King Abdullah Of Saudi Arabia's Dies In Hospital

Abdullah, who took power in 2005 following the death of King Fahd, is expected to be buried later today following afternoon prayers.

"With great sadness and mourning His Royal Highness Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, and all members of the family and the nation, express condolences for the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud," the statement said.

The late monarch's half-brother Moqren has been confirmed as the new Saudi Crown Prince.
 The public will be invited to pledge allegiance to the new monarch and Crown Prince at the royal palace later today.

Abdullah had run the country as de factor leader since the mid-1990s after his predecessor suffered a debilitating stroke.
 His successor King Salman, 79, became Crown Prince in June 2012 after the death of Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz.

 He has represented Abdullah at recent public events due to the late king's ailing health.

World leaders have paid tribute to Abdullah, who encouraged reforms to the oil-rich kingdom including greater freedom for women and economic deregulation.

During his reign, Abdullah worked to counter the influence of Saudi Arabia's chief rival Iran.

On hearing of his death, Iran offered condolences and said Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif would travel to Riyadh for an "official ceremony"..

Abdullah and his fellow Sunni Arab monarchs also staunchly opposed the wave of pro-democracy uprisings across the Middle East since 2011.

 
Saudi Arabia has been among several Gulf countries taking part in a US-led air campaign against Islamic State.
 His nation also unflinchingly led Gulf countries in ignoring calls by other producers to cut oil output to curb the sliding price of crude.

He also launched projects to build new economic cities, universities and high-speed railways.

US President Barack Obama expressed his condolences in the wake of the death and hailed Abdullah's "steadfast and passionate belief" in Saudi-American relations.

"As a leader, he was always candid and had the courage of his convictions," Mr Obama said in a statement.

"One of those convictions was his steadfast and passionate belief in the importance of the US-Saudi relationship as a force for stability and security in the Middle East and beyond.

"The closeness and strength of the partnership between our two countries is part of King Abdullah's legacy."

 

 

 

 

 

 

After 20 Years Say Goodbye To Internet Explorer

Microsoft has unveiled 'Spartan,' a new browser for Windows 10

News of your potential demise started as whispers late last year when reports emerged that Microsoft was working on a wholly new Internet browser. They gained momentum about a week later with a leak detailing some of this mystery browser’s features. And they finally solidified Wednesday when Microsoft made it all official, unveiling for the first time “Spartan,” which could become one of the company’s only browsers not called “Internet Explorer” in two decades.
Microsoft hasn’t started digging your grave just yet. For now, you’ll have to share hard drive space with your lean, more stylish cousin once Windows 10 arrives sometime this year. And there’s always the chance your makers might give Spartan an IE designation before that.
But that seems unlikely. The whole point here is that you’re boring, washed up, old news.
Sure, you’ve still got nearly 60% of the global market share for browsers. But that’s peanuts compared to the world-dominating numbers you put up before Apple’s Safari, Google’s Chrome and Mozilla’s Firefox started nipping at your heels. And because Windows Phone has flatlined, you’ve barely made a blip on mobile, where most people are using the web these days.
But the biggest problem you face, Internet Explorer, is that you carry 20 years of brand baggage—and it’s not good. You’ve developed a reputation, however unfair, as slow and unwieldy. We’re long past the point where a makeover and a bigger number alongside your name can turn you into the prettiest browser at the ball. If you weren’t packaged along with Windows—long your biggest and most controversial advantage—there’s no telling how far your figures might fall.
Microsoft needs something fresh, something new. It needs Spartan.
Besides marking a fresh start, what does Spartan do that you don’t? It’s leaner, faster, designed with mobile in mind. Close integration with Cortana, Microsoft’s voice-activated assistant, means it will bring users relevant information like flight delays without even having to visit an airline’s website. Spartan’s note-taking mode turns the web into a canvas, letting users scribble notes on live websites and send off them to colleagues or friends. Spartan could even be made available for non-Windows platforms like Android and iOS, helping it gain market share on mobile, which is clearly the future.
How much longer you’ll be around, IE, depends on Spartan’s success. Perhaps your new rival won’t be as good as Chrome or Firefox, and Microsoft will shy away from it. Maybe having two baked-in browser options will confuse Windows 10 users, and they’ll stick with you out of habit. Or maybe Microsoft will call Spartan “Internet Explorer 12″ after all. But if Microsoft does decide to pull the plug on you, IE, despair not: 20 long years of service qualifies you for a dignified retirement.

