DUBAI: A bomb blast in a Shiite village in Bahrain, the scene of simmering unrest since anti-government protests were crushed in 2011, has left three policemen slightly wounded, officials said.
The three were on patrol in the village of Bani Jamra when the blast occurred, the Gulf kingdom’s Interior Ministry said in a statement on Twitter posted late Friday.
It said that the three sustained minor injuries, describing the explosion as a “terrorist” blast and adding that “necessary steps are being taken,” without elaborating.
Witnesses said that the blast occurred late Friday and that security forces swiftly sealed off the village, which lies not far from the capital Manama.
They added that a young protester was also injured in clashes with police in another Shiite village, Sanabes, late Friday.
Attacks against security forces have intensified this year.
Two people, including a Jordanian policeman, were killed in the area last week.
It was the first deadly attack on security forces since parliamentary polls in November boycotted by the main Shiite opposition group, which is calling for democratic reforms in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.
The election was the first in the Gulf state since authorities quelled the 2011 protests.
Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, remains deeply divided three years after the month-long demonstrations.
Protests still frequently break out in Bahrain’s Shiite villages, sometimes sparking clashes with police.
Attacks on the security forces have increased this year, with three policemen – including an Emirati – killed in a bombing in a Shiite area on March 3.
Another policeman was killed in a bomb blast in a Shiite village in February during protests marking the third anniversary of the failed uprising.
With an aim of preserving and revitalising the soul of old cities, government will launch the Rs 500 crore heritage city development project early next year.
National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) will be launched for 12 selected cities early next year, Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu said at a workshop organised here for the project.
The cities selected for the HRIDAY project are Amritsar, Varanasi, Gaya, Puri, Ajmer, Velankanni, Mathura, Kanchipuram, Dwarka, Badami, Warangal and Amravati.
The cities selected under the scheme are symbolic of the broad diversity in the heritage prevalent in our country, in form of their cultural, regional and religious identities, he said, adding, “More cities will be identified in due course based on joint consultations between Centre and states.”
As per the plan of action, steps will be taken to tap the unlimited potential underlying in tourism and heritage sector unleashing the power of skillful artisans and traditional economy.
“Our aim is to preserve the rich heritage and showcase them to the next generation as the contribution or achievements of our ancestors,” he said.
The project with a time-frame of three to five years and an outlay of Rs 500 crores in Phase 1 is expected to be launched next year.
Naidu said the entire funding will be from the Centre and the cities will have to submit the detailed project report for this.
HRIDAY will have four themes – physical infrastructure, institutional infrastructure, economic infrastructure and social infrastructure for reviving and revitalising the soul of heritage city.
He said the project is also open to private participation. “If any organisation wants to join it then it is OK because citizens’ engagement shall be pivotal”.
“A liitle effort on our side can create transformational changes, which will make the past, the present and the future generations of the country and the world proud of India,” he said.
The United Nations has been talking to the Afghan Taliban on measures to limit the impact of the conflict on civilians, as it recorded the highest ever number of civilians killed and injured in Afghanistan in 2014.
UN’s top official in Afghanistan Nicholas Haysom told reporters here yesterday that the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) is continuing discussions with all parties, including the Taliban, to strengthen mitigating measures to limit the impact of the conflict on civilians.
“We think it is really important to engage all parties to the conflict on the question of civilian casualties…We have more recently engaged with the Taliban,” he said.
UNAMA continues to advocate and lobby all parties particularly “anti-government elements” to do much more to abide by their legal obligation under international law and under Afghan law to reduce civilian casualties and to not attack civilians either deliberately or indiscriminately.
Haysom highlighted the devastating impact of the conflict on Afghan civilians.
Civilian casualties in Afghanistan increased by nearly 20 per cent in 2014 compared to the previous year and are expected to rise to a figure over 10,000 by end of December for the first time since the UN mission in the country began keeping record in 2008.
UNAMA documented that from January 2014 to the end of November there were 9,617 civilian casualties which includes 3,188 civilian deaths and 6,429 civilian injuries.
“One of the measurements of the security situation has been civilian casualties,” the special envoy said.
“Civilian casualties are a particularly tragic and very prominent part, even benchmark, of the horror of the violence that ordinary Afghans face.”
As of November 30, UNAMA recorded more civilian deaths and injuries during 2014 than in any other year since it began its authoritative reports in 2009.
Civilian casualties increased 19 per cent overall from last year, Haysom said. These casualties resulted mostly from ground engagements between parties to the conflict, improvised explosive devices, and suicide and complex attacks.
