Who is al-Baghdadi?
BEIRUT, (Reuters) – The leader of radical Sunni fighters who have made rapid military advances in Iraq is the rising star of global jihad, driven, Islamist fighters say, by an unbending determination to fight for and establish a hardline Islamic state. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, commander of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), [...]
Obama rules out sending troops, Iran offers to join US in Iraq war
BAGHDAD, June 14, 2014 (AFP) -Shiite Iran offered today to consider working with long-time foe Washington if it takes the lead in helping repel Sunni Arab militants who have seized a swathe of northern Iraq. The offer came as Iraqi commanders said soldiers had recaptured two towns north of Baghdad as they prepared a fightback, [...]
Silken elegance over the years
For centuries, the people of Thailand have been engaged in making silk and are world renowned because of the unique manner in which the manufacturing process of silk takes place in the South East Asian nation. Thai silk making is a tedious process but for those who have mastered it, the process seems simple. When [...]
Preserving a heritage while tuned into current trends
Having arrived just two days before the annual prizegiving of the Trinity College London, Sarah Kemp has had little time to travel and see Sri Lanka before she heads back to the UK. The endless travelling and meetings are nothing new to the Chief Executive of Trinity College London here on a first visit to [...]
Dudley the knight in shining armour of Lankan politics
Once again, as we approach the birth anniversary of Dudley Senanayake on June 19, my thoughts go back to his qualities, of head and heart, which were described as rarer than one in a million, by a much respected political writer of his time. We live in a country, when victory at war is celebrated [...]
The Feast of Corpus Christi
The Feast of Corpus Christi will be celebrated at St. Philip Neri’s Church, Pettah on June 22, says Fr. Justin Chawkan & the Community Blessed Sacrament Communit, St. Philip Neri’s Church, Pettah. Vespers will be at at 5.p.m. and concelebrated Holy Eucharist at 5.30 p.m. led by Very Rev. Fr. Justin B. Gnanapragasam, followed by [...]
Pre-Ramazan fair at Zahira College
The Group ’80 of Zahira College, Colombo, will hold the annual ‘Pre-Ramazan Trade Fair’ for the 5th consecutive year on June 21 and 22 at the Zahira College Grounds. The fair will begin on June 21 at 3.30 p.m. and go on till 10 p.m. On the second day, the fair will be held from [...]
Prof. Gunatilleke to deliver Thilo Hoffman Memorial Lecture
The Wildlife and Nature Protection Society (WNPS) monthly lecture on Thursday, June 19 will be at the Department of Metereology Auditorium, 383, Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 7, at 6.15 p.m. This will be the Thilo Hoffman Memorial Lecture and it will be delivered by Prof. Savitri Gunatilleke who will speak on ‘ Understanding Sri Lanka’s natural [...]
Could malaria be wiped out by GM mosquitoes?
British scientists could have found the key to wiping out malaria-carrying mosquitoes – by developing a genetically modified species that produces just male offspring. Malaria is spread by infected female mosquitoes who pass on the killer disease when they bite humans. But Imperial College London researchers looked to genetics to disrupt the breeding of mosquitoes [...]
20,000 elephants killed for ivory in Africa
GENEVA (Reuters) – More than 20,000 African elephants were killed for their ivory in 2013, driven by demand in China and Thailand, and some local populations face an immediate threat of extinction, a U.N.-linked wildlife conservation agency said on Friday. Criminal gangs and rebel militias hunt dwindling herds for tusks that fetch many thousands of [...]
Build a protective wall around your land-ownership deed
‘Land fraud’ is a broad term used to describe a wide range of deception practised by some engaged in the ‘business’ of real estate; the term includes impersonation of owners and forging of signatures to defraud owners and banks. Recently reported incidents of alleged land fraud have had a disturbing effect on the minds of [...]
World’s most expensive diamond unearthed in South African mine
A blue diamond weighing a staggering 122.52 carats has been unearthed in South Africa – expected to be the most valuable ever found. Petra Diamonds Ltd said it had recovered the ‘exceptional’ gem at its Cullinan mine, on the outskirts of Pretoria, just months after it sold a 29.6 carat blue diamond from the same [...]
Forget inhalers – meet the Indian people who swallow live fish to cure asthma
With pinched noses and watery eyes, every year thousands of Indians line up to swallow live fish as a traditional treatment for asthma. Asthma sufferers gather every June in the southern city of Hyderabad to gulp down the fish stuffed with a yellow herbal paste, in the hope it will help them breathe more easily. [...]
India after English?
In the days since the decisive victory of Narendra Modi and his conservative Bharatiya Janata Party in India’s national election, many Indian commentators have perceived a turning point in Indian politics. Modi’s critics sense, in his sweeping mandate, an ominous revival of Hindu nationalism; his supporters maintain that he won because of his robust economic [...]
