TMZ obtained pics of the two getting super cozy at Drake's pool party in Hidden Hills on Memorial Day. According to TMZ, sources inside the party told them that Khloe Odells were "definitely into each other" and "looked like a couple."
Tuesday, 31 May 2016
Khloe Kardashian now dating popular NFL player, Odell Beckham.. the two caught getting cozy (photos)
TMZ obtained pics of the two getting super cozy at Drake's pool party in Hidden Hills on Memorial Day. According to TMZ, sources inside the party told them that Khloe Odells were "definitely into each other" and "looked like a couple."
Turkey President Erdogan warns Muslims against using birth control
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on Muslims to reject contraception & have more children. Reuters cited Erdogan as saying in a live-broadcast speech in Istanbul on Monday, May 30.
In his speech, the Turkish leader placed the onus on women, particularly on "well-educated future mothers", to not use birth control and to ensure the continued growth of Turkey's population.
Mr Erdogan himself is a father of four. He has previously spoken out against contraception, describing it as "treason" when speaking at a wedding ceremony in 2015 as a witness.
"For years they committed the treason of birth control in this country, seeking to dry uo our bloodline. Lineage is very important both economically and spiritually,"
He also believes any couple should have at least three children to boost the Turkish population. Former Miss Turkey sentenced to 14-months in jail for insulting the country's President on Instagram
A court in Istabul today, Tuesday 31, convicted a former Miss Turkey of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan through social media postings and gave her a 14-month suspended sentence.
27-year-old Merve Buyuksarac was found guilty of insulting a public official but immediately suspended the sentence on condition that she does not reoffend within the next five years.
Her lawyer, Emre Telci, said he would file a formal objection to the verdict and appeal her case at the Strasbourg, France-based European Court of Justice.
Buyuksarac, who was crowned Miss Turkey in 2006, was briefly detained last year for sharing a satirical poem on her Instagram account in 2014. The posting, an satarical adaptation of the Turkish national anthem, was shared thosands of times on social media, and it was considered by proscutors to be insulting to Mr Erdogan, who was then prime minister. Buyuksarac, however, denied insulting him.
Since becoming president in 2014, Erdogan has filed close to 2,000 defamation cases under a previously seldom-used law that bars insulting the president. Free speech advocates say the law is being used aggressively to silence and intimidate critics.
The trials have targeted journalists, academics and even schoolchildren. Coupled with a crackdown on opposition media and journalists, the trials have sounded alarms over the erosion of rights and freedoms in a country that was once seen as a model of Muslim democracy.
Erdogan caused an uproar last month when, on the basis of an archaic German law that criminalizes insulting foreign heads of state, he went after a German comedian who mocked him in a profanity-packed poem.
"These insult trials are being initiated in series, they are being filed automatically,'' Telci told The Associated Press by telephone after the verdict. "Merve was prosecuted for sharing a posting that did not belong to her. My client has been convicted for words that do not belong to her.''
Thousands of others also posted the poem. It did not mention Erdogan by name, but alluded to a corruption scandal that allegedly involved his family.
Before the verdict was announced, Erdogan's lawyer, Hatice Ozay, argued in court that Buyuksarac's Instagram post had gone beyond "the limits of criticism'' and amounted to "an attack'' on the Turkish leader's personal rights, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported.
Rashford named in England Euro 2016 squad
Manchester United’s teenage striker Marcus Rashford was included in England’s final 23-man Euro 2016 squad, which was announced on Tuesday, as Danny Drinkwater and Andros Townsend dropped out.
Rashford, 18, scored within three minutes of his England debut in Friday’s 2-1 win over Australia, having netted eight times in 18 games since making his United debut in February.
His emergence was thought to have cast doubt on Daniel Sturridge’s place, but the Liverpool player was named as one of five strikers despite missing the Australia game with a calf problem.
Originally named in manager Roy Hodgson’s provisional 26-man squad, Leicester City midfielder Drinkwater and Newcastle United winger Townsend made way.
Fabian Delph, the Manchester City midfielder, had previously dropped out of the squad due to a groin problem.
Rashford’s inclusion continues his astonishing rise to prominence and comes a day after he committed his future to United by signing a four-year contract with an option for an extra year.
He only made his United debut, in a Europa League game against Danish side FC Midtjylland, due to injuries to Anthony Martial and Will Keane, but since scoring twice in a 5-1 win, he has not looked back.
He will now look to follow the examples of Michael Owen and Wayne Rooney, who were both teenagers when they announced themselves at major tournaments — the former at the 1998 World Cup, the latter at Euro 2004.
– Drinkwater ‘disappointed’ –
Drinkwater loses out despite playing a key role in Leicester’s stunning 5,000-1 Premier League title triumph.
He had been called up due to fitness concerns over Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson, both of whom have convinced Hodgson that they are ready to make an impact in France.
“Disappointed not to make the final 23!” Drinkwater wrote on his Instagram page.
“Would of been a fantastic experience to go to the euros as a player… But I’ll be supporting the country like I always have! Good luck to the lads… Bring it home.”
The omission of Townsend, who finished the season strongly despite Newcastle’s relegation, leaves England with little recognisable width in attack.
But Hodgson, who will explain his choices when he addresses the media on Wednesday, has stated that his team will use either a 4-4-2 with a midfield diamond or a narrow 4-3-3 system in the tournament.
His side tackle Portugal at Wembley on Thursday in their final warm-up match before travelling to France next week.
