Новости за 27.03.2016

The tourism authority now has eyes and ears in every hotel and guesthouse, as it stands guard over Malta’s reputation as a holiday destination. But it does not have an army of inspectors snooping around disguised as tourists – two weeks ago it started to monitor the stream of reviews posted in more than 30 holiday websites. “We cannot ignore social media. Social media can make or break the country’s reputation,” says Malta Tourism Authority CEO Paul Bugeja. “A hotel can have a plaque showing it has... Читать дальше...

Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga arrived in Malta this afternoon and was later welcomed at San Anton Palace by President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca. “I am so pleased with your significant visit here in Malta,” Presidente Coleiro Preca said. She said she looked forward to continue the discussions which began during the State Visit which she had last February when she (President Coleiro Preca) visited Kosovo. The Maltese President said that these discussions would help the two countries explore how... Читать дальше...

Facebook has apologised for sending out security check notifications to users across the world this afternoon after a bomb blast in Pakistan killed dozens of people. Several Facebook users in Malta also received the alert. The site turned on its feature that urges Facebook users to connect with friends and family during disasters and let them know if they’re safe. However, many took to social media to say they were nowhere near the explosion in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore, which has left... Читать дальше...

Jim Harrison, the fiction writer, poet and outdoorsman who wrote with gruff affection about the US landscape and rural life, has died at the age of 78. He is best remembered for his 1979 historical saga Legends Of The Fall, which gave him some success in middle age and spawned a 1995 movie adaptation starring Anthony Hopkins and Brad Pitt. Spokeswoman Deb Seager of Grove Atlantic, Harrison's publisher, said Harrison died on Saturday at his home in Patagonia, Arizona. His cause of death was not revealed. Читать дальше...

It is expansion time at Malta International Airport. After turning higher profits last year and registering its 45th consecutive month of passenger growth, CEO Alan Borg talks to Kurt Sansone about a €78 million investment. Restrooms at Malta International Airport come equipped with an electronic voting system that allows customers to rate the experience. Responses are recorded in real time and three consecutive negative votes will prompt cleaners to check out the toilets. Fancy as it sounds, the... Читать дальше...

Pushy parents were compared to locusts after an Easter egg hunt turned into a shoving match at the US visitor centre of sweets company Pez. Saturday's event in Orange, Connecticut, drew hundreds of people, some of whom ignored the rules and did not wait for the starting time. Pez general manager Shawn Peterson told US TV station WFSB-TV that people "rushed the field and took everything". Event organisers placed more than 9,000 eggs on three fields with the intention of having staggered start times for each age group. Читать дальше...

At least one person was injured in a traffic accident in Triq Dun Karm, Birkirkara (Birkirkara by-pass) just after 6pm. The person's condition is not yet known. Four cars are believed to have been involved in the accident, near Vodafone, in the direction towards Valletta. The lane, which has been blocked by the accident, is closed to traffic.

Neighborhoods across the US are holding annual Easter egg hunts where children can frolic over chocolate eggs and adults delve deeper into the meaning of the holiday. Mana Rabiee reports.

A 36-year-old man from Valletta was today charged with breaking into an apartment in his hometown on March 25 and stealing a number of jewellery items. Maurizio Zahra, who works as a helper with his father, denied the charges. Mr Zahra said that he has a number of alibis proving that he was with other people at the time of the theft. Magistrate Natasha Galea Sciberras denied bail. Inspector Daryl Borg prosecuted. Benjamin Valenzia was legal aid.

A bomb blast in a park in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore on Sunday has killed 44 people and wounded 91, a health official said. Many of the injured are in a critical condition, Salman Rafiq, a health adviser to the chief minister of Punjab province said. The explosion took place near the children's rides in Gulshan-e-Iqbal park, local police chief Haider Ashraf said. He said the explosion appeared to have been a suicide bombing, but investigations were ongoing. The area was crowded with Christians celebrating the Easter holidays... Читать дальше...

The days of trying to decipher illegible doctors’ prescriptions are numbered, with a new system being rolled out soon to ensure patients get a more efficient service when receiving free medicines. This system will benefit the 142,000 people who use the service of the 221 pharmacies enlisted with the Pharmacy of Your Choice Scheme, according to unit CEO Roseanne Camilleri. The previous system was weighed down by bureaucracy and paperwork, but there will now be better coordination between the prescribing doctor and the pharmacist... Читать дальше...

Belgium's Catholics are flocking to the cathedral to celebrate Easter five days after the country suffered its worst ever attack. Nathan Frandino reports.

