Icetruck

Malta journalist death: Caruana Galizia's son denounces "mafia state"

The son of an investigative journalist killed in a car bomb attack in Malta has denounced what he called the country's "mafia state".

Daphne Caruana Galizia, 53, died in an explosion shortly after she left her home in Bidnija, near Mosta, on Monday.

She was known for her blog accusing top politicians of corruption.

"My mother was assassinated because she stood between the rule of law and those who sought to violate it," said her son Matthew, who was close to the blast.

In a lengthy Facebook post published hours after he attempted to save his mother from the burning vehicle, he accused Maltese police of incompetence and the government of "impunity".

"When the institutions of the state are incapacitated, the last person left standing is often a journalist," wrote Matthew Caruana Galizia, who is also a journalist.

He also took aim at Malta's projected image as a liberal Western nation.

"Yes, this is where we are: a mafia state where you can now change your gender on your ID card (thank God for that!) but where you will be blown to pieces for exercising your basic freedoms," he said.

Panama Papers

Daphne Caruana Galizia was a harsh critic of the government and effectively triggered an early election this year by publishing allegations linking Prime Minister Joseph Muscat to the Panama Papers scandal.

Mr Muscat and his wife denied claims they used secret offshore bank accounts to hide payments from Azerbaijan's ruling family – and he was returned to power in the election, despite the controversy.

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Mr Muscat denounced the killing, calling it an attack "on the freedom of expression in our country."

Caruana Galizia's popular blog had also targeted opposition politicians, calling the country's political situation "desperate" in her final post.

Her scathing pen spared no punches

By Herman Grech, Times of Malta online editor

Daphne Caruana Galizia was loved and resented in equal measure in politically divided Malta – but she will go down in the Mediterranean island's history as one of the most influential writers.

Her uncompromising blog and scathing pen spared no punches, hitting out mainly at exponents of the ruling Labour Party and their supporters, but also sometimes criticising officials of the centre-right Nationalist Party, including its newly-elected leader.

Starting off as a columnist for The Sunday Times of Malta, her colourful reportage saw her embroiled in several legal battles along the years, including Malta's prime minister.

But beyond all, even her fiercest critics acknowledge she was an impeccable writer and investigative journalist. Her digital cross-investigation into the Panama Papers, which saw the Maltese government's top officials embroiled, effectively triggered off a premature general election last June.

In his statement, Matthew Caruana Galizia said he would never forget "running around the inferno in the field, trying to figure out a way to open the door".

"This was no ordinary murder and it was not tragic. Tragic is someone being run over by a bus. When there is blood and fire all around you, that's war," he wrote.

He is a developer and data journalist at the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

The organisation, which won the Pulitzer Prize this year for its work on the Panama Papers, said it was shocked by Caruana Galizia's death, and "deeply concerned about freedom of the press in Malta".

Police have opened a murder inquiry and Malta has asked for international assistance – including from the FBI – with the investigation.

Meanwhile, the Malta Independent reports that the magistrate assigned to the case has requested it be taken up by someone else because she had been the target of Caruana Galizia's writing in the past. Caruana Galizia's family also requested she be replaced, the newspaper said.

Source – bbc.com

Carrie Fisher gave a cow tongue to predatory producer

Carrie Fisher once gave a Hollywood producer a cow's tongue after learning he had assaulted her friend.

Heather Ross, who works in the film industry, told Fisher about how the unnamed producer sexually assaulted her in his car.

Fisher reacted by personally delivering the cow tongue in a Tiffany box wrapped in a bow to his office in Los Angeles.

Ross revealed the story on US radio station, 94.9 MixFM in light of the recent Harvey Weinstein allegations.

Ross spoke about how she contacted the producer – who is not Weinstein – to try and be a part of his new project.

After meeting up, she says the producer forced himself on her in his car after making an excuse to pull over, then reached over and climbed on top of her.

Ross told the radio show she managed to push the producer off her, but as she fled, he said: "You'll never make a movie in my town and get the F out of my car."

