Новости за 12.09.2018

Apple Inc unveiled larger iPhones and watches based on the design of current models on Wednesday, confirming Wall Street expectations that the company is making only minor changes to its lineup. The world's most valuable tech company wants users to upgrade to newer, more expensive devices as a way to boost revenue as global demand for smartphones levels off. The strategy has helped Apple become the first publicly-traded US company to hit a market value of more than $1 trillion earlier this year.... Читать дальше...

The UN migration agency has recommended that temporary housing be provided to the migrants evicted from a converted cow farm in Qormi last month. Over 100 migrants were evicted by the Planning Authority after it was found that the building had been turned into a place of residence against its permitted use. The migrants were evicted from stalls which “reeked to death”, according to enforcement officer Charles Gafa, who said that the migrants had been living in “inhumane” conditions. The UN migration agency ... Читать дальше...

Liberia president and former World Footballer of the Year George Weah made a surprise return to international competition in Monrovia on Tuesday, playing in a 2-1 loss to Nigeria a few weeks short of his 52nd birthday. Liberia had arranged the friendly to retire the number 14 jersey made famous by Weah but fans were in for a shock when, 16 years after his last international appearance, the striker led the national team onto the pitch wearing it instead. Media reports said Weah, who led the attack... Читать дальше...

A recently arrested Italian gang of bird smugglers are believed to have been involved in bringing protected species to Malta.  Maltese police sources told the Times of Malta that the country was a known destination for smuggled bird species, and a recently uncovered racket in Italy was believed to have ties to the island.  Europol announced on Tuesday that Carabinieri-led investigations had seen two suspects involved in poaching and trafficking of endangered species of birds identified and prosecuted in Italy. Читать дальше...

Parliamentary Secretary Julia Farrugia has called in the police after somebody wrote under a video of the Auberge de Castille on her Twitter account that this was a good place for bombing testing.  Ms Farrugia's tweet marked Pride Week and showed Maltese and Gay Pride rainbow flags outside the Office of the Prime Minister. Ms Farrugia is responsible for administrative reforms and citizenship. Earlier on Wednesday a man was held under arrest after being arraigned and accused of making threats against... Читать дальше...

The financial sector tops the list for being the earliest adopter of blockchain technologies – however its potential and application are rapidly spreading across government, telecom, legal, energy, food, and even the pharmaceutical industries. In fact, wherever any kind of transaction is utilised, blockchain has the potential to add significant value. According to research by Gartner, the business value-add of blockchain will grow to $176 million by 2025 and surge to more than $3.1 trillion by 2030. Читать дальше...

A change in the law will see some 70 non-EU trained nurses added to the public health sector after they had to work as carers for months. The move comes amid repeated calls to address the nurse shortage at hospitals and health clinics. The Times of Malta reported last week that nurses not trained in EU countries have not been allowed to work as nurses for almost a year pending changes to the registration process. Instead, they have been working as carers, sources said. In comments to Times of Malta... Читать дальше...

Residents are up in arms over the potential destruction of the oldest surviving house in Main Street, Birkirkara. Posters and banners have been affixed to the front of the building, which is located “at the core” of Birkirkara’s urban conservation area, urging people to object to the planned development. Mario Buhagiar, from the University’s Department of Art and Art History, raised the alarm following a development application to demolish the house and replace it by a block of flats and a penthouse. Читать дальше...

The police have recovered the body of a man found dead at sea off Xemxija. The grim discovery was made at 5.15pm. The police said the man was a 24-year-old from Rabat, who was reportedly freediving. TVM identified him as Simon Psaila. The police are investigating the circumstances of the death and a magisterial inquiry has been appointed. The tragedy is the second involving a free diver this month. Another diver was found dead after being reported missing off White Rocks on September 4.

A motorist had his car showered with concrete as he drove past a concrete mixer in Gżira on Wednesday. 'I was waiting for a warden to signal me to drive on, as the road was reduced to one lane. A (ready mix) truck was parked by the side of the road on Rue d'Argens. As soon as I drove past it, concrete was dropped on my car, I couldn't even see where I was going," Simon Carbonaro told Times of Malta. He said the truck's owner took him to his plant for a power wash, but the car still needs another hand wash. Читать дальше...

A lance bombardier, placing first in a selection process for the post of assistant trumpet major in the band of the Armed Forces of Malta, has filed a judicial protest after being denied a promised training course abroad. Brendan Borg, 30, a member of the AFM for the past nine years and also regularly serving on the military band, had applied for the assistant trumpet major’s post following a call for applications open to ‘band personnel.’ The selected candidate was to follow a training course at... Читать дальше...

Following the declines of the previous two days, the MSE Equity Price Index on Wednesday rebounded by 0.12% to 4,340.393 points, largely driven by the gains in the share prices of GO and HSBC which, coupled with the increases in Tigne’ Mall and Mapfre Middlesea, outweighed the declines in BOV and Trident. GO plc added 1.1% to a five-month high of €3.52 on activity totalling 21,881 shares. HSBC Bank Malta plc recaptured the €1.78 level (+0.6%) across 43,047 shares whilst Mapfre Middlesea plc advanced... Читать дальше...

Our faces are one of the most exposed areas of our bodies. Eventually, exposure to hot and cold, chemicals and the sun’s UV radiation take their toll and the face shows signs of ageing, including sunspots, puffy eyes, crow’s feet, fine lines and wrinkles. And although there are a number of procedures to reverse these signs of ageing, they aren’t without risks. Here are some of the more common cosmetic facial procedures and their potential risks: Dermal fillers Dermal fillers are injections of collagen... Читать дальше...

