Wroclaw mayor injured in road crash

Mayor of Wroclaw Rafal Dutkiewicz is in hospital with severe injuries after his car collided with a tram on Tuesday.

Mayor of Wroclaw Rafal Dutkiewicz in his hospital bed. Photo: PAP/Maciej Kulczynski

In a statement released by the mayor's office, Dutkiewicz admitted responsibility for the crash, confirming that he “did not give way, and the car was hit in the side by the tram.”

All the passengers on the tram escaped unharmed, but Dutkiewicz has a broken pelvis and it is unlikely that he will be able to leave hospital for several weeks.

The tram-driver was also taken to hospital, but it is understood that his injuries are less grave than the mayor's.

The accident happened shortly after 6am on Tueday, and the mayor's statement noted only that he was “on his way to work” when the accident occurred.

He apologised in the statement to both the passengers and the tram-driver.

Rafal Dutkiewicz is a three-time winner of the Polish edition ofNewsweek's prize for best mayor in Poland.

The next local elections will be held in Poland this November. (nh)

Source: IAR

- See more at: http://www.thenews.pl/1/9/Artykul/168674,Wroclaw-mayor-injured-in-road-crash#sthash.s8LYN7I3.dpuf

Wroclaw mayor injured in road crash

Mayor of Wroclaw Rafal Dutkiewicz is in hospital with severe injuries after his car collided with a tram on Tuesday.

Mayor of Wroclaw Rafal Dutkiewicz in his hospital bed. Photo: PAP/Maciej Kulczynski

In a statement released by the mayor's office, Dutkiewicz admitted responsibility for the crash, confirming that he “did not give way, and the car was hit in the side by the tram.”

All the passengers on the tram escaped unharmed, but Dutkiewicz has a broken pelvis and it is unlikely that he will be able to leave hospital for several weeks.

The tram-driver was also taken to hospital, but it is understood that his injuries are less grave than the mayor's.

The accident happened shortly after 6am on Tueday, and the mayor's statement noted only that he was “on his way to work” when the accident occurred.

He apologised in the statement to both the passengers and the tram-driver.

Rafal Dutkiewicz is a three-time winner of the Polish edition ofNewsweek's prize for best mayor in Poland.

The next local elections will be held in Poland this November. (nh)

Source: IAR

- See more at: http://www.thenews.pl/1/9/Artykul/168674,Wroclaw-mayor-injured-in-road-crash#sthash.s8LYN7I3.dpuf

4.2 kg gold seized, two arrested

Karipur: The Kozhikode Customs Preventive Wing seized arrested two persons and seized 4.2 kg gold, which they were trying to smuggle in a car here on Thursday.

Based on a tip off, the Customs Preventive Wing officials waited for the gang at the airport. However, the smugglers managed to sneak the gold out of the airport. Following this, the officials chased them and intercepted their car at Pulikkal.

The officials have arrested T M Shinu (36) and Saju (32), both belonging to Eranjikkal, in connection with the incident.

The gold buiscuits seized by Customs Preventive Wing on Thursday

The Customs officials said the smuggling operations were carried out by a team headed by Shinu. They suspect that the gold was brought in the Air India flight from Dubai.

A total of 35 gold biscuits, each weighing120 gm each, were hidden inside a bag. 35 bars. The total value of the seized gold is estimated to be around Rs 1.2 crore.

Three days ago itself, the Customs Preventive wing had informed the Customs unit in the airport about the possible smuggling of gold. Now they are baffled on how the gang managed to slip out the gold.

The arrested have been produced before the Economic Offences court in Kochi.

4.2 kg gold seized, two arrested

Karipur: The Kozhikode Customs Preventive Wing seized arrested two persons and seized 4.2 kg gold, which they were trying to smuggle in a car here on Thursday.

Based on a tip off, the Customs Preventive Wing officials waited for the gang at the airport. However, the smugglers managed to sneak the gold out of the airport. Following this, the officials chased them and intercepted their car at Pulikkal.

The officials have arrested T M Shinu (36) and Saju (32), both belonging to Eranjikkal, in connection with the incident.

The gold buiscuits seized by Customs Preventive Wing on Thursday

The Customs officials said the smuggling operations were carried out by a team headed by Shinu. They suspect that the gold was brought in the Air India flight from Dubai.

A total of 35 gold biscuits, each weighing120 gm each, were hidden inside a bag. 35 bars. The total value of the seized gold is estimated to be around Rs 1.2 crore.

Three days ago itself, the Customs Preventive wing had informed the Customs unit in the airport about the possible smuggling of gold. Now they are baffled on how the gang managed to slip out the gold.

The arrested have been produced before the Economic Offences court in Kochi.

2 Indian peacekeepers injured in attack on UN base in South Sudan

United Nations: Two Indian peacekeepers have been injured in a 'deadly and unprovoked' attack by a mob of armed men on civilians sheltering inside a UN base in the war-ravaged town of Bor in South Sudan.