England open their Euro 2016 campaign against Russia in Marseille on June 11 and will also face Slovakia and neighbours Wales in Group B.
England 23-man squad for Euro 2016
Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster (Southampton), Joe Hart (Manchester City), Tom Heaton (Burnley)
Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), John Stones (Everton), Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur)
Midfielders: Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Ross Barkley (Everton), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Adam Lallana (Liverpool), James Milner (Liverpool), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal)
Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United, capt), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
EU fears migrants could be used as drug mules
Migrants heading to Europe risk becoming drug mules for unscrupulous traffickers, the EU’s migration commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos warned on Tuesday.
“Cocaine trafficking is linked to terrorist groups operating in the Syrian conflict. We all know that. However, the extent of this linkage is not very clear,” Avramopoulos said at a press conference on presentation of a key report by the Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Addiction.
“Migrants and victims of human trafficking are probably used” by drug smugglers, he said as Europe struggles to cope with its worst migration crisis since World War II. Last year, more than a million people fleeing war and crushing poverty entered the bloc, with another 200,000 arriving since January.
“We have declared a war on smugglers… (who) don’t hesitate to use desperate people in whatever way possible,” he said.
In its report, the centre warned over the increasing use of ever-more powerful cannabis and synthetic cannabinoids, sold as legal cannabis alternatives, saying young drug users risked ending up being “human guinea pigs” for a new wave of sometimes highly-toxic recreational drugs.
It also warned of a resurgence in ecstasy (MDMA) use and the development of online trafficking networks.
“The drug problem in the EU is not diminishing. There are new products, new patterns of use, new markets, and therefore new health risks,” Avramopoulos said.
Messi, Argentina under pressure to perform at Copa America
Lionel Messi must shrug off the gruelling demands of a globe-trotting schedule if he is to fulfill his dream of leading Argentina to a first major tournament victory in 23 years at the Copa America Centenario.
The Barcelona superstar heads into the tournament having barely had a moment’s rest for four years, with commitments for club and country meaning he has not had a summer off since 2013.
The punishing nature of Messi’s commitments are illustrated by his hectic preparations for the Copa, where Argentina open against Chile at Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium, the home of the San Francisco 49ers, on June 6.
Messi left Spain after Barcelona’s Copa del Rey victory over Sevilla on May 22 in order to be in Argentina for the Albiceleste’s friendly against Honduras in San Juan five days later.
The 28-year-old was then due to return to Spain after that friendly to attend the opening of his trial for tax fraud this week.
Following that hearing, Messi faces another long-haul journey to California to link up with Argentina’s Copa squad.
Whether or not the jet lag and off-field problems affect Messi’s performances in the United States remains to be seen.
Questions about the wisdom of Messi’s schedule were underscored when he hobbled off against Honduras after suffering a lower back injury.
Team medical officials remain confident he will be fit for the Copa America, although the knock against Honduras means he may struggle to be fully fit to face Chile.
In the past Messi has been able to take the energy-sapping demands in his stride. At both the 2014 World Cup and 2015 Copa America he was named the player of the tournament.
At the very least, Messi’s repeated willingness to go the extra mile ought to silence the small group of critics who have questioned his commitment to international football.
– ‘I want to win’ –
Messi himself hit back angrily at those who questioned his commitment in the wake of last year’s Copa America final defeat to Chile, which came 12 months after the Argentinians were beaten by Germany in the World Cup final.
“I get annoyed when they tell us ‘Put in more effort, you don’t feel the shirt.’ I get annoyed by the people who attack you without thinking,” he said.
“We were lucky enough to get to the final of the World Cup and the Copa America and it seems like we didn’t do anything,” he added.
“We got to two finals. We didn’t win, what can you do? But we got to the final, It’s not like we lost in the last 16,” he told TyC Sports.
“Everything I play in with the national team is a priority and I want to win. It would be great to win the Copa America,” he added.
While Messi ought to have at least one more major tournament left in him after the Copa America — he will turn 31 during the 2018 World Cup in Russia — time is nevertheless running out on Argentina’s current golden generation.
Javier Mascherano and Ezequiel Lavezzi are already into their 30s; Gonzalo Higuain, Angel Di Maria and Sergio Aguero will all be in their 30s by the time of the 2018 World Cup.
Aguero reflected the mood of the squad during last year’s Copa America, stating simply: “If this generation of players don’t win anything we’re going to regret it for the rest of our lives.”
For Messi, the time is now.
“It has been a very long time since Argentina has won anything, and this group came very close in the World Cup and at the last Copa America,” he told Sports Illustrated on the eve of the tournament.
“I think we deserve to be champions of an important competition.”
Netanyahu dusts off old peace plan after uproar over new govt
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has spoken of reviving a long-dormant Arab peace initiative with the Palestinians, amid questions over whether he is sincere or trying to fend off international critics.
Netanyahu made his comments late Monday at the swearing in of his new hardline Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, forming what many analysts call the most right-wing government in Israeli history.
Lieberman is detested by the Palestinians, and foreign governments have expressed concern over his appointment to the powerful post.
Both Netanyahu and Lieberman have repeatedly sought to address such concerns, saying they are committed to a two-state solution.
Netanyahu went a step further on Monday, saying an Arab League-endorsed peace initiative dating to 2002 “includes positive elements that can help revive constructive negotiations with the Palestinians”.
“We are willing to negotiate with the Arab states revisions to that initiative so that it reflects the dramatic changes in the region since 2002, but maintains the agreed goal of two states for two peoples,” Netanyahu said.
