Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 24 May 2013
- 1. WOOLWICH: SECOND MAN IS NAMED
- 2. OBAMA PROMISES TO SCALE BACK DRONES
- 3. ONLINE PORN DRIVES YOUNG TO 'RISKY SEX'
- 4. E1.2M FOR SPACE TRIP WITH DICAPRIO
- 5. SALLY BERCOW TWEET WAS LIBELLOUS
- 6. WHY ROCHDALE FAILED TO STOP SEX ABUSERS
- 7. 'COLOURED' REMARK REIGNITES RACE ROW
- 8. RAF JETS SCRAMBLED AFTER INCIDENT
- 9. EMERGENCY LANDING CLOSES HEATHROW
- 10. BRITAIN ‘HOURS FROM RUNNING OUT OF GAS’
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1. WOOLWICH: SECOND MAN IS NAMED
The second man involved in the Woolwich killing has been named as Michael Adebowale, 22. Like 28-year-old Michael Adebolajo, he is a Briton of Nigerian descent. Both men remain in hospital under armed guard. Their victim was named last night as Drummer Lee Rigby, 25, of the 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.
Woolwich: family in tears as they remember Lee Rigby
2. OBAMA PROMISES TO SCALE BACK DRONES
President Obama will scale back the controversial use of drones and will speed up plans to close Guantanamo Bay, he said in a speech about the future of counter-terrorism post-Afghanistan. Special courts would be asked to decide on targeted assassinations by drones, bringing more oversight. However, he said drones were still a better option than boots on the grounds.
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Drone clampdown as Obama rethinks US terror strategy
3. ONLINE PORN DRIVES YOUNG TO 'RISKY SEX'
Online pornography is leading children to have riskier and more extreme forms of sex from an earlier age, according to a report by the Children's Commissioner for England. A ban is not enough: parents need to help children understand what they have seen depicted. It can be difficult, for instance, to differentiate between real rape and a set-up.
Online porn pushes children into risky sex
4. E1.2M FOR SPACE TRIP WITH DICAPRIO
The winning bidder at a charity auction in Cannes last night paid E1.2m for a journey into space aboard Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic, seated next to Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The prize was arranged by producer Harvey Weinstein as a highlight of the AmFAR Cinema Against AIDS dinner at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc.
Cannes countdown: favourites for the 2013 Palme d’Or
5. SALLY BERCOW TWEET WAS LIBELLOUS
A tweet sent by the Speaker’s wife, Sally Bercow, about Lord McAlpine was libellous, the High Court ruled today. McAlpine was the “leading politician” wrongly linked to paedophilia claims in a bungled Newsnight investigation. He was not named on the programme, but he was identified by Twitter users including Bercow.
Sally Bercow's McAlpine tweet was libellous, judge rules
6. WHY ROCHDALE FAILED TO STOP SEX ABUSERS
Political correctness and fears of a racial backlash stopped local authority leaders in Rochdale taking action to stamp out the grooming of young girls by men of Pakistani origin, a report claims today. The independent report follows the jailing of last May nine men found guilty of multiple sex offences against Rochdale girls.
7. 'COLOURED' REMARK REIGNITES RACE ROW
The racism row engulfing golf refuses to go away. In an attempt to explain the European Tour's failure to punish Sergio Garcia for his "fried chicken" remark about Tiger Woods, the Tour's chief executive, George O'Grady, referred to black people as "coloured" in a live interview. He issued a statement saying he deeply regretted using the "inappropriate word".
Garcia race row worsens with golf chief's 'coloured' gaffe
8. RAF JETS SCRAMBLED AFTER INCIDENT
Two men have been arrested at Stansted Airport after RAF Typhoon jets were scrambled to escort a Pakistan International Airlines passenger plane diverted from Manchester after a disturbance on board. Police boarded the flight after it landed at Stansted and removed the men. The "security incident" is not thought to be terrorism-related.
9. EMERGENCY LANDING CLOSES HEATHROW
Heathrow airport was briefly closed this morning after a British Airways plane was forced to make an emergency landing. All 75 passengers and crew were safely evacuated from the airbus A319 bound for Oslo, which suffered a "technical fault" after take-off. Witnesses said they saw smoke and flames coming from an engine and there were reports it had hit a flock of birds.
10. BRITAIN ‘HOURS FROM RUNNING OUT OF GAS’
Britain came within six hours of running out of natural gas in March this year, a senior energy official has claimed. "We really only had six hours' worth of gas left in storage as a buffer,” he said. “If it had run any lower it would have meant interruptions to supply.” He also confirmed that heating bills are set to soar because of increased wholesale costs.
Britain 'nearly ran out of natural gas'
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