Carrie's no-nonsense message

When she told Fisher about what had happened, the late Star Wars actress took matters into her own hands.

"About two weeks later, she sent me a message online and said, 'I just saw [blank] at Sony Studios. I knew he would probably be there, so I went to his office and personally delivered a Tiffany box wrapped with a white bow.'"

Ross continued: "I asked her what was inside and she said, 'It was a cow tongue from Jerry's Famous Deli in Westwood with a note that said, if you ever touch my darling Heather or any other woman again, the next delivery will be something of yours in a much smaller box!'"

Ross added that knowing the Star War's actress had her back had left a lasting impression on her.

"It felt validating to know, OK, first of all, this woman who I love as a friend was not just a fake Hollywood friend. That's who Carrie Fisher was. She spoke out and she put things out there in your face," she said.

Fisher, best known for playing Princess Leia in the Star Wars films, died at the age of 60 in December.

Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected].

Source – bbc.com

Afghanistan Taliban 'suicide attack' kills dozens

Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen have stormed a police training centre in the eastern Afghan city of Gardez, killing at least 33 people, officials say.

Another 160 were injured in the assault. The Interior Ministry said the local police chief is among the dead.

"At first a suicide bomber detonated a car filled with explosives near the training centre, making way for a number of attackers to start their assault," a spokesperson said.

Casualty numbers are expected to rise.

Officials say at least six attackers were killed by security forces in the fighting, which went on for several hours.

The victims include "women, students and police", Gardez public health director Hedayatullah Hamidi told AFP news agency.

• Four days behind the Taliban front line
• Taliban letter to Trump urges withdrawal
• The new 'Great Game' in Afghanistan

The compound at Gardez in Paktia province contains the headquarters of the national police, border police, and Afghan National Army.

The Taliban said it was behind the attack.

The assault comes just days after police in the capital, Kabul, said they had arrested a would-be suicide truck bomber, averting a major attack.

The truck was carrying almost three tonnes of explosives and two bombs, which had been hidden under boxes of tomatoes.

A truck bomb killed more than 150 people in Kabul in May.

Source – bbc.com

Philippine conflict: Duterte says Marawi is militant-free

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has declared the city of Marawi "liberated" from militants, even as fighting continues.

The army said it was battling up to 30 militants left in the city, who were holding about 20 hostages.

Marawi has been partly held by fighters linked to so-called Islamic State (IS) since an attack in May.

Troops have been trying to root them out in a conflict that has killed more than 1,000 people – mostly militants.

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Mr Duterte made his announcement while addressing troops in Marawi on Tuesday, saying: "Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby declare Marawi liberated from the terrorists."

Gunfire could be heard in the city just moments before he made that statement, according to reports.

A military spokesman described the president's declaration as symbolic, but also as a signal to begin planning the reconstruction of Marawi, which has been largely destroyed by almost daily bombardment.

Separately, the military has said they were still conducting operations to flush out the remaining militants and rescue their hostages.

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Mr Duterte's declaration came a day after the army said they had killed top militants Isnilon Hapilon and Omar Maute.

The two men led the Abu Sayyaf and Maute groups which formed part of the insurgency in Marawi. Both groups have pledged allegiance to, or have links to, IS.

• Who are the Abu Sayyaf group?
• Maute rebel group: Rising threat to Philippines

More than 800 militants have been killed in the fighting, which has also killed more than 150 government troops.

Nearly 50 civilians have been killed, and thousands more have fled the fighting.

• Starving residents tell of terror in Marawi
• Duterte: The controversial 'strongman' of the Philippines

Observers say the occupation of Marawi stoked fears that militant Islamist ideology is more prevalent on the island of Mindanao than had previously been imagined.

The region is the only Muslim-majority part of the otherwise largely Catholic Philippines.

Who was Isnilon Hapilon?

