Новости за 16.05.2017

The White House declined to comment this evening on media reports that Israel was the source of sensitive information that President Donald Trump shared with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a White House meeting last week. White House spokesman Sean Spicer said he would not comment on the reports. He also declined to say whether the White House would share transcripts of Trump's meeting with Lavrov with lawmakers who have asked for them.

A young Chinese girl was fortunate to escape with only slight injuries when a car drove right over her in China's Guizhou province. The girl, pictured in a CCTV video dressed in yellow, appeared to follow her older brother across the road when the accident happened. In what could have been a fatal incident, the child came away with only minor injuries after falling down so that the car passed over her.

Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil had known what, when and how blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia who write about the ownership of Egrant, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said today.   Caruana Galizia had reported that documents showed that Michelle Muscat, the prime minister's wife, was the beneficial owner of the secret Panamanian company. Speaking in Naxxar, Dr Muscat said PN sources, who started to speak up because they knew something was wrong, had informed him that Dr Busuttil was in cahoots with Ms Caruana Galizia. Читать дальше...

An Italian parliamentary commission said today that that Malta and Tunisia should do more to help Italy tackle the huge numbers of migrants who are using Libya as a springboard in search of a better life in Europe.  The commission also called for more controls on humanitarian organisations that are taking an increasingly significant role in rescuing migrants from the Mediterranean. The Senate Defence Committee launched the inquiry earlier this year amid accusations that non-governmental organisations... Читать дальше...

Cybersecurity researchers have found evidence they say could link North Korea with the WannaCry cyber attack that has infected more than 300,000 computers worldwide, as global authorities scrambled to prevent hackers from spreading new versions of the virus. A researcher from South Korea's Hauri Labs said their own findings matched those of Symantec and Kaspersky Lab, who said yesterday that some code in an earlier version of the WannaCry software had also appeared in programmes used by the Lazarus Group... Читать дальше...

The price of a number of medicines was reduced today in what the government said was the tenth such exercise in this legislature.  The price cuts reach up to 32 per cent. Among the medicines is Axura, used for dementia, whose price is down by 31 per cent, Arimidex, used to treat breast cancer, and medicines used to treat asthma, prostate cancer, infections, depression, arthritis, diabetes, glaucoma, and tobacco dependence.    See the full list of price cuts on below.

A spoof website using the Nationalist Party leader’s name and branding similar to that of the PN campaign was launched today, creating initial confusion among many people who thought it was a PN platform. The website, simonbusuttil.com, presents a series of images ridiculing the PN, its candidates and the various proposals unveiled since the election was called. At first glance, the website can easily be mistaken for one that is run by the PN, featuring colour schemes that have been prominent in all of the party’s campaign material. Читать дальше...

Reducing fines and penalties in relation to hunting and trapping would only benefit those who break the law, BirdLife Malta said today, saying that only those willing to risk breaking the law would be happy with such a promise. “The real issue is not the size of the fines. The real issue that BirdLife Malta has been continually highlighting is the serious lack of enforcement. Without the presence of environmental NGOs such as BirdLife Malta in the countryside, very few cases are brought to justice. Читать дальше...

The GRTU believes that publicly-owned land outside the development zones should be completely out of bounds for development, and is asking that it should be properly valued so the price tag would be the “ultimate deterrent”. This was one of 33 proposals launched today by the GRTU for the 2017 General Election. The proposals are being presented to the main political parties in the hope that they will be included in their political manifestos “as a commitment to be pro-business once they make it to government”. Читать дальше...

The Broadcasting Authority has ordered broadcasting stations to stop election candidates from hosting regular programmes.  The news was greeted with dismay this afternoon by popular Radio 101 presenter David Thake, who had just started his daily programme when he announced the directive and promptly stopped the show, which was replaced by music.  The issue comes up for debate within the individual stations in practically every campaign. In the 2013 campaign, PBS stopped candidates who were standing for the election... Читать дальше...

A 19-year-old woman from Victoria was seriously injured after the Peugeot Crypton motorcycle she was driving was involved in a collision with Peugeot Bipper driven by another Victoria resident, a 32-year-old man. The accident took place on Marfa Road at 11am. This was the second serious motorcycle accident in less than 24 hours.

Local environmental NGOs will present their electoral proposals on Monday and have invited the Prime Minister and Opposition leader to attend. Activist Alan Deidun said that Marlene Farrugia and Arnold Cassola had already confirmed their presence. “Will you be joining us too?” Mr Deidun said in a Facebook post aimed at Joseph Muscat and Simon Busuttil. “The meeting won’t be a shouting match since it will only be attended by eNGO representatives, with the discussion being moderated by Lovin Malta.”... Читать дальше...

A Nationalist government will give generous assistance to animal sanctuaries, which are giving a sterling service to the country, party leader Simon Busuttil said this afternoon.   Schemes will be introduced to reduce the number of strays and there will be effective enforcement of the law on microchips which all animals should have. In a series of proposals on animal welfare, Dr Busuttil said a new PN government will build a cemetery for domestic animals, which many consider as members of their own family. Читать дальше...

