Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 8 Sep 2011

(Image credit: 2006 AFP)

published 8 September 2011

IRAQI DEATH CASTS 'DARK SHADOW' on BRITISH ARMY The death of an innocent Iraqi civilian killed by British soldiers casts a "dark shadow" over the army's reputation said its head, General Sir Peter Wall. Baha Mousa died with 93 injuries in British custody in Basra in 2003. The year-long Gage report into his death said he was killed in an "appalling episode of serious gratuitous violence" and that there was a "very serious breach of discipline". ROWAN WILLIAMS ASKS TO MEET MUGABEThe Archbishop of Canterbury (above) is risking controversy by planning to visit President Mugabe next month, making him the first prominent Briton to visit Zimbabwe in a decade. Dr Williams hopes to persuade Mugabe to end his government's brutal campaign against Anglicans, which includes beating and arresting priests. GADDAFI VOWS TO STAY ON AND DEFEAT NATOIn a telephone call to Syrian TV, apparently made from inside Libya, Col Gaddafi has denied reports that he has fled to Niger, dismissing the speculation as psychological warfare. Niger has said that those Libyans who did cross the border earlier this week are free to stay in Niger or move on to Burkina Faso. GALLIANO FINED over ANTI-SEMITIC RANTSFashion designer John Galliano has escaped with a suspended fine of €6,000 after being found guilty of twice making racist and anti-Semitic "public insults" at a Paris bar by a court in France. The designer must pay his victims and anti-racist groups symbolic damages of one euro each. Galliano's lawyer said he hoped for "understanding and forgiveness". LIZ TAYLOR'S DIAMONDS TO BE SOLD AT AUCTIONThe legendary jewelry collection of the late Hollywood star Liz Taylor, 300 pieces valued at $30 million, is to be sold at auction by Christie's in New York in December. The sale includes the 33.19 carat Krupp Diamond and the 16th century Le Peregrina Pearl once owned by Queen Mary, both gifts from Richard Burton in the late 1960s. OBAMA TO PROPOSE $300BN JOBS BOOST President Obama, hoping to refloat his sinking presidency tonight with a rare address to a joint session of Congress, will propose a $300bn plan to create jobs and stimulate the stagnant economy. It will include infrastructure spending and tax cuts to boost spending. He has pledged to "put America back to work" in ways "both parties can agree to". Disrespect! Republicans avoid Obama’s big night Theresa may says most rioters weren't in gangsHome Secretary Theresa May has told MPs that contrary to what had previously been reported, the "majority of people involved" in the riots were not in gangs. She said it was "very difficult to say" what caused the riots, adding that changes in policy should be done "on the basis of a proper analysis of who was involved". How tough should we be on rioters? WALLIAMS MAY HAVE TO ABANDON CHARITY SWIMDavid Walliams, of Little Britain fame, may be forced to abandon his 140-mile charity swim from Gloucestershire to London because of 'Thames tummy', causing high temperatures, vomiting and diarrhoea. Walliams, who has already raised £200,000, said: "I always knew there was a risk that taking in the water could cause problems." Walliams battles E. coli and raw sewage in Thames swim PERRY AND ROMNEY DOMINATE 'INTENSE' TV DEBATETexas Governor Rick Perry and Mitt Romney dominated the Republican candidates' first TV debate last night, eclipsing six other candidates including Michele Bachmann. The New York Times said that the unusually lively debate over jobs and social security had begun "narrowing" the race "into an intense and ideological battle". DAVID HOCKNEY TOO 'BUSY' TO PAINT THE QUEENArtist David Hockney, 74, turned down a request to paint a portrait of the Queen because he was "very busy", he said at the launch of David Hockney: A Bigger Picture, an exhibition of his landscapes for the Cultural Olympiad. He said the Queen would be a "terrific subject", but he prefers to paint people he knows, and is "not a flatterer". In pictures: David Hockney's new landscapes