Новости за 18.07.2016

More than 200 snails race against each other in the annual World championships held in Norfolk, UK. See video above.

The government was this evening asked to explain how foul smells from the Maghtab dump have returned to the coast road after nine years. "This is a result of bad management of the waste management facility," Nationalist MP George Pullicino said in Parliament. He recalled that the former government had created an engineered landfill dug deep into the ground, but under this government, this rock cutting had been practically stopped, the landfill had run out of space, and now people could see rubbish mounting up again. Читать дальше...

The government is to transfer land on the outskirts of Siggiewi to Caritas for a facility that will help juvenile drug addicts. The land is currently held on emphyteusis by independent MP Marlene Farrugia, who is giving it up. Instead, the government will hand it to Caritas on a 25-year-old emphyteusis which may be renewed, Parliamentary Secretary Deborah Schembri told parliament's Audit Committee. The site is outside the development zone, but already has a building which will be demolished and replaced. Читать дальше...

Republicans have started their convention to nominate Donald Trump as their White House candidate, while dissident delegates make a last-ditch attempt to deny the front-runner. True to form, Mr Trump himself provided the first surprise of the week, announcing this morning that he is heading to the Cleveland convention later in the day to introduce his wife Melania on the first night of speeches. "I will be there," he told Fox News. "I want to watch. It is going to be very exciting." It is an earlier-than-expected... Читать дальше...

A Bill which changes the way members of the judiciary are nominated and introduces new disciplinary measures which may be taken against magistrates and judges, was unanimously approved on second reading by Parliament this evening.  The measures on discipline, which amend the Constitution, needed the support of at least two-thirds of the members of the House. The Bill provides for the appointment of an Evaluation Commission which will discuss nominations to the judiciary and make its recommendations to the government. Читать дальше...

Safety measures and the overall environment at most wards in Mount Carmel Hospital are not up to scratch and require urgent attention, the mental health commissioner has warned. Moreover, only one per cent of patient records at the hospital meet all the criteria set by law, which are meant to ensure the highest quality of care. Mental Health Commissioner John Cachia made these comments in the 2015 annual report that included a detailed review of the existing facilities of all mental health hospitals and community residences in Malta and Gozo. Читать дальше...

An 88-year-old man from Brisbane is looking for his long lost family in Malta after he recently discovered that his surname is in fact an adaptation of Paris. Basil John Povis, born in England, knew that his father, who everybody called George Povis, was originally from Malta. Yet, he had great difficulty tracing any of his Maltese family, encountering several dead ends on the way, he told this newspaper. Then, only a couple of months ago, he found out that his father’s actual name was Giuseppe Paris and not the anglicised George Povis. Читать дальше...

A man suffered a head injury yesterday when he fell at the dangerous quay in Anchor Bay, which has been a ruin ever since it was broken in half by heavy seas decades ago. A reader said the man had been walking on the quay when he slipped on some of the dislodged concrete.   An ambulance which was called to the scene had a difficult time making it down to the quay, the reader added.  The quay was built to provide temporary shelter during the Popeye film-shooting in 1980. It was badly damaged shortly after and has been a ruin ever since. Читать дальше...

A group of Polish nuns have put on their dancing shoes to encourage young believers to join World Youth Day celebrations scheduled to take place in Poland at the end of July.  In the video, two nuns run onto a beach and are seen putting up a big poster of Jesus. They are then joined by their fellow nuns, who waste no time in kicking up their heels.  The nuns, who shot the video themselves, also invited a group of children to join in the fun.  Footage of the flash mob was published online a few days ago and immediately went viral in Poland. Читать дальше...

Spanish police have issued guidelines on how to safely use augmented-reality video games after the release of the application Pokemon Go. The police advice included reminders that users are in "the real world" and must be aware of obstacles such as traffic lights and cars. Players of the game from Japan's Nintendo Co Ltd walk around real-life neighborhoods to hunt down virtual cartoon characters on their smartphone screens. The police issued their guidelines after two Japanese tourists were rescued... Читать дальше...

Nationalist MP David Agius asked the prime minister in parliament this afternoon whether his wife had ever travelled abroad on government business without him. If she had, he asked for details about where she had gone and the costs. Th Prime Minister replied that the information was still being collected.

One of the biggest houses in Fleur-de-Lys Road, Birkirkara, has been converted into a shelter for the homeless and will be providing food for those who have none. Dar Papa Frangisku, as it has been called, will be administered by Caritas, assisted by the government, which will be paying salaries, and food imports firm Alf Mizzi and Sons, which has committed to helping it through the provision of food. The Home was inaugurated earlier today by Social Solidarity Minister Michael Farrugia. He explained... Читать дальше...

A 25-year-old Portuguese inmate slapped with a European Arrest Warrant will be extradited to Spain after completing his jail term in Malta, a court has ruled. Alexandre Amador Pais, who is currently in Malta serving a jail term for drug-related offences, is wanted by the Spanish authorities for allegedly causing grievous injuries to another person in 2011. In Spain, the crime is punishable by up to three years imprisonment. Prosecuting officer Mario Cuschieri told the court that the local police... Читать дальше...