The Indian peacekeepers were protecting about 5000 internally displaced persons, who had taken shelter at the UN base in Bor, the capital of Jonglei state, when the 'well-armed' members of the Dinka ethnic group yesterday attacked the base in the world's newest nation.

The assailants came 'under the guise of peaceful demonstrators' intending to present a petition to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

They forced their way into the facility and opened fire on the displaced persons sheltering inside.

The UN mission said the 'violent' attack happened despite repeated warning shots fired by UNMISS peacekeepers. The two Indian peacekeepers 'sustained injuries repelling the mob'.

Dozens of internally displaced persons were wounded in the attack. At least 15 attackers were killed and there were reports of 40 civilian casualties.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the attack and the Indian side asked the Security Council to ensure a political settlement to the escalating tensions in the troubled nation.

The Indian side stressed that it is continuing to call on the powerful Security Council to ensure a political settlement to the dispute in the world's youngest nation and to ensure that innocent civilians are not exposed to such dangers.

Indian soldiers continue to provide shelter and critical medical assistance to displaced civilians in the midst of escalating violence in South Sudan.

In an attack in April last year, five Indian UNMISS peacekeepers were killed when they were ambushed by about 200 attackers near Jonglei State.

Two UNMISS Indian Battalion troops were killed in action and one was injured on December 19 in Akobo following an assault on a UNMISS base.

The UN Chief strongly condemned the attack, saying the attack on a location where civilians are being protected by the United Nations is a 'serious escalation.'

A statement issued by Ban's spokesperson said any attack on peacekeepers is 'unacceptable and constitutes a war crime.'
'The Secretary-General expresses his condolences to the bereaved families and pledges all possible support to those wounded in this attack,' the statement added. PTI 

2 Indian peacekeepers injured in attack on UN base in South Sudan

United Nations: Two Indian peacekeepers have been injured in a 'deadly and unprovoked' attack by a mob of armed men on civilians sheltering inside a UN base in the war-ravaged town of Bor in South Sudan.

The Indian peacekeepers were protecting about 5000 internally displaced persons, who had taken shelter at the UN base in Bor, the capital of Jonglei state, when the 'well-armed' members of the Dinka ethnic group yesterday attacked the base in the world's newest nation.

The assailants came 'under the guise of peaceful demonstrators' intending to present a petition to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

They forced their way into the facility and opened fire on the displaced persons sheltering inside.

The UN mission said the 'violent' attack happened despite repeated warning shots fired by UNMISS peacekeepers. The two Indian peacekeepers 'sustained injuries repelling the mob'.

Dozens of internally displaced persons were wounded in the attack. At least 15 attackers were killed and there were reports of 40 civilian casualties.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the attack and the Indian side asked the Security Council to ensure a political settlement to the escalating tensions in the troubled nation.

The Indian side stressed that it is continuing to call on the powerful Security Council to ensure a political settlement to the dispute in the world's youngest nation and to ensure that innocent civilians are not exposed to such dangers.

Indian soldiers continue to provide shelter and critical medical assistance to displaced civilians in the midst of escalating violence in South Sudan.

In an attack in April last year, five Indian UNMISS peacekeepers were killed when they were ambushed by about 200 attackers near Jonglei State.

Two UNMISS Indian Battalion troops were killed in action and one was injured on December 19 in Akobo following an assault on a UNMISS base.

The UN Chief strongly condemned the attack, saying the attack on a location where civilians are being protected by the United Nations is a 'serious escalation.'

A statement issued by Ban's spokesperson said any attack on peacekeepers is 'unacceptable and constitutes a war crime.'
'The Secretary-General expresses his condolences to the bereaved families and pledges all possible support to those wounded in this attack,' the statement added. PTI 

Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez dies at 87

Mexico City: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the Nobel laureate whose novels and short stories exposed tens of millions of readers to Latin America's passion, superstition, violence and inequality, died at home in Mexico City around midday, according to people close to his family. He was 87.

Widely considered the most popular Spanish-language writer since Miguel de Cervantes in the 17th century, Garcia Marquez achieved literary celebrity that spawned comparisons to Mark Twain and Charles Dickens.

His flamboyant and melancholy fictional works, among them 'Chronicle of a Death Foretold,' 'Love in the Time of Cholera' and 'Autumn of the Patriarch', outsold everything published in Spanish except the Bible. Theepic1967 novel 'One Hundred Years of Solitude sold more than 50 million copies in more than 25 languages.

His stories made him literature's best-known practitioner of magical realism, the fictional blending of the everyday with fantastical elements such as a boy born with a pig's tail and a man trailed by a swarm of yellow butterflies.

His death was confirmed by two people close to the family who spoke on condition of anonymity out of respect for the family's privacy. AP

Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez dies at 87

Mexico City: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the Nobel laureate whose novels and short stories exposed tens of millions of readers to Latin America's passion, superstition, violence and inequality, died at home in Mexico City around midday, according to people close to his family. He was 87.

