UNITED KINGDOM
Storm prompts rare alert
Storm Dennis yesterday swept across the country, with the army drafted in to help deal with heavy flooding and high winds, as officials said it could be “life-threatening” in south Wales. The Met Office issued a rare red warning for the area, saying there was a risk of “significant impacts from flooding” that included a “danger to life from fast flowing water, extensive flooding to property and road closures.” Winds of more than 150kph were recorded in Aberdaron, south Wales. “Our armed forces are always ready to support local authorities and communities whenever they need it,” Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace said. British Airways and EasyJet confirmed they had grounded flights, while two bodies were pulled from rough seas off the south England coast on Saturday as the storm barrelled in.
UNITED KINGDOM
TV host dies of suicide
Caroline Flack, a TV presenter who hosted the reality show Love Island, has died at age 40, her family said on Saturday. “We can confirm that our Caroline passed away today, the 15th of February,” the family said in a statement. A family lawyer said that Flack had killed herself and was found in her London apartment. Flack hosted Love Island from its launch in 2015, but stepped down last year after being charged with assaulting her boyfriend, Lewis Burton. She denied the charge and was scheduled to stand trial next month.
IRAQ
Rockets hit military base
Small rockets early yesterday struck the base hosting US troops and other coalition forces in Baghdad’s Green Zone, but caused no casualties and only minor damage, a US military official said. The attack came just before 3:30am, said Colonel Myles Caggins III, a spokesman for the US military operation in the country.
PHILIPPINES
Duterte rejects reclamation
President Rodrigo Duterte said he would not allow private sector-initiated “massive reclamation” projects in Manila Bay, because they are environmentally destructive and would “choke” the capital. Reclamation would be limited to government-related projects and those already approved by the Philippine Reclamation Authority, according to the transcript of Duterte’s speech on Saturday at the inauguration of the Sangley Airport project in Cavite City, south of Manila. “Not during my time,” Duterte said. “I will not allow massive reclamation for the private sector. Because if I — if you approve one, you approve all. That’s how it is. ”
UNITED STATES
Candy, cheese sent to ISS
A cargo ship on Saturday rocketed toward the International Space Station (ISS), carrying candy and cheese to satisfy the astronauts’ cravings. Northrop Grumman launched its Cygnus capsule from the Virginia seashore. The nearly 4-tonne shipment should arrive at the orbiting lab tomorrow. It took three tries over the past week to get the rocket off the pad, with it finally taking flight at 3:21pm. “Awesome launch,” NASA Deputy Space Station Program Manager Joel Montalbano said once the capsule reached orbit. Besides the usual experiments and gear, the capsule holds cheddar and manchego cheeses, fresh fruit and vegetables, chocolate and three kinds of gummy candy.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of