'Snoopers' charter' will force ISPs to monitor Facebook, Twitter

The government has published plans to force internet service providers to retain data on all online communications made by UK citizens, including those on popular social sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

The Communications Data Bill, laid before parliament on Thursday, will see content service providers being forced "to retain and store communications records" beyond those they retain for their own business reasons, the Home Office said in a statement on Thursday.

The data includes the time and duration of a communication, the number or email address of the originator and recipient, and the location of the device from which the communication was made. The bill will also cover geolocation data, which can pinpoint exactly where individuals were when they made their communications. Read More

UK fights euro zone threat with $155 billion credit boost

(Reuters) - The government and central bank will flood Britain's banking system with more than 100 billion pounds ($155.43 billion), seeking to pump credit through an economy struggling to escape recession under the "black cloud" of the euro zone crisis.

In his annual Mansion House policy speech to London financiers on Thursday, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said Britain would launch a scheme to provide cheap long-term funding to banks to encourage them to lend to businesses and consumers.

He also said the bank would activate an emergency liquidity tool.

Treasury officials said the government plan could support an estimated 80 billion pounds in new loans, while the central bank's separate scheme will provide monthly 5 billion pound tranches of six-month liquidity to banks.

King said the case for pumping more money into the economy via further purchases of government bonds had increased as the outlook for the economy had worsened, although he again rejected calls for the central bank to buy private assets. Read More

Legionnaires' Outbreak Claims Second Life

A second man has died from an outbreak of legionnaires' disease in Edinburgh.

The man, in his 40s, was from the Gorgie area of Edinburgh, which is in the centre of the area affected.

Sky News understands that he had underlying health problems and had been admitted to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary early on in the outbreak.

Forty-one people have fallen victim to legionnaires' since the end of May. The number of suspected cases stands at 48.

The first man to die was 56-year-old Robert Air, who had been working on a building site in Gorgie, to the south west of Edinburgh.

News of a second fatality comes as figures were indicating the outbreak had peaked. Read More

Anti-War Protester Tries To Arrest Tony Blair

Tony Blair has been heckled by an anti-war protester, who attempted to make a citizen's arrest on the former PM as he gave a speech at the University of Hong Kong.

The protest comes a week after Mr Blair's evidence to the Leveson Inquiry was interrupted by an anti-war activist.

In Hong Kong, Tom Grundy shouted about breaches of the Geneva convention during Mr Blair's years in office as the ex-leader took the stage.

"I waited till he'd been speaking a minute or so before I stood up and went towards him and said, 'Mr Blair, under Hong Kong's Power 101 law - the law which allows for citizen's arrest here - I'll be arresting you for crimes against peace'," Grundy told the Guardian.

"There was a gaggle of photographers just in front of him. Read More

4.3 Magnitude Earthquake FIJI REGION - 15th June 2012

A magnitude 4.3 earthquake has struck the FIJI REGION at a depth of 459.4 km (285.5 miles), the quake hit at 03:05:03 UTC Friday 15th June 2012
The epicenter was 218 km (136 miles) Northwest from NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

6.0 Magnitude Earthquake MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES - 15th June 2012

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake has struck MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES at a depth of 80 km (49.6 miles), the quake hit at 01:14:11 UTC Friday 15th June 2012
The epicenter was 76 km (47.1 miles) Southeast of Pundaguitan, Philippines
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Note: USGS has listed this earthquake as a 5.5 Magnitude, the majority of the stations have measured this earthquake from 6.0 to 6.7 Magnitude.

5.4 Magnitude Earthquake NORTHERN XINJIANG, CHINA - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 5.4 earthquake has struck NORTHERN XINJIANG, CHINA at a depth of 35 km (21.7 miles), the quake hit at 21:51:29 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 160 km (99 miles) WNW of Korla, Xinjiang, China
No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

2.5 Magnitude Earthquake OKLAHOMA CITY URBAN AREA, OKLAHOMA - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 2.5 earthquake has struck OKLAHOMA CITY URBAN AREA, OKLAHOMA at a depth of 4.9 km (3 miles), the quake hit at 20:24:26 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 9 km (5 miles) NW of OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma
No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.1 Magnitude Earthquake TAIWAN - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 4.1 earthquake has struck TAIWAN at a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles), the quake hit at 20:21:51 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 9 km (5.6 miles) East of Fenglin, Taiwan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