WORST Dressed: Who Got It Wrong On The NTAs Red Carpet

 
It is the biggest night in British Television with the nation's stars turning out in force for the red carpet.

And while many celebrities managed to make an impressive display in their glamorous gowns, others found themselves turning heads for all the wrong reasons.

The Only Way Is Essex star Ferne McCann made a sartorial gamble that didn't quite pay off as she sported a two-tone skater dress and fluffy strappy heels.

The 24-year-old also rocked a super voluminous hairdo as she highlighted her features with glam make-up.

However, she did have a slight saving grace as she turned to the side, showing off the back of her garment which was backless. 

 
Hollyoaks actress Stephanie Davis went for a gothic inspired look as she flashed the flesh in a sheer lace black dress. 

The dress, which featured a long-sleeved sheer layer over a strapless black bodysuit, certainly put her legs on display as she added height to the look with platform black heels.

She appeared rather brave as she showed off her fantastic slender curves, but other than showing her skin it failed to make a positive impression.

Stephanie, 21, completed the look with a black clutch and heavy make-up while she styled her black locks into a simple updo.

Former Celebrity Big Brother star Casey Batchelor also opted to show off her recently reduced cleavage in an extremely revealing sheer gown.

The busty starlet drew focus to her 32EE bosom in the lace detail gown which put a lot of skin on show as she made her way down the red carpet in the winter chill.

Her dark locks were styled into glamorous over the shoulder curls, while her make-up was flawlessly applied with a dark berry lip and smokey eyes.

Claire Sweeney, 43, who looks better than ever after having a little boy last year, chose to swamp her figure in an unflattering dress. 

The fussy details around her breasts and the unforgiving fabric failed to flatter the attractive star. 

While Davina McCall looked fantastic on the red carpet, the neckline on her dress, revealed when she took her jacket off, clashed with the rest of her chic look.

TOWIE babe Chloe Sims attempted to make a show of her fabulous figure, which she did in a skintight latex black dress with a fishtail hem.

However, the shiny item was more S&M than awards show glam, and did nothing to win the 32-year-old any fashion points on the evening. 

And Pixie Lott wearing long sleeved gloves did not impress, unlike like Amal Clooney at the Golden Globes.

The frumpy frock swamped her petite frame and, although her hair was styled in a perfectly red carpet-ready fashion, it wasn't quite the saving grace one would have hoped for.

Several stars on the night shunned posh frocks in honour of a more androgynous look.

But EastEnders actress Jessie Wallace got it wrong when she arrived with co-star Shane Ritchie in an ill-fitting black suit.

The loose-fitting trousers dwarfed her figure, and the blazer worn without a blouse underneath did nothing to inspire.

The soap star added multiple strings of pearls and towering heels to add a bit of glamour to the look, but otherwise it was a bit of a fashion fail. 

Aside from the red carpet, the night was a huge success for many, with the likes of Danny Dyer, David Walliams and Alan Carr taking some of the top prizes at the prestigious ceremony.

And Ant & Dec won the Entertainment Presenter award for the 14th year in a row.

Meanwhile, TV programmes Downton Abbey and This Morning performed well, picking up the Drama and Daytime awards respectively.

And EastEnders was the big soap winner of the night, being named the Serial Drama of the year and fending off the stiff competition in one of the most tricky categories. 

Danny Dyer had a good night too, winning the Serial Performance award, winning over his EastEnders co-star and on-screen wife Kellie Bright.

Adam Woodyatt also poignantly paid tribute to the Coronation Street cast as the EastEnders crowd picked up their Serial gong, following the death of long-term castmember Anne Kirkbride.

Referring to her character Deirdre Barlow's infamous prison stint back in 1998, he said: 'This is for Coronation Street and this is for the Weatherfield One'. 

