Новости за 22.12.2015

With the German capital enjoying a mild festive season, Berlin has given up on dreams of waking up to a 'white Christmas' for 2015. While Germany's highest mountain is expecting snow, the rest of the country is set to remain snow-free, even in areas that are normally guaranteed to have a white Christmas. "White Christmas is only a reality on posters, isn't it? Post cards if you like," one passer-by said in Berlin. But the warm weather has blanketed the city with something else that's white -- many plants... Читать дальше...

An 18-year-old killer whale has died at the SeaWorld park in San Antonio, the park said today, raising concern among animal groups that have criticized the company for years over its treatment of captive marine mammals. The female whale, named Unna, was the third whale to die at the Texas park in six months. SeaWorld said in a statement that Unna died on Monday from a "resistant strain of a fungus called Candida." The killer whale, or orca, had been treated by experts from around the country, it added. Читать дальше...

Update 2 - Summary of considerations and conclusions included in pdf below - The Permanent Commission Against Corruption has concluded that Parliamentary Secretary Ian Borg did nothing illegal in the way he purchased property near Rabat and applied for Mepa permits. Dr Borg had been under the spotlight after the Ombudsman found that devious methods were used by Dr Borg and Mepa. His report was handed to the commission. In its report the commission said it endorsed the Ombudsman’s report, but with regard to the corruption allegations... Читать дальше...

Renzo Piano's parliament building in Valletta is in the list of best and worst new buildings in the world, featured in a Daily Telegraph review. It seems, however, that the newspaper cannot decide in which category to place the building, although it slammed Piano's new Whitney Museum of American Art opened in New York on May 1. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/picturegalleries/12050226/The-worlds-best-and-worst-new-buildings-of-2015.html?frame=3526276

Leicester City may be top of the English football league at Christmas for the first time in their 131-year history but manager Claudio Ranieri is still playing down title talk. Ahead of the festive matches against Liverpool and Manchester City, all the Italian would say was that if his team won both they would have 44 points, four more than the first objective he had set, to avoid relegation. Leicester, who avoided going down in May thanks to a late run of victories under Nigel Pearson, began the... Читать дальше...

The MSE Share Index retreated by 0.4% to 4,436.974 points as the negative performance of seven equities, including those of the largest two by market capitalisation (i.e. BOV and HSBC), outweighed the gains in four other equities. Trading volumes recovered from yesterday’s levels, as €364,000 worth of shares changed hands. Most notably, follow the recent solid price gains, the equity of Medserv plc slumped by 6.3% to the €1.95 level across 26,390 shares. Yesterday, the oil and gas logistics specialist... Читать дальше...

Birdlife Malta has urged the prime minister to stop proposed changes to bird protection regulations which, it said, would weaken the legal framework of the Wild Birds Regulations. CEO Mark Sultana said the changes would allow persons to be in possession of any non-EU birds, irrespective of their protection status in their country of origin.  "This will encourage people to go for hunting trips in countries such as Argentina and Ethiopia. Those people who organise these trips as part of their business have a lot to benefit from this amendment... Читать дальше...

Transport Malta said this evening that it will be considering complaints and suggestions on the new bus routes, introduced on Sunday. It was reacting to complaints made by, among others, Sliema and Mgarr local councils.   "We understand that following last Sunday’s changes, a few connections that existed before have changed. It will take some time before the new routes become familiar. In the coming months Transport Malta will be fine tuning certain routes to cater better for people’s needs," TM said. Читать дальше...

Italy expelled 64 suspected Islamic extremists this year and monitored 90 foreign fighters as part of stepped-up measures to prevent attacks on its soil. Interior minister Angelino Alfano provided the statistics at an end-of-year press conference. He said the latest expulsion, on Monday, involved a 30-year-old Moroccan living in Bologna who allegedly backed the Islamic State group on social media. Mr Alfano said such people are expelled when prosecutors do not have enough evidence to arrest them. Читать дальше...

A man was floored with a quick punch from a woman after he pinched her bottom at a Morocco market. See video below.

A Jet Airways bus crashed into an Air India aircraft parked at the Kolkata airport this morning, damaging it badly. There were no passengers in the aircraft when the incident took place at around 6.30 am. No one was injured.

Volatility seems set to linger throughout global markets in 2016 as investors come to terms with a global slowdown. A number of factors and events will take centre stage respectively in the coming year with core focus on the commodities sector of worthy mention. Having seen the US Fed raise interest rates last week for the first time in a decade, 3 to 4 more gradual hikes are expected in the coming year, with economists anticipating the next hike in March 2016. The presentiment will remain a cautious... Читать дальше...

Children of Victoria primary school got more than they expected when they were taken to a picnic near the Gozo heliport site this morning on the last day of school before the holidays. Santa dropped in by helicopter. It was actually Junior Eurovision Song Contest winner Destiny, who was given an enthusiastic welcome.

