Newslip Episode 25 28.06.09

Welcome to Newslip. Today is Sunday, 28th June 2009. I’m Wesley Gerrard and here are the stories making this week’s news…

The world of football had one of its biggest ever shocks this week when underdogs, USA, beat tournament favourites, Spain, in the semi-finals of the Confederations Cup in South Africa. Spain had a world record of 15 consecutive wins and had been unbeaten in 35 matches. The USA had been comprehensively beaten by Italy and Brazil earlier in the tournament. Goalkeeper Tim Howard kept them in the game. Goals came from Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey. The winning scoreline was 2-0. Their win makes it the first time that they will appear in the final of a major international tournament. The USA face Brazil in the final who promise that their own weak semifinal performance against South Africa will be bettered.

Nine people were killed and about 70 injured in a subway train crash in Washington DC. Carriages of one of the trains came to rest on top of the other after a moving train hit a stationary vehicle above ground near a station. The crash which was the worst in the 33 years of the Metro system, happened above ground between Fort Totten and Takoma at 1700 local time on Monday. Two men and seven women died, including Jeanice McMillan, 42, who was the driver of the moving train. The train that crashed was part of a fleet of older carriages and the ongoing investigation into the crash is gathering details from the black box recorders to try to find out what caused it.

Australian wallabies are eating opium poppies and creating crop circles as they hop around "as high as a kite". The kangaroo-like marsupials have been getting into poppy fields grown for medicine in Tasmania. Australia supplies about 50% of the world's legally-grown opium used to make morphine and other painkillers. Apparently the effect of stoned animals grazing on opium and then walking around in circles till they fall over in a heap was first noticed in sheep. The circle hopping wallabies are the latest revelation in the global crop circle mystery which often blames aliens for the strange designs in fields. The evidence on the phenomenon was presented to the Australian government as part of a report on the security for poppy crops.

The row over MPs expenses has spilled over to other areas of the public sector. The BBC’s director general Mark Thompson has said £350,000 in expenses claims paid out to the corporation's top executives was "reasonable and justified". He defended his decision to publish the salaries of executives but not of BBC talent. Claims included luxury hotels, vintage champagne, parties and a private aeroplane. There was public demand to discover what amounts were being paid to the BBC’s so-called ‘stars’ but Thompson said that in such a competitive industry as that of entertainment, where there was no history of such disclosure, in publishing salary information the BBC could potentially face a talent drain.

A bomb killed at least 72 people on Wednesday at a busy market in eastern Baghdad's Sadr City slum. About 127 people were wounded by the blast in the poor, mostly Shi'ite Muslim area. A witness said the explosion tore through a part of the Mraidi Market where birds are sold, setting stalls ablaze. Bloodshed has dropped sharply across Iraq in the past year, but militants including Sunni Islamist al Qaeda continue to launch car and suicide bombings aimed at undermining the government and reigniting sectarian conflict. Wednesday's market bombing came four days after the U.S. military formally handed control to local forces in Sadr City, where U.S. and Iraqi forces fought fierce battles against Shi'ite militiamen in the spring of 2008.

The Swine Flu endemic continues to engulf the globe. Statistics show that there are now more than 1 million cases in the US. In Britain. There are 3600 confirmed cases with only one death so far. The worst hit areas in the UK are the West Midlands, London and Glasgow. The West Midlands has about twice as many cases (more than a thousand) than each of the other two areas. Two university students and a ten year old have showed signs of the disease at the Glastonbury music festival. Due to the rapid spread of the disease, UK officials have dismissed the possibility of containment exercises by closing schools . 29 schools where cases of the disease have been found are indeed staying open. Officials have remarked how surprised they are at the unexpected low death levels that the pandemic has induced so far across the world.

Popular BBC television series Top Gear has pulled a remarkable publicity coup. The hit series for car lovers, presented by Jeremy Clarkson, has a cult driver, The Stig, whose white suit and crash helmet keep his identity disguised as he performs driving feats. He has a massive following and to mark the start of a new series, presenter Clarkson promised a moment in television history to ‘rival the moon landings and JR’s shooting.’ The Stig was unveiled, to everyone’s surprise, as former German formula 1 world champion, Michael Schumacher. Doubters of the veracity of this mystery solution were immediate and the internet was full of conspiracy theories. At the end of the show doubt was cast on Michael Schumacher’s Stig as he made a terrible mess of a test drive. Publicity stunt or not, does the Stig’s identity remain a mystery? It is certainly no mystery that viewing figures rose substantially.

A gunman opened fire in a packed restaurant in West London on Friday night. A man and a fifteen year old boy are suffering from non life threatening bullet wounds. The incident occurred at Harry Morgan's restaurant in St John's Wood High Street, a relatively affluent area of the capital. Pop star Rachel Stevens was dining at the venue at the time. A spokeswoman for the former S Club 7 member said: "Rachel and her family were in a restaurant where there was gunfire. It was very frightening for everyone there but none of the diners were hurt." A man in a motorbike helmet brandishing two automatic pistols chased the two victims into the restaurant and opened fire, sending diners scurrying to the floor to hide beneath their tables. Harry Morgan's was established in 1948 by a London butcher and has been shortlisted in the Evening Standard Restaurant Awards. Fortunately none of the diners were hurt.

Britain has expelled two Iranian diplomats from the country in a clear sign of ever-worsening relations with the Middle Eastern country. The decision was made by the Prime Minister as a tit-for-tat response after two British diplomats were expelled from Tehran. As the post-election crisis continues further foreign influence carries on. President Obama said Mir Hossein Mousavi, the head of the opposition, had captured the imagination of groups in Iran that were interested in opening up to the world. Dr Arash Hejazi, who is studying at a university in the south of England, has spoken of the moments when he tended to the shot female protestor, Neda Agha-Soltan, who bled to death. President Ahmadinejad accuses foreign governments of stirring up the current troubles and his paranoia is not without reason as the history of Iran is full of foreign intelligence inspired coups, in particular coups provoked by the CIA and SIS or British MI6.

