Daily Archives: June 6, 2013

Miss World chiefs cancel bikini round to avoid offending Muslims as pageant is set to take place in Indonesia

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b2Miss World is synonymous with scantily clad women strutting their stuff on stage.

But this year the pageant will be significantly more subdued, after organisers announced that they are scrapping the traditional bikini round in a bid to avoid offending the Muslim hosts.

The contest, which will crown a global beauty queen chosen from 137 participants, will take place in September on the island of Bali in Indonesia.

The area plays host to millions of foreign tourists every year, and is known for its idyllic beaches where Western visitors are frequently to be seen sporting skimpy swimwear.

However, Indonesia is a predominantly Islamic country, with more than 200million Muslims living in the South-East Asian nation.

The country’s top Islamic body, the Indonesian Ulema Council, has called for the Miss World pageant to be cancelled.

Instead, they will cover up with garments such as sarongs which avoid revealing the body shape.

 

Russian President Putin, Wife Are Divorcing

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o_783975Russian President Vladimir Putin and his wife Lyudmila have announced they are divorcing.

Married just a few weeks short of 30 years, the Putins announced the decision on state television after attending a ballet performance Thursday evening in the Kremlin.

“It was our joint decision,” Putin said.

Lyudmila Putin was rarely seen in public during her husband’s long tenure at the top of Russian politics.

“I don’t like publicity and flying is difficult for me,” she said.

 

Fighting between Sudanese army and rebels displaces 60,000: U.N.

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Displaced women and children from Abu Kershola rest at school center in Al-Rahaad at North Kordofan State More than 60,000 people have fled a town in Sudan’s main oil region since it was attacked by insurgents in April, the United Nations said on Thursday.

Government forces retook the town of Abu Kershola two weeks ago from fighters belonging to the Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF), a rebel alliance seeking to topple President Omar Hassan al-Bashir.
Abu Kershola lies in the northeastern tip of the oil-producing South Kordofan state.
The fighting in Abu Kershola has displaced 63,000 people, the U.N. said in its report. Some 8,000 people have fled to Khartoum, more than 600 km (370 miles) away, while 44,000 were seeking shelter in the neighboring state of North Kordofan.

US teacher ‘held for Shanghai school sex abuse’

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1Շանհայում ամերիկացի ուսուցիչը ձերբակալվել է սեռական ոտնձգության կաÕAn American teacher at an elite French school in Shanghai has been arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting at least seven children, school officials and parents told AFP on Thursday.

The news comes after a former instructor at the school, also an American, was extradited to the US on similar charges, they said.
“As parents we are devastated,” said the mother of one pupil, who requested anonymity to protect her child’s privacy.
Management at the Lycee Francais de Shanghai told AFP: “Families have lodged complaints with the Chinese police against a teacher at the French school of Shanghai over assaults on their children.
“The investigation is being carried out by the Chinese police and is ongoing. The teacher has been in administrative detention since his arrest,” the school added.
The mother told AFP that her child started behaving oddly soon after they moved to the country.

On Prime Minister’s Instructions, Large Family From Mrgashat Community Gets Private Housing

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6739_en_4On Prime Minister’s instructions, the large family of Mkhitaryans was provided with a private home in Mrgashat community of Armavir Marz.

To recall, during a working visit paid to Armavir Marz on May 22, the Prime Minister was hosted in the 14-member-strong Mkhitaryans family (with 11 children). As the family lived in a badly damaged unsafe house, consisting only of 2 rooms, the Premier promised to solve the problem within the shortest possible time.

On Tigran Sargsyan’s instruction, the family of Mkhitaryans was provided a new two-story dwelling-house with a 2,500 square meter-wide plot of land attached to the house.

In addition, they will get 2 hectares of agricultural land from the administration of the community.
 

Moscow Metro fire sees 45,000 people evacuated and two dozen passengers injured

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m4A rush-hour fire in Moscow’s subway today injured dozens of people, forced the evacuation of thousands of commuters and closed parts of the network.

The fire started after a power cable caught fire in a tunnel leading to the Okhotny Ryad station adjacent to Red Square, the Emergencies Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said more than 45 people sought medical help and seven were hospitalised.

Most of them suffered from smoke inhalation and thousands were evacuated.
As firefighters were putting out the fire, authorities closed one of the subway lines that cuts through central Moscow.

Eyewitnesses say central Moscow streets were thronged with crowds who ended up walking to work.

The subway resumed regular service by noon Moscow time, but half an hour later officials again shut part of the line after they found a smoldering cable at another tunnel next to the Okhotny Ryad station.

Moscow’s subway is an essential transport link, serving up to 7 million people a day.