Insurgents were responsible for at least 75 per cent of the casualties. Children casualties increased 33 per cent compared to 2013, with casualties among women up 12 per cent.
Georgette Gagnon, the Director of Human Rights at the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said current projections indicate that 2014 will be the first year that the civilian casualty count will pass 10,000 civilian casualties since it began its reports.
India’s troubled airline SpiceJet has grounded flights after oil companies refused to refuel any of its planes, reports say.
The debt-ridden carrier owes money to creditors, including oil companies.
SpiceJet is India’s fourth-biggest airline by market share.
On Tuesday, civil aviation authorities gave SpiceJet a reprieve when they said state-owned oil companies would be asked to give credit to the cash-strapped airline for up to 15 days.
The civil aviation ministry also said that banks or other financial institutions would be asked to lend up to $94m (£60m), backed by a personal guarantee of SpiceJet chairman Kalanithi Maran, a well-known media businessman.
The ministry said the measures were aimed at avoiding a collapse which it said would be a “major setback” for the airline industry.
Correspondents say the government hopes to save jobs and prevent a repeat of the high-profile collapse of Kingfisher Airlines which was grounded in 2012.
It is not clear, however, why oil companies have refused to refuel SpiceJet planes after Tuesday’s announcements.
“Not even a single flight has taken off this morning due to fuel supply issue with the oil companies,” sources in the SpiceJet told the BBC on Wednesday.
SpiceJet has $314m (£200m) in debts and it is looking to raise funds.
The company has been unable to pay its dues to staff, airports, tax authorities and its lenders.
The airline, which has been making losses since last year, is also battling refunds for customers and forced flight cancellations.
It has already cut the size of its fleet by a third since September and cancelled dozens of flights a day for the rest of the year.
TEXAS CITY, Texas –
The owners of a Galveston County plumbing company have received phones calls and threats from people over a photo that’s gone viral on the internet.
The photo originally appeared on Twitter and was reportedly put there by a militant group in Syria who is fighting the civil war.
The photo shows a Ford F-250 pick-up truck with “Mark-1 Plumbing” written on the side, the name of the local plumbing company, along with their phone number. In the back of the truck is a man with a large gun.
Believe it or not, the vehicle once belonged to the owners of the plumbing company. Local 2 stopped by their Texas City office but no one wanted to appear on camera.
The owner’s son did confirm they got rid of the truck during a deal with the Autonation dealership on the Gulf Freeway.
A spokesperson for Autonation told Local 2, the vehicle was part of a trade-in, back in November 2013. The 2005 pick-up truck had 176,000 miles on it and within 24 hours went to auction.
What happened to it after that is a mystery.
The Autonation spokesperson said whoever obtained the vehicle probably didn’t register it because that’s where the paper trail stops. He also said the truck was probably part of an overseas whole sale and that’s how it ended up in Syria.
Mexico City (AFP) – An armed group briefly seized about 60 Mexican reporters and their families and beat some of them for supposedly showing disrespect towards 43 missing students, a local journalist organization said Tuesday.
The journalists were gathered for an annual awards ceremony Saturday in the town of Tlapa de Comonfort in the restive state of Guerrero — where the students vanished in September — when the attackers went for them shouting “Sold-out press!”
“There were dozens, nearly a hundred persons, some of them wearing hoods and armed, and others with sticks and police clubs,” Miguel Angel Mata, president of the Guerrero Journalists’ Club, told AFP.
The state has been simmering with protests since the disappearance and presumed massacre of the 43 male students, allegedly at the hands of a drug gang in league with police in the Guerrero town of Iguala.
Mata said the armed assailants identified themselves as members of the Popular Movement of Guerrero, which includes a radical state teacher’s union as well as students of the teachers college that the missing students attended.
Local press reports said several men armed with rifles and wearing the uniforms of community guards locked the journalists in the town hall.
They said they were a jury and were going to try us because we had come to offend them,” Mata said.
He said they accused the journalists of breaking mourning over the deaths of the missing students by using the awards event to promote politicians.
“They began to beat me, my wife and some companions,” Mata said.
They stopped only after the newspaper Milenio reported on its website that journalists had been kidnapped.
The group then made Mata deny the report in a video that circulated on the Internet in which he is seen with a man armed with a rifle standing behind him.
He said they were finally released around midnight Saturday.
“We talked to the state human rights commission, the national commission, the government, and no one came to help us,” Mata said.