Half of all 15-year-olds who smoke are in the process of kicking the habit, according to a study conducted in 2017, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention director Paula Vassallo said. The data shows that of the 15-year-olds who smoke, 50 per cent have tried to quit while the rest were in the process of quitting. Around 120 15-year-olds smoke, according to the 2014 statistics, Dr Vassallo said. The results from the recent health behaviour study are encouraging as they show youth are informed of the drawbacks of smoking, she added. Читать дальше...

It will be a different representation of Aida, Giuseppe Verdi’s opera, that the Dutch Opera Spanga will be staged on Thursday and Saturday at Pjazza Teatru Rjal, in Valletta. The production received rave reviews when it was presented as part of the European Capital of Culture programme in Leeuwarden-Fryslân, in the Netherlands. “It breaks with every convention, which has been the case with director Corina van Eijk since 1989,” commented a Dutch newspaper. In this dynamic retelling, Corina van Eijk has chosen to set the play in modern times... Читать дальше...

The road which leads from Nadur towards Mġarr harbour in Gozo is to be rebuilt after years of neglect. Gozo minister Justyne Caruana said works will start on Monday and will see the road's foundations rebuilt and utilities channelled underground before a new surface is laid.  Edward Said, Mayor of Nadur, welcomed the project, saying his council had long complained about the poor and dangerous state of the road.

A man was jailed for three months on Wednesday after pleading guilty to involvement in illegal gambling and betting in Republic Street, Valletta. Romanian-born Adrian Rusu, residing at Qawra, was arrested on September 4. He also admitted smashed a glass pane on a door at Valletta police station on Friday afternoon.  Inspectors Daryl Borg and Jeffrey Scicluna prosecuted. Lawyer Victor Bugeja was legal aid counsel.

A taxi driver jailed and fined over drug-related charges four years ago, had his punishment reduced on appeal on Wednesday owing to delays in the judicial process not attributable to him, the principle of proportionality and in line with recent legislative views on drug offences. Kurt Buttigieg, 37, was arrested in November 2011 in Sta Venera after a suspect, well-known to members of the Drug Squad, boarded his taxi, getting off again only a short distance away. A search of the passenger had yielded negative results. Читать дальше...

Valletta and Rome have found themselves caught up in yet another war of words over migration, with the Maltese government issuing an official statement denying claims made by Italy’s Prime Minister on Wednesday morning. Mr Conte told Italian senators that Malta should have been responsible for a group of migrants rescued at sea by an Italian naval vessel last month, echoing comments first made by his Transport Minister Danilo Toninelli last month. The 171 people rescued by Italy’s Diciotti coast... Читать дальше...

Former Prime Minister Alfred Sant on Wednesday stayed away from a key European Parliament vote which saw MEPs overwhelmingly back a motion for punitive action against Hungary for flouting the rule of law. Dr Sant told the European Parliament in an explanation that the politicised manner by which the European Parliament investigated governance issues nullify the credibility and legitimacy of such investigations. Similar investigations on Malta were crassly biased and Maltese NGOs (questioned as part... Читать дальше...

Updated 4pm Former Prime Minister Alfred Sant on Wednesday abstained in a key European Parliament vote which saw MEPs overwhelmingly back a motion for punitive action against Hungary for flouting the rule of law. Dr Sant told the European Parliament in an explanation of his vote that the politicised manner by which the European Parliament investigated governance issues nullify the credibility and legitimacy of such investigations. Similar investigations on Malta were crassly biased and Maltese NGOs... Читать дальше...

Malta Football Association president Norman Darmanin Demajo has cried foul over criticism of the national team’s recent performance by SportMalta chairman Luciano Busuttil. Dr Busuttil raised eyebrows on Tuesday when he said that he would rather watch “children play football after the Malta national team held Azerbaijan to a 1-1 draw at the National Stadium on Monday. Dr Busuttil took to his personal Facebook shortly after the final whistle to chastise the national team for what he felt was a poor performance focused on defence. Читать дальше...

The European Economic and Social Committee has expressed strong disagreement with the Commission’s proposal to cut Cohesion policy funds by 10 per cent, saying the EU executive must show sensitivity for the current political environment rather than focus only on the budget. The Committee also rejected the Commission’s macroeconomic conditionality “for penalising regions and citizens who are not to blame for macroeconomic decisions taken at national or European level”. Read: Cohesion policy beyond 2020 - Corina Creţu “The EESC... Читать дальше...

A maintenance worker ended up behind bars after posting inflammatory comments on Facebook about the use of speed guns by traffic police. Josef Vincenti, a 31-year old from Żabbar, was targeted by criminal investigations after taking to Facebook to comment upon an article recently published on social media. He also made other racist remarks, all of which landed him in court on Wednesday. The man was charged under arrest with instigation to commit an offence, incitement to disobey the law and to racial hatred... Читать дальше...

President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca’s presence at a Valletta protest in solidarity with police officers last May has made it difficult for a young man accused of running over a police officer from getting a fair trial, lawyers for the defendant have argued. In a judicial protest filed on Wednesday, lawyers for Liam Debono said that in attending the protest, President Coleiro Preca had taken sides in a case which had yet to be heard in court. Mr Debono stands accused of the attempted murder of PC Simon Schembri... Читать дальше...