And this week’s top story…

‘King of Pop’ Michael Jackson has died suddenly after suffering a cardiac arrest at his Los Angeles home. After collapsing, his personal physician failed to revive him and ambulance crews rushed the singer to the UCLA medical centre where he was pronounced dead. The star was fifty years old and was in preparations for a heavily scheduled farewell world tour, commencing with a series of gigs at London’s O2 Arena. Fans immediately began congregating outside the hospital and rumours flew across the media. It was the biggest ever single news event on twitter and all major web services reported carrying capacity problems, including Google who thought that they were under attack by spammers. Michael Jackson was one of the most famous people on the planet and not since the death of Elvis Presley has such a death devastated the entertainment world. His album, Thriller is the biggest selling album of all time. Jackson’s life was surrounded by a media circus and his death appears no different. He is often mocked for his extensive plastic surgery and the controversial child abuse court case severely affected his reputation in recent years. However, I am sure that the annals of history will remember this star, who has died before his time, for his remarkable catalogue of hit pop music. Rest in Peace, Michael Jackson.

That’s all for Newslip. Thanks for tuning in. See you again soon. Goodbye.

Welcome to Newslip. Today is Sunday, 28th June 2009. I’m Wesley Gerrard and here are the stories making this week’s news…

The world of football had one of its biggest ever shocks this week when underdogs, USA, beat tournament favourites, Spain, in the semi-finals of the Confederations Cup in South Africa. Spain had a world record of 15 consecutive wins and had been unbeaten in 35 matches. The USA had been comprehensively beaten by Italy and Brazil earlier in the tournament. Goalkeeper Tim Howard kept them in the game. Goals came from Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey. The winning scoreline was 2-0. Their win makes it the first time that they will appear in the final of a major international tournament. The USA face Brazil in the final who promise that their own weak semifinal performance against South Africa will be bettered.

Nine people were killed and about 70 injured in a subway train crash in Washington DC. Carriages of one of the trains came to rest on top of the other after a moving train hit a stationary vehicle above ground near a station. The crash which was the worst in the 33 years of the Metro system, happened above ground between Fort Totten and Takoma at 1700 local time on Monday. Two men and seven women died, including Jeanice McMillan, 42, who was the driver of the moving train. The train that crashed was part of a fleet of older carriages and the ongoing investigation into the crash is gathering details from the black box recorders to try to find out what caused it.

Australian wallabies are eating opium poppies and creating crop circles as they hop around "as high as a kite". The kangaroo-like marsupials have been getting into poppy fields grown for medicine in Tasmania. Australia supplies about 50% of the world's legally-grown opium used to make morphine and other painkillers. Apparently the effect of stoned animals grazing on opium and then walking around in circles till they fall over in a heap was first noticed in sheep. The circle hopping wallabies are the latest revelation in the global crop circle mystery which often blames aliens for the strange designs in fields. The evidence on the phenomenon was presented to the Australian government as part of a report on the security for poppy crops.

The row over MPs expenses has spilled over to other areas of the public sector. The BBC’s director general Mark Thompson has said £350,000 in expenses claims paid out to the corporation's top executives was "reasonable and justified". He defended his decision to publish the salaries of executives but not of BBC talent. Claims included luxury hotels, vintage champagne, parties and a private aeroplane. There was public demand to discover what amounts were being paid to the BBC’s so-called ‘stars’ but Thompson said that in such a competitive industry as that of entertainment, where there was no history of such disclosure, in publishing salary information the BBC could potentially face a talent drain.

A bomb killed at least 72 people on Wednesday at a busy market in eastern Baghdad's Sadr City slum. About 127 people were wounded by the blast in the poor, mostly Shi'ite Muslim area. A witness said the explosion tore through a part of the Mraidi Market where birds are sold, setting stalls ablaze. Bloodshed has dropped sharply across Iraq in the past year, but militants including Sunni Islamist al Qaeda continue to launch car and suicide bombings aimed at undermining the government and reigniting sectarian conflict. Wednesday's market bombing came four days after the U.S. military formally handed control to local forces in Sadr City, where U.S. and Iraqi forces fought fierce battles against Shi'ite militiamen in the spring of 2008.

The Swine Flu endemic continues to engulf the globe. Statistics show that there are now more than 1 million cases in the US. In Britain. There are 3600 confirmed cases with only one death so far. The worst hit areas in the UK are the West Midlands, London and Glasgow. The West Midlands has about twice as many cases (more than a thousand) than each of the other two areas. Two university students and a ten year old have showed signs of the disease at the Glastonbury music festival. Due to the rapid spread of the disease, UK officials have dismissed the possibility of containment exercises by closing schools . 29 schools where cases of the disease have been found are indeed staying open. Officials have remarked how surprised they are at the unexpected low death levels that the pandemic has induced so far across the world.

Popular BBC television series Top Gear has pulled a remarkable publicity coup. The hit series for car lovers, presented by Jeremy Clarkson, has a cult driver, The Stig, whose white suit and crash helmet keep his identity disguised as he performs driving feats. He has a massive following and to mark the start of a new series, presenter Clarkson promised a moment in television history to ‘rival the moon landings and JR’s shooting.’ The Stig was unveiled, to everyone’s surprise, as former German formula 1 world champion, Michael Schumacher. Doubters of the veracity of this mystery solution were immediate and the internet was full of conspiracy theories. At the end of the show doubt was cast on Michael Schumacher’s Stig as he made a terrible mess of a test drive. Publicity stunt or not, does the Stig’s identity remain a mystery? It is certainly no mystery that viewing figures rose substantially.