• A leader of Abu Sayyaf, a group notorious for kidnapping, piracy and for beheading hostages, including foreigners
• Factions of the group aim to create an Islamic caliphate in the southern Philippines, while others have pursued criminal activity
• Isnilon Hapilon pledged allegiance to IS in 2014 – IS later urged all Muslims in southeast Asia to unite under his leadership
• The US has offered a bounty of up to $5m for him
• Has links to the Maute group, another local insurgency group which has declared allegiance to IS

The tenacious resistance of the militants, an alliance of two groups pledging allegiance to so-called Islamic State, caught the government by surprise, the BBC's Jonathan Head reports.

Armed groups have fought intermittently for more autonomy on the island of Mindanao for decades, but rarely as fiercely as those who held Marawi over the past five months.

The growing radicalisation of parts of Muslim society in the Philippines has been attributed by some observers to the slow pace of the long-running peace talks with the government.

Source – bbc.com

Afghanistan Taliban 'suicide attack' on police centre

Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen have stormed a police training centre in the eastern Afghan city of Gardez, killing at least 12 people, officials say.

Another 70 were injured in the assault. The Interior Ministry confirmed the local police chief is among the dead.

"At first a suicide bomber detonated a car filled with explosives near the training centre, making way for a number of attackers to start their assault," a spokesperson said.

Casualty numbers are expected to rise.

Officials say at least six attackers were killed by security forces in the fighting, which went on for several hours.

The victims include "women, students and police", Gardez public health director Hedayatullah Hamidi told AFP news agency.

• Four days behind the Taliban front line
• Taliban letter to Trump urges withdrawal
• The new 'Great Game' in Afghanistan

The compound at Gardez in Paktia province contains the headquarters of the national police, border police, and Afghan National Army.

The Taliban said it was behind the attack.

The assault comes just days after police in the capital, Kabul, said they had arrested a would-be suicide truck bomber, averting a major attack.

The truck was carrying almost three tonnes of explosives and two bombs, which had been hidden under boxes of tomatoes.

A truck bomb killed more than 150 people in Kabul in May.

Source – bbc.com

Bombardier to partner Airbus on C-Series jets

European aerospace firm Airbus is to take a majority stake in Bombardier's C-Series jet project.

Bombardier has faced a series of problems over the plane, most recently a trade dispute in the US that imposed a 300% import tariff.

Bombardier's Northern Ireland's director Michael Ryan said the deal was "great news" for the Belfast operation.

About 1,000 staff work on the C-Series at a purpose-built factory in Belfast, mostly making the plane's wings.

Airbus and Bombardier's chief executives said the deal – which will see Airbus take a 50.01% stake – would help to boost sales.

The deal also gives Airbus the right to buy full control of the C-Series project in 2023.

• A neat solution to a thorny trade dispute
• Why is Bombardier important to Northern Ireland?
• Government 'should follow Canada' on Bombardier

Experts have hailed the deal as hugely significant and described it as akin to a supervolcano exploding in the aviation world.

BBC Northern Ireland's business and economics editor John Campbell said Airbus had effectively taken control of the C-Series project in a transformational deal.

He said it would use its financial muscle in procurement and sales, while Bombardier's manufacturing operations would continue to build the planes.

Analysis: John Campbell, BBC News NI business and economics editor

It's perhaps symptomatic of the difficulties the C-Series has faced that Airbus will not have to hand over any cash for its 50% stake.

The hope will be that Airbus' financial muscle will finally put an end to those difficulties.

In particular, Airbus thinks it can solve the C-Series tariff problem by assembling the plane for US customers inside the US at its factory in Alabama.

But, as trade expert Simon Lester of the Cato Institute pointed out to me, it may not be that straightforward.

That's because of something known as "trade circumvention" – in crude terms, when a company tries to avoid tariffs by superficially changing the country of origin of its products.

Will the US trade authorities (and Boeing) see an Alabama-assembled C-Series as an attempt at circumvention?

Davy Thompson, from the trade union Unite, said the deal was a "welcome development".

"My understanding of the deal, and what it means for Belfast, is the supply chain still seems to be what it is today, which would mean Belfast is integral to the overall process.

"That should, we believe, increase and assure people's jobs down in the C-Series plan, but there are still further challenges."