His comments come after Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said two weeks ago that there was now a “real opportunity” for an Israeli-Palestinian deal that could lead to warmer ties between his country and Israel.
Egypt and Jordan are the only two Arab nations with a peace deal with Israel. Israel has also seen improved ties and security cooperation with Cairo in recent months as part of the fight against Islamic State group jihadists.
UN Middle East envoy Nickolay Mladenov welcomed Netanyahu’s comments, saying “this opportunity should not be missed and must be followed up with concrete and timely action”.
– Eye on Obama –
But Netanyahu’s comments come with the veteran premier under pressure over a French plan to hold an international peace conference, which Israel strongly opposes and the Palestinians support.
There is also speculation that US President Barack Obama could seek a UN resolution on the conflict — or at least allow one to pass without vetoing it — before he leaves office in January.
“There has been a feeling in the (prime minister’s) office for a while that they are worried what will happen in the UN, that maybe the Americans will let a resolution go through that would be difficult for Israel,” said Jonathan Rynhold of the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies.
As for the French initiative, a first meeting of foreign ministers from a range of countries — without the Palestinians and Israelis present — is due to take place on Friday in Paris.
An international conference including the Israelis and Palestinians would then be held before the end of the year.
“Netanyahu is very aware, as is Lieberman, that they have formed a right-wing coalition, and therefore the international community will be very distrustful, so they have gone out of their way to say something positive about the Arab peace initiative and to publicly say that they back a two-state solution,” Rynhold said.
“That is a way of signalling to the international community: we are not as bad as you think we are.”
– Opportunity or smokescreen? –
If a peace effort were to move forward on the basis of the Arab proposal, Israel would no doubt seek a list of changes.
The proposal essentially calls for Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories and resolve outstanding issues with the Palestinians, leading to the creation of a Palestinian state, in exchange for normalised relations with Arab countries.
While some accused Netanyahu of creating a smokescreen by mentioning the old initiative, others said that, whatever his motivation, progress should not be ruled out.
“This is an opportunity,” said Shmuel Sandler, a professor of international politics at Israel’s Bar Ilan University.
“He has now two years where he doesn’t have to worry about elections (if his coalition lasts its full term), so he might have a chance of moving ahead.”
Sandler said that “the question is whether the other side will come forward. Will he have a partner?”
Palestinian leaders argue that years of negotiations with the Israelis have not ended the occupation. They have focused on pursuing their cause through international bodies, and strongly back the French plan.
“If the Israeli government is serious, it must take measures on the ground to prove its commitment to a two-state solution,” said Nabil Abu Rudeina, spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
“The first of those measures is the end to the occupation of the Palestinian territories.”
Pakistan prime minister undergoes heart surgery
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif successfully underwent open heart surgery in London on Tuesday, his daughter said.
It was the 66-year-old premier’s second major cardiac medical procedure in five years.
“Surgery successful by The Grace Of Almighty,” his daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif said on Twitter.
“All arteries successfully grafted,” she told her nearly two million followers.
She said the prime minister was “off the pump” and would soon be moved to an intensive care unit.
The London hospital where the procedure was carried out was not officially named.
Sharif’s surgery lasted more than four hours, according to his daughter’s tweets.
He is expected to stay in hospital for around a week to recover before travelling home.
A senior Pakistani government official told AFP at the weekend that Sharif, one of Pakistan’s richest men, was paying all expenses from his own pocket and “none of the state expenditures are involved”.
“It may take little over a week for the prime minister to recover and travel back to Pakistan,” the official added.
A statement issued by his office in Islamabad on Saturday said he was being assisted by his secretaries and would be being kept abreast of day-to-day matters.
Sharif took power in a landslide in a May 2013 general election, for the third time since 1990.
Sharif has a power base rooted in Pakistan’s richest and most populous province, where he is known as the Lion of the Punjab.
He has been under pressure since the so-called Panama Papers leak linked his family to a series of offshore companies.
The premier insists his family has done “nothing wrong”, saying the claims had been investigated twice, decades ago, under the tenure of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf.
Trump calls US journalist ‘a sleaze’ at press conference
Donald Trump on Tuesday called an American journalist “a sleaze” during a combative press conference in which he defended his record on supporting veterans, saying he raised $5.6 million for charities on the campaign trail.
“You’re a sleaze,” said the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, pointing to a journalist who he said was from news network ABC, “because you know the facts and you know the facts well.”
Trump called the political press “among the most dishonest people I have ever met,” and criticized media coverage of his presidential campaign in general and his appearance at a veterans biker rally on Sunday.
The New York real estate tycoon annihilated more than a dozen rivals in the race to sew up the Republican nomination for the White House and is trailing Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton by just a few percentage points in recent polls ahead of November’s general election.
Seychelles court validates presidential win
The Seychelles’ Constitutional Court on Tuesday validated President James Michel’s victory in the December elections, dismissing an opposition party appeal to overturn the results.
Michel, who won a second-round vote in December by the slimmest of margins, described the ruling as a “landmark victory for the rule of law and democracy” saying in a statement that it was a “powerful affirmation of judicial independence and impartiality”.
The electoral commission said that Michel, 71, had won the second round of the election by just 193 votes — with 50.15 percent support against 49.85 percent for his rival, five-time loser Wavel Ramkalawan.
The opposition Seychelles National Party (SNP) claimed neither won an outright majority, arguing that 1,062 invalid votes should have also been counted in the overall total. The court rejected their argument.
Michel has already been sworn into office for a third term alongside his vice-president Danny Faure.
