Новости за 06.06.2016

Macedonian president Gjorge Ivanov revoked pardons he had granted to 34 officials implicated in a wire-tapping scandal today, meeting demands from the opposition, the European Union and the United States. In an EU-brokered deal last year, Macedonia's political parties agreed to hold an early election and that a special prosecutor should investigate allegations that former prime minister Nikola Gruevski and his close allies authorised eavesdropping on more than 20,000 people. Ivanov's decision in... Читать дальше...

Traffic chaos in Ta' Xbiex caused by a much-maligned deviation could be solved by opening up the road alongside Ta' Xbiex gardens to two-way traffic, PN MP Kristy Debono argued today.  "Aside from parking on either sides, the road is wide enough to absorb two-way traffic. It's a temporary solution that would only require a bit of work," Dr Debono told parliament.  She also noted that the latest changes due to come into effect in the coming days would see a number of large trees on Triq ix-Xatt being moved elsewhere. Читать дальше...

A motorcyclist is in danger of dying after he crashed into a pole on Triq l-Avjazzjoni, Luqa this afternoon.  The 45-year-old Pieta' resident crashed his Honda motorbike at around 4pm, police said.  He was rushed to Mater Dei hospital for treatment. A magisterial inquiry is underway.

Almost 11,000 people had an annual taxable income of less than €500 during 2014, the Finance Minister said today.Following a parliamentary question by PN MP Frederick Azzopardi, minister Edward Scicluna informed Parliament that 19,977 people's taxable income does not exceed €1,000 a year.On the other hand, 11, 593 persons registered an annual income that was over €40,000.The largest cohort (108,532 individuals) had an annual income between €10,001 and €20,000, followed by the 94,055 persons earning between €1,001 and €10,000 a year.

Popular internet media company Buzzfeed has pulled out of an advertising deal for US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, saying the controversial tycoon is "hazardous to our health."  In a memo sent to Buzzfeed employees, the site's founder Jonah Peretti likened Mr Trump's candidacy to cigarette smoking.  "We don't run cigarette ads because they are hazardous to our health, and we won't accept Trump ads for the exact same reason," he wrote.  Mr Peretti argued that the Trump campaign... Читать дальше...

After staying above the campaign fray for months, US President Barack Obama could endorse Hillary Clinton as early as this week as the Democratic presidential nominee, nudging Bernie Sanders to finally abandon his long-fought challenge, US media have reported. The expected Obama endorsement, reported by The New York Times and CNN, would come as a welcome boost to Clinton and to Democrats concerned that the party needs to turn its attention fully to campaigning against Republican nominee Donald Trump. Читать дальше...

Maltese Foreign Minister George Abela met with Norway's EU Affairs Minister Elisabeth Aspaker today.  The official talks centred on the Mediterranean's ongoing problems with irregular migration, with both ministers stressing the urgency of the situation as well as the importance of the humanitarian aspects of the phenomenon. Ms Aspaker said that Norway remained committed to working with the EU to address common challenges.  Dr Vella thanked Norway for financial support and cooperation provided under... Читать дальше...

Teachers at a Cospicua secondary school are marvelled by a 15-year-old boy’s ability to befriend and involve fellow classmates with severe communication problems. Andrea Gerada, a Form 4 student at the St Margaret College Verdala Boys’ Secondary, will be awarded the Peace Lab’s Pope John XXIII prize for kindness. The school’s head, Joseph Ellul, said that teachers and learning support assistants had informed him of Andrea’s “outstanding” kindness. The teen did his best to involve all the students in his class... Читать дальше...

A computer virus known as a Trojan took down the Malta Financial Services Authority's IT systems for six hours last May, the Finance Minister revealed today.  The security breach happened on the 18 May and was flagged at 10.07am, the minister said. The MFSA's IT Unit immediately identified the problem, isolated the infected files and instructed everyone to close any open documents on their systems.   Systems were back up and running at 4.15pm that day, Prof. Scicluna said. He insisted that nothing... Читать дальше...

Britain has proposed expanding a United Nations Security Council mandate for a European naval operation to allow it to crack down on arms smuggling in the high seas off war-torn Libya, though Russia has voiced concerns about the idea. Britain circulated a draft resolution to approve the measure to the 15-member council, diplomats said. In October, the council authorized the European naval operation to seize and dispose of boats operated by human traffickers. "Now once again, we are asking this council... Читать дальше...

New champions okmalta.com rounded off their title-winning season with one final win against XS in the 18th and final week of ten-pin bowling's MSV Life National League. Their final points tally came to 122, eight pins ahead of Fina who were full point winners against Supreme. Third placed Ramis also took all eight against the relegated Pin Strikers, while Blitzkrieg’s relegation was inevitably confirmed by an 8 – 0 defeat at the hands of Malta International Airport. An inconsequential match between... Читать дальше...

Expect guest artists at this year's Joseph Calleja open-air concert - but you'll have to wait until the night itself to know who they are.  The world-famous tenor said today that the guests "should please a lot of different tastes", adding that this year's concert will bring the focus back to opera music, with "longer sections from popular and beloved opera pieces." Mr Calleja will be performing at the Floriana Granaries on 28 July. He will be joined on stage by Italian icon Antonello Venditti and American singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega... Читать дальше...

It's high time MPs from either side of the House were given a maximum of 15 to 20 minutes of speaking time in parliament, Speaker Anglu Farrugia said today.  Existing provisions, which grant MPs 40 minutes of speaking time and ministers and shadow ministers an hour and a half to make their point when presenting bill, "don't exist in any parliament in Europe or the Commonwealth," the speaker said.  He noted that in some parliaments, MPs were fined if they went over their allocated time. "We shouldn't reach that extreme... Читать дальше...