The Paying GuestsSarah Waters
“Five hundred pages-plus of effortless reading. A story that begins with the simple premise of a mother and daughter taking in paying guests to help with financial difficulties. It turns into a page-turning extraordinary thriller.” jkinnaird
“Sarah Waters is well-informed and skilful in unfolding a story, presenting detailed descriptions of people whose inner lives and social histories are generally ignored by traditional literature. Waters describes housework, lesbian sexuality among ordinary people, and untold class and money issues created by the first world war and its aftermath.” Dianne Hunter
What we said: “Satire meets costume drama” – read the Guardian review
2Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death and Brain SurgeryHenry Marsh
“A stunningly honest and moving memoir of Dr Marsh’s life as a neurosurgeon.” stilllistening
“This is the book which explains why I so often prefer non-fiction to fiction these days. Who could make up a story as interesting and moving as this? It is suspenseful, sometimes chilling, humane and wise. And, it has the funniest anecdote about computers and lost passwords which tops all yours! I laughed out loud and immediately shared it with friends. You can’t not read this book.” philipskel
“Honest, fascinating, funny and moving.” Diana Patel
“Gripping, surprisingly honest, very well written memoir of a brain surgeon.” howardjl
3Elizabeth Is MissingEmma Healey
“Poignant but deadly accurate depiction of someone suffering from dementia solving a crime. Anyone with a relative suffering dementia will recognise the black humour! A brilliant debut.” xerif
“A beautifully written insight into the mind of a dementia sufferer, it certainly opened my eyes. It’s both funny and heartbreakingly sad. It’s a very simple read, but the reader takes away a clearer, more complex understanding of a condition which is likely to affect many of us in modern times. I would highly recommend this book.” scotty01
What we said: “Emma Healey’s dementia detective story” – read the Guardian review
4The Book of Strange New ThingsMichel Faber
“Michel Faber is a wonderful author. His writing skills and use of language are superb. In this new novel he introduces themes which could make the book difficult to read or perhaps follow, but I could not leave it alone until I had finished it. There is a poignancy to the book that remains long after the reading of it has finished.” maureenglasgow
What we said: “Astonishing and deeply affecting” – read the Guardian review
5We Are All Completely Beside OurselvesKaren Joy Fowler
“ A masterly study of family interactions, behaviours, and the nature of memory. It tackles some serious moral issues without getting heavy.” Roburite
“Because the story was completely unexpected, as well as enjoying the book, I also learned a few things.” Isabelle Leinster
“I liked the character, story, twist and interesting use of scientific studies of chimps and it is v well written and narrator was very funny at times.” ID9694371
What we said: “A provocative take on family love” – read the Guardian review
6All the Light We Cannot SeeAnthony Doerr
“Beautifully written, a beautiful story about family, duty, and personal honour.” Melody Alder Maysonet
“This is a novel with many layers and beautiful language.” HeleneM
What we said: “A story of morality, science and Nazi occupation” – read the Guardian review
Anthony Doerr’s book takes in the Nazi occupation of France and the D-Day landings. Photograph: Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis
7The Bone ClocksDavid Mitchell
“There are many reasons this novel is great – its richly characterised voices, its sumptuous period details, its dark sense of humour and healthy but never grating awareness of itself. None of these even gets close to why it’s such a marvel. Its plot is truly ridiculous. It is basically unspoilable. It’s the kind of labyrinthine sci-fi that teenage boys love and everyone else gives a heartening smile and pats on the head. But 600 pages fly by without stopping for a second to think, wait, how did I just let any of this happen?” Nicholas Watts
What we said: “Dazzle of narrative fireworks” – read the Guardian review
8This Changes Everything: Capitalism Vs. the ClimateNaomi Klein
“The impact of climate change, as Margaret Atwood says, is a conversation we need to have now. It cannot be put off any longer and Klein’s book reinforces that thought with clarity.” LaikaLizzie
“Naomi Klein is a mainstream author, and she was bold for writing about a topic that is still not considered appropriate when people socialise. This book spells out reality, it’s easy to read and the message is incredibly important. I read about 35 books a year – this is top of my list over the last 12 months.” Ian James
What we said: “It addresses a potential catastrophe yet is calm and welcoming” – read the Guardian review
9The Narrow Road to the Deep NorthRichard Flanagan
“No one needs telling even once that war is a horrible business for everyone involved, during and after, but sometimes it’s good to be told in a way that is painfully beautiful and moving. As this book is.” zendik
“I don’t think I have ever read a book like it. The harrowing descriptions of the POWs’ existence in Burma juxtaposed with a passionate but ill-fated love affair said so much to me about the potential of human experience to be at once beautiful and terrible; I have felt haunted by it ever since.” philojo
“Literary quality of the writing combined with ethical philosophy and believable characterisation. Great historical fiction.” 100blague
10The GoldfinchDonna Tart
It wouldn’t be a proper end-of-year list without a bit of cheating. The Goldfinch came out at the end of 2013, but it was published in paperback this year and that’s when the majority of readers have had a chance to read it – so we decided to accept the nominations.