He said there were still some "concerns" over non-C-Series related contracts at Bombardier's Belfast plant, but the deal with Airbus should "allow for more orders to be placed" and help with long-term employment across the site.

'Positive step'

The union GMB said it was potentially good news but that the "devil was in the detail".

"This deal is liable to further scrutiny from the US administration that may see it as an attempt to dodge their trade tariffs," said Ross Murdoch, GMB national officer.

"GMB hopes both Bombardier and Airbus have taken cast iron legal advice to ensure they don't get rid on one legal challenge only to open themselves up to another."

Bombardier was accused of anti-competitive practices by rival Boeing, which complained to the US authorities.

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Boeing accused the Canadian firm of selling the jets below cost price after taking state subsidies from Canada and the UK.

The firm said the agreement with Airbus "looks like a questionable deal between two heavily state-subsidized competitors to skirt the recent findings of the US government".

"Our position remains that everyone should play by the same rules for free and fair trade to work," it added.

Skip Twitter post by @pmusser

If @Airbus and @Bombardier think this deal will get them around the rules….#thinkagain

— Phil Musser (@pmusser) October 17, 2017

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End of Twitter post by @pmusser

Phil Musser, Boeing's senior vice president of communications, tweeted: "If @Airbus and @Bombardier think this deal will get them around the rules…#thinkagain"

UK Business Secretary Greg Clark said the Airbus tie-up was a "positive step forward".

Mr Clark said the UK and Canadian governments had been working to "safeguard jobs and manufacturing at Bombardier Shorts in Belfast, and the supply chain across the UK".

The government was still pushing for a "swift resolution" to the Boeing dispute, he added.

Arlene Foster, leader of Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, said she hoped the deal would "safeguard" the C-Series programme.

"I'm thrilled there is a bright future ahead following what has been a dark time for staff and management," she added.

Sinn Féin's Stormont leader Michelle O'Neill said the deal was a "good news story for Bombardier" that would "come as a relief to the workers and their families and all those local businesses involved in the Bombardier supply chain".

Labour's Owen Smith, the shadow Northern Ireland secretary, said the deal "looked good for both Bombardier and Belfast".

"Boeing's bullying has united its rivals and hopefully secured the jobs," he tweeted.

The French government, which owns an 11% stake in Airbus, also welcomed the deal.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said it made Airbus and the European aircraft manufacturing industry "stronger".

Source – bbc.com

Syria war: US-backed forces 'control' Raqqa

US-backed forces in Syria say they now control so-called Islamic State's one-time capital of Raqqa, with only a few dozen militants remaining in the city.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they had retaken al-Naim square, where IS once held public executions.

The official declaration that the city has been recaptured is expected soon, a BBC correspondent reports.

Earlier, a convoy of local IS fighters and their families left Raqqa as part of a planned departure.

No foreign fighters were allowed to join them, the SDF said.

More than 3,000 civilians have escaped the city in recent days, local forces say.

Raqqa was one of the first large cities IS took over in 2014.

But the SDF, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias, has been besieging the city for almost four months.

• The desperate fight for IS 'capital' Raqqa
• Inside 'Islamic State': A Raqqa diary
• IS wives: Why I joined the 'caliphate' in Raqqa

On Tuesday, the SDF said it had taken the city's hospital, one of the last pockets of IS resistance. However, IS fighters were still holding out in Raqqa's stadium.

There were no air strikes for the first time in months on Monday, though fighting is still going on, reports the BBC's Feras Kilani in the city.

Earlier, an SDF vehicle was seen patrolling the ruined streets with a loud speaker urging people to come out of into the open and "eat hot soup".

The SDF's decision to allow some of the militants to go out of the city, leaving only a hardcore group of fighters behind, was designed to shorten the battle.

The loss of Raqqa will be seen as another blow for IS, which has been steadily losing ground in both Syria and Iraq over the last two years.

IS, which attracted fighters from across the globe with its extreme interpretation of Islamic law, used beheadings, crucifixions and torture to terrorise residents who opposed its rule.