A gunman opened fire in a packed restaurant in West London on Friday night. A man and a fifteen year old boy are suffering from non life threatening bullet wounds. The incident occurred at Harry Morgan's restaurant in St John's Wood High Street, a relatively affluent area of the capital. Pop star Rachel Stevens was dining at the venue at the time. A spokeswoman for the former S Club 7 member said: "Rachel and her family were in a restaurant where there was gunfire. It was very frightening for everyone there but none of the diners were hurt." A man in a motorbike helmet brandishing two automatic pistols chased the two victims into the restaurant and opened fire, sending diners scurrying to the floor to hide beneath their tables. Harry Morgan's was established in 1948 by a London butcher and has been shortlisted in the Evening Standard Restaurant Awards. Fortunately none of the diners were hurt.

Britain has expelled two Iranian diplomats from the country in a clear sign of ever-worsening relations with the Middle Eastern country. The decision was made by the Prime Minister as a tit-for-tat response after two British diplomats were expelled from Tehran. As the post-election crisis continues further foreign influence carries on. President Obama said Mir Hossein Mousavi, the head of the opposition, had captured the imagination of groups in Iran that were interested in opening up to the world. Dr Arash Hejazi, who is studying at a university in the south of England, has spoken of the moments when he tended to the shot female protestor, Neda Agha-Soltan, who bled to death. President Ahmadinejad accuses foreign governments of stirring up the current troubles and his paranoia is not without reason as the history of Iran is full of foreign intelligence inspired coups, in particular coups provoked by the CIA and SIS or British MI6.

And this week’s top story…

‘King of Pop’ Michael Jackson has died suddenly after suffering a cardiac arrest at his Los Angeles home. After collapsing, his personal physician failed to revive him and ambulance crews rushed the singer to the UCLA medical centre where he was pronounced dead. The star was fifty years old and was in preparations for a heavily scheduled farewell world tour, commencing with a series of gigs at London’s O2 Arena. Fans immediately began congregating outside the hospital and rumours flew across the media. It was the biggest ever single news event on twitter and all major web services reported carrying capacity problems, including Google who thought that they were under attack by spammers. Michael Jackson was one of the most famous people on the planet and not since the death of Elvis Presley has such a death devastated the entertainment world. His album, Thriller is the biggest selling album of all time. Jackson’s life was surrounded by a media circus and his death appears no different. He is often mocked for his extensive plastic surgery and the controversial child abuse court case severely affected his reputation in recent years. However, I am sure that the annals of history will remember this star, who has died before his time, for his remarkable catalogue of hit pop music. Rest in Peace, Michael Jackson.

That’s all for Newslip. Thanks for tuning in. See you again soon. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 24 21.06.09

Welcome to Newslip. I'm Wesley Gerrard. Today is the summer solstice, 21st June 2009. here are the stories making the news this week.

647 workers at the Lindsey oil refinery in Lincolnshire were sacked after they called wildcat strikes. Their unsympathetic employers, French oil giant Total, had been in a bitter dispute with the union who claimed that promises not to make further job cuts had been broken. The refinery had been subject to strikes against the use of foreign labour back in January. The latest row began after Total sacked 51 employees working on a construction project at the plant. Workers who joined the wildcat action included those at the Staythorpe power station in Nottinghamshire, Ferrybridge power station in Yorkshire and around 1,100 construction workers building a bio-fuel plant on Teesside. Total apparently didn't turn up to a meeting with the union and the leader of the GMB Union, Paul Kenny, said: "Total has not even had the decency or courtesy to turn up at the meeting that they themselves arranged... Bullying and intimidation is not the way to bring about peace."

A truck bomb killed 64 people near the northern Iraqi oil city of Kirkuk on Saturday, the country's bloodiest attack in 15 months. The attack, which also wounded 202 people, struck near a mosque in Taza Kharmatu, a predominantly Turkmen Shiite town south of Kirkuk, at around 1:00 pm on Saturday and claimed women and children among its victims, officials said. More than one ton of explosives was used in the bombing. Kirkuk, north of Baghdad, is plagued with intercommunal tensions among its Kurdish, Turkmen and Arab communities.

Scotland Yard has decided to launch an investigation into MPs' misuse of expenses. Its economic and specialist crime command will investigate several MPs, Labour's Elliot Morley and David Chaytor have admitted that they are among those under scrutiny. Both apparently claimed interest payments on mortgages they had already paid off. They have been barred by Labour in standing at the next election. Scotland Yard have previously made parliamentary investigations which have ended in no criminal prosecutions. In addition to this new leaf in the ongoing saga, it has been revealed that over 50 MPs had been guilty of overclaiming their council tax expenses. After checking data with local town halls it was discovered that these MPs had falsely inflated the amount that they were actually being charged.

The British and Irish Lions played the first test in their tour of South Africa and were unfortunate to lose. A disappointing first half left them trailing to the hosts by about twenty points. The Lions forwards were letting them down with Phil Vickery performing badly in the scrummage and the Lions lacking the Southern Hemisphere ferocity at the breakdown. Changes were made and the Lions started a comeback which left South Africa shellshocked but it was too little too late and the match was abruptly ended by an under-the-cosh South Africa with them pipping the legendary tourists to a 26-21 defeat and condemning the Lions to the necessity of another comeback if they wish to gain victory in the overall series.

A record crowd has gathered at Stonehenge to witness the summer solstice. 36,500 people gathered at the prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain to watch the sun rise, putting massive pressure on local transport infrastructure. By 3AM revellers were struggling to lift their beer cans to their mouths. Sensibly, the druids held their ceremony beside the heel stone, a leaning monolithic a few dozen yards from the main stone circle. They were joined by a group of Papuans who made the pilgrimage in an effort to draw attention to their struggle with the Indonesian authorities in their homeland. The record crowds were lucky enough in that the sun was shining. The high numbers are due to the solstice falling on a weekend this year.

