Новости за 23.02.2016

The Syrian government and opposition groups have given qualified acceptance to a proposed truce in the country's devastating civil war. The government said it accepts the ceasefire, but added that operations will continue against the Islamic State group and al Qaida's branch in Syria. A Foreign Ministry statement also said government forces will have the right to respond to any violation by insurgents. The official Syrian announcement came a day after the US and Russia agreed a ceasefire that will take effect on Saturday. Читать дальше...

A teenage Swedish girl being held by Islamic State militants was rescued in a raid by Kurdish special forces last week, the autonomous region's security council said in a statement. The 16-year-old travelled from Sweden to Syria last year and then crossed the border into Iraq, where she was rescued near the Islamic State stronghold of Mosul on Feb. 17 by forces from the Kurdish counter-terrorism department, the statement added.

The closing date for the publication of the forthcoming revision of the General Election Electoral Register is March 31, the Electoral Commission said. All Maltese nationals aged 18 and over whose name does not appear in the Electoral Register published in October, 2015, and who have not since applied for registration as voters, should do so provided they have the necessary qualifications. Application forms are obtainable from Police Stations, Local Councils’ Offices, the e-ID Card Management Office and from the Electoral Office. Читать дальше...

3 tablespoons Zappala mascarpone1 onion, finely chopped1 piece celery (for flavour only)1 cup grated raw carrot2 cloves garlic, finely chopped3 cups stock (use an additive free all natural stock cube)2 cups semi skimmed milk4 cups broccoli, broken into individual small florets1 teaspoon wholegrain mustardSalt and pepper150g yellow cheddar cheese, grated1 tablespoon olive oil Saute the onion in a large pot and cook until it becomes translucent. Add the garlic, stock, mustard, half the broccoli and half the carrots. Читать дальше...

The first group of 15 migrants were flown to Malta this morning as part of the EU's relocation programme agreed late last year. The migrants, all Eritreans, arrived from Italy. They were greeted by government officials and NGOs. The asylum seekers will be hosted at the Marsa reception centre for around a week pending medical clearance before they will be given the right to apply for refugee status. Malta will be getting a total of 189 refugees over two years as part of a plan to relocate 160,000... Читать дальше...

A man who threw away an invitation to be tested for colorectal cancer is now urging others to get screened after he was diagnosed with the disease – one of the most common forms of cancer in Malta. “I had no symptoms at all, and when on that day, in November of 2014, I received an invitation letter from the National Colorectal Cancer Screening Programme, I threw it away with the other junk mail. “Although I took interest in my wife and children’s health, I did not really take as much interest in... Читать дальше...

The industrial tribunal should be presided by a magistrate to remove any concerns over its impartiality, the shadow minter for education and employment, Therese Comodini Cachia said today. Addressing a press conference, Dr Comodini Cachia said magistrates would remove any "stain" the tribunal may have. "To use the appropriate expression, we don't want anyone thinking there is a carrot being dangled before anyone on this important tribunal," she said. The appointment of magistrates would also ensure... Читать дальше...

Ebola nurse Pauline Cafferkey has been admitted to hospital for the third time since contracting the disease, NHS officials have said. Ms Cafferkey was originally infected while working in Sierra Leone in December 2014 and spent almost a month in an isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital in London. She was released after making a recovery but fell ill again in October last year and was again treated at the Royal Free for meningitis caused by Ebola. At one point the Scottish nurse was described... Читать дальше...

Italy has agreed to let armed U.S. drones take off from an air base in Sicily on a case-by-case basis for defensive missions against Islamic State militants in North Africa, Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said today. "If it is a matter of operations against terrorists, against potential Islamic State attackers, there is a close relationship between us and the other allies, above all the Americans," Renzi said in an interview with RTL radio. The prime minister, who has repeatedly said Italy would not... Читать дальше...

Lawyers for FIFA presidential candidate Prince Ali bin al Hussein have called on the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to suspend Friday's election, British media reported today. Ali, who's request for transparent voting booths had been rejected, was unhappy with voting arrangements, BBC and Sky News reported. Neither CAS nor Ali was immediately available for comment. Ali is up against South African businessman Tokyo Sexwale, Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa... Читать дальше...

A British cathedral sought to reassure visitors that they could still view a massive sculpture following a Facebook post by the statue's creator saying the church had moved it because people kept bumping into it while texting. The Salisbury Cathedral, located about 90 miles outside of London, said in a tweet under the Twitter handle @SalisburyCath: "Don't worry, you can still see 'The Kiss' at the Cathedral. We've moved the sculpture onto the lawn #Relationships." "The Kiss" is a 20-foot sculpture of clasping hands by artist Sophie Ryder. Читать дальше...