5.6 Magnitude Earthquake MOLUCCA SEA - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake has struck the MOLUCCA SEA at a depth of 56.5 km (35.1 miles), the quake hit at 20:17:24 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 85 km (137 miles) Northwest from Ternate, Moluccas, Indonesia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.6 Magnitude Earthquake TAIWAN - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 4.6 earthquake has struck TAIWAN at a depth of 0.4 km (0 miles), the quake hit at 19:30:57 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 4 km (2.8 miles) East of Fenglin, Taiwan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.2 Magnitude Earthquake EASTERN TURKEY - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 4.2 earthquake has struck EASTERN TURKEY at a depth of 4 km (2.8 miles), the quake hit at 19:17:43 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 10 km (6.2 miles) Northwest of Pervari, Turkey
No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

4.0 Magnitude Earthquake NEAR EAST COAST OF KAMCHATKA - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 4.0 earthquake has struck NEAR EAST COAST OF KAMCHATKA at a depth of 50 km (31 miles), the quake hit at 18:40:39 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 109 km (67.5 miles) South of Petropavlovsk-kamchatskiy, Kamchatka, Russia
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

Moose bonds with canoeist after rescue

A pair of veteran canoeists did whatever it took to save a pair of wild animals recently.

About two weeks ago Bonnie Couchie and Gord Martin found two baby moose struggling in a strong current on the Black River in northern Ontario.

Couchie said Martin guided the larger calf to shore. The smaller one couldn't make it, however, so it clambered into the canoe.

“He seemed quite comfortable in the canoe,” Couchie said. “It could've been really bad, but it wasn't. This moose seemed almost grateful to be in the canoe.”

And the moose seemed to bond with its rescuer.

"I watched as Gord comforted this moose and wrung all the water out of its fur and then rubbed his ears,” Couchie said. “And just before my eyes I'm looking at this moose, looking at Gord and Gord's looking at this moose. And it … absolutely warmed my heart."

Martin led the calf back to the tree line, where his sibling was. However, the moose turned and followed Martin like a dog, all the way back to the water. Martin and Couchie had to paddle away quickly.

"[The incident] was so funny because I've heard Gord say so many times … that his fantasy pet was a moose,” Couchie said.

The pair run an outdoor guiding company out of Pic River First Nation. source

4.0 Magnitude Earthquake TAIWAN - 14th June 2012

A magnitude 4.0 earthquake has struck TAIWAN at a depth of 16 km (9.9 miles), the quake hit at 18:26:01 UTC Thursday 14th June 2012
The epicenter was 6 km (3.7 miles) Northwest of Fenglin, Taiwan
No Tsunami Warning Issued - No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time

American Awakening and Occupy Wall Street movement

'United States is addicted to war'

Forty militants killed in south Yemen: Defense Ministry

(Reuters) - Forty militants were killed in southern Yemen when government troops captured a military position and trapped 300 fighters there, the Defense Ministry said in a text message sent on Thursday.

It gave no further details.

The Yemeni army is pushing ahead with a U.S.-backed offensive against the al Qaeda-linked Ansar al-Sharia (Partisans of Islamic Law) after they drove militants from two of their main strongholds in southern Yemen last week. Source

Bahrain eases medic sentences, U.S. "deeply disappointed"

(Reuters) - The United States said on Thursday it was "deeply disappointed" by a Bahrain court verdict which failed to strike down sentences against medics over their role in last year's pro-democracy uprising.

The court in the Gulf Arab state, an important U.S. ally that hosts Washington's Fifth Fleet, reduced sentences against nine medical professionals and acquitted nine others, but rights groups also criticized the decision to keep some of them in jail, saying it was politically motivated to placate hardliners within the ruling family.

"While sentences were reduced, we are deeply disappointed by these convictions, and that the Bahraini government did not use alternative means to address these cases," visiting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Michael Posner told a press conference. Read More

Victor Baez the crime reporter Kidnapped has been found dead in eastern Mexico

(Reuters) - Assailants kidnapped and killed a reporter who covered the crime beat in Mexico's Veracruz state, officials said on Thursday, the latest in a series of attacks on journalists amid a relentless drug war across the country.

Victor Baez, who worked for Mexican daily newspaper Milenio was abducted when he was leaving his office in the town of Xalapa late Wednesday and police found his body in the morning in the city center, said Gina Dominguez, spokeswoman for Veracruz state government.