Source – bbc.com

US urges calm as Kirkuk crisis escalates

The US has called for "calm" after Iraqi government forces seized the northern city of Kirkuk and key installations from Kurdish control.

State department spokeswoman Heather Nauert urged all parties to "avoid further clashes".

Iraqi soldiers moved into Kirkuk three weeks after the Kurdistan Region held a controversial independence referendum.

They are aiming to retake areas under Kurdish control since Islamic State militants swept through the region.

Residents of Kurdish-controlled areas, including Kirkuk, overwhelmingly backed secession from Iraq in a vote on 25 September.

While Kirkuk is outside Iraqi Kurdistan, Kurdish voters in the city were allowed to take part.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi had denounced the vote as unconstitutional. But the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) insisted it was legitimate.

• Kirkuk residents stuck in the middle
• Iraqi Kurds decisively back independence
• Independence: What is at stake?

Meanwhile, reports say a militia backed by the Baghdad government has taken control of the town of Sinjar in the north-western Nineveh province.

The takeover happened without violence after Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers withdrew from the area, the reports added.

Why is Kirkuk at the heart of this crisis?

Kirkuk is an oil-rich province claimed by both the Kurds and the central government. It is thought to have a Kurdish majority, but its provincial capital has large Arab and Turkmen populations.

• Sykes-Picot: The map that spawned a century of resentment
• Why don't Kurds have a state?
• Iraqi Kurdistan profile

Kurdish Peshmerga forces took control of much of the province in 2014, when Islamic State (IS) militants swept across northern Iraq and the Iraq army collapsed.

The Iraqi parliament asked Mr Abadi to deploy troops to Kirkuk and other disputed areas after the referendum result was announced, but he said last week that he would accept them being governed by a "joint administration" and that he did not want an armed confrontation.

On Sunday, his cabinet accused the KRG of deploying non-Peshmerga fighters in Kirkuk, including members of the PKK, which it said was tantamount to a "declaration of war". But KRG officials denied this.

Territorial control before 16 October 2017

What's the US stance in the developing crisis?

In a statement on Monday, Ms Nauert said Washington was "very concerned by reports of violence around Kirkuk".

"We support the peaceful exercise of joint administration by the central and regional governments, consistent with the Iraqi constitution, in all disputed areas."

Ms Nauert said the US was working with officials from all parties to "encourage dialogue", warning that "there is still much work to be done to defeat Isis (Islamic State) in Iraq".

Earlier, President Donald Trump said US officials were "not taking sides".

"We don't like the fact that they're clashing," he added.

Senator John McCain, who heads the Senate Armed Services Committee, warned the Iraqi government of "severe consequences" if US-supplied weaponry was misused in operations against Kurdish forces.

"The United States provided equipment and training to the government of Iraq to fight (Islamic State) and secure itself from external threats – not to attack elements of one of its own regional governments." he said.

Skip Twitter post by @RudawEnglish

#BREAKING: Iraqi forces are inside the office of Najmaldin Karim, governor of #Kirkuk city. #KurdistanBlockade pic.twitter.com/p3YPLFMIML

— Rudaw English (@RudawEnglish) October 16, 2017

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End of Twitter post by @RudawEnglish

What about Baghdad and Kurdish officials?

Mr Abadi said in a statement on Monday that the operation in Kirkuk was necessary to "protect the unity of the country, which was in danger of partition" because of the referendum.

"We call upon all citizens to co-operate with our heroic armed forces, which are committed to our strict directives to protect civilians in the first place, and to impose security and order, and to protect state installations and institutions," he added.

On Monday, the Iraqi military said its units had taken control of the K1 military base, the Baba Gurgur oil and gas field, and a state-owned oil company's offices.

The government in Baghdad said Kurdish Peshmerga soldiers had withdrawn "without fighting". However, clashes were reported to the south, and the sound of gunfire was caught by a BBC cameraman as a team filmed near a checkpoint.

