Новости за 21.09.2016

FLORIANA-2, VALLETTA-0 Floriana gained a much-needed boost after beating champions Valletta 2-0 in the first derby of the 2016/17 season. Although Valletta saw more of the ball, Floriana deserved their win as they were the most determined and hard-working team, defending well and breaking forward on the counter. The win was Floriana's first after successive defeats to Balzan and Tarxien Rainbows while Valletta suffered their first lost of the season. The first half was tight with Valletta enjoying... Читать дальше...

Two people were hospitalised following an argument near the Marsascala playing field this evening. Their condition is not yet known. The police said they were informed about the case at around 8.15pm.

ST ANDREW'S-3, SLIEMA WANDERERS-0 St Andrew's claimed arguably one of the best results in their history after inflicting a 3-0 defeat on neighbours Sliema Wanderers in today's opening BOV Premier League game at the National Stadium. Although the two teams had come into the match level on three points, Sliema had been fancied to win after their 2-1 success over Birkirkara in their previous outing but they produced a dismal performance to go down heavily to the sprightly Saints who scored three goals... Читать дальше...

A cache of 1.3 million files concerning more than 175,000 companies registered in the Bahamas has been released by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists - the same group which revealed the Panama Papers. The documents name offshore companies, trusts and foundations registered in the Caribbean nation between 1990 and early this year, list their date of creation, physical and mailing addresses and, in some cases, company directors and owners. Documents were first leaked to German... Читать дальше...

Nothing suspicious has been found after police received a threat that bombs were placed at a number of schools on the small Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sergeant Kevin Bailey said the threat came via fax on Wednesday morning, and that schools on the normally sleepy island were notified within 10 minutes. More than 19,000 students were evacuated. "There's been no threat found. Everybody is safe," Mr Bailey told reporters. The threat was faxed to Royal Canadian... Читать дальше...

Milan legend Paolo Maldini arrived in Malta this afternoon on a flight from Linate. He is expected to be at the Hibernians Ground to watch tomorrow's Premier League game between Ħamrun Spartans and Tarxien Rainbows as his son Christian is playing for Ħamrun.

Cyber-criminals in Australia are banking on people's instinctive urge to plug in USB sticks, posting malware-infected memory sticks in mailboxes across Victoria.  The devious ploy has now forced Victoria Police to issue a warning, saying "the USB drives are believed to be extremely harmful and members of the public are urged to avoid plugging them into their computers or other devices". According to police, the USB sticks contain fraudulent media streaming service offers and other malware, Motherboard reported. Читать дальше...

Email your photos to mynews@timesofmalta.com and, should the editor select any of them, they will be published in a gallery like the one above. The photos should preferably be landscape and at least 620 pixels wide. They will be cropped adequately for the slideshow. Please include a brief description or location name of the photo as well as your full name to be used in the caption. Enjoy snapping away!

Police in Cleveland, USA, are investigating a case of child cruelty after a woman uploaded photos to Facebook showing a man dragging a young girl around a supermarket with her hair tied to his trolley.  Erika Burch uploaded the photos two days ago, saying she was in a local Wal-Mart when she spotted the man dragging the girl around.  "He had her hair wrapped around the buggy," she wrote. "She was saying 'please stop, I promise I won't do it again, please stop!'" Mrs Burch whipped out her phone and snapped photos of the incident... Читать дальше...

The transfer of immovable property should be done through a new, “paperless, real-time” system, a report released by the Notarial Council suggests. The consultative document, entitled ‘Heading for a 2020 Paperless Registration for the Transfer of Immovable Property’, puts forward the “crying need” for the creation of a digital system to facilitate the transfer of property without the need to fill in hefty amounts of paperwork at several government entities. “A system needs to be in place, which in respect of the transfer of immovable property... Читать дальше...

A boat carrying African migrants heading to Europe has capsized off the Mediterranean coast near the Egyptian city of Alexandria, killing at least 20 people, authorities said. Health ministry official Alaa Osman, from Beheira province, said that 155 people have been rescued, but that bodies are still being found in the area. The migrants were from several African countries, he said. The boat had been carrying 600 people, Egypt's official news agency MENA said. Thousands of illegal migrants have made... Читать дальше...

Updated 4.10pm  A Boston-based currency printer is to open a "state-of-the-art" $100 million facility in Malta, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat announced today. Speaking by live link from Crane Currency's headquarters in Boston, USA, Dr Muscat said the investment would create 200 jobs, rising to 300 over time. "The last time our country attracted an investment of this magnitude with a comparable number of employees was in 1981...with what is now STMicroelectronics," the Prime Minister said.  The facility will be situated in Ħal Far... Читать дальше...

Greece has rejected asylum requests from three of a group of eight Turkish soldiers who fled there after the failed coup attempt in Turkey in July, police sources said. Turkey has formally sought the men's extradition, calling them "traitors" and "terrorist elements". The soldiers deny involvement in the coup. The three can appeal the asylum decisions, a Greek official said. It was not immediately clear when rulings for the other five might be delivered. The eight military personnel flew a Black Hawk helicopter to northern Greece on July 16... Читать дальше...