Widely considered the most popular Spanish-language writer since Miguel de Cervantes in the 17th century, Garcia Marquez achieved literary celebrity that spawned comparisons to Mark Twain and Charles Dickens.

His flamboyant and melancholy fictional works, among them 'Chronicle of a Death Foretold,' 'Love in the Time of Cholera' and 'Autumn of the Patriarch', outsold everything published in Spanish except the Bible. Theepic1967 novel 'One Hundred Years of Solitude sold more than 50 million copies in more than 25 languages.

His stories made him literature's best-known practitioner of magical realism, the fictional blending of the everyday with fantastical elements such as a boy born with a pig's tail and a man trailed by a swarm of yellow butterflies.

His death was confirmed by two people close to the family who spoke on condition of anonymity out of respect for the family's privacy. AP

Nigerian army frees kidnapped female students

Boko Haram is suspected of being behind the abduction of more than 100 women and girls from their school on Monday.L

A bomb blast also killed at least 75 people near Abuja on the same day the schoolgirls were kidnapped [AP]

Nigerian soldiers have freed most of the more than 100 female pupils who were abducted by armed men in the northeast state of Borno, according to the country's military. Major General Chris Olukolade, a spokesman for the military, said on Wednesday that one of the men involved in Monday's abduction of students from the Chibok government secondary school had been captured. "With this development, the principal of the school has confirmed that only eight of the students are still missing," Olukolade said, adding that forces were continuing to search for them. Olukolade would not specify how many had been rescued or give details on how or where they were freed. But the school's principal said she could not confirm the military report that more than 100 female students kidnapped were free. Asabe Kwambura told the Associated Press that only 14 of the 129 abducted students had returned to Chibok town, with the rest still missing. The attackers killed a soldier and police officer guarding the school before abducting the pupils, according to an official. "When we saw these gunmen, we thought they were soldiers, they told all of us to come and walk to the gates, we followed their instructions," Godiya Isaiah, an 18-year-old who managed to flee from her abductors, told the Reuters news agency. Ongoing instability The abduction of the pupils, between the ages of 15 and 18, happened on the same day that a bomb blast killed at least 75 people near the capital, Abuja. In other attacks, at least 20 people were killed in Nigeria's northeast on Wednesday, according to local government and security officials. No one has claimed to have carried out the kidnappings or the attacks, but the armed group Boko Haram is suspected of being behind them. The group's fighters have repeatedly attacked schools in the northeast as part of a rebellion that has killed thousands since 2009.Boko Haram is against the education of women and its fighters are known to be abducting girls to use as cooks and sex slaves. A spokesman for Nigerian president, Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Aabati, said that the president had ordered the military to secure the release of all the missing girls and called a meeting of his national security council for Thursday to review the security situation in the country. Jonathan is under pressure to contain sectarian violence in Nigeria before the country's next election, which is expected to take place in February.

Nigerian army frees kidnapped female students

Boko Haram is suspected of being behind the abduction of more than 100 women and girls from their school on Monday.L

A bomb blast also killed at least 75 people near Abuja on the same day the schoolgirls were kidnapped [AP]

Nigerian soldiers have freed most of the more than 100 female pupils who were abducted by armed men in the northeast state of Borno, according to the country's military. Major General Chris Olukolade, a spokesman for the military, said on Wednesday that one of the men involved in Monday's abduction of students from the Chibok government secondary school had been captured. "With this development, the principal of the school has confirmed that only eight of the students are still missing," Olukolade said, adding that forces were continuing to search for them. Olukolade would not specify how many had been rescued or give details on how or where they were freed. But the school's principal said she could not confirm the military report that more than 100 female students kidnapped were free. Asabe Kwambura told the Associated Press that only 14 of the 129 abducted students had returned to Chibok town, with the rest still missing. The attackers killed a soldier and police officer guarding the school before abducting the pupils, according to an official. "When we saw these gunmen, we thought they were soldiers, they told all of us to come and walk to the gates, we followed their instructions," Godiya Isaiah, an 18-year-old who managed to flee from her abductors, told the Reuters news agency. Ongoing instability The abduction of the pupils, between the ages of 15 and 18, happened on the same day that a bomb blast killed at least 75 people near the capital, Abuja. In other attacks, at least 20 people were killed in Nigeria's northeast on Wednesday, according to local government and security officials. No one has claimed to have carried out the kidnappings or the attacks, but the armed group Boko Haram is suspected of being behind them. The group's fighters have repeatedly attacked schools in the northeast as part of a rebellion that has killed thousands since 2009.Boko Haram is against the education of women and its fighters are known to be abducting girls to use as cooks and sex slaves. A spokesman for Nigerian president, Goodluck Jonathan, Reuben Aabati, said that the president had ordered the military to secure the release of all the missing girls and called a meeting of his national security council for Thursday to review the security situation in the country. Jonathan is under pressure to contain sectarian violence in Nigeria before the country's next election, which is expected to take place in February.