A row has erupted in Formula 1, threatening to end the sport as we know it. The eight Fota teams - McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull, Brawn, Toro Rosso, Renault and Toyota - released a statement declaring their intention to quit Formula 1 and set up a breakaway group. Their move is as a protest to the planned budget caps which would limit the amount of money each team could spend. Also they are discontented with FIA President Max Mosley who they see as having an autocratic grip on the sport. He allowed the Concorde agreement to lapse which gave the teams rights in determining the rules and regulations of the sport. Mosley described the breakaway threat as "posing and posturing", adding: "Always with these things in the end there's a compromise."

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Spacecraft are on their way to the moon atop the same Atlas V rocket. LRO will go into orbit around the moon, turning its suite of instruments towards the moon for thorough studies. The spacecraft also will be looking for potential landing sites for astronauts. NASA plan on landing humans on the moon again some time before 2020. In addition to the probing, the current mission, which is due to reach lunar orbit on Thursday, will be seeking to find sources of water on the Moon.

Pressure on the Labour government continued with Hazel Blears, the former communities secretary, narrowly escaping deselection in her Salford constituency. Her decision to quit the cabinet prior to the European elections was said to have been within a hair's breadth of bringing down Gordon Brown. The Prime Minister, this week, spoke of not enjoying the pressures of office and how he could quite easily walk away from his position. The trappings of power continue to haunt him at cabinet level as he faced a hostile pack regarding his plans for taking on the Tories at the next election.

The Islamic Shiite Resistance in Iraq have handed over two dead bodies to British government officials in Iraq. The dead men have been identified as security guards, Jason Swindlehurst, from Skelmersdale, Lancashire, and Jason Creswell, from Glasgow. They were part of the hostage party seized by militants in 2007. They had been guarding computer expert Peter Moores, who remains hostage with two other guards. It is believed that the release of the bodies was a goodwill gesture after Laith al-Khazali was released by the Americans last week. The British government has a policy of not paying extortionate ransoms for kidnapped Brits, which has been criticised and also praised.

And this week's top story...

The aftermath of the controversial Iranian election has been the principal headline of the week. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei spoke out against foreign nations and claimed that the UK was the most evil of all these governments. the Iranians have criticised international media bias in its reporting and believes that the current unrest is a result of foreign stirrings. Riots between police and opposition protestors has left at least ten people dead. Authorities are firing into crowds of demonstrators with live ammo. The BBC, whose Persian language channel is very popular in Iran, has evacuated its main Tehran correspondent. There has been a general media blackout in the Pariah state and people there have turned to social networks in their droves to push information out. President Obama has begun to criticise the events after initially maintaining silence.

That's all for Newslip this week. Thanks for tuning in. See you all again soon. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 23 14.06.09

Welcome to Newslip. I'm Wesley Gerrard. Today's date is Sunday, 14th June 2009. Here are the stories making this week's news.

The fugitive Bosnian Serb army commander, Ratko Mladic, has caused controversy after a documentary was aired on Sarajevo television showing the perpetuator of genocide enjoying himself at a wedding, holidaying at a ski resort and openly cavorting with other renegade former army officers, who are also wanted for their crimes against humanity. Serbia, as one of its conditions for joining the EU, is under international pressure to capture Mladic and hand him over to international authorities. A former bodyguard revealed that until 2002 Mladic roamed freely in Belgrade. He is wanted primarily for causing the massacre of 8000 Bosnian Muslims at Srebenica. Last year the high profile Radovan Karadzic was extradicted to The Hague and it is hoped that Mladic will follow.

The close season in football has begun with a bang. Fresh from his double medal tally, Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo has shattered the world transfer record with a much anticipated move to Real Madrid. £80 million was the tag for the deal which apparently was agreed last summer, Real have been blowing a huge budget, reigniting the famed 'Galactico' era. In addition to the purchase of former world player of the year, Ronaldo, Los Blancos have spent £60 million on AC Milan's Kaka and another £100 million on five other players. They have not yet closed the chequebook either, as Florentino Perez, in his second time as president, is upping the chase for Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso. Ronaldo was his club's top scorer last season with 26 goals and his presence in the Premiership may well be sorely missed.

North Korea has done little to improve its international relations this week as it sentenced two American journalists to 12 years hard labour. The country has recently received widespread criticism for its militaristic shimmies to the outside world as it tests nuclear bombs and long range missiles, launches satellites and has a bellicose attitude to its regional neighbours. Laura Ling and Euna Lee were reporting at the Chinese-North Korea border, on the issue of illegal immigrants seeking refuge in China. South Korean news agencies claim that North Korean guards crossed into China to arrest the women but Pyongyang claims that they were caught illegally acting within the secretive state's territory. It is anticipated that the women will be used as bargaining chips in the high stakes diplomatic poker game so that North Korea can secure direct talks with US government officials. The USA has no diplomatic presence in North Korea and relies on representation by the Swedish embassy.

A man and two teenagers have been found guilty of murdering 16-year-old Ben Kinsella who was stabbed 11 times after a row in a north London bar. The brother of Eastenders star Brooke Kinsella was out celebrating the end of his GCSE exams when he apparently gave a look out of turn at the armed gang. There was a confrontation outside the pub and Michael Alleyne, 18, Juress Kika, 19 and Jade Braithwaite, 20, all from London, stabbed Kinsella eleven times in five seconds. The murderers were all given life sentences for their crime and their lawyers presented letters from prison authorities saying that all were at risk of retribution inside prison.

Hopes are rising for the release of five British hostages who have been held in Iraq since May 2007. The Americans this week released an Iraqi militiaman who had been held for the murder of US soldiers. This gesture of goodwill may pave the way for some concessions by the captors of the Britons who were snatched from the Finance Ministry. US and UK officials, however, claim that the release of Shia leader Laith al-Khazali was not done in anticipation of a hostage exchange program. Computer expert Peter Moore and his four bodyguards may have longer to wait till they achieve their freedom though now Britain has reduced its miltary efforts in Iraq, maybe the wait will not be too prolonged.

