Paloma Werner who was onboard with her partner Ralph Mothes said: “The southern right whale, a species known for poor eyesight, snapped the mast before sliding back into the water, and my partner and I had just seconds to take cover. It really was quite incredible but very scary. The whale was about the same size as the boat. We’d spotted it about 100 metres away and thought that was the end of it. Then suddenly it was right up beside us. I assumed it would go underneath the boat but instead it sprang out of the sea. We were very lucky to get through it, as the sheer weight of the thing was huge. There were bits of skin and blubber left behind, and the mast was wrecked. It brought down the rigging too. Thank goodness the hull was made of steel and not fiberglass or we could have been ruined.”

Although the couple was left shaken by the whole experience and their boat severely damaged, their engine still worked so they could get back to shore in Table Bay, after the incident there were reports that the whale had been harassed by pleasure craft before it leapt onto the Intrepid. An inflatable craft had been seen driving close to the animal moments before the incident. Experts have said regarding the incident, that the young whale was more likely inexperienced with human contact and didn’t know the yacht, which had its engine turned off, was there.

Scientist and manager of the Cape Town Mammal Research Institute at the University of Pretoria, Meredith Thornton said:”Whales don’t see much by way of their eyes but by sound in the water.”

During the 26 hour flight, heights of around 28,543 feet were reached, making it both the longest and highest flight performed by a solar powered plane. As the plane touched down assistants, who had helped to build the plane over the last 7 years, rushed to the plane (that weighs the weight of an average family car and has a wingspan of 207 ft) to make sure it was all still intact. The teams were thrilled as this now meant that they were one step closer to achieving their dream of a solar powered plane big enough for a full load of passengers to travel across the world through the night. The team aim to achieve this goal by 2013. Mr. Piccard quoted “It’s the first time ever that a (manned) solar airplane has flown through the night. That was the moment that proved the mission was successful, we made it.”

Picture courtesy of Deutsche Bank AG

Gary Faulkner had arrived in Chitrali town of Bumburate on June 3 and stayed in a local hotel where he was assigned a police guard, which is customary for foreigners visiting remote parts of Pakistan, however he gave his guard the slip and checked out early to begin his hunt for Bin Laden. Officers who had been looking for him since he gave his guard the slip arrested Faulkner as he crept through a remote forest, when he was arrested he was found to be carrying a pistol as well as a 40-inch sword, night vision goggles and a book of Christian works and teachings.

When Faulkner was asked what he was doing in the area officers were shocked by his replay and thought that he was joking when he said he was there to kill Osama bin Laden, senior investigator with the Afghan police Mumtaz Ahmad Khan said, “when officers seized he pistol, the sword and night-vision equipment, our suspicion grew, he was roaming in the security zone in a suspicious manner. He had a dagger and night vision goggles with him. He is being investigated.”

The Pakistani Daily Dawn newspaper said “Faulkner acknowledged to police that he wanted to ‘decapitate Osama bin Laden, and told them he had visited Pakistan seven times, and this was his third trip to Chitral.”

According to Faulkner’s brother Scott, catching Bin Laden was his passion and he said, “Our military has not been able to track Osama down yet. It’s been 10 years, its easier as a civilian, dressed in the local dress, to infiltrate the inside, the local people, gain their confidence and get information and Intel that you couldn’t get as an American soldier, Navy SEAL, whoever you might be”

Picture courtesy of OpenDemocracy

The storm which is the first named storm of the 2010 Pacific season caused devastation in Guatemala and neighboring El Salvador at the weekend after dumping more than three feet of rain, officials have reported that Agatha has killed at least 146 people with 53 still missing across Central America.

The sink hole which appeared near a downtown intersection swallowed up an area which was larger than the street of an intersection, locals believe that a poor sewage drainage system was to blame for the sinkhole. It is similar to on which opened up nearby last year and can appear suddenly but are thousands of years in the making, geologists said. As rainwater gradually eats away at the porous rock such as limestone that is beneath the surface it becomes weakened and creates a honeycomb of caverns and caves, these can become packed with mud and it is believed that floodwater may have flushed away that mud, causing the ground above to collapse.

Picture courtesy of horslips5

This latest death will add fuel to the fair of labour activists who allege Foxconn has a long history of mistreatment of workers and poor working conditions. They claim that the 300,000 employees face tremendous pressure in their working conditions and are pushed hard they also claim that any employees who make mistakes face harsh discipline.

