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Turkish prosecutors removed as judicial purge intensifies

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TURKEY’S government removed a series of high-profile prosecutors yesterday stepping up a purge of a judiciary Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan considers embroiled in a plot to undermine him with specious corruption allegations.

The actions hit at the heart of investigations made public on December 17 that have pitched Erdogan into one of the biggest crises of his 11 years in power. They came a day after the government tightened its grip on a panel that controls the appointment of all judges and prosecutors.

Among those removed were the deputy chief prosecutor in the Aegean city of Izmir, where arrests in the graft inquiry were made last week, and a judge in the eastern city of Van, where police launched raids this week against al Qaeda suspects in what Erdogan backers saw as a bid to embarrass the government.

Erdogan remains the most popular politician in Turkey, but it is unclear what effect the current crisis might have as a power struggle continues and March local elections approach.

Erdogan has cast a huge graft inquiry, which has led to the resignation of three ministers and detention of businessmen close to the government, as an attempt by a U.S.-based cleric with influence in police and judiciary to unseat him.

The chief prosecutor and five of his deputies in Istanbul, where the corruption inquiry has been based, were also among 20 people reassigned in the shake-up, the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), headed by the justice minister, said.

There were signs officials appointed to replace those sacked since December were moving to wind down the operation.

The Radikal newspaper said arrest warrants for 45 people, including the prime minister’s son, had been lifted by the new prosecutors and that they would instead be invited to make statements. The Istanbul prosecutor’s office could not immediately be reached for comment.

Those removed also included an Istanbul prosecutor who brought a case against a policeman for firing tear gas at a woman from close range without warning during weeks of anti-government street protests last June. The picture of the woman, wearing a red dress, became a central symbol of the demonstrations Erdogan attributed to a foreign-backed plot.

The reassignments followed a reshuffle in the panel that appoints judges and prosecutors, the HSYK, at a meeting on Wednesday. It was the first overseen by new justice minister Bekir Bozdag, in which of two members seen as close to the government were given more say over judicial appointments.

“They achieved their goals yesterday with the operation carried out by the minister,” Ali Ozgunduz, a deputy from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

“It’s all over. This is a clear coup by the executive against the judiciary,” he told a news conference in parliament.

Erdogan’s AK Party has tabled reforms that would give government even more control over is the HSYK council, which he argues has been infiltrated by followers of a reclusive Islamic cleric creating a ‘parallel state’ apparatus. He argues the purge serves to restore judicial independence.

A parliamentary commission approved the proposals late yesterday and they are now expected to be discussed in the general assembly, dominated by the AK Party, next week.

“After this, it makes little difference whether a law is passed or not,” Ozgunduz said.

Erdogan’s supporters see U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen – a former ally whose network of followers is influential in the police and judiciary – as a prime mover in a smear campaign. Erdogan sees the investigation, like the summer demonstrations and riots, as a foreign-backed plot.

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Detainee at Menoyia attempts suicide

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A Syrian detainee at the Menoyia detention centre on Thursday attempted to commit suicide.

Police said the incident happened at around 5pm while the other detainees were in the recreation area. The Syrian prisoner tried to hang himself using a bedsheet in his room. He was taken to hospital and authorities said he was “in good health” after being treated.

The attempt comes on top of a wave of suicides at the Nicosia central prisons, which have prompted a shakeup at the facility.

 

 

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Scottish EU membership by 2016 ‘implausible’

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BRITAIN’S minister for Europe poured cold water on Thursday on the prospect of Scotland enjoying a swift, smooth accession to the European Union if nationalists win an independence referendum this year.

The warning, coming 244 days before Scots go to the polls to decide whether they want to remain part of Britain, marked the latest instalment of a campaign by the government in London to keep a 307-year-old union with Scotland intact.

Minister for Europe David Lidington said Scotland would need to have unanimous approval from the EU’s 28 members on every detail of its accession if it was to gain membership by March 24, 2016 – the independence date pencilled in by Scotland’s nationalist first minister, Alex Salmond.

“On the basis of my experience as Minister for Europe for nearly four years, I find that a very implausible plan,” Lidington said in an interview.

Scotland’s government set out its vision for independence last year, including its ambition to become the EU’s 29th member, and says it believes membership can be agreed in time.

“It is in no one’s interests to exclude Scotland from the European Union,” a Scottish government spokeswoman said.

Opinion polls indicate that around a third of the Scottish public favour independence and another 15 per cent of voters undecided. The referendum is scheduled for September 18.