A storage facility in Burmarrad that has operated illegally for almost three decades is primed for sanctioning. Kurt Sansone asks whether job creation justifies closing an eye to wrongdoing. What should have been agricultural land has, for the past 28 years, been turned into a storage depot for construction vehicles and material. The site, sprawling over 3,500 square metres, belongs to the Bonnici Group and the Planning Authority has in front of it an application to sanction the illegalities. At... Читать дальше...

The transport authorities now have a way to establish the ownership details of cars with foreign number plates which are brought to Malta, but more work is needed to identify the owners of cars with foreign number plates brought to Malta over a period of years, Transport Minister Joe Mizzi told Censu Galea (PN) in reply to a parliamentary question this afternoon. Mr Mizzi said major problems were encountered when the issue was tackled by the authorities.   He said Transport Malta and the police were... Читать дальше...

After the mystery of the blue-and-black or white-and-gold dress that dominated social media last year, the next viral phenomenon has appeared. An iPhone is hidden on this Persian carpet. Will you find it?  Jeya May Cruz from the Philippines first posted the photo to her Facebook account photo on July 2. The picture was then shared over 19,500 times and has over 140,000 likes.  Click here to find out where the iPhone is hidden.

Parliament this afternoon observed a minute's silence in mourning for the 84 victims of the Nice terrorist attack. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this was an attack which disgusted all decent human beings. It was an attack in which many children died, as well as families who were celebrating the values of freedom, equality and fraternity, on which democracy was built. The best way how to remember these victims was to hold those values dear, he said. Dr Muscat said that while countries continued... Читать дальше...

A Libyan man who stands charged with the attempted murder of a fellow countryman told a court he had no idea how the knife the other man was waving in his direction ended up piercing the man's own leg. Zouhir Elfezqa was testifying this morning about a Swieqi stabbing incident which occurred on January 30. Mr Elfezqa stands charged with attempted murder and with inflicting grievous injuries to Wadea Al Maghrbi. Mr Maghrbi, on the other hand, stands charged with attempting to cause Mr Elfezqa grievous... Читать дальше...

Widespread doping and manipulation of tests by Russian athletes and officials at the Sochi Olympics, overseen by the ministry of sport, was confirmed by the World Anti-Doping Agency, further fuelling calls for a complete ban on the country from the Rio Games. According to the WADA's independent commission report, which was led by Canadian law professor and sports lawyer Richard McLaren and unveiled at a Toronto news conference, a Moscow laboratory protected Russian athletes during the 2014 Sochi Winter Games. Читать дальше...

The granddaughter of legendary sea explorer Jacques Cousteau filmed a short documentary as part of a wider initiative charting the sandbanks, reefs and marine caves around the Maltese coast. Alexandra Cousteau is a senior adviser to NGO Oceana, which is striving to provide more protection for the island’s seas. She lends her environmental expertise and influence to help guide the organisation’s global campaigns to protect and restore the seas and oceans. After carrying out a 70-day expedition around Malta’s seas last year... Читать дальше...

The MSE Share Index finished lower for the fifth consecutive trading session today as it retreated by a further 0.34 per cent to a fresh three-week low of 4,482.186 points. Activity was spread across thirteen equities, five of which closed in negative territory, four shares gained whilst another four remained unchanged. The most actively traded equity today was Bank of Valletta plc as 41,999 shares (having a market value of €0.09 million) changed hands, pulling the share price 0.5 per cent lower... Читать дальше...

Three men were taken to court today for allegedly having paid adolescent boys so that they could perform sexual acts on them. George Bezzina, a 57-year-old cleaner from Senglea, Alexander Caruana, a 57-year-old bread hawker from Valletta and Raymond Charles Buttigieg, a 47-year-old sales manager from Birkirkara, were arraigned separately and charged with a string of sex offences involving three 15-year-old boys, as well as two others aged 16 and 17.  They were accused of having coerced the underage... Читать дальше...

A Vietnamese MP has been dismissed from the National Assembly  after she was found to also possess Maltese citizenship. Thanh Nien News said businesswoman Nguyen Thi Nguyet Huong, 46, was found guilty of flouting the Law on Vietnamese Nationality, which prohibits Vietnamese citizens from having dual citizenship. She did not declare her Maltese citizenship in her election nomination. The fact came to light Saturday, prompting an emergency meeting yesterday to vote on her dismissal. The newspaper said it is unclear why Huong has dual citizenship.

Dramatic video released by Chinese state media shows the moment a landslide crashed into wooden houses in a village in central Hunan Province. CCTV said the landslide, caused by heavy rain, crashed into all 14 houses at the bottom of the mountain. No one was injured as all residents were evacuated before the incident, CCTV reported. Rain that started again on Monday (July 18) is slowing down recovery efforts, CCTV added.

Passionate whistlers gathered at a concert hall in Kawasaki, a city south of Tokyo, on Sunday to compete in the World Whistlers Convention. Fifty participants from six countries - Japan, India, Australia, Korea, the United States, and Venezuela - showcased their tunes to judges in the hopes of winning a first-prize trophy. Some brought along their own musical instruments to accompany their whistling, but many kept it simple, using only their lips and a microphone. Participants had to choose either... Читать дальше...