Global expert on nutrition Robert Lustig warns that concerns over sugar’s effect on weight are insignificant compared to its deadly effect on the metabolism. Adding a spoonful of sugar to your coffee may seem like a harmless habit, but according to world-renowned nutrition expert Robert Lustig, that extra dose of sweetness could be killing you. The concerns most people have about sugar are related to their weight. Dr Lustig, however, says this should be the least of their worries. “Everyone assumes sugar is bad because of the calories... Читать дальше...

A highly specialised procedure to treat irregular heart rhythm was carried out in Malta for the first time last week. Four patients got the benefit of an “atrial fibrillation ablation”. They would normally have been sent to centres in London or Oxford, Robert Xuereb, Mater Dei Hospital’s cardiology chairman, told The Sunday Times of Malta. The procedures were carried out by consultants Oscar Aquilina and Mark Sammut with the help of Kim Rajappan, a consultant electrophysiologist and specialist in... Читать дальше...

Belgian authorities have held police raids in Brussels and two other Belgian cities and kept four of the people they picked up under detention. The federal prosecutor's office says the raids are linked a "federal case regarding terrorism" but did not specify whether it had anything to do with the March 22 suicide bombing attacks in Brussels that killed 31 people and left 270 wounded. The 13 raids in Brussels and the northern cities of Mechelen and Duffel came early on Sunday. An investigating judge... Читать дальше...

The Foreign Ministry has had to again debunk the claims of a Pakistani holding a Maltese passport who insists he is a government envoy despite repeated warnings that his claims are false. This newspaper revealed last week that Ahmad Aziz had been posing as a government envoy to Pakistan for a number of years, despite the Foreign Ministry denying he was given that role. Mr Aziz has since bombarded this newspaper with documents and statements claiming to prove he was in fact an envoy working to attract business to the country... Читать дальше...

Pope Francis tempered his Easter Sunday message of Christian hope with a denunciation of "blind" terrorism, recalling victims of attacks in Europe, Africa and elsewhere, as well as expressing dismay that people fleeing war or poverty are being denied a welcome as European countries squabble over the refugee crisis. Tens of thousands of people patiently endured long lines, backpack inspections and metal-detecting checks Sunday to enter St Peter's Square. Under a brilliant sun, they listened to Pope... Читать дальше...

Farmers in rural Thailand compete in a motorised hand plough race. The annual competition takes place north of Bangkok in a 300-meter wet and muddy field. Around 40 ploughs participated in this year's event. The winner received about $56 in cash and a trophy.

Two hooded men, one of them armed with a knife, entered a farmhouse in Triq ir-Rabat in Dingli this morning and asked the owners for money. The police said the thieves insisted on being given money but escaped when they realised that the victims did not have anything to give them. No one was injured in the incident. A man is helping the police in their investigations. An inquiry is being held.

Malta joined the rest of the Catholic world today in Easter Sunday celebrations with several processions with statues of the Risen Christ all over the islands. In line with tradition, runs with the statues were held along parts of the routes. Children also had their Easter eggs and figolli blessed in several localities. Earlier today, Archbishop Charles Scicluna led Easter Mass at St John's CoCathedral.

If Libya’s UN-backed government forces its way into the capital Tripoli, the country risks descending further into chaos, Foreign Minister George Vella has cautioned. Tripoli is run by a broad alliance of Islamist militias, some of which are steadfastly opposed to the government of national accord brokered by the UN in December last year. “Malta supports the national unity government but I have my concerns about alienating the Tripoli administration, which could risk pushing certain elements into... Читать дальше...

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders wins big in Alaska, Washington state and Hawaii in Saturday's voting.   Julie Noce reports.

The blast that rocked a businessman’s house in Gozo less than three months ago is set to join the list of unsolved cases, as omertà prevents the police from making any headway in their investigation. Police sources said the small, close-knit community, where everybody knows everybody else, has led investigators into a dead end in their efforts to identify the person who placed a bomb outside Sandro Ciliberti’s house on January 8. “Don’t you know how people’s lips get sealed here?” a police source... Читать дальше...

Robert De Niro has axed the anti-vaccination documentary Vaxxed from the line-up of his Tribeca Film Festival, after initially defending its inclusion. Vaxxed: From Cover-up To Conspiracy, was due to be part of the New York film festival when it opened next month. The decision to include the film by anti-vaccination activist Andrew Wakefield had come under fire, particularly since his contention that the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine has a link to autism have been discredited. On Friday, Hollywood... Читать дальше...

Christians in the Holy Land and across the world are celebrating Easter, commemorating the day followers believe Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago. The cavernous Holy Sepulchre church in Jerusalem was packed with worshippers on Sunday. The site is where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. A Mass is expected later in Bethlehem's Nativity Church, built atop the site where Christians believe Jesus was born. At the Vatican, Pope Francis presided over a solemn vigil service Saturday night. Читать дальше...