Author: Gulf News Week
Social MediaA young British couple and their pilot were killed in a helicopter crash on the Greek island of Sifnos on Monday, Greek police have said.They have been named as newlyweds Alexander Cromie and Marie Ebert, who were in Greece on their honeymoon.The private helicopter crashed just metres from a landing pad, killing the pair and their pilot, a Greek national.The couple are said to have taken the helicopter from the village of Markopoulo near Athens to the popular holiday island, Kathimerini reported. Plume of black smoke seen at site of deadly helicopter crashA Foreign Office spokesperson told the BBC:…
ReutersThe trial beginning on Tuesday will mark another huge test for Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg’s social media empireMeta has been hit with successive losses in court over how its platforms have targeted and harmed young users, but a jury trial set to begin on Tuesday may pose the biggest threat yet to its operations.The trial stems from a lawsuit filed in 2023 by 30 US states, including California and New York, in which they claim numerous violations of federal and state privacy laws for children.Not only are the states seeking upwards of $1 trillion from Meta, they are demanding it…
BBCDr Sevket Alpturk (l), Dr Firdevs Uguz Tip (c), and patient co-ordinator Julie Hodson (r) worked at Dogus IVF CentreAt least 30 children, most of them British, are feared to have been conceived by IVF treatment in northern Cyprus using the wrong sperm or egg donors.In each case, the parents suspect they did not get the donors they had selected.The figure is one of several new findings in a BBC investigation that, earlier this year, uncovered the first seven cases.All the parents say they carefully selected anonymous donors based on information such as their medical history, appearance, personality, education and…
Getty ImagesHayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko had a daughter together in 2014Hayden Panettiere’s ex-partner Wladimir Klitschko has posted an emotional tribute to the “talented” late Heroes and Nashville star, who he said has “left this world too soon”.The former world heavyweight boxing champion, who shares an 11-year-old daughter with Panettiere, said the family is going through “profound shock and grief” following her death at the age of 36.Panettiere died in Greenville, South Carolina, on Sunday and police said there were not “any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances”.She had struggled for years with substance abuse and audio from police…
Getty ImagesZhu Rongji served as China’s premier from 1998 to 2003, leading China through a series of key economic reformsFlags at government sites are flying at half-mast and security vehicles are parked in the heart of Beijing, as China mourns former Premier Zhu Rongji.Zhu died of an illness last week at 97 and was cremated at a funeral in Beijing on Tuesday. The ceremony, attended by senior leaders including President Xi Jinping, was kept low-key. No footage has been released.Zhu, who served as China’s premier from 1998 to 2003, is remembered as one of the country’s most important economic reformers.While…
Courtesy of Promise OkoroPromise Okoro has yet to name the animal but says it loves eating fried riceWhen Promise Okoro walked out of his final degree exams earlier this month, he fully expected the usual end-of-term celebrations.His cheering friends were already outside blasting music and snapping and filming this much-loved Nigerian “signing-out” ritual.Their white shirts filled up with messages scribbled by classmates and well-wishers – a colourful record of a shared journey through education.But then, through the crowd, came Promise’s mother, Chinyere, pulling a goat.The 23-year-old pharmaceutical technology student initially thought the screams meant someone was about to propose marriage.Instead,…
BBCThousands of life jackets, covered in plastic wrapping, were seized by the German authorities in the springGermany has carried out its first raids under a new law to crack down on smugglers using the country as a staging post for small boat crossings on the English Channel, the BBC has learned.More than 9,000 life jackets, dozens of dinghies and engines and 360 pumps were seized by police this spring during a joint operation involving the UK, France and Germany in the North Rhine-Westphalia region.The dinghies and equipment are now being stored at a secret location that the BBC was given…
NEW YORK (news agencies) — U.S. kindergarten vaccination rates inched down again last year and the share of children with exemptions rose to an all-time high, according to federal data posted Monday.The fraction of kids exempted from vaccine requirements rose to 4.2%, up from 3.6% the year before. That’s an estimated 155,000 children nationally during the 2025-2026 school year. It’s the fourth consecutive year that the national average exemption rate has reached a record, and the vast majority are parents withholding shots for nonmedical reasons. Exemptions increased in 41 states and the District of Columbia. Experts point to turmoil caused…
BBCTo enjoy a night out with friends, Matt once had to drink until he felt sick.If he didn’t, the 22-year-old from the north of England would spend the night silent, terrified of saying the wrong thing. The warehouse worker says it felt like there was “just no way into” the conversations everyone else seemed to be enjoying.Then, two years ago, he swapped pints for prescription drugs he discovered through social media.As he gets ready to go out on a Friday, Matt, whose name has been changed, now takes a medicine he purchases illegally online that usually treats epilepsy and nerve…
ReutersIt is the second school shooting in the Philippines in as many monthsA student at a Catholic junior high school in the southern Philippines was shot dead by a fellow student, who later took his own life, a local official said on Tuesday.The alleged shooter managed to sneak in a .45-calibre pistol into a classroom at the school in Zamboanga City, Mayor Khymer Adan Olaso told local radio.The suspect fired at the teacher who was seated at the table, but missed. Afterwards, the suspect moved to another classroom and shot a student who later died, Olaso said.Alleged livestream footage of…