Nationalists say independence would end decades of economic mismanagement by London and give Scotland the flexibility to pursue its own agenda of jobs, growth and a greater focus on social justice.

The British government says the union generates benefits on both sides of the border. It says Scotland’s post-independence plans, which are based on a currency union with Britain, are unrealistic and could destabilise the Scottish economy.

Foreign Secretary William Hague is due to launch an analysis paper on Friday in Glasgow looking at EU and international issues raised by independence.

The government in London has already published similar papers analysing the impact of a split on other policy areas such as defence and the financial sector as part of its “Better Together” campaign.

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Cameron denies Army is no longer full U.S. partner

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David Cameron visits Crossrail

PRIME Minister David Cameron said on Thursday that former U.S. defence secretary Robert Gates was wrong to say that spending cuts meant Britain’s armed forces were no longer able be a full military partner of the United States.

His blunt response underlined how sensitive his government is to charges that close ties with the U.S. have been undermined by cuts to its military and parliament’s refusal to okay British involvement in any air strikes on Syria.

It also reflected his determination to carry out spending cuts aimed at reducing large public debts, which top generals and even senior MPs in his own Conservative party have suggested have been too deep.

Britain is the world’s fourth largest military spender after the U.S., China and Russia but is cutting the army by 20,000 soldiers over this decade while its navy will lose 6,000 personnel and its air force 5,000.

Earlier on Thursday, Gates, who served as defence secretary under presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, said he lamented the fact that the cuts had limited Britain’s ability to work with the U.S.

“With the fairly substantial reductions in defence spending in Great Britain, what we’re finding is that it won’t have full spectrum capabilities and the ability to be a full partner as they have been in the past,” Gates told BBC Radio.

In central London inspecting a new rail project, Cameron bristled at the remarks.

“I don’t agree with him. I think he has got it wrong,” he said. “We have the fourth largest defence budget anywhere in the world. We are a first-class player in terms of defence and as long as I am Prime Minster that is the way it will stay.”

Gates highlighted the fact that Britain, for the first time since World War One, does not have an operational aircraft carrier even though the first of a new generation of carriers is due to enter into service in 2020.

Cameron said what he called a “massive” £160bn investment programme would pay for new aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines, destroyers and frigates.

The Ministry of Defence said it also disagreed with Gates, saying in a statement that Britain had “the best-trained and best-equipped Armed Forces outside the US.”

Britain was the only major power to join the Americans on the battlefield in Iraq, and by far its most important comrade in arms in Afghanistan.

More than 600 British troops have died under U.S. command in those two wars, since PM Tony Blair declared he would stand “shoulder to shoulder” with America after the September 11 attacks on the United States in 2001.

But parliament’s shock vote against any military action in Syria in August and the scale of the defence cuts have prompted some politicians and generals to question whether Britain will be able to project military power in the same way in future.

Last month, Britain’s top soldier, General Nicholas Houghton, disclosed he was worried that spending cuts would leave the armed forces a hollowed-out force with “exquisite equipment” but without enough personnel to man it.

Opposition Labour suggested Gates had a point, saying the cuts had eroded confidence in Britain’s commitment to defence and its ability to continue to play a significant role in the world.

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Supermarkets ‘breaking deal not to sell tobacco products’ on Sundays

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Kiosk and Convenience store owners union SYKADE have called on supermarkets to stop selling tobacco products and newspapers on Sundays in accordance with a deal signed following the implementation of new shop opening hours.

“It is to our dismay that we have noticed that following the renewal of the decree on new shop opening hours on December 31, supermarkets have breached the agreement that was signed which meant only kiosk could sell tobacco products and newspapers and magazines,” Association chief Andreas Theodoulou said.

He added that the agreement had not been legally implemented but it was taken as a measure to protect kiosks and convenience stores which has been negatively affected by the decree on opening hours.

Theodoulou thanked Labour Minister Zeta Emilianidou for showing sensitivity in the matter but said supermarkets appeared to have forgotten the deal they signed with SYKADE.

“We condemn supermarkets purely profit oriented actions and we call on measures to be taken so that on Sundays they will not be able to sell tobacco products or newspapers and magazines as was agreed until a law can be put in place,” Theodoulou said.

 

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Changes underway at central prisons, probe to be concluded soon – minister

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By Peter Stevenson

Investigations into recent incidents at the central prisons will be concluded as soon as possible so that those found responsible can be held accountable, Justice Minister Ionas Nicolaou said on Friday.

“We want investigations to be concluded as soon as possible,” he said.