Earlier, the gracious star had said: 'Big thank you to Coronation Street. Without you there would be no Eastenders. Without you and without characters like Ken and Dierdre, we would not be here.' 

Algerian Protest: We Are At Risk Of Having Polluted Water

A protest held in In Salah on Wednesday
Since the beginning of the year, protests have been intensifying in In Salah, a town located in the Algerian Sahara where the government launched its first shale extraction – or “fracking” – operation at the end of December. The locals fear the environmental consequences of this controversial form of shale gas extraction and denounce the government’s failure to engage residents in any dialogue.

Close to 15,000 people protested in In Salah, with another 4,000 in Tamanrasset and 5,000 in Ouargla, last week, according to “El Watan” newspaper. The protesters carried signs reading “Shale gas, health disaster” and “We are not guinea pigs”.

In Salah and these neighbouring towns are located in one of seven zones identified by the Algerian government as potentially rich in shale gas. Experts believe this North African country could be home to the world’s third largest reserve of hydrocarbon gas (after China and Argentina.) The Algerian authorities also seem eager to diversify their energy production, especially in the face of falling in petrol prices.

“We are at risk of having polluted water and running out of water entirely”

Hacina Zegzeg lives and works in In Salah. She is one of the coordinators for the protest movement. 
We organised protests last year but the debate cooled a bit because the government agreed to hold off beginning the extraction of shale gas until 2022. However, at the end of December last year, the prime minister came to inaugurate the country’s first drilling site, located about 28 kilometres from In Salah… And we had not even been warned about his visit. All this reignited the movement.

What pushes us to action is, above all, the threat that a shale gas mining operation poses to our town. In In Salah, the groundwater table is fossilized, meaning that the water doesn’t replenish itself. Fracking requires an enormous amount of water and can also pollute the soil. We are at risk of having polluted water and running out of water entirely.

However, the Algerian government insists that this project is supposed to be very beneficial for In Salah. The minister of energy recently said that we were getting worried about nothing and that shale gas extraction puts neither the population nor the environment at risk. However, when I see the analysis done by certain independent experts or when I hear French President François Hollande say that France will not extract shale gas while he is president, well, you can understand why I don’t believe what the Algerian authorities are saying.

The protests are also proof of how fed up we are: the government promised that the extraction of shale gas would create jobs. They also promised investment in In Salah. We are wary because we were already cheated once – during the early 2000s, companies such as BP began to extract from conventional gas wells near In Salah. The executives promised that this activity would bring positive changes to the town. They spoke to us about getting more clinics and schools, but nothing really changed. There is still a high rate of unemployment and we still lack infrastructure.

The Minister of Energy Youssef Yousfi promised that efforts would be made to insure that wells were properly cemented and that the waste produced by the drilling would be expertly managed.

According to Yousfi, the extraction of shale gas would allow Algeria to “diversify its energy sources.” He also said that “new techniques make it possible to extract shale gas without danger.” Said Sahnoun, the CEO of Sonatrach, the Algerian state company for hydrocarbon gas, said that his group would invest roughly 70 billion dollars over the next 20 years to drill close to 200 shale gas wells each year. These investments would result in the creation of 50,000 jobs, according to Said Sahnoun.

"We learned to respect the environment a long time ago"

There are other solutions within reach. In Salah is in one of the sunniest regions in the world. In 2008, the idea of constructing solar voltaic farms was tossed around. The town could have been transformed into a huge producer of solar energy. But we’ve seen no progress toward the realisation of this dream.

It’s too bad, because this project would have enjoyed support from the local population. Algeria is not a country that is very concerned with ecology. But here, at the doorway to the Sahara desert, we’ve learned a long time ago that we had to respect the environment and to pay attention to water, which we don’t have much of.

Wife Of Pastor Imprisoned In Iran Meets with Obama

Saeed Abedini has not seen his family in nearly three years, including young daughter Rebekka and son Jacob.

President Obama met Wednesday with the wife of an American pastor who's been imprisoned in Iran for more than two years, telling her that securing Saeed Abedini was a top priority for his administration.
In a statement released Wednesday night by the American Center for Law and Justice, Naghmeh Abedini said she met with Obama for about 10 minutes in Boise, Idaho, before he addressed an audience at Boise State University about education.