A 59-year-old man from Xewkija was injured this afternoon after he fell at a construction site in Xewkija. The man was seriously injured around 1pm and is being treated at the Gozo General Hospital, according to the police report.

The leaking VAT system must be quickly and efficiently fixed, said MEP Julia Pitera, Rapporteur on the 2015 report on the 'Protection of the EU's financial interests – fight against fraud' that was voted today at the European Parliament. In 2014, €159.5 billion of expected VAT revenues were not collected. This is almost the amount of the whole EU budget. Nearly one third of this sum, €50 billion, disappeared in carousel frauds – the type of fraud in which VAT and goods are passed around between companies and jurisdictions. Читать дальше...

A former employee of Pilatus Bank who turned whistleblower and made claims linking the Prime Minister's wife to the secret Egrant Panama company, testified in court today in a case she has instituted against the bank over unpaid wages. The Russian woman said the CEO at Pilatus Bank had told the executive secretary to the chairman she could not be paid her wages by cheque since the bank did not have a local account, which would make it impossible for her to cash it.   Yet later queries proved that... Читать дальше...

Aquani producers Nibe Beverages today officially inaugurated their new 5,100 square metre factory and offices in San Ġwann. The €3.5 million investment means Nibe will produce and market new 10Ltr, 5Ltr, 2Ltr and 0.5Lt0r water bottles, which will be sold locally and to export markets in North Africa. Pierre Farrugia, managing director of Nibe Beverages, said: “Today the company reached another important milestone and I am satisfied that thanks to this investment we will be able to increase production... Читать дальше...

The Malta Football Association has expressed its condolences following the death of former Malta captain Ronnie Cocks who passed away earlier today, aged 73. "Cocks is regarded as a true stalwart of Maltese football and a Sliema Wanderers icon after helping the club win several honours during his long stint with the Blues," the MFA said. Cocks showed his potential from a very young age as he made his senior debut for Gżira United in season 1956/57 when he was still in his early teens. After joining Sliema Wanderers in season 1962/63... Читать дальше...

Britain may have to wait – and hope – for every single one of its European Union neighbours to give full legislative consent before it can fully benefit from any post-Brexit free trade deal, EU judges ruled today. In a verdict that may also delay and potentially obstruct a string of other EU trade pacts, notably with Japan and in Latin America, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) said an agreement struck with Singapore in 2014 cannot take full effect until ratified by 33 national and regional parliaments across the 28-nation bloc. Читать дальше...

Talks with Ukraine on the possibility of an Antonov aircraft maintenance facility being set up in Malta are well underway, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced this afternoon. The Prime Minister was addressing a press conference with the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, who is in Malta on a two-day visit. “We had discussions on the opportunity and real possibility of an Antonov facility opening a logistics base here that would offer supplement maintenance, repair and operations facilities... Читать дальше...

Pulitzer prize winner Matthew Caruana Galizia has been temporarily locked out of his Facebook page after complaints were filed about a series of 'corruption facts' posts. Mr Caruana Galizia discovered to his surprise this morning that he had been temporarily locked out of his Facebook profile. A number of his 'corruption facts' posts have also been removed. Over the past few weeks, the ICIJ journalist has been posting original documents from the Panama Papers leak to lay bare the extent to which... Читать дальше...

Mayors from three localities surrounding one of the last green spaces in a densely developed area yesterday urged political parties to draft proposals to save it. Swieqi Mayor Noel Muscat said that the Wied Għomor valley, between Swieqi and San Ġwann, which also touches on St Julian’s, was “under attack” from property speculators. The valley is one of the last green spaces in the area offering a green lung for its surroundings. There are currently a number of planning applications for multiple developments in the stretch... Читать дальше...

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has successfully launched into space an Inmarsat communications satellite from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The satellite launched carried the heaviest haul ever by a Falcon 9 rocket to date, weighing more than six tons. The satellite, by London-based Inmarsat, which is the largest UK space company, is part of the company's Global Xpress communications satellites that are to provide high speed internet connections globally, according to SpaceX.

Tottenham Hotspur’s move to a new stadium can push them to join Europe’s biggest clubs, manager Mauricio Pochettino said on Sunday as his side bade farewell to White Hart Lane with a 2-1 victory over Manchester United. Victory with goals by Victor Wanyama and Harry Kane meant Tottenham are assured of finishing as runners-up to Chelsea in the Premier League, their best top flight finish for 54 years. Worries remain about what the effect of playing at Wembley next season will have on a side who have been unbeatable at home this season... Читать дальше...

Kurt Farrugia insists it was the Nationalist Party's vicious attacks which forced the Prime Minister's hand to call an early general election.  The head of communications in the Office of the Prime Minister says the Nationalist Party was dead set on creating instability in the country.  In tomorrow's edition of Times Talk, Mr Farrugia also fields questions about the government's transparency, the infamous trip to Azerbaijan and his party's chances of securing the June 3 election.