Foxconn, who are owned by Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry group are yet to make any comment about the death, however after a suicide earlier this month the company said “our workers enjoy world-class treatment, including social responsibility programmes to ensure their welfare.”

The company also produce mobile phones for Nokia, Playstation consoles for Sony and computers for Hewlett-Packard, the most high profile death at the factory happened last July, when Sun Danyong, 25, jumped to his death. He had previously been interrogated over an iPhone prototype that had gone missing, he was responsible for sending the device to US-based Apple.

These people grew up in a time when there weren’t really many STD/STI’s and the worse that could happen through having unprotected sex was they would become pregnant, however due to their age pregnancy is no longer a concern so they don’t think there is a need to use protection. Adding to that many old people won’t talk to their doctors about sexual activity because they feel uncomfortable and therefore are not aware of the new risks.

Increased use of online dating websites also means that rather than just sticking to one partner they are meeting more thus as in young people causing an increase in STD/STI’s with multiple partners, unfortunately they are less likely to be tested for and diseases.

Picture courtesy of Ed Yourdon

It’s thought that the dose that was given to the brother would have been the usual amount to knock out but not kill an average adult however due to their small stature though the amount taken by the brothers is thought to be what killed them. Its suspected that the brothers picked up the two women after filming a TV fight show and took them back to the hotel and according to police in Mexico City whilst they were preparing for their ’bouts’ they appear to have had their alcoholic drinks spiked before being robbed. Their bodies were found by cleaners on Monday and early tests show that the brothers did not have sex with the women.

The brothers began their fighting careers 17 years ago as a tag team called the Small Devils, where they occasionally crossed into the world of American WWF/WWE.  Alberto AKA ‘La Parkita’ who wore a skeleton mask fought at the WWF Royal Rumble showpiece events in 1997 and 1998 in a tag team alongside Lucha Mini legend and Hollywood actor Mascarita Sagrada. As well as that he also beat a tag team featuring his brother, who was fighting under the name Mini Mankind at the 1997 Royal Rumble.

Picture courtesy of Esparta

For those who have been stranded in Spain for nearly a week now this will be a welcome relief, especially travelling back in the 5* luxury of the Celebrity Eclipse cruise liner which can carry 2,850 passengers. The President and Chief Executive of Celebrity Cruises Dan Hanrahan, contacted tour operators Thomas Cook, TUI and Co-Op Travel Group to look at bringing back their stranded customers.

He said. “They responded favourably to our idea of bringing these passengers back and they knew where their guests were in Spain and they could give us a manifest of people. It seemed a better idea than having a two-day party and it’s all worked out and we’re happy to help.”

The Eclipse is due to arrive in Bilbao in the early hours of Thursday 22nd and pick up the stranded holiday makers before returning to Southampton.

Picture courtesy of eastleighbusman

The volcano that has caused all this disruption is the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland which erupted yesterday for the second time in a month, spewing massive clouds of ash thousands of feet into the sky. This ash in the atmosphere is what is causing the closures of UK airports, the Met Office has advised airlines not to fly, and the plume of ash which is currently moving towards the UK can affect aircraft flying between 5,000ft and 35,000ft. Volcanic ash is abrasive and dangerous for aircraft. It reduces visibility, causes damage to fuel and water systems and can clog engines causing them to fail. It can also affect landing gear.

Many travellers due to depart today have been advised to contact their airline for more information, its expected that some airports will not be open until tomorrow depending on the situation. This morning a Heathrow Airport spokesman said “150 flights, both arrivals and departures, had been cancelled – at the busiest time of the day – and more flights were expected to be affected as the cloud of ash moved south.”

Picture courtesy of U-g-g-B-o-y-(-Photograph-World-Sense-)

They had been bound for a 70th anniversary memorial service for the 22,000 leading Poles massacred by Stalin’s secret police in the Katyn forest during the Second World War, this crash adding to the wounds of that event which still have not been healed.

Investigations are underway as to why he jet’s two experienced air force pilots ignored repeated advice from Russian ground control to take the Tupolev 154 to another airport. At least one other plane had already been diverted, Russian officials say pilots ignored warnings that they were flying too low. Some experts say the crew may have been ordered to press on with the landing by the president or a senior military commander on board.

The body of President Kaczynski was flown into Warsaw’s military airport, the president’s twin brother Jaroslaw, a former prime minister, knelt on the tarmac and pressed his head against the flag-draped coffin, Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria’s only daughter Marta paid a solemn tribute as her father’s coffin arrived.