A former British colony, the Seychelles is made up of 115 islands lying off the coast of east Africa, some scattered up to a thousand kilometres (600 miles) from Victoria.
Singer Flavour shares another shirtless photo
Jilted lover burns girlfriend alive. 'I have never seen something so atrocious" said lead police official
22-year-old Sara Di Pietrantonio died on Sunday, May 29th, after her ex boyfriend Vincenzo Paduano, 27, set her car ablaze, prosecutor Maria told reporters.
He then chased her after she ran out of the car, setting her ablaze when he caught up with her, authorities said. Investigators said her attacker used a cigarette lighter to set Di Pietrantonio's face on fire after dousing her with alcohol.
"I can say that in 25 years in this work I have never seen something so atrocious," said Luigi Silipo, the lead police official in the investigation.Paduano was being held for investigation of premeditated murder, Monteleone said.
The suspect first denied killing the woman, but after eight hours of interrogation, confessed to killing her, Silipo told reporters.
Paduano “didn't accept being abandoned' by the woman, Monteleone said. 'He organized, he planned the aggression,' the prosecutor said. Silipo said the suspect walked off his job as a security guard about 3am and waited outside the home of Di Pietrantonio's current boyfriend.
Then, after the woman left the home and drove off by herself, Paduano drove after her eventually forcing her car to the side of the road. He said.
"He got into her car, and after an argument, doused the car (interior) with a small bottle of alcohol, and doused Sara, too,” Silipo said. “She ran out, he torched the car, caught up with her, and after about 100 meters” set her ablaze, leaving her to die “in an atrocious manner,” the police official said.
A surveillance camera in the area captured some of the events, including at least two cars that passed by while the woman screamed in vain for help as she tried to flee, authorities said.
Monteleone made what she said was a fervent appeal to citizens to help such women, “not to look the other way.” She added that if passers-by had helped, the woman's life might have been saved.
She also encouraged women “not to keep hidden any threatening behavior by those who insist they love you, but it's not that way.”
Italian women's advocates have been trying to change mentalities in a country where men often turn violent when a women breaks off a relationship. One such champion for women to be more assertive in protecting themselves is an Italian lawyer whose face was mutilated in an acid attack ordered by her ex-boyfriend. She courageously testified at the ex-boyfriend's trial.
Sounding a call Monday to Italian woman to denounce threats by men to police was Chamber of Deputies President Laura Boldrini. The parliamentary leader said a change in cultural mentality was needed, starting in early childhood classrooms.
Women “must understand that those who should be ashamed are the violent ones, not the women who suffer threats," Boldrini said.Source- AP
Male stripper performs in front of pupils as young as 13 at Kate Middleton’s old school (Photos)
Sixth-formers sneaked in the tattooed stripper, who was dressed as a sailor, he then peeled off his clothes and gyrated with the girl straddling his lap in the central courtyard of £30,000-a-year Marlborough College, a 'posh' school where the elite and well-to-do school their children..
The stripper even grabbed his crotch and at one point the stripper threw his thong in a girl’s face.
A source said:
“Marlborough is one of the most expensive schools in the country. Parents do not expect their children to be watching a sex show.”
“A group of girls met the stripper at the school entrance and sneaked him into the court area — the central hub of the school.They formed a circle around him and he stripped down to his G-string and was dancing and grinding with some of the girls.”
The stunt was part of Muck-Up Day, a school tradition in which pupils play pranks on their last day before exams.
Bristol-based stripper named Ross said:
“I didn’t know I would be performing at a school until I got there. I was told it was going to be for a girl’s birthday. At the end of the day it was just a prank, and I didn’t take all my clothes off.”
Source: The Sun UK
Libya unity govt allies take town in advance on IS bastion
Fighters allied with Libya’s UN-backed unity government have captured a coastal town from the Islamic State group in an advance towards its bastion Sirte, a spokesman said on Tuesday.
The Petroleum Facilities Guard overran Ben Jawad as they thrust westwards along the Mediterranean coast from their base in Libya’s eastern oil ports, the spokesman for the force said.
Five people were killed and 18 wounded in Monday’s fighting, sector commander Colonel Bashir Buthefira said.
The advance continued on Tuesday and was nearing the IS-held town of Nofiliya, some 130 kilometres (80 miles) east of Sirte.
Sirte was the home town of slain dictator Moamer Kadhafi and, since seizing it in June last year, IS has turned it into a recruitment and training camp.
Western governments fear the jihadists could use Sirte’s port and airport as a springboard for attacks in Europe.
But they have called for any offensive against the IS stronghold to be carried out under the auspices of the unity government installed in Tripoli since March 30 for fear that rival operations could play into the jihadists’ hands.
The unity government has gradually asserted its control over key state institutions, but it still faces a rival administration with its own army in the east.
Reus out, Schweinsteiger in Germany’s Euro 2016 squad
Marco Reus endured more injury heartache with Germany on Tuesday — his 27th birthday — as he was cut from their final Euro 2016 squad, two years after missing the World Cup.
A groin injury means Reus joins Julian Brandt, Sebastian Rudy and Karim Bellarabi to make up the four names cut as Germany announced their final 23-man squad while injured captain Bastian Schweinsteiger, who tore his knee ligaments in March, is included.
Reus, Borussia Dortmund’s fleet-footed winger, missed out on Germany’s 2014 World Cup win after tearing ankle ligaments in a warm-up friendly international just before the squad flew to Brazil.