By the afternoon, as thousands of people fled the city fearing impending clashes between the two sides, Iraqi military vehicles were rolling into the heart of Kirkuk. A picture shared on social media appeared to show Iraqi forces sitting in the governor's office.

Forces pulled down the Kurdish flag which had been flying alongside the Iraqi national flag, according to Reuters.

Mr Abadi had ordered the flag to fly over all disputed territories.

The speed with which Iraqi forces reached the centre of the city has led the two main armed Kurdish parties to accuse each other of "betrayal".

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The Peshmerga General Command, which is led by President Massoud Barzani of the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), accused officials from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of aiding "the plot against the people of Kurdistan".

The PUK denied being part of ordering any withdrawal, saying dozens of their fighters had been killed and hurt, but noted "not even one KDP Peshmerga has been martyred as of yet in the fighting in Kirkuk".

Meanwhile Turkey, which fears Kurdish independence in Iraq could lead to similar calls from its own Kurdish minority, praised Baghdad, saying it was "ready for any form of co-operation with the Iraqi government in order to end the PKK presence in Iraqi territory".

The PKK – or Kurdistan Workers' Party – is a Turkish-Kurdish rebel group which has been fighting for autonomy since the 1980s. It is considered a terrorist group by Turkey as well as by the EU and US.

Source – bbc.com

Australia launches revenge porn reporting tool

Australia has set up the first national reporting tool to help victims of revenge porn.

Revenge porn, or image-based abuse, is the sharing of explicit images without consent.

The online portal provides advice on getting the images removed, reporting the abuse to authorities and pursuing legal action.

The country's eSafety commissioner said 20% of Australians aged between 16 and 49 have experienced image-based abuse.

Young women and indigenous Australians were more likely to be victims.

The same research found that 76% of victims took no action, often because they didn't know what to do.

In a statement, communications minister Mitch Fifield said the $4.8m (£2.8m) portal was "world-first", although the Californian government provides a similar service and non-government organisations elsewhere provide similar resources.

Mr Fifield also said the government is considering introducing civil penalties for perpetrators or websites that distribute revenge porn.

There are already specific laws against revenge porn in all but three Australian states and territories, and telecommunications laws have also been used to prosecute offenders.

Revenge porn is illegal in the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Japan, and in most US states.

Source – bbc.com

Portugal fires: Three days of national mourning for wildfire victims

Portugal has declared three days of national mourning, beginning on Tuesday, for the victims of wildfires that raged across the country.

At least 36 people died after hundreds of fires spread across central and northern areas on Sunday and Monday.

They started in dry conditions and fanned by strong Atlantic winds from Hurricane Ophelia,

Across the border in Spain, at least three people died in wildfires in the Galicia region.

The number of fires prompted Portugal to declare a state of emergency in areas north of the river Tagus – almost half its landmass.

Prime Minister António Costa issued a statement on what he called the largest wave of fires the country had experienced since 2006.

He said his cabinet would meet on Saturday to adopt recommendations of a report on fire prevention commissioned after a blaze in June that killed 64 people.

"After this year, nothing should remain as it was before," he said.

The June fire prompted a controversy over Portugal's state of preparedness, but on Monday Mr Costa ruled out firing cabinet ministers.

Rain helped to quench many fires late on Monday , though more than a dozen still burned overnight, Portuguese officials say.

• Raging wildfires – in pictures
• Why are Portugal's wildfires so deadly?

Residents said they had little time to react. "The fire came at the foot of the village and spread at an incredible rate," Jose Morais, who lives in Vouzela in the Viseu region, told AFP news agency.

"It felt like the end of the world. Everyone fled".

In Spain's Galicia region, two of the three victims were found together in a burned-out car on the roadside.

Spanish politicians said the fires on their side of the border had been set by arsonists.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who travelled to Galicia on Monday, said one fire had been started at five different points. "It's impossible for this to be triggered under natural circumstances."

Interior Minister Juan Ignacio Zoido said authorities had identified suspects.

Are you affected by the wildfires? Email us with your story at [email protected].

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Source – bbc.com