"He mentioned his first call several months ago to Iran’s president Rouhani and how Saeed was mentioned in that call," Naghmeh Abedini said. "He again reiterated that Saeed's case was a “top priority” and getting him back to the U.S., to our family, was a top priority."
“I am extremely thankful the president took the time to meet with our family and told us that securing the release of my husband is a top priority,” she said.  “The president was focused and gracious, showing concern to me and my children. I know that this meeting could not have occurred without prayer and I am grateful to the many people around the country and world who continue to pray for Saeed’s release."
She added: "The president repeated his desire to do all that he can to bring Saeed home. That means the world to me and my children and has given me a renewed sense of hope.”

Nagameh Adedini, seen here with her husband in undated photo, is hoping to make her case to the president. (Courtesy of ACLJ)

Naghmeh told Obama that she prays for him often, and said he smiled when Naghmeh told him that she had refrained from food and had fasted for days praying that God would grant this meeting with him.
Abedini was arrested in 2009, but released after pledging to stop formally organizing house churches in Iran. He became a U.S. citizen in 2010, but remained committed to helping improve conditions in his homeland. When he returned to Iran in 2012 to help build a state-run, secular orphanage, police pulled him off a bus and imprisoned him. Over the last two-and-a-half years, Abedini has endured long stints in solitary confinement, and, according to his attorneys, beatings and torture at the hands of his jailers and fellow inmates. For months, he has been denied proper medical attention for his injuries, according to his family and attorneys.

Catholic Church Backs Protests In DR Congo

The protests coincided with a debate in the Senate, the upper parliamentary chamber, over government plans to hold a census before elections.
Most senators, including members of the governing party, said they were opposed to the plan because it risked destabilising the country.
The lower chamber, the House of Representatives, approved the plan on Saturday, in a vote boycotted by opposition MPs.
The opposition says this amounts to a "constitutional coup" by Mr Kabila, as it will take about three years for a census to be conducted in DR Congo, which is two-thirds of the size of western Europe, has very little infrastructure and is hit by instability in the east.
The opposition says government plans for a census are a ploy to delay the poll so that he can hang on to power.
The government admits the election could be delayed, but says the census is vital to ensure polls are free and fair.
The Catholic Church, the largest in DR Congo, has shut its schools as violent protests continued in Kinshasa for a third day.

Radio France International, the main foreign broadcaster in DR Congo, has been pulled off air. On Tuesday, internet connections and text messaging services were blocked, apparently on the orders of the government.
Many shops had been looted and set ablaze as the protests turned violent.

Catholic Church head Cardinal Monsengwo Pasinya said "certain political men, with the security forces" were in "desolation" and causing insecurity in DR Congo.
"Stop killing your people," he said in a statement. The cardinal called on the public to challenge by all "legal and peaceful means any attempt to change laws that are essential to the electoral process".
It called on people to peacefully oppose his move to delay presidential elections until a census is held.
At least 11 people have so far been been killed in the protests.
It is the worst unrest in the capital, Kinshasa, since the riots which broke out after Mr Kabila won a second term in disputed elections in 2011.
Mr Kabila, who first took power in 2001 following the assassination of his father Laurent, is constitutionally barred from running for another term in elections due next year.
Government spokesman Lambert Mende said the 11 who died in Monday's and Tuesday's clashes included a policeman shot by a sniper and 10 civilians killed by security guards while attempting to loot private properties.
He said 22 people had been wounded, most of them policemen.
Opposition leader Vital Kamerhe disputed the government's figures, saying 28 protesters had been killed - eight on Tuesday and 20 on Monday 

ISIS Demands $200 Million from Japanese Government

The militant group ISIS has threatened to kill two Japanese hostages unless $200 million hands over them within 72 hours. but Tokyo vowed Tuesday it would not give in to "terrorism".

In a video posted online Tuesday, a masked man clad in black and holding a knife stands over two kneeling men in orange jumpsuits against the backdrop of a barren landscape.

