Новости за 06.11.2017

More stories are continuing to emerge from the so-called Paradise papers on how the rich and mighty used companies registered in Malta to hide their wealth. The OCCRP (Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project) reported today about the activities of Anton Prygodskyy,a close friend of Viktor Yanukovych, the former president of Ukraine. Leaked documents from Appleby, a Bermuda law firm, show that Prygodskyy built a super luxurious 37-meter yacht lavishly decorated with marble and wood fittings. Читать дальше...

The ATP has apologised after the draw ceremony for the Next Gen Finals on Sunday was branded a "disgrace" after female models revealed groupings with letters hidden under their clothing. The letters A or B were placed on various parts of the bodies of the eight models involved in the draw in Milan, where the flagship tournament for ATP players aged 21 and under begins on Tuesday. Players were then asked to choose a model in order to discover which group they had been placed in. One model revealed... Читать дальше...

An airport worker carelessly walked behind the engine of a Saudi Arabian Airbus A319 and was almost blown away. The incident happened on October 28 in Saudi Arabia.

All domestic violence complaints will soon start to be processed in the same way and in a coordinated manner, under a new policy to be launched later this month. This will eliminate the risk of some reports going unnoticed and ensure that all victims are protected. Today, a victim who goes to the police and another to the emergency room are likely to get different responses, explained Silvan Agius, director of the government’s Human Rights and Integration Directorate.  “A social worker might decide... Читать дальше...

Four times formula one champion Lewis Hamilton, as far as is known, has only visited Malta once. He was here for a few hours on a cold Sunday morning on December 9, 2012 when he drove a McLaren formula one car for the last time before switching to Mercedes, roaring down the airport's secondary runway for Paqpaqli ghal l-Istrina. But the newly released Parardise Papers, the latest tranche of secret documents detailing where the rich and famous stash their cash, has revealed another link between the Briton and Malta. Читать дальше...

Andrea Pirlo has formally announced his retirement from professional football after a trophy-laden 22-year career. The former Italy international, 38, played his final match on Sunday as New York City FC were knocked out of the MLS Cup play-offs by the Columbus Crew. City needed to overturn a 4-1 deficit from the first leg but, despite a 2-0 victory at Yankee Stadium, their post-season involvement came to an end, and with it Pirlo's career. The former AC Milan and Juventus playmaker revealed earlier... Читать дальше...

With Labour mired in scandals and the PN seemingly split down the middle, many have lost faith in the parties. Waiting in the wings, a third voice hopes to fill the void. Ivan Martin speaks with Anthony Buttigieg, the newly appointed leader of the Democratic Party, about building “a people’s party”.   People, Dr Buttigieg says, are fed up of being called Nationalists or Labourites. They don’t care for the major parties and don’t want to see them rule the country but to govern – at least that’s how the people he wants to represent feel. Читать дальше...

Yazmin Zammit Stevens has made Malta weightlifting history by winning our first ever international Gold medal at the Vladan Milhajovic tournament in Serbia. She did this in an exceptional way, by claiming two gold medals over the weekend. This was Zammit Stevens' second time competing at the tournament. Last year, she won a bronze medal in the snatch phase of the event, which was a huge accomplishment for her as it had only been her second ever international performance. This year however, experienced and stronger than ever... Читать дальше...

The gunman who killed 26 people at a Texas church shooting yesterday had a history of disturbing behaviour, according to criminal and US military records, former classmates and a former girlfriend who accused him of harassing her. Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, was court-martialed in 2012 for assaulting his then-wife and child, confined for 12 months and then dishonourably discharged in 2014, according to a spokeswoman for the Air Force. A former girlfriend, Brittany Adcock, said in a phone interview... Читать дальше...

Passengers made a million trips on the harbour ferries per year, Transport Minister Ian Borg told parliament this evening. Replying to a number of questions, Dr Borg said that he had been informed that the use of the ferries was creating parking problems in the Cottonera area, where passengers leave their cars. The government would redouble efforts to encourage investment in public car parks. He said the Maltese people loved their cars and the independence of travelling with their cars, but efforts... Читать дальше...

Passengers made a million trips on the harbour ferries per month, Transport Minister Ian Borg told parliament this evening. Replying to a number of questions, Dr Borg said that he had been informed that the use of the ferries was creating parking problems in the Cottonera area, where passengers leave their cars. The government would redouble efforts to encourage investment in public car parks. He said the Maltese people loved their cars and the independence of travelling with their cars, but efforts... Читать дальше...

A decision as to whether former FIAU official Jonathan Ferris' case for unfair dismissal should be heard behind closed doors will be taken in January, informed sources have said.  Mr Ferris, who was sacked alongside a senior colleague in June while still in his probation period, is claiming he was unjustly dismissed after being barred from investigating senior government officials. Attorney-General Peter Grech, who also chairs the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit which employed Mr Ferris, last... Читать дальше...

Card sharks have been given the chance to indulge their social conscience following the launch of a one-day poker tournament in aid of L-Istrina.  Poker 4 L-Istrina will see the tournament's 180 players donate €200 each as a buy-in, with the Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation cashing out 90 per cent of proceeds.  The remaining prize money will be shared between the top 10 players, with the tournament winner also heading to Prague for the Pokerstars Championship to be held in December.  Addressing the event launch... Читать дальше...

