Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 8 Sep 2014

1. SCOTS INDEPENDENCE: NO CAMPAIGN BOOST

With the referendum on Scottish independence just ten days away, the No campaign has given its activities a last-minute boost, after a poll for the first time gave Yes a narrow lead. Labour’s Ed Miliband and George Osborne pledged to hand new powers to the Scottish government immediately after a No vote.

2. IRAQ CLAIMS VICTORY OVER I.S. AROUND DAM

Iraqi forces say they have successfully cleared Islamic State (IS) militants from a wide area around the country’s important Haditha dam, backed by air strikes from a US aircraft carrier in the Gulf. It was the first US air strike outside the north of Iraq. On Wednesday, Barack Obama will reveal US strategy.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

3. UKRAINE: PRISONERS FREED BUT SANCTIONS HIT

Pro-Russian rebels in Ukraine have released 1,200 prisoners since a ceasefire to end fighting in the east of the country was signed on Friday. Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko made the announcement during a visit to the port of Mariupol. However, EU sanctions against Russia, prompted by the crisis, will still take effect on Tuesday.

4. ASHYA KING ARRIVES IN CZECH REPUBLIC

The five-year-old boy whose parents were arrested in Spain after they removed him from a hospital in Southampton to seek a pioneering treatment for his brain tumour has arrived in the Czech Republic. Ashya King was flown by private jet to Prague for proton beam treatment after Spanish doctors approved the transfer.

Ashya King 'cured of cancer' by treatment denied on the NHS

5. LUTON AIRPORT EVACUATED AFTER ALERT

Luton airport was evacuated and incoming flights diverted this afternoon after a bomb alert. A checked-in suitcase set off a scanner in the "security search area" prompting the evacuation. The approach road to the airport in Bedfordshire was closed and a bomb disposal teams was on site as incoming flights were been suspended.

6. MH370 RELATIVES MARK SIX MONTHS

Relatives of the 239 people missing on Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 have held commemorations in Beijing to mark six months since the plane disappeared. About 30 relatives gathered at a Buddhist temple, the BBC says. One man read a poem and tempers flared when police tried to move people on.

MH370: mysterious 89kg load ‘added to cargo flight list after take-off’

7. KATE MIDDLETON PREGNANT AGAIN

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are expecting a second child. Confirmation came from Kensington Palace today after Kate was treated for acute morning sickness, which she also suffered when pregnant with her first son, George. She had been due to undertake her first solo overseas tour to Malta this month. No due date has been given.

Princess Charlotte to start nursery school in January

8. ROTHERHAM COUNCIL CHIEF STANDS DOWN

The chief executive of scandal-hit Rotherham Council is to stand down in the wake of a report that exposed the sexual abuse of 1,400 children in the town. Martin Kimber said he wanted to reiterate his "sincere apology to those who were let down" by the council's failings and said new leadership was needed in the wake of the report.

Child abuse scandal: Rotherham Council chief to quit

9. METEORITE FALLS TO EARTH IN NICARAGUA

A small meteorite landed near the Nicaraguan capital, Managua, on Saturday night. It came to earth in a wooded area near near the airport and left a crater 12m wide and 5.5m deep. No-one was hurt by the strike, but residents reported hearing and feeling the impact. The missile may have come from the 2014RC asteroid and could be buried in the soil.

10. HOT TICKET: HORST PHOTOS AT V&A

An exhibition of photographs by Horst P Horst has opened at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Horst: Photographer of Style surveys Horst's 60-year career from his fashion shoots for Vogue, to Hollywood portraits, and artistic collaborations with Salvador Dali. "Magical," says the Arts Desk. Until 4 January.

Horst: Photographer of Style - 'magical' fashion photos at V&A

Explore More