“A long book, with not a word wasted. Wonderful characters in an utterly compelling story. Clever, funny and curiously misunderstood. Could read it again already!” lilycarver
“It is an experience, dreamlike, sharp with grief and the growing up on it. I love Theo like he is a real person. He is more than three dimensional, he has a psyche. This will remain an all-time favourite book.” Madeleineann
“Just a wonderfully woven dark (and richly long) tale of redemption, sacrifice, loss, life choices and beauty, all in the beholder’s eye. I read professionally for work, so to devote my time (and then desire) to delve into this 850+ page wonder-read – on a colleague’s recommendation, no less – and then to so thoroughly enjoy the writing so as not to want to put it down, is statement enough. 2014’s deserved Pulitzer winner.” Jennifer Cross
In December some hot Bollywood babes featured on magazine covers and grabbed many eyeballs. While we know these Bollywood divas glorifies every look they are entitled to, we bring to you the best of ten hot magazine Bollywood cover girls in the month of December 2014.
- Raveena Tandon – Savvy magazine
As the cover girl Raveena Tandon surprised the viewers with her bold red avatar on the magazine front. Well the quote read, “ Salman And I did not get along from day 1” and this surely makes it obvious for the readers to know more. The diva rocked her look with red outfit and bold red lipstick.
9.Alia Bhatt – Femina Magazine
Alia Bhatt features for this special edition of Femina magazine which celebrates 55th Anniversary. She is the perfect choice considering the tag line ‘ Be Unstoppable’. Well the entire look of the magazine is in shades of black and white. Alia Bhatt manages to look good in her unique hair do and the stripe black high neck outfit. The main highlight is her boots. She surely glorifies the whole look.
- Richa Chadda – FHM
The two-piece attire is already a charmer on the magazine cover and with that we have Richa Chaddha who is setting temperatures high. She has that sexy look in her eyes. The turquoise and gold bikini is teamed up with buttoned down white shirt revealing the best of the actress on the magazine cover of FHM.
7.Parineeti Chopra- Prevention
With the white tank top and blue skirt Parineeti Chopra does what she does it best and that is to smile naturally. Well this beauty shows off her beautiful smile and her lean look on the magazine cover of Prevention. She surely defines ‘ Slim and Sunny effortlessly’.
- Sonakshi Sinha – Maxim
Sonakshi Sinha features on the Maxim Magazine with a close up of the actress and her off shoulder white net top giving her the perfect look. The caption read ‘ Bringing Curvy Back’ and with the cover surely brings the message out to the viewers perfectly. She surely wins heart with her eyes that do the talking.
5.Shraddha Kapoor – Women’s Health
On the cover of Women’s Health magazine Shraddha Kapoor unveils the best part of her, which is beautiful, bold and carefree. Her picture says a lot. The actress has surely wooed the viewers with her looks on the magazine cover, the charming smile and her bodycon beige shimmery outfit.
4.Katrina Kaif – Vogue Magazine
Katrina Kaif surely makes a perfect style statement and with Vogue Magazine cover girl she once again proved her hotness quotient. She is seen in a golden metallic ensemble and the best part is her hair which adds the oomph factor to the whole look.
- Vidya Balan – Cineblitz
The actress who is enriched with her Indian ethnic looks, flaunts it on the Cineblitz magazine cover. With the pink saree and black blouse with embroidery, she portrays hotness with a grace and charm. Definitely this beautiful actress knows how to grab eyeballs with her looks.
- Anushka Sharma – GQ Magazine
Anushka Sharma, who is more known as the girl next door is surely going to surprise the audience with her sexy look on the GQ magazine cover. With the golden shimmery cut out dress highlighting her assets she is one of the hottest magazine cover girl.