Now an injury on club duty has scuppered his bid to be fit for the finals in France.
Germany coach Joachim Loew has opted not to take Reus, but both Borussia Dortmund’s Bayern Munich-bound centre-back Mats Hummels and Manchester United midfielder Schweinsteiger are included even though both are carrying injuries.
“The medical department have confirmed that Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mats Hummels will be fit to play at the tournament,” explained Loew at Germany’s pre-Euro training camp in Ascona, Switzerland.
“The prognosis for him (Reus) wasn’t good, so for medical reasons we had to strike him off the list.
“Of course, it’s bitterly disappointing for both him and for us.”
Reus’ former Dortmund team-mate Mario Goetze, whose goal won the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina, tweeted: “Happy Birthday, Marco, but we are all really sad. Unbelievable. That hurts me.”.
Midfielder Sami Khedira says the decision to leave Reus at home was the correct one, evn though it was hard on the player.
“Marco has had the problem with his pubic bone for a long time,” said the Juventus star.
“You have to weigh up whether it makes sense, but at the moment he can’t do more than run straight.”
Loew has included two promising 20-year-olds in Dortmund defensive midfielder Julian Weigl and Schalke forward Leroy Sane, who both made their debuts in Sunday’s 3-1 friendly defeat to Slovakia.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Brandt, 20, who also won his first cap against Slovakia, misses out, while his club colleague and fellow winger Bellarabi, who has won 10 caps, is ruled out with injury.
Hoffenheim midfielder Rudy completes the quartet to be left at home as Germany now turn their attentions to their final pre-tournament friendly on Saturday in Gelsenkirchen against Hungary.
The Germans open their Group C campaign against Ukraine in Lille on June 12 before also playing Poland and Northern Ireland.
Germany’s 23-man squad for Euro 2016:
Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Bernd Leno (Bayer Leverkusen), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona/ESP)
Defenders: Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Emre Can (Liverpool/ENG), Jonas Hector (Cologne), Benedikt Hoewedes (Schalke 04), Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund), Shkodran Mustafi (Valencia/ESP), Antonio Ruediger (AS Roma/ITA)
Midfielders: Julian Draxler (Wolfsburg), Sami Khedira (Juventus/ITA), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid/ESP), Mesut Ozil (Arsenal/ENG), Leroy Sane (Schalke 04), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Manchester United/ENG), Julian Weigl (Borussia Dortmund)
Forwards: Mario Gomez (Fiorentina/ITA), Thomas Mueller (Bayern Munich), Lukas Podolski (Galatasaray/TUR), Mario Goetze (Bayern Munich), Andre Schuerrle (Wolfsburg)
Four killed in riots in Niger over alleged blasphemy
At least four people were killed in central Nigeria in two days of violence over an alleged blasphemy by a Christian trader against Prophet Mohammed, residents told AFP on Tuesday.
Abdullahi Sallau said a Muslim mob killed one person on Sunday and three on Monday in the town of Pandogari in Niger state “following blasphemous remarks by a Christian against the Prophet”.
One of those killed was Methodus Chimaije Emmanuel, the 24-year-old who posted comments on his Facebook page, said Sallau, who lives in the town. His account was supported by another local.
Emmanuel, whose parents were from Nigeria’s mainly Christian south but who was born and raised in Pandogari, had gone into hiding following the post but was found.
“The crowd took the law into their hands and mobbed him to death despite the revulsion expressed by his parents over the online comments,” said Misbahu Malami, who lives locally.
Soldiers and police have made arrests and imposed an overnight curfew to restore calm after crowds went on the rampage, looting shops, burning a church and demanding the suspects’ release.
Sallau said soldiers opened fire and killed three while three others were injured. The military said one of the dead was a member of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
Army spokesman Major NC Agwu confirmed that Emmanuel was killed by a mob “on (the) allegation of posting a blasphemous statement about Prophet Mohammad on the social media”.
Soldiers “quickly intervened and restored law and order while a dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed in the town” but the mob on Monday took over a major road, prompting further deployments, he said.
“Regrettably, one church, one house and a shop were burnt while 25 other shops were looted following the violence,” added Agwu.
Prophet Mohammed is the most revered figure in Islam and blasphemy against him is punishable with death under Islamic law.
Previous allegations of blasphemy against the Prophet have seen deadly sectarian clashes before in Nigeria, which is almost evenly split between Muslims in the north and Christians in the south.
In 2002 riots broke out in the northern city of Kaduna between Muslim and Christian residents over a planned Miss World pageant to which many Muslims were opposed.
The riots were fuelled by comments in a Nigerian newspaper article. Days of violence left more than 200 people dead.
In 1987, hundreds were killed in the town of Kafanchan, also in Kaduna, following an alleged blasphemy by a Christian evangelist.
In January this year, an Islamic court in the northern city of Kano sentenced a Muslim cleric to death for blasphemy after comments he made last year sparked violent protests.
Taliban kill 16 bus passengers in northern Afghanistan
The Taliban killed at least 16 people Tuesday and kidnapped dozens of others after pulling them off buses in northern Afghanistan, officials said, the latest assault since the insurgents named a new leader last week.
The Taliban have so far not commented on the incident in Aliabad district in the volatile province of Kunduz, where the insurgents briefly overran the provincial capital in a stunning military victory last year.
Up to 200 passengers were travelling in four buses towards Kabul on Tuesday morning when they were stopped by the Taliban gunmen, with some killed on the side of the road at point-blank range, officials said.
