Новости за 08.03.2016

Iran says it test-fired several ballistic missiles today, challenging a United Nations resolution and raising the possibility of a diplomatic response from the United States. Nathan Frandino reports.

Last year 296 people were admitted to hospital suffering from a substance overdose, Health and Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi said yesterday. In response to a parliamentary question by Claudio Grech (PN), he said 23 of them were suffering from accidental poisoning. Another 138 persons were admitted following intentional self-harm or suicide attempts. It was not clear whether the poisoning was premeditated or accidental in the remaining 135 hospital admissions following an overdose, he said. The minister... Читать дальше...

A total of 578 applications for Maltese citizenship were received last year under the Citizenship by Investment Programme. Fifty-four have been awarded citizenship, Justice Minister Owen Bonnici said this evening. Replying to a Parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Paula Mifsud Bonnici, the minister said that 476 applicants had submitted all the necessary documents for scrutiny. A total of 147 of them have been approved and the process was concluded by 54, who have been given citizenship. 102... Читать дальше...

Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi and Nationalist Party deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami will cross swords on the Panama scandal in tonight’s discussion programme TimesTalk. The two men sparred in an animated debate that had to focus on the Labour government’s first three years in government. Alternattiva Demokratika deputy chairman Carmel Cacopardo also took part in the recorded debate that will be transmitted tonight at 10.05pm on TVM. TimesTalk is presented by Herman Grech and Mark Micallef.

The United Nations and human rights groups have voiced concerns about the European Union's plans to send thousands of migrants back to Turkey amid fears the country cannot properly provide for them. EU and Turkish leaders agreed overnight to the broad outlines of a deal that would essentially outsource Europe's refugee emergency. People arriving in Greece having fled conflict or poverty would be sent back to Turkey unless they apply for asylum. For every migrant sent back, the EU would take in one Syrian refugee... Читать дальше...

Opposition leader Simon Busuttil this evening challenged the prime minister to a televised debate on corruption as he called for Michael Falzon’s resignation from Parliament. Addressing a press conference outside the House, Dr Busuttil said Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had dodged several invitations for a debate. Asked whether he felt comfortable repeating claims of government corruption he made in the House in recent weeks, Dr Busuttil said he had no problem taking Dr Muscat head-on and repeating any statements in that context. Читать дальше...

A man who was charged with a string of offences after an altercation with police officers in Vittoriosa has been cleared of any criminal responsibility after medical experts testified that the man suffered from a chronic mental illness that affected his behaviour. The accused, whose name cannot be published by court order, was charged with assaulting and threatening three police constables, resisting arrest, slightly injuring one of officers, breaching the peace and disobeying police orders. The... Читать дальше...

A student who survived serious injuries in the Boston Marathon bombing has been killed in a car accident in Dubai. Victoria McGrath was killed on Sunday, along with her roommate at Boston's Northeastern University, Priscilla Perez Torres, the university confirmed. Ms McGrath and Ms Torres were on a personal trip and not studying abroad. Ms McGrath, 23, received severe shrapnel injuries to her left leg from the first of two bombs placed near the marathon finish line on April 15 2013. Three people... Читать дальше...

A carer at Fra Diegu Home in Ħamrun was arraigned in court this morning charged with slightly injuring two siblings when he pushed a 10-year-old boy as the boy was about to strike her. Prosecuting officer Robert Vella told the court that the mother of the 10-year-old boy and his 14-year-old sister, both of whom were under a care order and resided at Fra Diegu, reported to the police that her son had phoned her from the home to confess that he had flung a soft toy at the carer and claimed that he was beaten up. Читать дальше...

The Malta Financial Services Authority said today that it had appointed Paul Mercieca to take charge of the assets of DBR Investments Ltd of ‘Deber’, Nigret Road, Zurrieq and to assume control of the company’s business. The company is being investigated by the police to see whether and to what extend it was involved in unauthorised activities. The MFSA said in a public notice that, until October 2014, it had carried out a number of inspections on DBR, which was not licensed to provide any other type of financial services. Читать дальше...

Art in Bangkok undergoes a resurgence under the repressive rule of the military government in Thailand. Julie Noce reports.

The Federation of Language Teaching Organisations of Malta (Feltom) has joined the chorus of tourism operators in its opposition to the new proposed bed tax, asking who will be absorbing the estimated €250,000 that the industry had to pay. A spokesman for Feltom said that while it supported measures to improve the general over-all product, such initiatives should only be introduced following consultation. He was reacting to a story in the Times of Malta yesterday which revealed how the government... Читать дальше...

The share index extended yesterday’s gains by a further 0.37 per cent to 4,579.284 points – the highest level since mid-April 2008 – as four of the 12 active equities traded higher. Trading volumes declined substantially to just €211,000 today. Bank of Valletta plc climbed to a one-year high of €2.27 (+0.9 per cent) albeit on low volumes totalling 3,890 shares. The deadline for submission of applications in respect of the recently announced BOV €50 million 3.5 per cent Tranche 2 subordinated bonds... Читать дальше...