American Amanda Knox has spent two days in court, giving evidence at her trial for the murder of British housemate Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy. The trial has been underway since January. Knox is co-accused with her Italian boyfriend, Rafaelle Sollecito, of the murder of the Leeds University language exchange student. In her evidence Knox revealed that she had been heavily smoking cannabis on the day of the incident and that when she was arrested she spent her time at the police station throwing cartwheels to ease the tension. She did little to change her pleas of innocence. It is alleged that the attack had sexual motives. The worldwide media have been drawn to the case and the American is known by her nickname, 'Foxy Knoxy'.

Terrorist attacks still continue to disrupt Pakistan with several bomb attacks being launched this week. Four soldiers were killed and fifty injured at an army mosque in Nowshera. At least seven died at a market in Dera Ismail Khan and another fifty were injured. Another bombing also hit Peshawar, the eighth there in a month, following on from last week's hotel attack where two UN workers died. The internal struggle in Pakistan continues with Islamic militants trying to do all they can to counter the government offensive against the Taliban in the Swat Valley.

BNP leader, Nick Griffin, in jubilant mood after his victory in the European elections last week, went to Parliament where angry anti-fascist protestors demonstrated and attacked him with eggs. The BNP publicly complained that the Metropolitan Police had not done enough to stop protesters disrupting its Westminster news conference. Later in the week, Griffin mocked the incident as he convened on more familiar territory at the Ace of Diamonds pub in Manchester near the contituency in which he was elected. Extremist views are a challenge to Britain's democratic rights.

A Swedish art project using carrots as explosives has caused a scare after the imitation bombs were mistaken to be the real thing. Artist Conny Blom set up The Bunny Project: Bombs, at 15 locations near the southern Swedish city of Orebro. He taped bunches of carrots together with black tape and attached blue and red wires and a clock to them. The art was removed and Blom may face charges. He described his work as a harmless stunt.

And this week's top story...

The Iranian Presidential elections took place and President Ahmadinejad was successfully re-elected, contrary to many Western observers' hopes. The election had a very high turnout of more than 85%. After the results were announced, trouble flared up in Tehran. Defeated candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi called for the results to be annulled. Rather than the standard 'Death to America' chants that normally emit from Iranians who gather en masse, the angry mobs shouted 'death to the dictator' and were beaten back by baton wielding police. Official results gave Mr Ahmadinejad a landslide victory. His final share of the vote was almost 63%. The result was quickly endorsed by Ayatollah Khamenei despite claims of massive electoral fraud.

That's all for Newslip. Thanks for tuning in. See you again next week. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 20 24.05.09

Welcome to Newslip. Today's date is Sunday, 24th May 2009. I'm Wesley Gerrard and here are the stories making this week's news.

17 alleged Al Qaeda members have been arrested in Bilbao, northern Spain. Mostly Moroccan and Algerian nationals formed the Islamic Maghreb cell. Spain suffered a major Al-Qaeda-inspired terror attack in the capital Madrid in 2004, when a total of 191 people were killed and 2,000 were injured when 10 rucksack bombs exploded in four crowded commuter trains. Twenty-one people, including a number of North Africans, were sentenced to over 40,000 years in jail for their roles in the attack.

Justice was meted out to those responsible in the death of Baby P who we now know as Baby Peter. He died in a bloodstained cot at the age of seventeen months at his north London home in August 2007. His mother received a minimum sentence of ten years, though that makes her eligible for parole in three and a half years time. The male lodger, Jason Owen, who lived in the house received a minimum sentence of six years and the boyfriend of the mother, who was recently handed a life sentence for the rape of a two year old girl, was given an additional twelve years. The NSPCC have been among the numerous campaigners to have condemned the leniency of the sentences. At a time when Peter should be attending school, his mother could be potentially free, having been responsible for the horrific death of a toddler which has shocked the nation. Already there have been numerous complaints of how the parents have managed to legally disguise their identity. Home Secretary Jack Straw has been busy defending the sentences.

The English Premiership season has concluded with an exciting showdown for clubs at the bottom. Showcased as ‘Survival Sunday’ Two out of four clubs faced joining West Brom in the drop zone. All four teams involved lost their games, meaning that Sunderland and Hull City survived but Newcastle United and Middleborough took the plunge. Manchester United were making the headlines last week for winning the premiership but at the end of the season all the media attention has been drawn to Newcastle who are the biggest side to be relegated since Leeds United. New boss and Tyneside Messiah, Alan Shearer, is unsure whether he will be heading the Magpies as they attempt the arduous task of escaping from the Championship next season.

Iran celebrated the beginning of its official election campaign period with the launch of a missile capable of reaching Israel and American bases in the Gulf. The surface-to-surface Sejil 2 missile with range of 2000km compliments the even more far-reaching Shahab 3 missiles already in the arsenal. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has criticised the launch saying that combined with Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the launch threatens the very existence of Israel. Saudi Arabia also feel threatened as due to the fall of the Iraqi regime, there is a power struggle in regional hegemony and the Shia government in Iran are potentially hostile to the Saudis. However, when we constantly hear of Iran in the Western media in terms of its military hostility, we ignore some of the facts. Iran only actually spends 2.5% of its GDP on its military whereas Israel spends 7.5%, Saudi Arabia 10% and the USA 4.5%. Iran has also hit the headlines after suspending facebook in the runup to their elections.

The MPs expenses row continued to plague the media. More resignations have been forced upon politicians with the most high profile casualty being the speaker of parliament, Michael Martin, whose position became untenable after leading politicians blamed him for protecting MPs from previous scrutiny to their requisitioning of public funds. Michael Martin has been the first speaker in 300 years to be removed from his position. He receives automatic entitlement to a peerage which is being hotly contested by members of the House of Lords who feel that he has let parliamentary democracy down and don’t want him corrupting the upper tier of British government.