Tomorrow’s edition of the Times of Malta will include the Euro 2016 magazine and the Focus France supplement. The Euro 2016 magazine is your essential guide to the upcoming football fest, which kicks off on Friday, June 10. Apart from a full schedule of the games, the magazine also includes an interview with Italy and Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, former Golden Goal winner David Trezeguet, and Alessandro Nesta, who for years was the defensive maestro of the Italian national side. The Focus... Читать дальше...

A small, white airplane called Thor was an eye-catcher at a Berlin aviation show this week. The tiny, windowless Airbus plane was the first 3D-printed aircraft in the world. Weighing only 21kgs and four metres long, the mini-plane was praised for “flying beautifully” and being “very stable”. Thor, short for Test of High-tech Objectives in Reality, is a "pioneer that offers a taste of things to come", according to Airbus. 3D-printing technology promises multiple ecological benefits in aircraft, such as saving fuel and emitting fewer pollutants. Читать дальше...

A ‘bouncer’ who insisted under oath that he had nothing in his hands during the alleged Paceville attack involving three men with Samurai swords was caught out today when the defence counsel exhibited a photo of him wielding a truncheon. In a rather colourful sitting before Magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit, the three employees of Clique and Deja Vu clubs - outside which the sword incident occurred on May 21 - gave a meandering account of the incident, unanimously confirming that the man who wielded the 'Samurai' sword was a tall... Читать дальше...

Greece is offering big investors more than a decade of no increases in their taxes, in an effort to promote entrepreneurship in a country struggling to return to growth after almost seven years of recession. Greece has been imposing austerity, as part of three consecutive bailout programmes, since 2010. Partly as a consequence, gross capital formation, which shows inventory replacement and spending on fixed assets such as buildings and machinery, has declined about 65 percent since 2006. To reach 2009 levels of fixed capital formation... Читать дальше...

The Grand Harbour will feature a unique pageant tomorrow evening, with a variety of events including boat races and a swim from Fort St Angelo to the capital by a large number of people. Valletta Pageant of the Seas, organised by V18 Foundation, is being held to mark Valletta's 450th anniversary. The shows will include regatta boats, power boats, yachts and carnival floats.  Among the most anticipated programme items will be the Għawma Toni Bajada, a huge swimming activity where hundreds will swim from Fort St. Читать дальше...

Not only was the government allowing “rare” open spaces to be built up, it was unwilling to help those trying to preserve them, Swieqi mayor, Noel Muscat, said yesterday. He was contacted by this newspaper after Planning Parliamentary Secretary Deborah Schembri said she would not be assisting the local council to set up a fund to purchase an open plot of land. The council has been trying to turn the vacant plot, next to the Swieqi civic centre, into a public garden as the locality faces “constant development”. Читать дальше...

A prestigious Indian hospital said today it was duped by traffickers into removing the kidneys of victims believing they were relatives of needy patients, after five people were arrested for the crime. Police on Thursday busted an illegal organ harvesting racket operating out of the Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, one of city's top private hospitals. They have since arrested five people, including two assistants of a senior hospital doctor. The traffickers allegedly lured poor people into selling their... Читать дальше...

One of Kappara junction's lanes will be closed to traffic this evening as geologists extract samples of Triq Mikiel Anton Vassalli.  Works will begin at 8.30pm and will be conducted in phases. Transport Malta said that the works will close one lane off to traffic tonight and "possibly every night until Thursday."  The extracted samples will help engineers determine the road's underground composition, as they move ahead on a €22.5 million project intended to alleviate heavy traffic problems in the area. Читать дальше...

Gozitans should be in charge of devising public policy for their home island, MEP Therese Comodini Cachia said today. "The policy which best addresses Gozitan needs is that drawn up by Gozitans themselves. Policy reflects the people and the people should be given the best tools to develop the policy they want," Dr Comodini Cachia told an audience at the Arka Foundation in Għajnsielem, Gozo. Dr Comodini Cachia questioned the wisdom of conducting a further study about the feasibility of a tunnel linking Gozo to Malta... Читать дальше...

Chelsea's former doctor Eva Carneiro, who left after a public spat with team manager Jose Mourinho, rejected a £1.2 million ($1.7 million) settlement from the London club, British media reported, citing employment tribunal papers. Last August, Carneiro angered then-manager Mourinho by running onto the pitch with a physio to treat playmaker Eden Hazard in the closing stages of Chelsea's first Premier League match of the season, a tense 2-2 draw. Mourinho, who was sacked in December and now manages Manchester United... Читать дальше...

A sailor who assaulted a police officer while intoxicated was handed a suspended sentence today. Eleftherios Sklavos, 35, was reported to the police yesterday evening for making a nuisance of himself in a Valletta restaurant. The accused, a Greek sailor, was in Malta temporarily while the yacht he worked on underwent maintenance work. He admitted to the charges of assaulting public officers, slightly injuring a police sergeant, disobeying police orders, breaching public peace and being drunk in public. Читать дальше...

Chinese electronics retailer Suning Commerce Group Co Ltd is buying nearly 70 percent of Italian soccer club Inter for €270 million, in the highest-profile takeover so far of a European team by a Chinese firm. Suning, part owned by e-commerce firm Alibaba, confirmed the deal at a joint news conference in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing with Inter executives, including current majority owner and president Erick Thohir. With Chinese President Xi Jinping an avid supporter of soccer, Suning's deal... Читать дальше...