the quake hit at 11:50:56 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 51 km (31.6 miles) Northwest of Anatuya, Santiago del Estero, Argentina
No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.5 Magnitude Earthquake ROTA REGION, NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake has struck the Rota Region, Northern Mariana Islands at a depth of 100.8 km (62.6 miles), the quake hit at 08:29:27 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 15 km (9.3 miles) NNE of Rota, Northern Mariana Islands
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake ATACAMA, CHILE - 28th May 2012

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake has struck Atacama, Chile at a depth of 22.9 km (14.2 miles), the quake hit at 08:22:09 UTC Monday 28th May 2012
The epicenter was 77 km (47 miles) NNW of Vallenar, Atacama, Chile
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Greens seek law change for Church abuse victims

The New South Wales Greens will introduce a private member's bill that would let victims of sex abuse by Catholic clergy sue the property trust that holds much of the church's wealth.

The trusts hold billions of dollars worth of the Church's assets, but in 2007 a court ruled they could not be held financially responsible for the actions of clergy.

Greens MP David Shoebridge says that has allowed the Catholic Church to hide behind a legal technicality, and he wants the law changed.

"In NSW, the Catholic Church does not exist as a separate legal entity," he said.

"It's an unincorporated association. The priest who commits the offence is often dead or penniless by the time the case is brought to court. Read More

Lindsay June Sandiford arrested for Trying to Smuggle 4.7 kilograms of cocaine into Bali, Indonesia

Customs and excise officers at Ngurah Rai International Airport have announced the arrest of a British national, named Lindsay June Sandiford, for attempting to smuggle cocaine into the country, an official has said.

“We first spotted the cocaine through routine X-Ray scanning,” Customs and Excise Agency monitoring division head, Made Wijaya, told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Sandiford, who traveled to Indonesia from Bangkok, did not make it through the Customs and Excise Agency’s X-Ray scanning. Agency officials spotted suspicious material inside her luggage and then asked her to step into their office for further examination.

The officials then found 4.7 kilograms of cocaine inside the luggage and put her under custody.

He said besides arresting Sandiford, the airport authorities had also arrested an Indian national, who is suspected of being Sandiford’s accomplice.

“Right now both of them, Sandiford and her suspected partner, have been delivered to the local police for further questioning,” he said.

He added that despite her seemingly unassuming appearance, airport authorities believed that Sandiford had long been part of an international narcotics syndicate. Read More

Gay-rights activists arrested in Moscow

Moscow (CNN) -- Police detained about 40 gay-rights activists in Moscow on Sunday, alleging they attempted to hold an unauthorized demonstration during Moscow gay pride events, the police press service said.

State-run Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported that prominent gay rights activist Nikolai Alexeyev and several others were among those detained during an authorized picket near Moscow's city hall.

"The picket was devoted to the anniversary of the decriminalization of homosexuality in Russia and was not sanctioned by the authorities," RIA Novosti said.

Activists have held similar gay pride demonstrations in previous years, but usually disperse before police arrive, according to the news agency. Read More

Tropical Storm Beryl makes landfall in north Florida

(CNN) -- Tropical Storm Beryl threatened to wipe out Memorial Day festivities across north Florida and south Georgia as it pelted the region with heavy rain and gale-force winds early Monday, forecasters said.

Because of Beryl, Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown canceled all Memorial Day ceremonies. A Memorial Day event at Veteran's Cemetery in nearby St. Augustine also was canceled.

Beryl's powerful winds knocked out power across the region.

JEA, which supplies power to the Jacksonville area, reported approximately 21,000 customers without electricity. The Clay Electric Cooperative reported scattered outages in Orange Park, south of Jacksonville.

The Jacksonville Transportation Authority suspended all bus routes to area beaches. Read More