Unemployment in January stood at 4,710 compared to 6,384 in the corresponding month the previous year, official data issued today shows. The statistics office said those registering for work declined by 1,602 under Part I and 72 among those registering under Part II of the unemployment register, when compared to January 2015. Decreases in registered unemployment were recorded among all age groups. The largest decrease was recorded among persons who had been registering for over one yea. The number... Читать дальше...

A court has ordered a business man to pay just under a quarter of a million euro to the Comptroller of Customs, together with interest on this amount from 1993, after finding that he had imported merchandise without paying the customs duty due. Mr Justice Joseph Zammit McKeon in the First Hall of the Civil Court delivered judgment following an action filed by the Comptroller of Customs in 1993 against Sidney Ellul Sullivan in his personal capacity and on behalf of Eloise Limited. The court said out... Читать дальше...

No one was injured this morning when a fire broke out in an apartment in Sta Venera. Three fire engines were dispatched to the scene at about 10.45 and quickly extinguished the blaze.

Former MEP and Prime Minister's advisor Glenn Bedingfield is expected to contest the second district on behalf of the Labour Party in the upcoming general election. The candidacy would put Mr Bedingfield, a close associate of Joseph Muscat, in direct conflict with Joe Mizzi, now transport minister. Mr Bedingfield had also temporarily taken up a seat in the European Parliament after Joseph Muscat was elected Labour leader. When contacted, Mr Bedingfield did not confirm his interest in contesting the election... Читать дальше...

A Dutch passenger train derailed this morning after hitting a maintenance crane during rush hour, killing one person and injuring several others, local media reported. Photos of the crash in Dalfsen, 120 km (75 miles) east of Amsterdam, showed four passenger cars on their side after colliding with the crane. Mayor Han Noten told Dutch radio broadcaster NOS that one person had died in the crash. The train was operated by Arriva, a subsidiary of Germany's Deutsche Bahn. A spokesman for Arriva could not immediately be reached for comment.

Motorists were lucky to escape injury this morning when the tipper of a truck came off as the truck was being driven up the hill towards Cirkewwa. The heavy steel structure slid some distance down the hill and then crashed into a low wall, partly demolishing it.

Electricity from the new gas-fired power station will start being produced in the “summer months”, according to the Prime Minister but the Birzebbuga community remains without a fixed date. Joseph Muscat confirmed the broad deadline during a Cabinet meeting held in Birzebbuga this morning in the presence of mayors from the region. The issue was raised by Birzebbuga mayor Kevin Barun, who asked for confirmation that the power station would be up and running in the summer.Before entering the meeting... Читать дальше...

A bond is a financial instrument made up of two parties, whereby an investor loans out money to a body (either Sovereign or Corporate) which borrows the monies at a pre-determined fixed rate of interest (or variable at times) for a known time period. Borrowers can either be governments and/or government agencies as well as companies of varying sizes. It is classified as a financial instrument because a bond is a transaction where investors (with cash to invest) lend money to the issuers of the bonds... Читать дальше...

Thick fog shrouded Malta this morning, severely reducing visibility as these pictures show. A reader said that at one time visibility was reduced to some 100 metres in some places. In Valletta, the view of the Three Cities across the harbour was a whitewash until the sunlight battled through. mynews@timesofmalta.com

Trabzonspor’s Salih Dursun was sent off for showing the referee a red card during his team’s 2-1 defeat by Galatasaray in a fractious Turkish league encounter on Sunday. The flashpoint occurred in the 86th minute after referee Deniz Bitnel showed a straight red to Dursun’s team-mate Luis Cavanda for a foul inside the penalty area. Trabzonspor’s players surrounded the official to protest and, in the resulting melee, Dursun snatched the card out of Bitnel’s hand and waved it in the official’s direction... Читать дальше...

Two Italian military jets intercepted a Maltese training aircraft this afternoon after it failed to respond to a number of communication requests from the control tower, according to reports in the Sicilian media.  The incident happened in the airspace over Comiso, according to Ragusa News.  The report said the Maltese Cessna aircraft had departed from Malta and lost contact with the control tower when it reached 4,000 metres over Sicily, as a result of which it failed to respond to a number of messages... Читать дальше...