Dominguez said the assailants were three armed men but did not give details about how Baez was killed.

"Victor Baez's murderers committed a crime that hurt his family and all journalists. Their aim is to intimidate society," Dominguez told a tearful news conference which was attended by fellow reporters who had worked alongside Baez for years.

Several journalists have left Veracruz state in recent months fearing for their lives, but Baez had insisted on staying to cover his beat.

"He told me, 'Friend, we cannot and should not live in fear and darkness. We won't let them impose terror on us,'" Dominguez said. Read More

Car bomb wounds two in Damascus

June 14 - A car bomb detonates in a Damascus car park, wounding two people according to Syrian state media. Travis Brecher reports.

Countries across world gird for Greece turmoil

(Reuters) - The threat of turmoil sweeping across global markets next week if Greece's election prompts a panicky flight of money from the euro zone has policymakers from Beijing to Zurich preparing to protect their currencies and economies from an unwelcome influx.

Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan is among the most vociferous, dangling the threat on Thursday of imposing capital controls to stop the Swiss franc from soaring as a result of investors seeking the currency's relative safety.

"The SNB will not tolerate this," he said bluntly.

Switzerland is not alone. The Bank of Japan is prioritizing market stability, according to one source, with economists saying the bank's main concern would be to stop the yen taking off.

Intervention would be a likely response should the yen rise too high for the authorities' taste. With G20 leaders meeting in Mexico next week there is even speculation of a coordinated global response although no evidence of that has emerged so far. Read More

Third Dead Bat Found in Riverside County in Recent Weeks‎, California

A bat discovered last week tested positive for rabies, officials say

The discovery of a dead bat in Riverside County Tuesday afternoon brought the number of recent dead bat incidents in the region to three, a string that officials called uncommon but not an immediate cause for concern.

"It’s not unusual to see bats in this area, but what is unique is when you find a bat in the daytime," said John Welsh, spokesman for the Department of Animal Services. "Most times, if you see a bat in the daytime, or if it’s on the sidewalk, something’s wrong with it. In most cases, it’s dead, but in some cases, it’s sick."

An employee at Highgrove Elementary School found a dead bat on the school’s playground Tuesday, and two similar dead bat cases were reported last week, Welsh said.

Several reports of dead bats have also surfaced in San Bernardino County in recent weeks, Welsh said, adding that this particular species of bats -- known as "Mexican free-tailed bats" -- are prevalent in Southern California. Read More

Dead fur seal found on Melbourne beach

Authorities are warning boat users and swimmers to keep their distance from protected marine animals after a dead fur seal was found on a Melbourne beach.

The animal was discovered on Black Rock Beach on Monday and an autopsy revealed it died from head injuries, probably caused by a boat.

Michael Woods of the Department of Sustainability and Environment is urging anyone with information about the dead seal to come forward.

"People need to stay 50 metres away from seals in Victorian waters and that's both for the protection of the seals and for the operators of vessels," he said.

And he has warned there are significant penalties for getting too close to protected animals. Read More

Mount Gamkonora Eruption: Hundreds briefly evacuate as volcano erupts in northeast Indonesia

TERNATE, INDONESIA (BNO NEWS) — Hundreds of residents in northeastern Indonesia fled their homes on Wednesday after a brief eruption at Mount Gamkonora, spewing towering columns of ash and smoke and prompting officials to raise the volcano’s alert level to the second-highest state.

The 1,635-meter (5,364 feet) tall volcano, which is located on the west coast of Halmahera island in the Maluku Islands and is part of North Maluku province, began to erupt on Wednesday afternoon and sent thick ash clouds up to 3,000 meters (9,842 feet) high, although no lava flows were seen.

The Antara news agency reported that hundreds of residents living on the volcano’s slope evacuated the area following the eruption, but they returned hours later after officials determined their communities are not currently at risk. New evacuations could be ordered if activity at the volcano continues to increase.

Following Wednesday’s eruption, the country’s Volcanology and Geology Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) decided to raise the volcano’s alert status to Siaga (level 3), the second-highest level. The agency uses a warning system with four levels of alert, with level 1 being the lowest and level 4 being the highest.

PVMBG said activity at Mount Gamkonora has been increasing for months, with more frequent volcanic earthquakes and an increase of magma activity near the surface. Authorities are still uncertain whether the current eruption will lead to a major event, but past eruptions at the volcano have nearly all been explosive. Read More