An Egyptian judge ordered contruction tycoon Hisham Talaat Mustafa and retired policeman Mohsen al-Sukkari hanged for respectively ordering and carrying out the brutal slaying of the Lebanese pop star, Suzanne Tamim, in a luxury Dubai apartment in July. The singer, whose throat was slit, was the lover of the businessman, who has strong links to Egypt's ruling National Democratic Party. The brutal slaying was ordered after Tamim tied the knot with Iraqi kick-boxing champion Riyad al-Azzawi, whom she met at London's renowned Harrods department store. The police officer who arrested the hitman testified that the assassin said in interrogation that Mustafa asked for Tamim's severed head to be delivered before he paid for the killing.

A Royal chauffeur has been suspended after giving two undercover journalists a tour of Queen Elizabeth II's official cars at Buckingham Palace. The News of the World reporters were posing as wealthy Middle Eastern businessmen and made contact with the chauffeur through his Lithuanian prostitute girlfriend. They published photos of them sat in the Queen’s Bentley and also a video of the car pool tour. The chauffeur, who is originally Trinidadian, is responsible for the latest in a long line of security gaffes, which have involved other reporters getting jobs as footmen and Osama Bin Laden impersonators gaining access to royal property. At the time of the car tour the Queen was officially in residence and police chiefs have expressed their dismay at how easily security was breached.

An Indonesian military Hercules aircraft has crashed while attempting to land at a base in East Java. 107 people were on board and including two people on the ground, 101 people died in the accident. Eyewitnesses reported hearing thunder-like explosions as the plane plunged from the sky, smashing into houses before finally bursting into flames in it resting place in a rice paddy. Fourteen children died and many soldiers and airmen. This is the latest in a string of incidents that have plagued Indonesian aircraft since 2007. The lack of investment in military hardware has been blamed. Indonesian aircraft are banned from European airspace due to their extensive crash history.

English adventurer Sir Ranulph Fiennes, who suffers from vertigo, has scaled Everest at the age of sixty-five. He becomes the first man to cross both polar ice caps in addition to climbing the world’s highest peak. During his previous attempt at reaching the summit of Everest, Fiennes suffered a heart attack. He is the oldest Briton to reach the summit. At the top he declared "This is the closest you can get to the moon by walking." He said that he felt dreadful. His achievement was done to support the Marie Curie cancer care charity.

And this week's top story...

The Roman Catholic church has been hit by scandal after an inquiry into child abuse at Catholic institutions in Ireland has found church leaders knew that sexual abuse was "endemic". More than 2,000 told the Commission they suffered physical and sexual abuse while at institutions during the sixty year period of investigation. The five-volume study concluded that church officials encouraged ritual beatings and consistently shielded their orders' paedophiles from arrest amid a "culture of self-serving secrecy". There will be no legal proceedings as a result of the inquiry as the Christian Brothers successfully sued the commission in 2004 to keep the identities of all of its members, dead or alive, unnamed in the report.

That's all for Newslip. Thanks for tuning in. See you again next week. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 19 17.05.09

Welcome to Newslip. Today's date is Sunday, 17th May 2009. I'm Wesley Gerrard and here are the stories making this week's news.

Pope Bendict XVI has made a tour of the Holy Land, visiting sites of importance to all three of the monotheistic faiths. He addressed Jews though they felt that he wasn’t apologetic enough for the holocaust. The Pope is a German and was part of the Hitler Youth movement in Bavaria during the war. He has previously made controversial remarks about Islam though as he met Muslim leaders in Jerusalem he spoke of the need for good multifaith relationships and made strong calls for the creation of a separate Palestinian nation. Christians are flocking out of the troubled holy land, feeling persecuted by bolh sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Pope gave a mass at the Kidron valley where most Jews and Christians believe to be the location of the Final Judgement.

The American/Iranian journalist who was jailed for eight years on spying charges has been released after an Iranian court upheld an appeal to reduce her sentence. Roxana Saberi flew out of Iran four days after the successful appeal and is now recuperating in Vienna. During her stay at Evin prison near Tehran she went on hunger strike for two weeks and was hospitalised. Originally Miss Saberi had been arrested for purchasing a bottle of wine which is illegal under Sharia law. It is not known whether the former Miss North Dakota was used as a makeweight in any political deal between Iran and the USA.

Manchester United have won the English Premier League with a game to spare after they drew with Arsenal at Old Trafford, putting them a point clear of second place Liverpool who cannot mathematically catch up any more. The season has been a close race and draws Man United level with Liverpool with 18 league titles. United have already won the Carling Cup and World Club Championship and go on to face Barcelona in Rome for the European Cup final.

Burmese pro-democracy leader, Aung Sun Suu Kyi, has been arrested and put in prison for breaching the conditions of her house arrest. An American man, John Yettaw, swam the lake surrounding her home and spent two days in her house where she has been held for about nineteen years. Burma’s military junta are allegedly looking for a pretext to continue holding the dissident nobel peace laureate during the forthcoming 2010 elections. Her house arrest was due to expire at the end of May. Human rights activists are constantly putting pressure on Burma for Aung Sun Suu Kyi’s continuing detention and she is one of the most famous political prisoners in the world. Her lawyers are arguing that as she did not invite the man to her house ( he was an uninvited guest), she had not broken the strict laws governing her detention.

A 27 year old woman has been arrested after a hit and run incident in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol. Eleven year old Sam Riddall was killed after a white Ford Focus Estate car mounted the kerb and ploughed into him as he walked home from youth club with a group of friends. The boy’s parents appealed for the driver to come forward after the car failed to stop after the incident. After Avon and Somerset police released an image of the driver, Hannah Saaf was arrested and denied bail until she appears before Bristol Magistrates Court, charged with death by dangerous driving, failing to stop and driving without insurance.