Ten Bank of Valletta branches will stay open till 4pm, Mondays to Fridays  throughout this month on an experimental basis, the bank said today. The branches are in Birkirkara, Victoria (Gozo), Mosta, Naxxar, Paola, Qormi, Qui-Si-Sana (Sliema), Republic Street Valletta, San Ġwann and Zurrieq. Geoffrey Ghigo, Head Retail Network, said the trial was in response to changing lifestyles which demanded greater flexibility. The extended hours do not apply to cash services but staff can offer clients various financial products and services. Читать дальше...

The MSE Equity Price Index moved lower for the fourth consecutive trading session today as it slipped by a further 0.86% to a near 11-month low of 4,542.494 points. Overall, the declines in the share prices of RS2 (-5.7%), MIA (-1.5%), BOV (-1.1%) and HSBC (-1.1%) outweighed the gains in Farsons (+0.4%) and Malita (+0.1%). Most of the trading activity on the local Borza continued to take place in the equity of Bank of Valletta plc which shed another 1.1% to a fresh thirty-three-month low of €1.78 across 69,050 shares. Читать дальше...

A bouncer today recalled how a sword-wielding aggressor had narrowly missed splitting his head in two,  with the tip of the blade scraping against a lighter in his pocket, causing it to explode.  “Had someone not shouted ‘look out’ he’d have cleaved my head in two,” the bouncer told a court , identifying the accused in the courtroom. The man was one of a group of bouncers testifying in the case against Mohamed Ali Ahmed Elmusraty, who together with two other men, had been involved in a scuffle with... Читать дальше...

A day-long teachers’ strike has been called off after agreement was reached in talks between the Malta Union of Teachers and the government. The strike was called by the MUT, which was insisting on a pay rise of some 20 per cent, and better working conditions to counter a drop in personnel numbers. Education Minister Evarist Bartolo confirmed that an agreement has been reached.  In a Facebook post, the minister congratulated and thanked all those who had helped achieve agreement on the financial package. Читать дальше...

The Helen O'Grady Academy in Malta keeps going from strength to strength and has recently inaugurated its own headquarters in Attard. The new premises satisfies the Academy’s need to centralise its growing operations so as to continue offering the same excellent service that students and parents have become accustomed to. Furthermore, the premises offer two stunning studios which allow more flexibility with lessons and timings. Established in 2005, the Malta branch of the Helen O’Grady Academy introduced... Читать дальше...

A Qatar Airways aircraft was forced to divert after a passenger got into a fight with her husband after finding out he was cheating on her. International media reported that the passenger, an Iranian woman, unlocked her sleeping husband’s mobile phone by putting his finger on its scanner. She then realised he was cheating on her. The two got into a fight and flight crew could not pacify her. Fearing that the situation could get out of hand, the pilot diverted the Boeing 777-300 to Chennai where the wife... Читать дальше...

New Opposition leader Adrian Delia paid a courtesy call on Archbishop Charles J. Scicluna at the Curia this morning. Replying later to questions by reporters about divisions in the PN and the absence of some MPs from yesterday’s PN general council, Dr Delia said the PN was going through a transitional process, a process of change, and change was important for any organisation to renew and strengthen itself. Asked why he had not sought an inquiry about allegations made about him, Dr Delia said no inquiry was needed as there was no basis of fact.

Embattled PBS CEO John Bundy has lashed out at the station’s management board, accusing it of playing judge and jury, as well as leaking the findings of an inquiry into his conduct to the media. Mr Bundy, who has been at the helm of the State broadcaster for little more than a year, voiced this outburst in reaction to a story published by The Sunday Times of Malta which listed the findings of an inquiry into a car leasing agreement he made to the tune of €500,000. Conducted by auditing firm RSM,... Читать дальше...

Emirates today celebrates the milestone delivery of its 100th Airbus A380 aircraft at a special ceremony with Airbus at the manufacturer’s delivery centre in Hamburg. Emirates’ chairman and chief executive Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum said: “There is no doubt that the A380 has had a big positive impact on aerospace manufacturing and the broader aviation industry, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and stimulating innovation and new product development in many related areas such as ground handling... Читать дальше...

A man with an apparent penchant for breaking into cars was remanded in custody early this afternoon, merely hours after having once again allegedly targeted two cars parked in Valletta. Kaled Mukthar Ben Gamhur, 39, unemployed, was spotted trying to force his way into the vehicles parked along Girolamo Cassar Street, Floriana, the court was told. He was arrested by the police, who found him in possession of a pair of designer sunglasses which had allegedly been stolen from one of the cars. The man... Читать дальше...

Malta's e-government service platform Servizz.gov has won an international award, beating 14 other nominees to the prize.  The award for service design at the Service Design Global Conference came following a project undertaken by Ella Walding, a British student at the Royal College of Arts, as part of her Masters thesis.  Ms Walding interviewed Servizz.gov workers and clients and organised workshops to solicit ideas for how to improve the service platform, with her final thesis providing a toolkit for the government portal to follow. Читать дальше...

A concelebrated Mass at St John’s Co-cathedral is one of the events being organised to mark Remembrance Sunday on November 12, which is commemorated throughout the Commonwealth in honour of those who died in the two world wars. Archbishop Charles Scicluna will lead the Mass at 9.15am. Before that, the President of Malta will inspect a Guard of Honour of the Armed Forces of Malta, with a performance by the AFM Band. At 10.40am, there will be a wreath-laying ceremony at the War Monument in Floriana... Читать дальше...