Why are women being hanged in India?
NEW DELHI (BBC News) – Four women have been found hanging from trees in remote villages in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in the last fortnight. The families of at least three of the dead, two of them teenage cousins, have alleged that they were murdered after being raped. Is this spate of grisly [...]
UN releases guidelines on reparations for victims of sexual violence
UNITED NATIONS (IPS) – When sexual violence – whether against men, women or children – takes place in United Nations peacekeeping missions worldwide, the world body has been quick to single out the perpetrators and expel them back to their home countries. But the UN has little or no authority to prosecute offenders, mete out [...]
Trial set for world’s first leprosy vaccine
MANILA – A vaccine for leprosy is being developed by American researchers and is set for toxicology tests towards the end of 2014 and for Phase I clinical trials in human volunteers by 2015. Leprosy is a chronic infection caused by the bacillus Mycobacterium leprae. An infected person develops skin lesions and may lose eyesight [...]
The IMF’s false confession
PRINCETON – “Do I have to go on my knees?” the International Monetary Fund’s managing director, Christine Lagarde, asked the BBC’s Andrew Marr. Lagarde was apologising for the IMF’s poor forecasting of the United Kingdom’s recent economic performance, and, more seriously, for the Fund’s longer-standing criticism of the fiscal austerity pursued by Prime Minister David [...]
India, Pakistan trade barbs over firing across Kashmir
MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan, June 14 (AFP) – Pakistan accused Indian troops on Friday of wounding two civilians, including a seven-year-old boy, in separate incidents of “unprovoked firing” from across the de facto border in the disputed Kashmir region. India’s army in turn blamed Pakistan for firing on its troops, alleging its arch-rival and neighbour had breached [...]
Winner crowned toilet paper wedding dress contest
There was something old, something new, something borrowed and something double-ply for 10 designers who battled it out on Thursday for $10,000 and the top prize in the 10th annual toilet paper wedding dress contest held in New York City. The elaborate gowns, headpieces, purses and lacey veils showed off at the competition could be [...]
Separatists shoot down Ukraine military plane
KIEV, June 14 (AFP) – Pro-Russian separatists shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane near the eastern city of Lugansk, killing troops on board, the defence ministry said today as the United States accused Russia of sending tanks and rocket launchers to the pro-Moscow rebels. “The terrorists cynically and treacherously fired with a large-calibre machine [...]
Bolivian president gives U.N. chief coca birthday cake
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon got an unusual treat for his 70th birthday on Friday when the president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, presented him with a cake made with coca leaves. The UN chief was in Santa Cruz, Bolivia for a meeting this weekend of the G77 group of countries to discuss measures for reducing [...]
Fossil found during New Mexico bachelor party is 10 m years old
A fossil mastodon skull found by a group attending a bachelor party at a New Mexico lakeshore is more than 10 million years old and will take at least six months to clean, a museum paleontologist said on Friday. The partygoers stumbled across the skull this week, complete with its tusks, buried in sand at [...]
Gold mine on sale for $2 million in bitcoin
Gold, the hard asset long seen as the ultimate hedge against risk, has fallen so much out of favour in recent years that the owner of a mine in Canada’s historic Yukon gold belt wants to sell the property for $2 million in bitcoin, a virtual currency. The tiny, producing mine is being offered for [...]
Unorthodox funeral in party style
When Miriam “Mae-Mae” Burbank succumbed to cancer earlier this month, her New Orleans family determined the funeral would be no ordinary celebration of her life. Instead of a traditional casket, the deceased 53-year-old was seated at a table for the two days of services that concluded Friday, with a menthol cigarette in hand, disco balls [...]
Former POW Bergdahl stable after return to US
WASHINGTON, June 14 (AFP) – The American soldier freed in a swap with the Afghan Taliban is in stable condition after five years in captivity but has not yet reunited with his parents, military officers said Friday. Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl, who returned to the United States in an overnight flight, was undergoing medical treatment and [...]
Afghans vote in run-off poll amid Taliban threats
KABUL, June 14 (AFP) – Afghans defied Taliban threats by voting today in a second-round presidential election, as US-led combat troops wind down a 13-year war that has failed to defeat the insurgents. The Taliban claimed responsibility for two rockets that exploded near Kabul airport as polls opened, but Afghan and NATO officials said there [...]
Not tonight darling, the World Cup is on!
Women across Britain are preparing for a summer of boyfriends and husbands glued to the television as the World Cup begins. And it seems the girls really will be getting even less attention than expected as two in five men admit they would actually turn down sex to watch the football. According to a new [...]