There has been controversy in Guatemala after the murder of lawyer, Rodrigo Rosenberg. The dead man left a Youtube video alleging that Guatemala’s president, his wife and his staff, were responsible for the crime. Groups have taken to the streets to demand the removal of Alvaro Colom, who denied responsibility for the crime, saying that it was just an effort to destabilise the government. He went on to claim that it was just a video and that there was no evidence for the crime. The lawyer was gunned down in the street whilst riding his bicycle. Guatemala has one of the highest murder rates in the world and as a key route for drug smuggling into the USA, it is notoriously corrupt and drugs money taints the highest of officials.

The commander in charge of the American military in Afghanistan, General David D. McKiernan, has been fired by the Obama administration. The general was seen to be too conventional in his methods and his policies are seen as having failed in the ongoing insurgency against Taliban and Al Qaeda forces. Counterinsurgency methods have been advocated and the man who replaces McKiernan is a veteran special operations officer, Lt. Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal . It is envisaged that in order to break the military stalemate, more future support will be offered to US-backed local militias. War in Afghanistan is notoriously difficult and throughout history many superior fighting forces have been defeated during prolonged guerrilla style campaigns in the difficult terrain.

Catherine Masters, a 109 year old woman from Oxfordshire, wrote a letter of complaint to the Queen after she noticed that in five of the least nine birthday cards she has received from Buckingham Palace, HRH Elizabeth II was wearing the same dress. To respond to one of the eldest of her subjects, the Queen sent around a special surprise to the Grange Care Centre. There was a knock on the door and it was the Queen’s grandson, Prince William, sent to offer a personal apology. The shocked Mrs Masters spent the day teaching the future King how to make shepherd’s pie. It is a tradition for the Queen to send birthday cards to those who reach their one hundredth birthday. William invited his new friend to a garden party at the Queen’s home where the lady can discuss a change to the card she expects to receive for her 110th birthday in November.

The row over MPs second home allowances continues to rage after the Daily Telegraph went on publishing expenses claims. Tory MPs and Liberal Democrats were included and readers have been horrified to hear of taxpayers’ money being used to pay for the repair of moats and maintenance of swimming pools. There have been resignations and vows of repayments as transparency sent MPs on the retreat as public outcry demanded that their abuse of power ceases. There has been pressure on parliamentary speaker Michael Martin to resign and public disillusionment with parliament looks likely to produce some shock results in forthcoming European elections with minority parties such as the BNP likely to benefit from the people’ fallout with the major parties.

And this week's top story...

The 26 year old civil war in Sri Lanka has finished as the surrounded Tamil Tiger separatists declared a ceasefire from their tiny enclave in the north of the island. President Mahinda Rajapaksa has already declared victory though his army claim that there are no civilians left in the enclave and see no need for them to accept the ceasefire. They want to continue and annihilate the remaining fighters who want peace to preserve the life and dignity of the Tamil people. Mass graves have been discovered this week and the final fighting has been brutal. On the streets of Colombo, people are rejoicing and an official government announcement of the conclusion of hostilities is expected early next week.

That's all for Newslip. Thanks for watching. See you again next week. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 15 19.04.09

Welcome to Newslip. Today is Sunday, 19th April 2009. I'm Wesley Gerrard and here are the stories making this week's news.

A fire in a hostel for homeless people in the northwestern Polish town of Kamien Pomorski left 21 people dead and more than 20 injured. The blaze started at 12:40 a.m. local time in the three-story building, which housed 77 people, said Daniel Kopalinski, a spokesman for the fire department. President Lech Kaczynski declared a three-day period of national mourning.

Music Legend Phil Spector has been jailed for second degree murder in Los Angeles following the death of B-Movie actress Lana Clarkson six years ago. Spector has a distinguished career as a music producer and has worked with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. He had a history of pulling guns when in a drunken state and when a woman refused to sleep with him. This was the second time he had stood trial for the 2003 murder, this time with a successful conviction which leaves the 69 year old facing a mandatory fifteen year sentence.

A court in Sweden has jailed four people who are behind the world’s most high profile file sharing website, the Pirate Bay. In a landmark ruling the four founders were found guilty of breaching copyright laws. They were each jailed for a year and ordered to pay about £3 million in damages to a series of film and music companies. The damages awarded were far less than those actually sought. The jailed men have vowed to fight on, to overturn the ruling, and state that they will refuse to pay the fine. In the meantime Pirate Bay continues to operate.

After 28 years together, actor Mel Gibson’s marriage to Robyn Moore is on the rocks and in the divorce courts. It could prove to be the most expensive divorce in Hollywood history with Gibson’s $640 million fortune expected to be halved. Russian singer, Oksana Porchepa is apparently Mel Gibson’s mistress and is the cause of his parting with his wife.

Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi has been found guilty in a Tehran court of espionage and sentenced to eight years in jail. The 31 year old was originally arrested in January for purchasing a bottle of wine which is an offence in the Islamic state. The charges brought against her mutated to those of being an American spy. She had travelled to the area to research the country’s history and culture. She is attempting to appeal against the charges. It is thought that she will be used by the Iranian government as a bargaining chip for Iranian people being held in US custody.

An Australian airline was grounded after four baby pythons escaped from their container and were wild in the hold. The Qantas flight between Alice Springs and Melbourne was carrying twelve Stimson’s pythons, four of which, only six inches long, made an escape. It was initially thought that the missing four had been eaten by the other snakes but after weighing them it was decided that this couldn’t be true. Passengers were evacuated from the craft and it was fumigated leaving no hope for the snakes to survive.

Colombian’s most wanted drugs baron, Daniel Rendon Herrera, was surrounded by armed police in an area of jungle and captured. Known as ‘Don Mario’, the drugs boss believed to be responsible for 3000 murders in the last eighteen months, was found cowering beneath a palm tree. He has been arrested and brought to Bogota, to await possible extradition to the US where his trafficking activities have been most worstly felt. His links with Mexican drugs lords and his control of the exporting corridor from Colombia has meant that with his private army he has shipped about 100 tons of cocaine to the USA.