The European Commission has proposed scrapping time limits to next year's abolition of mobile phone roaming charges following criticism of its initial plan. Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker abruptly ordered the previous proposal to be redrafted two weeks ago to make good on a pledge to end roaming charges as the EU executive seeks to shore up public support for the EU. The Commission's initial proposal was to allow consumers to roam for up to 90 days per year and for a maximum of 30 consecutive days... Читать дальше...

Visitors to a central Kentucky farm may do a double-take when they see the newest addition: a two-faced calf. Stan McCubbin, of Campbellsville, told WDRB-TV that he thought he had twins when he first saw the calf, but quickly realised he had something far more unusual. The female calf has two noses, two mouths and four eyes, though the middle two eyes do not function. Although she can walk, the McCubbins say she ends up going in circles and falling over. The family says most calves with such a genetic mutation are stillborn... Читать дальше...

An air strike on a medical facility in northern Syria has killed at least five staff members, the medical relief organisation that runs the facility said. The Paris-based International Union of Medical Care and Relief Organisations, known by its French initials UOSSM, said the attack on Tuesday night levelled a medical triage point it operates in rebel-held territory outside the contested city of Aleppo. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said at least 13 people were killed in the attack... Читать дальше...

The American University of Malta is expected to recruit its first students in August of next year, now that it has received a five-year operating licence. The licence was issued to Sadeen Education Investment after it agreed to the licence conditions set by the National Commission for Further and Higher Education. The five-year term is part of the legal process to ensure the university lives up to its conditions before receiving another five-year extension, according to commission CEO Edel Cassar. Читать дальше...

Groups of men (and some women) enjoyed themselves trying to pull a plane in a fund-raiser for Puttinu Cares earlier today. The event was organised for the third year by DHL Express in association with the Phoenix Sports Club, at Safi Aviation Park. The event continues up to 4pm.  Groups of at least 15 are being invited to pull a DHL Express Boeing 757-200 freighter aircraft, which weighs around 60 tons, a distance of 20 metres in the shortest time possible. The best time recorded last year was that of the 23 men from V. Читать дальше...

US Secretary of State John Kerry has issued a message to mark Malta's independence day, saying he looks forward to working with Malta on migration and other issues, particularly once it assumes the EU presidency. Sen Kerry wrote:  "On behalf of President Obama and the American people, I send my best wishes to the people of Malta as you mark the 52nd anniversary of your nation’s independence on September 21. "Positioned at the crossroads between Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa, Malta has... Читать дальше...

Front Ħarsien ODZ said today that it 'expects' the Planning Tribunal to uphold earlier decisions to refuse permits for development in and around Wied Għomor (near San Ġwann) The NGO was referring to three appeals during to be heard in the coming days. The first appeal, due to be heard tomorrow, involves the extension of a private villa and addition of a swimming pool. The NGO said the application should be refused again, given that the existing structure is illegal. Regarding the second case, the... Читать дальше...

Actor Brad Pitt has said he is "very saddened" after his wife Angelina Jolie filed for divorce. The Hollywood couple, known collectively as Brangelina, married in 2014 after 10 years together. Robert Offer, Jolie's lawyer, said the actress had filed for the dissolution of the marriage "for the health of the family". In a statement to People magazine, Pitt said: "I am very saddened by this, but what matters most now is the well-being of our kids. "I kindly ask the press to give them the space they... Читать дальше...

The government will in the coming days select the best offer for a study on the options and costs of a tram service in Malta, Transport Minister Joe Mizzi said this morning. The government will also issue a call for offers to companies wishing to operate a nation-wide car-sharing scheme who would be able to use a fleet of cars operating from public car parks. The service should start being offered as soon as possible.  Transport Malta is also working on a call for offers for bicycle sharing and e-bike... Читать дальше...

A vague statement that the Tiangong-1 space station will return to earth "in the latter half of 2017" has fuelled concerns that Chinese officials have lost control of their 8.5 tonne "heavenly palace".  Launched in 2011, the Tiangong-1 was intended to be a mark of China's ascendancy and the growing might of its space programme. But the the last crew to visit Tiangong-1 departed in June 2013 and the station has been in sleep mode ever since.  Officials from China's space agency have now said that they expect the Tiangong-1... Читать дальше...

If recent results are anything to go by, champions Valletta should be regarded as favourites to emerge victorious from their tiff with Floriana but they will be wary of the wounded Greens who will be going all out to put their season back on track with a win tonight. A 2-2 draw against Balzan, coupled with Birkirkara’s slip-up to Sliema Wanderers, meant Valletta stayed top on 10 points. By contrast, Floriana suffered an unexpected setback ahead of their first clash with their derby rivals this season... Читать дальше...

52 years ago Malta gained its independence. No amount of political talk, rewriting of history or stamping of feet is going to change this.No attempt at elevating any other event in our history will change the fact that independent Malta was born in 1964.Celebrating a birthday does not stop us from commemorating other important milestones in our lives. All that followed was possible because on that day Malta took the reins of power in its hands.Subsequently it was up to the Maltese people to mess up... Читать дальше...