- Priyanka Chopra – Grazia Magazine
The best part about Priyanka Chopra is her confidence. This Hollywood singer and the Bollywood diva surely does things in style be it anything – acting, singing or simply showing her killer looks. She depicts the best of her in black sheer attire on the Grazia Magazine cover. The best is her eyes. She is definitely going to set the temperatures soaring.
Man Haron Monis, the Sydney hostage-taker killed in a 16-hour siege, was a self-styled sheikh with his own Wikipedia entry who was on bail when he emerged as a lone wolf gunman.
Born in Iran, the 50-year-old was named in reports hours before being gunned down as the “cleric” who triggered a security lockdown in the heart of Australia’s biggest city by unfurling an Islamic flag and holding several people captive in a chocolate cafe.
Arriving in Australia as a refugee in 1996, Monis was no stranger to controversy.
Convicted over sending offensive letters to the families of dead soldiers, he was on bail on charges of being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife and for sexual and indecent assault, multiple Australian outlets reported.
His personal website, before it was taken down Tuesday, featured a banner photo with graphic images of dead Arab children, with the caption: “This is an evidence for the terrorism of America and its allies including Australia. The result of their airstrikes.”
The gunman converted from Shiism to Sunni Islam, according to a post on his website. The Sunni-based Islamic State and other jihadist groups consider Shiites heretics, or rejectionists — “rafidi” — of true Islam.
“I used to be a rafidi, but not anymore. Now I am a Muslim, Alhamdu Lillah,” he said.
On his website, self-styled Sheikh Haron, also known as Man Haron Monis, says his children have been “taken away by the Australian government” and that he is not allowed to contact them.
Monis was on bail for dozens of charges, including 22 of aggravated sexual assault and 14 of aggravated indecent assault, according to the Australian Associated Press.
Stemming from his time as a “spiritual healer”, an additional 40 charges were levelled against him in October and he was also on bail for being an accessary to murder.
The Sydney Morning Herald said it was understood that days before Monday’s siege, Monis had lost a bid to have the charges over the letters overturned.
Showing a flair for the dramatic, a photograph said to be from his Facebook page published by the Business Insider showed him in chains with a poster claiming “I have been tortured in prison for my political letters.
Monis has said the crimes he has been accused of in the past were attempts to smear him.
“These cases are in fact political cases against this Muslim activist, not real criminal cases.”
He compared himself to Wikileaks’ Julian Assange on his website, saying both were activists facing government-backed smear campaigns.
He also counted astrology, numerology, meditation and black magic among his expertise, according to reports.
Before the raid, Monis had reportedly demanded an Islamic State flag and a phone call with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
But police and Monis’s former lawyer Manny Conditsis said the public could be assured that the siege was not the work of an organised terrorist group.
“This is a one-off random individual,” he told the ABC. “It’s not a concerted terrorism event or act. It’s a damaged-goods individual who’s done something outrageous.”
The Australian newspaper called him a “self-styled sheikh” who had sent offensive letters to the families of dead Australian soldiers and was on bail on charges of being an accessory to the murder of his ex-wife.
It said Monis — shown in local media in a photo smiling and sporting a beard and a white turban — lived in Sydney’s southwest and was “understood to be a fringe Islamist”.
The Centre today alerted the states in the wake of Peshawar school massacre to the heightened possibility of terror attacks ahead of US President Barack Obama’s visit to India next month.
In a country-wide advisory, the Home Ministry has asked the law enforcement agencies to take all measures towards “target hardening” of vulnerable places and installations.
This includes public places with high footfalls, public transport including railways and schools in particular.
“In the light of the attack on a school in Pakistan, there appears to be an immediate requirement to scale up security around schools and other educational institutions which are considered more vulnerable due to a variety of factors,” the Home Ministry advisory said.
The advisory referred to the terror attacks in Peshawar and Sydney in last two days, the recent developments with regard to ISIS both in India and the Middle East and said it has heightened the possibility of terrorist attack in the light of the ensuing visit of the President of USA to India for the Republic Day functions.
“In the light of the attack on a school in Pakistan, there appears to be an immediate requirement to scale up security around schools and other educational institutions which are considered more vulnerable due to a variety of factors,” it said.
The Home Ministry said till the end of January next the security forces and intelligence agencies need to remain on a very high alert mode to prevent untoward incidents witnessed recently elsewhere in neighbourhood as well as other parts of the world,” he said.
Also in another related advisory, the Home Ministry said there have been reports that LeT is looking for targeting two unspecified hotel in New Delhi and an unspecified highway between New Delhi and Agra.
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