Новости за 26.04.2017

French intelligence has concluded that forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad carried out a sarin nerve gas attack on April 4 in northern Syria and that Assad or members of his inner circle ordered the strike, a declassified report showed. The chemical weapons attack on the town of Khan Sheikhoun killed scores of people, according to a war monitor, Syrian opposition groups and Western countries. It prompted the United States to launch a cruise missile strike on a Syrian air base, its first... Читать дальше...

Two-year-old Daniel Pascu was rescued from a 16 metre deep well in Romania on yesterday after a nearly 12-hour rescue operation by the emergency services. He was playing with his siblings when they removed the cover of the well while their mother was briefly inside their house. The child apparently fell into the well, which was only 30 cm wide and caused the rescue services severe problems. Eventually, they dug down next to the well to remove the boy, who was given first aid in an ambulance before being taken to hospital.

Tourist arrivals last month topped last year’s figures for March by 22.3%, reaching a total of 141,266, according to the National Statistics Office. The NSO said 105,080 came on holiday and 20,017 for business. Arrivals from EU states increased by 23.4% to 123,063. The majority of arrivals were aged between 45 and 64, closely followed by those in the 25-44 age bracket. Total nights spent went up by 6.8 per cent and expenditure by 11.8 per cent. Inbound tourist trips from January to March reached 348,890... Читать дальше...

More than a third of Europeans and Americans would be happy to go without cash and rely on electronic forms of payment if they could, and at least 20 percent already pretty much do so, a study showed today. The study, which was conducted in 13 European countries, the United States and Australia, also found that in many places where cash is most used, people are among the keenest to ditch it. Overall, 34 percent of respondents in Europe and 38 percent in the United States said they would be willing to go cash-free... Читать дальше...

When Pescara ended a 22-match winless run by beating Genoa 5-0 in Zdenek Zeman’s first game in charge in February, it seemed that the 69-year-old chain-smoking coach was about to work the old magic once again. But it was a false dawn. Not even Zeman was able to revive the Dolphins who went on to draw two and lose six of their next eight games, culminating in Monday’s 4-1 home defeat to Roma which sent them down to Serie B with five games still to play. The question now is whether football has seen... Читать дальше...

Updated 10.50am UK tax officials this morning raided Newcastle and West Ham football clubs as part of an HM Revenue & Customs investigation into their transfer activity, UK media has reported.  Newcastle's managing director, Lee Charnley, is among those arrested following the raid, The Independent has claimed.  The raid comes just one day after the Magpies celebrated their return to Premier League football, having been relegation to the Championship last season.  In a statement, HMRC said that... Читать дальше...

A Metropolitan Police officer has been crawling the London Marathon in a gorilla costume since the race began on Sunday morning. Tom Harrison, who goes by the name Mr Gorilla, is raising money for the Gorilla Organisation and has yet to complete the 26-mile race. The 41-year-old Londoner started at 10.34am on Sunday. By lunchtime yesterday, he had reached Rotherhithe station - about 11 miles into the course. He has slept at friends' houses in the evenings after completing around 10 to 12 hours and... Читать дальше...

Eighties pop trio Bananarama are reuniting, saying “it’s now or never”. The group, famous for hits including Robert De Niro’s Waiting, Cruel Summer, Venus and Love in the First Degree, sold 40 million records and last performed together at the Brit Awards in 1988. But Siobhan Fahey later walked out on her bandmates Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward. Woodward told Chris Evans’s Radio 2 show: “You just think it’s now or never. “I gave Siobhan a call, put the idea in her head and thought it was never going to happen... Читать дальше...

Exercising for at least 45 minutes several times a week can boost brain power in the over-50s, research suggests. Several types of exercise help improve thinking, attention, memory skills and executive function (mental skills that help people get things done), a new analysis of 39 studies found. Aerobic exercise such as swimming, cycling and jogging, resistance training including weights, multicomponent training (such as combined aerobic and weight training) and tai chi were all “similarly effective”... Читать дальше...

The internet enables a user to watch videos or music on a computer, smartphone or tablet without the need to download the entire digital video or digital audio file. This is possible through streaming which requires only a good internet connection. Live streaming has the added benefit of allowing a user to watch live television broadcasts in real time. Finding this as a niche market, several companies across the globe set themselves up to be able to stream TV shows to the public for free. Broadcasters... Читать дальше...

Buoyant Chelsea extended their Premier League lead to seven points yesterday, as goals from Eden Hazard, captain Gary Cahill and two from a buzzing Diego Costa earned them a 4-2 win over Southampton. It took them less than five minutes to open a lead when Costa controlled a pass from Cesc Fabregas, surged forward and cut the ball back for the advancing Hazard, who angled his shot into the bottom corner of Fraser Forster’s net. Former Chelsea midfielder Oriel Romeu equalised in the 24th minute, forcing home from close range. Читать дальше...

“Do something quickly before it’s too late,” former Central Bank governor Francis Vassallo told this newspaper, expressing fears about the damage recent allegations could do to the island’s financial services industry. The financial services industry in any respectable jurisdiction will not survive for long if all stakeholders do not work hard to preserve the trust that clients and international institutions need to have for it to prosper. Malta’s success in this sector is greatly dependant on its... Читать дальше...

The gap between employment rates for men and women in Malta is the widest in Europe, official data published yesterday shows. Figures published by the EU statistics agency Eurostat showed that while the employment rate for men aged between 20 and 64 stood at 83.1 per cent last year, the rate for their female counterparts was 55.5 per cent. Large differences between the rates for men and women were also noted in Italy, Greece, Romania and the Czech Republic. Labour Studies Centre director Anna Borg... Читать дальше...