As tens of thousands of mourners stood in silence along the hearse’s six-mile route to the palace questions were been asked about the cause of the crash, despite bad weather being blamed for and if the Russians were involved due to the deep running suspicions Poles historically have with Russia.

Picture courtesy of munhitsu

A local woman reported the couple to police for what she described as passionate kissing and touching. A previous hearing found the pair guilty and sentenced them to a month’s imprisonment and deportation on release.

The couple are claiming that all they actually engaged in was a peck on the cheek as a greeting in the way that Brits have adopted continental standards over recent weeks. The pair, both from London, met in a principality while working and holidaying there.

“The story came to light after an Emirati woman, who was with her children having a meal in the restaurant, saw the pair. She claimed she saw the two kissing each other in public and she called the police who came and arrested them. But later on she told the public prosecutors that it was actually one of her children who saw my clients kissing and not her. She is not sure about the incident. They both kissed each other on cheek and that is a normal greeting in their culture, not a crime.”

The case is merely the latest in a long string of cases where Westerners have found themselves on the wrong end of the law in the Gulf – mostly through sheer ignorance. Most famously Vince Acors and Michelle Palmer were imprisoned for three months for having sex on Jumeirah Beach, which first brought public attention to the vast legal and cultural gulf between the UK and countries in the Middle East.

Companies in the Gulf are desperate to attract Western know-how and language skills to the region in order to fill the many jobs in a Dubai that demand technical specialisms and international co-ordination, but these instance serve to highlight that the region is still a long way away from its Western neighbours in terms of culture. For all the art galleries, shopping malls and football stadia, the region is still highly informed by strict interpretation of Islamic law and young Europeans, away from home for the first time (and often paid extremely well in glamourous surroundings) find it very easy to fall foul of the law.

The case continues and is expected to reach a conclusion this week.

(image courtesy of Andrey)

Mr Podolsky did not have his mobile phone on him when he became trapped 10m above ground he decided against jumping from the lift as the drop probably would have caused an injury and increased his chances of freezing to death. Because Mr Podolsky had, had military training in the past he was able to use his survival skills to fight off hypothermia however before for he was rescued his limbs began to go numb and he kept falling asleep.

After he was spotted by the cleaning crew he was taken to hospital and treated for hypothermia but was released later and able to go home. Mr Podolsky has stated he intends to sue the company that operates the ski lift however a spokesman for the company states it was not meant for downward trips and Mr Podolsky had apparently ignored signs warning against boarding it.

Picture courtesy of dani0010

Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh was found murdered in his Dubai hotel room on January 19th and suspicion has fallen on Mossad – who have a long history of carrying out assassinations in this manner. Al-Mabhouh was a prominent member of Hamas, the political organisation who are currently in opposition to Israel.

Aside from the method of execution – which could have been lifted from the pages of a spy thriller – the incident further highlights how far the region still has to go in terms of internal stability. Some of  the alleged agents were using stolen British passports, which threatens to create a major diplomatic row with the UK if Mossad do turn out to be involved.

This reminder of the tensions that straddle the region come as many Britons are looking to take up jobs in the Middle East. Unemployment at home has been hit hard by the financial crisis so young people with technical knowledge are leaving  by the thousand to take up positions in the Gulf, which is still booming on the back of its oil-funded economy. Blithely unaware of the very, very different cultural background in which they are working, they fall foul of local law and custom – often getting into very serious trouble.

The fact that this incident involves the apparent theft of British passports shows how lightly our own cultural niceties are treated in many states in the region. Of course, assassination is vanishingly rare and most people who seek work in the region are circumspect and respectful of local cultural norms. But as East increasingly meets West in this fascinating corner of the world, more tensions will continue to bubble up to highlight the gulf (sorry for the pun!) between us.

However, the mint said they had no plans to take the coins out of circulation, and they have rapidly become collector’s items in the country. Pedro Urúa the mint’s head franker denied allegations that the spelling error had been a deliberate move and said “I have been accused of having written the word “Chiie’ deliberately, but it was an error spotted by neither myself nor the entire chain of people who saw and approved it afterwards”.

Picture courtesy of ricardo.martin

Alexander Skopintsev who was from the eastern region of Primorye near China’s border was convicted for the unlawful construction and storage of weapons and received a two-and-a-half year suspended sentence, he had laid 3 land mine devices on his land after making them in his garage. “Skopintsev testified that he had prepared the explosive devices to protect his garden against thieves,” regional prosecutors said in a statement reported by RIA-Novosti news agency.

Picture courtesy of net_efekt