“The Taliban shot dead 16 passengers and they are still holding more than 30 others,” said Sayed Mahmood Danish, spokesman for the governor of Kunduz.
Police commander Shir Aziz Kamawal gave a death toll of 17. The identities of the passengers have not been confirmed.
“They (Taliban) have released some passengers but are holding many others. None of the passengers were wearing military uniform but some may have been former police,” he said.
Residents of insurgency-prone Aliabad told AFP the Taliban were holding an informal court in a local mosque, scrutinising the ID documents of the passengers and interrogating them for any government links.
Highways around Afghanistan passing through insurgency-prone areas have become exceedingly dangerous, with the Taliban and other armed groups frequently kidnapping or killing travellers.
Civilians are increasingly caught in the crosshairs of Afghanistan’s worsening conflict as the Taliban step up their annual spring offensive, launched in April against the Western-backed Kabul government.
Tuesday’s incident comes a day after the Taliban overran multiple police checkpoints in Helmand, the first major assault in the opium-rich southern province since the leadership transition.
The Taliban last Wednesday announced Haibatullah Akhundzada as their new leader, elevating a low-profile religious figure in a swift power transition after officially confirming the death of Mullah Mansour in a US drone strike.
The drone attack, the first known American assault on a top Afghan Taliban leader on Pakistani soil, sent shockwaves through the insurgent movement, which had seen a resurgence under Mansour.
He was killed just nine months after being formally appointed leader following a bitter power struggle upon the confirmation of the death of Taliban founder Mullah Omar.
US President Barack Obama, who authorised the drone strikes, said Mansour had rejected efforts “to seriously engage in peace talks”, asserting that direct negotiations with the Afghan government were the only way to end the attritional conflict.
The US killing of Mansour showed that Washington has at least for now abandoned hopes of reviving the direct peace talks between Kabul and the Taliban, which broke down last summer.
Observers say Akhundzada, who is seen as more of a spiritual figurehead than a military commander, will emulate Mansour in shunning peace talks with the Afghan government.
Ex-Chad dictator Hissene Habre sentenced to life in prison for war crimes
The ex-ruler, Habre, earlier denied the charges and refused to recognize the legitimacy of the court but left everyone in the court surprised when he showed no emotions after hearing the verdict with his face obscured partly by a turban and sunglasses.
According to Human Rights Watch, the decision makes Habre the first African former head of state to be convicted on the continent and it's also the first time that a court of one country has prosecuted the former ruler of another country over human rights crimes.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry welcomed Monday's verdict. "This ruling is a landmark in the global fight against impunity for atrocities, including war crimes and crimes against humanity," Kerry said in a statement released by CNN.
"As a country committed to the respect for human rights and the pursuit of justice, this is also an opportunity for the United States to reflect on, and learn from, our own connection with past events in Chad,"
Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, descibed the ruling as groundbreaking.
"After years of struggle and many setbacks on the way to justice, this verdict is as historic as it was hard-won. I sincerely hope that today, at last, Habre's victims will experience some sense of relief. In a world scarred by a constant stream of atrocities, the ramifications of this verdict are global. "
The Rock pictured with his 2 daughters & his mum on his birthday
15yr old girl hanged from a tree after being gang-raped & murdered
The 15-year-old was allegedly kidnapped and raped by three men before being strangled to death, according to NDTV.
Police believe she was hung from the tree to make her death look like suicide. Two men have been arrested and a manhunt is under way to find a third. One of the accused was known to the girl had allegedly asked to meet him. He was joined by two more men. They allegedly raped and killed her and later hanged her body from a tree.
The case is one of a spate of horrific attacks that have sparked renewed outrage over the country’s problem with violence against.
The victim went missing on Friday and her body was found on Saturday. Her father alleged the three suspects had tried to kidnap her earlier in the week but police failed to act. Four police officers have reportedly been suspended from duty as a result.
Senior police officer Salik Ram Verma said a post-mortem has confirmed that the girl was raped and strangled.
Source: NDTV
George Clooney, his wife & Salma Hayek all smiles as they meet Pope Francis at the Vatican (photo)
"I can not love him more," Salma wrote on Instagram. "When in Rome, speak with your hands. At least I made him laugh."
US Based Nigerian Photographer surprises his wife by shutting down the streets in New Orleans for her 30th birthday
Navas injury raises Copa fears
Real Madrid’s Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas has been hit by a recurrence of an achilles injury, the club said, raising fears he could miss the Copa America Centenario.
Real said Navas, 29, was suffering from the problem in his left foot, without indicating how long he would take to recover. The Copa starts in California on Friday.
“After the tests (were) carried out… he has been diagnosed with an achilles tendinopathy in his left foot,” Real said in a short medical update on Monday.
“His recovery will continue to be assessed.”
Navas’s injury first flared in Real’s Champions League semi-final second leg victory over Manchester City, and forced him to miss the penultimate La Liga game of the season against Valencia.
Spanish media said Real’s physios helped Navas get through last week’s Champions League final, which the team won on penalties, but that he now needed to rest — meaning Costa Rica’s talisman could be forced to sit out the Copa.
“In recent weeks (Navas) was treated by physios in order to play the final of the Champions League, but now he has to stop (playing) completely to recover,” Spain’s AS newspaper said.
Costa Rica’s first game of the Copa is against Paraguay on Saturday, and they will also play the United States and Colombia in the group phase.
Saudi intercepts missile from Yemen
Saudi Arabia intercepted a ballistic missile fired from Yemen on Monday night, the military coalition supporting the Yemeni government against rebels said.