The following are the top stories in national newspapers today. Times of Malta quotes Opposition leader Simon Busuttil saying that Keith Schembri, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, not only had an account with the contentious Pilatus Bank, but he had also received €100,000 in graft from the sale of citizenship to Russians. In another story, the newspaper says that according to official data, the gap between employment rates for men and women in Malta is the widest in Europe. The Malta Independent... Читать дальше...

Two big rigs and several cars collided on a freeway north of downtown Los Angeles on yesterday, sparking an explosion and fire, killing at least one person and forcing authorities to shut down two major arteries into the city for hours. Several other people were injured in the fiery crash, which sent plumes of thick black smoke billowing into the sky, said Officer Kevin Tao of the California Highway Patrol. The Los Angeles Times reported that nine people were hurt. Local television images showed... Читать дальше...

At the last general election, people elected a new government with a huge majority and the reasoning was they wanted a complete change. Everybody hoped that it would be a government for all people irrespective of political colour. They believed the promises made by the Labour Party and imagined that they were going to experience a new approach to life, leading to more equal opportunities for all, complete transparency, meritocracy and accountability. They were fully aware that their standard of living was not in jeopardy and might also improve... Читать дальше...

It is not an exaggeration to say that the problem of dirt and litter all over the island is a national disgrace. Successive governments have tried to address it, but they have significantly failed to overcome it in the face of a national culture that is pathologically incapable of understanding that keeping one’s own house impeccably clean does not permit one to dirty and litter everywhere else. It is a deep-seated cultural problem. I challenge anybody to walk for more than fifty metres anywhere... Читать дальше...

In a recent interview (March 26) Health Minister Chris Fearne was asked whether he was worried about the growing perception of corruption in Malta. He told his interviewer he was right in saying ‘perception’ because “what’s happening is that we’ve been overenthusiastic in wanting to get results quickly so we may have not given enough importance to governance”. Fearne said this was just a perception because the checks and balances were all in place. “I think it’s a question of governance rather than corruption. Читать дальше...

BONNICI. On Monday, April 24, at Mater Dei Hospital, EDWARD (Dwardu), aged 64, went to meet the Risen Lord. He leaves to mourn his great loss his beloved son Michael and his partner Rebecca, his daughter Sophie and her partner Mark, his partner Theresa, his parents Eddie and Iris Bonnici, his brother Wilfrid and his wife Doreen, his sister Myra and her husband Notary Tony Abela, MP, nephews, nieces, relatives and friends. The funeral leaves Mater Dei Hospital today, Wednesday, April 26, at 1pm for St Dominic’s church... Читать дальше...

Arsene Wenger says that Arsenal want to keep Olivier Giroud at the club next season, adding that Marseille have not made an approach for the striker. Marseille have been linked with a move for Giroud, 30, this summer, with France Football reporting that the French club are hoping to tempt him back to his native country. However, Wenger dismissed the speculation yesterday. “I have had no approach from Marseille and we want to keep Olivier Giroud at the club,” Wenger said. United keen on Griezmann ... Читать дальше...

The 2017 Maltese Presidency of the Council of the European Union is conducting a workshop with Italian music group Band-Adriatica in collaboration with the Malta World Music Festival on May 17 and 18. The band infuses traditional Salento music with Balkan and North African elements but their research and creative process is based on a local element, wherever they work. The workshop sessions are open to Maltese singers/songwriters and musicians who perform within the genre of folk and in the Maltese language, folk bands and band clubs. Читать дальше...

Sahin: Borussia Dortmund midfielder Nuri Sahin has signed a contract extension that will keep him with the Bundesliga club until 2019. The Turkey international, who made his Dortmund debut as a 16-year-old and became the league’s youngest scorer at 17, joined Dortmund’s youth structure as a teenager back in 2001 and helped them to the 2011 Bundesliga title. He left, having been voted player of the season in 2010-11, and joined Real Madrid but returned a year-and-a-half later. Doping: India goalkeeper... Читать дальше...

China is targeting 35 million vehicle sales by 2025 and wants new energy vehicles (NEVs) to make up at least one-fifth of that total, the industry ministry said yesterday. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in a market “road map” that China’s urbanisation drive and the overseas expansion of its automakers would help drive annual vehicle sales up around 25 per cent from last year’s total. Automakers in China, the world’s largest automobile market with sales of 28 million vehicles in 2016... Читать дальше...

I would like to point out some misconceptions contained in the article ‘Are there any pesticides on your plate?’ (April 18). The testing for pesticide residues started some 15 years ago. Samples from fruit and vegetables on sale were collected and reached a laboratory in Sicily within hours. Results were sent by e-mail within three days maximum. Whether the samples are analysed locally or abroad makes no difference because they would in either case have long been purchased and consumed. One cannot... Читать дальше...

Caffe Moak Luxol 45Gzira Athleta 48 (18-9, 10-14, 13-11, 4-14) Gżira Athleta produced a stunning late fightback to beat Caffe Moak Luxol and pull level after Game Two of the women’s play-off final series on Sunday. Luxol were in front virtually throughout the whole game and looked set to take a two-game lead when they held a 45-37 advantage with only four minutes left. But Gżira refused to throw in the towel and produced a match-winning 11-0 run that stunned Santino Coppa’s team. Luxol had started brightly... Читать дальше...