While battles with Somali pirates continue off the coast, the Somali government introduced Sharia law across the region. It is hoped that the introduction of strict Islamic holy law will reduce tensions between the government and the Islamic militias who are fighting an insurgency. Large areas of the South are already being governed by Sharia. Although the introduction is being widely seen as a popular move, some people are worried about the fact they will no longer be able to play music or chew the narcotic plant, Khat.

The Americas summit has been taking place in Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago. It has been the first chance for Obama to address his immediate continental neighbours. There has been controversy as Cuba was not invited and Obama has vowed to change US policy regarding the communist island. Photo opportunities arose when controversial Venezuelan leader, Hugo Chavez, warmly welcomed Obama. The Bolivian President Morales asked Obama to repudiate a recently discovered plot to assassinate him. He says that since Obama has come to power there has been no change in US hostility.

And this week's top story...

The twentieth anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster has been commemorated with calls for Justice for the 96 dead Liverpool supporters. At Anfield for the official service for the dead of the April 15th 1989 disaster, Andy Burnham, the culture secretary, was barracked with cries of ‘Justice’. He has pressured home secretary Jacqui Smith, to press for secret files about the tragedy to be released to the public domain. Although the official government inquiry, the Taylor report, found that police lack of control was officially responsible for the tragedy, no charges against David Duckenfield, the policeman in charge of the event, were ever successfully brought. Twenty years on and the families of loved ones lost that day are a step closer to achieving justice.

That's all for this week's Newslip. thanks for tuning in. See you again soon. Goodbye.

Newslip Episode 11 22.02.09

Welcome to Newslip. I'm Wesley Gerrard. Here are the stories making this week's news.

Actress Natasha Richardson has died after falling on a nursery ski slope in Quebec. After the accident, Richardson seemed well but a clot had developed which put pressure on her brain. She was rushed to hospital where she quickly deteriorated before becoming brain dead. Her life support was switched off with her in the company of her acting family including husband, Liam Neeson, mother Vanessa Redgrave and sister Joely Richardson. She leaves behind two children. Her death is a reminder that any kind of head injury can be potentially serious and that skiing is a very dangerous sport.

An underwater volcano erupting close to the Tonga coast in the South Pacific ocean has intensified. Scientists sailed to inspect the volcano, which has been shooting smoke, steam and ash into the air for over six days close to the low-lying twin volcanic islands of Hunga Tonga and Hunga Ha'apai. Local authorities said coastal villages close to the active volcano were not yet at risk, and that no warnings had been issued.

American President, Barack Obama, has delivered a television address to the Iranian people. He said his administration was committed "to pursuing constructive ties among the United States, Iran and the international community". He had extended American sanctions on Iran for another year prior to the address as the US is gravely concerned of the dangers posed by their Uranium enrichment program which supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei has vowed will not bow to international pressure.

Reality TV star Jade Goody has lost her battle with cervical cancer and died in the early hours of Sunday morning at her family home in Upshire, Essex. She has spent a lot of time in the press as she fought the battle, causing controversy as she allowed the media full access to monitor her and sold the photos of her recent wedding to OK magazine. Her publicist Max Clifford has led the tributes to the star of Big Brother and Prime Minister Gordon Brown offered his condolences.

A crocodile dubbed 'Robo Croc' has undergone facial reconstruction surgery at Miami's Metrozoo. Last year Robo Croc was run over by a car in the Florida Keys.He hadn't been able to eat for three months prior to the lifesaving surgery. Veterinarians placed two metal rods between its eyes, extending down to the bridge of its nose, and another on each side. Forty-one metal screws were drilled into its hide, keeping the skull and snout together. "RoboCroc is doing just fine," said Ron Magill, a spokesman for the zoo.

Biker gangs have engaged in a mass brawl at Sydney airport's domestic terminal. A rival biker gang laid in wait for a group of bikers to get off the plane. In the ensuing fight which about fifty people witnessed, a 28 year old man was beaten to death. The Hell's Angels and Comancheros used metal barrier poles like swords to batter each other. Four suspects were arrested and the rest all fled.

British MP George Galloway has been banned from entering Canada where he was due to tour. The Canadian authorities' decision to impose sanctions on Galloway are due to his recent statements claiming he provided financial support for the Palestinian group Hamas which are a banned terrorist organisation in Canada. The Respect MP for Bethnal Green is an avid anti-war protestor and has claimed that he will fight through the courts to overthrow the harsh decision.

North Korea has confirmed the arrest of two female US journalists, saying they were detained for illegally entering North Korean territory. Laura Ling, a Chinese-American, and Euna Lee, a Korean-American, both reportedly work for the California-based online media outlet Current TV. North Korea had only just recently reactivated the military hotline between themselves and their Southern neighbours. The journalists were doing a documentary on North Korean refugees that are in the northeastern area of China.

Ireland have ended a sixty-one year wait and finally lifted the grand slam in rugby union after an enthralling victory in Cardiff which saw them clinch the game only after a last minute Welsh kick fell short of the posts. The showpiece match was valiantly fought from whistle to whistle and was the highlight of northern hemisphere rugby this year. Irish captain Brian O'Driscoll has put himself in the favourite position to become British Lions captain for the forthcoming tour of South Africa.

And this week's top story...

Austrian man Josef Fritzl was this week jailed for life following his trial. He pleaded guilty to charges of rape, murder, enslavement, incest, coercion and false imprisonment. He had locked his daughter, Elizabeth, up for 24 years and subjected her to an horrific ordeal resulting in the births of seven children and one miscarriage. The town of Amstetten were completely shocked by the revelations and are pleased to see this monster locked up permanently in a psychiatric institution.

That's all for Newslip. Thanks for tuning in. See you again next week. Good bye.