It was the second missile launch from Yemen since UN-brokered peace talks began in Kuwait on April 21 between the Huthi Shiite rebels and the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.
The Saudi-led Arab coalition in March last year began air strikes and other military aid in support of Yemeni forces resisting the Huthis who had seized much of the country and are backed by Saudi Arabia’s regional rival Iran.
Fighting has continued despite a ceasefire that paved the way for the talks in Kuwait.
The Huthi rebels are allied with elite troops loyal to Yemen’s former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.
The missile launches are designed to “sabotage efforts of the international community to make the peace negotiations a success,” the Saudi-led coalition said in a statement.
Saudi Arabia has deployed Patriot missile batteries to counter tactical ballistic missiles which have been fired occasionally during the war.
The coalition warns that it could retaliate if such strikes continue.
Messi absent as his tax fraud trial opens in Spain
The trial of Argentina star Lionel Messi in tax fraud charges opened Tuesday in Spain in his absence just days before Argentina’s first match in the Copa America tournament against Chile.
Messi, 28, and his father, Jorge Horacio Messi, are accused of using a chain of fake companies in Belize and Uruguay to avoid paying taxes on 4.16 million euros ($4.7 million) of Messi’s income earned through the sale of his image rights from 2007-09.
They have been charged with three counts of tax fraud.
Dozens of journalists, from Spain and abroad were on hand at a Barcelona court for the start of the trial which is expected to last until Thursday when Messi and his father will take the stand.
Messi had planned to be in Barcelona for the start of the trial but a lower back injury he suffered during a friendly against Honduras last week prevented him from doing so, defence lawyer Javier Sanchez-Vera said at the start of the proceedings.
Spanish prosecutors are seeking a jail sentence of 22-and-a-half months for Messi and his father if they are found guilty, plus fines equivalent to the amount that was allegedly defrauded.
But any such sentence would likely be suspended as it is common in Spain for first offences carrying a sentence of less than two years.
The first day of the trial will be dedicated to preliminary legal questions and witness testimony.
– ‘Dad handled the cash’ –
The Barcelona striker and his defence team have argued that the player’s father handled his finances without reporting to him, and that the striker was not aware of any wrongdoing.
“My dad handled the cash,” Messi said in September 2013 when he was questioned by a judge investigating the case at a court in Gavia, a town on the outskirts of Barcelona where the footballer lives.
He reportedly told the judge at that hearing that he never looks at the contracts he signs.
“I signed things, but I never look at the contracts. I don’t know what I sign,” Messi said according to the El Periodico daily, which got access to his September 2013 statement to the judge.
According to the alleged statement published by the Barcelona daily, the judge showed him several sponsorship contracts that he signed, but he did not remember them.
“This is something that my dad manages. And I trust him. I devote myself to playing football,” he reportedly said.
“I do what he tells me to do.”
After winning a league and Cup double with Barcelona, the five-time World Player of the Year is due to join his Argentina teammates for the Copa America in the United States.
Argentina take on defending champions Chile in their first game of the tournament at Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium, the home of the San Francisco 49ers, in California on June 6.
Neymar-less Brazil in search of Copa identity
Two years after their traumatic World Cup semi-final exit, Brazil are haunted by the past as they head into the Copa America Centenario aiming for their first title in nearly a decade.
In previous eras, Brazil would arrive at the Copa America brimming with confidence, with the only debate revolving around who they could expect to face — and defeat — in the final.
Between 1997 and 2007, Brazil won four out of five editions of the tournament, helping to make them the most successful nation since 1975, when the Copa America began to be held regularly after an eight-year absence.
Yet as Brazil prepare to embark on this year’s tournament, the familiar swagger is gone.
The humiliating 7-1 thrashing by Germany in 2014 has left a team in search of an identity, torn between a more pragmatic, defensive approach and the hardwired instincts towards flamboyance.
So far, under the second managerial tenure of 1994 World Cup-winning captain Dunga, the results have been mixed.
A quarter-final exit at last year’s Copa America in Chile has been followed by a stuttering start to South America’s marathon qualifying campaign for the 2018 World Cup.
Brazil currently lie in sixth place after six matches, outside the qualifying positions.
Their form has reflected the Jekyll and Hyde nature of Dunga’s team, where they have produced flashes of attacking brilliance only to be undermined by defensive frailty.
They were comfortably beaten by Chile in their opening qualifier and failed to convince in either of their two solitary wins against Venezuela and Peru.
Against Uruguay in Recife in March, the old Brazil appeared to be back as they swept into a 2-0 lead inside the first 25 minutes.
But an Edinson Cavani goal in the 30th minute punctured Brazil’s fragile confidence, and after Luis Suarez made it 2-2 they spent much of the remainder of the game on the ropes.
Four days later, a similarly disjointed display saw them lucky to leave Asuncion with a point. Paraguay romped into a 2-0 lead and Brazil needed a Dani Alves equaliser deep into stoppage time to scrape a 2-2 draw.
– Many happy returns? –
For Dunga, the Copa America represents a happy return to the scene of his greatest triumph as a player. Brazil will kick off their Group B campaign against Ecuador on Saturday at the Pasadena Rose Bowl, where Dunga led his team to victory in the World Cup final against Italy 22 years ago.
“Hopefully now Brazil can get back to winning here,” Dunga told reporters in Los Angeles last week during a training camp.
Dunga’s task has been complicated by the proximity of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August.