Around half of the 74 monti hawkers have taken up the government’s €80,000 offer to bow out of business, Economy Minister Chris Cardona confirmed this afternoon. The minister said the total cost will come up to around €3 million but the monti will be able to be relocated to one side of Valletta’s Ordnance Street. The offer was originally in the region of €40,000, up from the €23,000 offer the government had made in November to entice hawkers to give up their licence.

The trial of a Dutch man dubbed the “dentist of horror” after allegedly mutilating the mouths of more than 100 patients in France opened today. Jacobus van Nierop, 51, ripped out healthy teeth and left dozens of patients in a remote French village with broken jaws, recurrent abscesses and septicaemia. Initially locals seemed delighted by the hard-working and smiley dentist, the BBC reported. Van Nierop, who went by the first name of Mark, was hired by a headhunter in 2008 and was initially welcomed by locals in the rural area of Chateau-Chinon... Читать дальше...

Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. A spokesman for the 79-year-old musician said that 'he is undergoing treatment and is expected to make a full recovery as it was caught in the early stages.' Wyman was born William Perks and joined the Rolling Stones in 1962, replacing bassist Dick Taylor. He left the band in 1993. Since then, he has been recording and touring with his band Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings. Wyman last played with the Rolling Stones at the... Читать дальше...

The Prime Minister’s right-hand man, Keith Schembri, has consistently failed to answer questions about his offshore financial affairs, including a company in Panama. For the past week Mr Schembri, employed as the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, has ignored questions sent by this newspaper on the contents of a statement he released to the press on February 28. In his statement, Mr Schembri said he had relinquished all directorships and opened a family trust in Malta and abroad after taking up his public service job in 2013. Читать дальше...

A giant rabbit who became a celebrity after an appeal by a rescue charity has found a new home - where he is taken out in his own buggy. The Scottish SPCA took in Atlas the dog-sized rabbit when his owner could no longer look after him and people from all over the world offered to rehome him. Jen Hislop, 43, from North Ayrshire, was chosen out of hundreds of applicants and Atlas left for his new home at the weekend. She said: "I burst into tears when I got the phone call saying I had been chosen... Читать дальше...

A 15-year-old girl is fighting for her life in a New Delhi hospital after being raped and set on fire on the rooftop terrace of her family's home in a village outside the city, Indian police have said. The attack is just one of several recently reported cases of rape against women or children in India - underlining the persistence of such violence despite a public outcry three years ago that led to stronger laws to prevent sexual assault. In the latest case, police arrested a 20-year-old man for... Читать дальше...

Jewellery, designer gowns, paintings and other personal items from comedian Joan Rivers' New York penthouse will be auctioned off in June. Her daughter, Melissa Rivers, announced that Christie's will sell more than 200 items that belonged to the entertainer, with some proceeds benefiting charities God's Love We Deliver and Guide Dogs for the Blind. An online auction begins on June 16 and the live auction in New York is set for June 22. Ms Rivers said the auction will provide a "through-the-keyhole... Читать дальше...

Malta FA president Norman Darmanin Demajo said today that the introduction of season tickets for Premier League clubs and a proposed increase in the number of top-flight teams from 12 to 14 are intended to boost income for clubs and make the local football calendar more convenient for all the stakeholders. Mr Darmanin Demajo summoned the media to give a presentation on the new business model for the Premier League which has divided opinion among critics and fans. The MFA head explained that if the... Читать дальше...

Jurors have retired to consider their verdict in the trial of former policeman Carmel Cutajar, who stands charged with the attempted murder of his estranged wife Maria. Madam Justice Edwina Grima this morning concluded her summing up of the evidence and arguments presented to the jury over the past eight days. The accused, 51, of Rabat, is also accused of seriously injuring his wife, carrying an unlicensed firearm and committing a crime he was duty bound to prevent when he shot her in the chest on September 26... Читать дальше...

Nearly half of Israeli Jews want Arabs expelled or transferred out of Israel, according to a survey on religious divisions in the country. The poll, conducted from October 2014 to May 2015 and released today by the Washington-based Pew Research Center, a non-partisan think tank, also found that many Israelis - Jews and Arabs - appeared to have lost hope for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Roughly half, or 48 percent, of Israeli Jews said they agree or strongly agree with... Читать дальше...

The number of bed nights spent on Gozo by foreign tourists exceeded one million last year, the Gozo Tourism Association said today, quoting official figures. The number of foreign tourist arrivals reached 166,106, an 8% increase on 2014. The number of nights spent in all types of Gozitan accommodation reached 1,004,885, an increase of 14% on 2014, in bed nights. "These results augur well for better prospects in the Gozitan tourism industry, since the destination is experiencing increases not only in the summer quarter... Читать дальше...

Gross Domestic Product in real terms went up by 6.3 per cent last year, making the economy one of the best performers in the EU, official figures issued today show. GDP in 2015 amounted to €8,796.5 million, an increase of €712.3 million or 8.8 per cent (nominal) when compared to 2014. The production approach During 2015, Gross Value Added (GVA) increased by €626.3 million when compared to 2014. This was mainly generated by wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles; transportation... Читать дальше...