The masked man links the threat against the two men's lives to Japan's support for the U.S.-led coalition that's fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

"Although you are more than 8,500 kilometers away from the Islamic State, you willingly volunteered to take part in this crusade," the man says, addressing his comments to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is currently visiting the Middle East.

The international community needs to "deal with terrorists without giving into them," Abe said at a news conference in Jerusalem after the release of the video. But he stopped short of explicitly ruling out the payment of a ransom or negotiations with the hostages' captors.

Abe, who is reorganizing his trip to deal with the hostage crisis, said he had ordered Japanese officials to do the utmost to try to save the two men. The Japanese Foreign Ministry in Tokyo said it was working to confirm the authenticity of the video.

The masked man in the video identifies the two kneeling men as Kenji Goto Jogo and Haruna Yukawa.

IS has murdered five Western hostages since August last year, but it is the first time that the jihadist group -- which has seized swathes of Syria and neighbouring Iraq -- has threatened Japanese captives.

Chadian Troops Rescue 85 Villagers from Boko Haram

Boko Haram freed two dozen hostages after a mass abduction by its militants in Cameroon, as Chad prepared Monday to engage in the international battle against the extremist group.
Twenty-four of the 80 people taken hostage by Boko Haram in the north of Cameroon Sunday were released as Cameroonian armed forces pursued the Islamist extremists, according to a government source.

 The Boko Haram fighters then fled back into Nigeria, with the fate of the rest of the hostages taken in the raid still unknown.

An army officer based in Cameroon's Far North region said Boko Haram had attacked two villages and kidnapped what Cameroonian state media said were 80 hostages, in one of the group's biggest abductions outside Nigeria yet.

As the militants retreated, the Chadian army said it was putting 400 military vehicles, attack helicopters, and a still unspecified number of soldiers amassed in northern Cameroon into action against Boko Haram, as part of a regional effort to defeat the notoriously violent group.

 

"We are going to advance (Monday) towards the enemy," Chadian army colonel Djerou Ibrahim, who is leading the offensive against Boko Haram, told AFP from the strategic crossroads town of Maltam in northern Cameroon.

"Our mission is to hunt down Boko Haram, and we have all the means to do that."

But Cameroonian Communications Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary warned the armies of the two nations still had considerable planning to complete before being able to launch offensives against Boko Haram.

"Military planners must evaluate the forces being coordinated and coalesced," he said. "That takes time."

Chadian President Idriss Deby has clearly stated his determination to re-capture the strategic town of Baga in northeastern Nigeria, which Boko Haram stormed in murderous attacks in early January.

Chad has thus far been spared attack by Boko Haram, but only a thin sliver of land in northern Cameroon separates the desert state from the Islamists' stronghold in Nigeria's Borno state.

Chad has also been affected by the refugee crisis sparked by Boko Haram's insurgency, and Deby has warned he will "not stand idly by" as the extremists enlarge their field of activity.

Nigeria, which has been unable to halt Boko Haram on its own, expressed its conditional support of Chadian soldiers eventually being deployed on its soil.

"All backing of our operations will be welcomed, but that must conform to operations we already have under way, given those are on Nigerian territory," said Nigerian army spokesman Chris Olukolade.

The leaders of Ghana and Germany, who met in Berlin on Monday, supported using EU money to help fund a regional African force to battle the Islamists.

"I believe it is right to choose African troops for this task but it is our common interest that we sustainably finance such a force," Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters.

Ghanian President John Dramani Mahama said "it would be very important if our partners could join in terms of how we finance that force".

Hezbollah fighters killed in Israeli attack

An Israeli helicopter strike in Syria killed a commander from Lebanon's Hezbollah and the son of the group's late military leader Imad Moughniyah, Hezbollah said, in a major blow that could lead to reprisal attacks.

The strike hit a convoy carrying Jihad Moughniyah and commander Mohamad Issa, known as Abu Issa, in the province of Quneitra, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, killing six Hezbollah members in all, a statement from the group said.

It comes just days after Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said frequent Israeli strikes in Syria were a major aggression, that the group was stronger than before and that Syria and its allies had the right to respond.

Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran and fought a 34-day war with Israel in 2006, has been fighting alongside President Bashar al-Assad's forces in Syria's four-year war.

Iran's semi-official Tabnak news site said several of its Revolutionary Guards had also been killed in the attack, without giving further details. State-run Iranian television said the identity of the "martyrs" could not be confirmed.

 

Jihad Moughniyah, son of Lebanon's Hezbollah late military leader Imad Moughniyah, attends a cer …

The Hezbollah-run al-Manar news channel said the Israeli attack suggested "the enemy has gone crazy because of Hezbollah's growing capabilities and it could lead to a costly adventure that will put the Middle East at stake".

Israel's military declined to comment, but an Israeli security source confirmed to Reuters that the Israeli military had carried out the attack.

It was not immediately clear what role Jihad Moughniyah, in his 20s, was playing in the fighting in Syria.

Hezbollah accused Israel in 2008 of assassinating his father, Imad Moughniyah, who was implicated in high-profile attacks on Israeli and Western targets and wanted by the United States. Israel denies any involvement in that killing.

 Nabil Boumonsef, a columnist at the Lebanon newspaper an-Nahar, said he believed the strike was a direct response to Nasrallah's speech and could lead to a backlash.

 

Jihad Moughniyah (R), son of Lebanon's Hezbollah late military leader Imad Moughniyah, greets Sa …

"Killing the son of Moughniyah is dangerous. I do not think that the group can be quiet now, now that the father and the son are killed. I expect that it will do something,” he said.

U.N. peacekeepers intensified their patrols on the border between Lebanon and Israel on Sunday night, local sources said.

RETALIATION THREAT

Imad Moughniyah was implicated in the 1983 bombings of the U.S. Embassy and U.S. Marine and French peacekeeping barracks in Beirut, which killed over 350 people, as well as the 1992 bombing of the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires and the kidnapping of Westerners in Lebanon in the 1980s.

The United States indicted him for his role in planning and participating in the June 14, 1985, hijacking of a U.S. TWA airliner and the killing of an American passenger.

Jihad Moughniyah (R), son of Lebanon's Hezbollah late military leader Imad Moughniyah, sits besi …

He was killed in a car bombing in Damascus in 2008.
Jihad Moughniyah appeared in public for the first time a week after his father's death to pledge loyalty to Nasrallah.
"We are with you and we will go wherever you go. We will never leave the battlefield and we will never drop our guns, we answer for you Nasrallah," Jihad, then aged 16, said wearing the group's military uniform in front of thousands of mourners.
Al-Manar television said earlier that a number of fighters were killed when they were checking an area in Quneitra when their convoy came under Israeli missile attack.

Quneitra has seen heavy fighting between forces loyal to Assad and rebels including fighters linked to al Qaeda. Syrian state television said six people were killed in the attack and a child was wounded, without giving further details.

Israel has struck Syria several times since the start of the war, mostly destroying weaponry such as missiles that Israeli officials said were destined for Hezbollah, Israel's long-time foe in neighboring Lebanon.

Syria said last month that Israeli jets had bombed areas near Damascus international airport and in the town of Dimas, near the border with Lebanon.

Nasrallah said on Thursday "the frequent attacks on different sites in Syria is a major breach. We consider (those) hostilities (to be) against all the resistance axis."

"(Retaliation) is an open issue," he added.

Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and some Palestinian factions consider themselves an "axis of resistance" against Israel.

THE FIRST URHOBO GRADUATE OF NIGERIA

M. G. Ejaife (born I June, 1912 – 6 March 1972) was an Urhobo nationalist from Okpara Inland and the first principal of the premier Urhobo College Effurun, Warri. He was one of two recipients of scholarship awards from Urhobo Progress Union during World War II years. (The other recipient was G. N. Igho.) He returned to Nigeria after his graduation with a B.A. degree of Durham University in 1948, thus becoming the first Urhobo graduate. He then became the founding Principal of Urhobo College, Effurun. He brought that famous secondary school to its great heights in many fields. Mr. Ejaife later served in many other capacities in Urhobo affairs. He was Urhobo's first Senator, serving with distinction in Nigeria's Upper Chamber during the country's First Republic.