Brazil’s determination to win the only international title that has eluded them — an Olympic gold medal — has meant hard choices have had to be made.
Neymar, their talismanic captain, will miss the Copa America in order to be available for the Olympics.
Dunga has made no secret of his desire to concentrate on the Olympics but is adamant that Brazil have enough quality to challenge for the Copa America.
“Obviously we’d like to have Neymar here, but this is a top team,” Dunga said.
“Some of them are very young, but they have quality. This is an opportunity for these players to show they deserve to be on the first team.”
As well as Neymar, other notable absentees include defenders Thiago Silva and David Luiz, who both seem to have fallen out of favor, along with midfielder Oscar and injured Bayern Munich star Douglas Costa.
That could leave an opportunity for emerging talent Gabriel, the 19-year-old Santos prodigy known affectionately as “Gabigol”.
Gabriel scored on his debut for Brazil in a 2-0 win over Panama on Sunday, signalling that he is ready to fill the void left by Neymar.
Weather leaves Djokovic facing hectic Paris schedule
Novak Djokovic will look to conquer both the weather and last-16 opponent Roberto Bautista Agut on Tuesday with more bleak conditions forecast at Roland Garros.
The French Open suffered its first washout since 2000 on Monday when all scheduled matches were cancelled due to heavy rain, and there could be more problems on Tuesday with further rain expected.
The threat of transport chaos also loomed over the tournament after unions in France called for fresh strikes on the national rail network beginning Tuesday and on the Paris Metro from Thursday.
Djokovic, who is bidding for a first French Open title to complete a career Grand Slam, finished his third-round match against Britain’s Aljaz Bedene in near darkness on Saturday, with the world number one later calling for floodlights to be introduced at Roland Garros.
“For a Grand Slam you need to have lights. I’m really hoping we can have that very soon for these particular situations, especially considering the fact that forecast for weather is not that great in the following days,” he said.
Those fears were realised on Monday, leaving Djokovic facing the prospect of playing his last-16 tie Wednesday, quarter-final on Thursday and semi-final Friday should there be further delays on Tuesday.
“It’s not good for anybody, you know, waiting the whole day for players, for fans, for tournament organisers. So I’m just — just hoping that, you know, things will go well in the future.”
The Serb, poised to become the first man to win $100 million in prize money, will top the bill against Spanish 14th seed Bautista Agut on Philippe Chatrier court, while Andy Murray is scheduled to take on French ninth seed Richard Gasquet for a place in the semi-finals.
Murray has won the last five meetings between the pair, but Gasquet can draw upon the support of a home crowd hoping to see him become the first Frenchman to win a Grand Slam title since Yannick Noah in 1983.
Two-time former French Open champion Sergi Bruguera, who is coaching Gasquet, believes Murray will provide an even more formidable assignment after notable wins already over Nick Kyrgios and Kei Nishikori.
“Murray is one of the in-form players. He just reached the final in Madrid and he won in Rome. He’s a monster, especially in five sets. He’s proved he can win Roland Garros, it’s an incredibly difficult match,” said Bruguera.
Defending champion Stan Wawrinka is due to face unfancied Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the quarter-finals on Suzanne Lenglen court, two weeks after thrashing the world number 55 by 6-1, 6-1 in Geneva.
Serena Williams continues her quest for a record-equalling 22nd Open era Grand Slam title against Ukrainian 18th seed Elina Svitolina in the women’s last 16.
Venus Williams plays Swiss eighth Timea Bascinszky, who reached last year’s semi-finals, and there are two fourth-round matches still to be completed from Sunday.
Second seed Agnieszka Radwanska leads Bulgaria’s Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2, 3-0 while sixth seed Simona Halep of Romania was 5-3 up on Australian veteran Samantha Stosur.
Tomas Berdych takes on former finalist David Ferrer in other fourth-round action as 2014 semi-finalist Ernests Gulbis battles Belgian 12th seed David Goffin.
Austrian 13th Dominic Thiem is up against unseeded Marcel Granollers with both players aiming to reach the last eight of a Grand Slam for the first time.
Granollers made the last 16 without hitting a ball when nine-time champion Rafael Nadal pulled out of the tournament with a wrist injury.
Saudi Arabia executes Nigerian man after he was convicted of killing a police officer
Saudi authorities have executed a Nigerian man after convicting him of murdering a police officer, AFP reports. It was the 95th execution of the year in the ultra-conservative Muslim kingdom, which imposes the death penalty for offences including murder, drug trafficking, armed robbery, rape and apostasy. The surge in executions has drawn concern from human rights groups.
Fahd Houssawi was executed on Sunday, May 29 in the western city of Taif, the interior ministry said in a statement carried by the official SPA news agency. He had been found guilty of strangling a policeman and beating him to death, the ministry said.
Houssawi had knocked the man to the ground before hitting his head repeatedly into the ground, beating him to death. He then injured another man in his attempt to escape.
Amnesty International has warned that at the current rate Saudi Arabia could see more than 100 executions in the first half of 2016.
The London-based watchdog said the kingdom carried out at least 158 death sentences last year, making it the third most prolific executioner after Iran and Pakistan. Its figures do not include secretive China.
The executions this year are higher than at the same point last year, Amnesty said.
Murder and drug trafficking cases account for the majority of Saudi executions, although 47 people were put to death for “terrorism” offences on a single day in January.
Source: AFP
Adele buys LA mansion for $9.5million (photos)
The 28-year-old is set to sign a record-breaking $130million contract so this purchase won't exactly burn a hole in her finances.
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