The Maltese man abducted in Libya a week ago has been released following a rescue operation early this morning, the Libya Herald reported. Pierre Baldacchino, the manager of Saint James Hospital in Tripoli was kidnapped on December 15 as he was returning home. Details of the rescue operation are still sketchy and the identity of his kidnappers is not yet known.  The operation took place at about 1.30am and two kidnappers were arrested. A search for other members of the gang is in progress. In a video, Mr Baldacchino said he is in good health. Читать дальше...

A Salvadoran castaway is reportedly facing a $1 million lawsuit from the family of his shipmate who accuse him of cannibalism.  Jorge Salvador Alvarenga said he survived 13 months adrift in the Pacific Ocean living on turtle blood, raw fish and birds. His story of survival against the odds made international headlines but now he's back in the news accused of cannibalism. The family of Alvarenga's shipmate is accusing him of cannibalism and they're reportedly suing him for $1 million. Alvarenga, who... Читать дальше...

Iraq's armed forces stormed the centre of Ramadi today, a spokesman for the counter-terrorism units said, in a drive to dislodge Islamic State militants from their remaining stronghold in a city they captured in May. The operation to recapture Ramadi, a Sunni Muslim city on the river Euphrates some 100 km (60 miles) west of Baghdad, began in early November after a months-long effort to cut off supply lines to the city, whose fall to Islamic State was a major defeat for Iraq's weak central government. Читать дальше...

A number of trade unions representing Air Malta employees yesterday lamented the “total darkness” that surrounds the government’s plans for the airline’s future. Last Sunday, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told a political activity that decisions on the future of Air Malta would be taken “within weeks”. He also compared the way forward for Air Malta with that of Enemalta, saying the government would be adopting the same model. Contacted by this newspaper yesterday, all major unions involved in Air... Читать дальше...

The new bus routes rolled out last Sunday have made it more difficult to travel from Sliema to Mater Dei Hospital, a change which has angered many residents. Sliema mayor Anthony Chircop said some residents had already complained to the council that the connection to the hospital had been affected by the change, with many concerned about the lengthier journey. “One needs to keep in mind that Sliema is made up of an ageing community and the initial concern for most of the residents was how they would... Читать дальше...

Front Ħarsien ODZ is calling for an independent audit led by planning commissioner David Pace to assess the approval of a number of controversial permits approved outside development schemes in breach of the advise of MEPA’s Planning Directorate, the Environment Directorate or both. The audit should include a review of the impact of ‘rural policy and design guidelines’ approved in 2014 which has paved the way for a number of abusive developments. MEPA should commit itself to abide to these recommendations, the front said. Читать дальше...

Fifty years after David Lean’s film adapation of Boris Pasternak’s novel Doctor Zhivago first premiered around the world, Charles Pace, managing director of KRS Releasing Ltd, reminisces about the release of the epic drama-romance in Malta. Few works of 20th-century literature have exerted such influence on social and cultural life as Soviet author Boris Pasternak’s Doctor Zhivago. And its film adaptation by British film director David Lean, released 50 years ago today, is considered a classic. ... Читать дальше...

A slight tremor was felt in several parts of Malta at about 10.23am today. A spokeswoman for the University Seismic Monitoring Service said it registered a magnitude of 3 on the Richter scale (despite 2.5 being initially shown on the website). The tremor was centred 40km north of Malta. Although the tremor was only felt for a few seconds, it actually lasted one minute, the spokeswoman said. It was felt mostly in Valletta, but reports were also received from Marsascala, San Gwann and Kappara. No reports were received from Gozo. Читать дальше...

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Mrs Muscat will exchange season's greetings with the public at the Auberge de Castille on Thursday between 3.45pm and 5.15pm. Those wishing to call need to phone the Office of the Prime Minister on 2200 2400. Visitors will be able to tour the Cabinet Room and the Ambassadors' Room and sign the visitors' book.

The Malta Insurers Association has donated 15 breathalyser units to the police force. The units will replace old equipment which had inferior technology. To date, the police needed to carry out two tests using the old units, one on site and one at a police station. Now they only need to carry out one test, on site. The new units issue a print-out with date, time and blood-alcohol content. The association also presented 24 digital cameras to speed up procedures on traffic accident sites. The presentation... Читать дальше...

Eurostat statistics have confirmed the pressure on wages in Malta, with the growth momentum having slowed while it is matched by inflation, the Nationalist Party said today.  Eurostat said that wages in Malta increased by 1.6% up to September, which, the PN observed, was the slowest rise in the 15 months shown by the statistics. It was also among the lowest in the EU. At the same time, inflation reached 1.6%.   The Eurostat figures showed that workers across Europe enjoyed a real increase of 2.1% while wages in Malta... Читать дальше...

Islamic State has set up a police force in the Libyan coastal town of Sirte. The terrorist group has issued video showing a parade of men in blue uniforms with police flashes on their left shoulders. All are wearing black balaclavas and most carry Kalashnikovs. They are ranked in front of a line of new white Toyota trucks. Their leader speaks to them with a Tunisian accent. Later shots in the film show the gunmen on patrol, receiving a cheery wave from one of the few men on the streets.