The criminal investigation will be completed within two months and the disciplinary investigation should be completed within 30 days.

“Former acting prison governor Giorgos Tryfonides is not under investigation and he has returned to his police duties,” Nicolaou said.

Nicolaou added though that following the investigations, if Tryfonides was implicated in any wrong-doing he would be held accountable.
The justice minister added that an agreement had been made with the public works department that a brand new prison wing would be built within 15 days to operate as a medical centre for cases where convicts needed to be kept under observation.

Block 10 – formerly used for detaining illegal immigrants before the edvent of the Menoyia centre – will also be renovated where 46 cells will operate for the purpose of a closed programme to help addicts and others who may have psychological issues.

Nicolaou said that the creation of such areas within the prisons would help improve medical care within the facility.

He added that the preparation of Block 34 within the Athalassa Mental Hospital had also begun and it would be renovated to meet European standards.
The minister said that the health ministry had not objected to the matter despite recent reports that suggested minister Petros Petrides had a different opinion.

Asked by reporters if he, as the responsible minister, had considered quitting, Nicolaou said what was needed right now was the immediate implementation of measures which would help solve the long-standing problems the prisons have been facing.

Nicolaou said that in the last eight or nine months a number of steps had been taken and efforts had been made but that the recent raft of measures “would help resolve many of the existing problems.”

There have been five suicides at the central prisons in the last seven months with a number of ongoing investigations into the actions of prison guards. A gang rape last week has added to the pressure on the authorities to shake up the facility.

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Retail trade down 7.5 per cent in first nine months of 2013

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CYPRUS’ Turnover Volume Index of Retail Trade for the period January-September 2013 recorded a decrease of 7.5 per cent compared to the corresponding period of 2012.

According to figures released by the Statistical Service, Retail Trade Turnover Volume for September 2013 amounted to 105.4 units, recording a decrease of 7.1 units or 6.3 per cent compared to 112.5 in August 2013. On an annual basis, the Index decreased by 5.9 units or 5.3 per cent.

According to provisional estimates, the Turnover Volume Index of Retail Trade for October 2013 declined by 1.1 units or 1.0 per cent to 104.3 units compared to 105.4 in September 2013.

For the period January-October 2013, the Index is provisionally estimated to have a decrease of 7.1 per cent compared to the corresponding period of 2012. (CNA)

 

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Record sales for state lottery

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By Stefanos Evripidou

THE CHRISTMAS State Lottery enjoyed record sales last month, injecting state coffers with €2.4 million, as thousands pinned their hopes on lady luck during the country’s deepening recession.

Head of the State Lottery Marios Constantinou told Cyprus News Agency yesterday that 400,000 scratch cards were issued by the company Pollard Banknote for the Christmas lottery in 2013.

However, within a very short time, all 400,000 were sold, resulting in an additional 400,000 tickets being issued. The second batch was also sold within a matter of days.

Selling at €3 a card, the Christmas edition brought in €2.4m in total revenue for the state. The special edition scratch cards offered a number of monetary prizes, going up to a maximum of €50,000. This was the first time only scratch cards were offered at Christmas, rather than the traditional lottery numbers game.

“The demand was unprecedented. We did not expect such a response because it was a new product,” said Constantinou, adding that sales of the Christmas lottery doubled those of the year before.

According to the State Lottery, Christmas sales in 2010 brought in total revenue of €938,750, while in 2011, revenue increased to €1,478,750, as both scratch cards and lottery tickets were jointly sold during the festive season.

In 2012, the figure fell to €792,500 while in 2013, Christmas revenue reached a record €2.4m.

Revenue collected by the State Lottery goes to a special fund of the Cyprus Republic used to fund public projects like roads, ports, dams and public buildings.

Despite the record Christmas sales, Constantinou noted that overall revenue for 2013 did not see an increase due to the economic crisis and capital controls imposed on banks since March.

The State Lottery contributes on average €22m a year to the fund, injecting in total around €550m to state coffers during its 25 years in operation.

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‘Cyprus regaining its credibility’

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Government spokesman Christos Stylianides

By Stefanos Evripidou

CYPRUS is slowly regaining its credibility as a financial centre and as a trustworthy country with an important geopolitical role to play in the Eastern Mediterranean, said government spokesman Christos Stylianides on Friday.

Stylianides made the comments as the four-day official visit of President Nicos Anastasiades to London wrapped up.

The president was joined by Stylianides and the ministers of finance, foreign affairs and energy.

Speaking to reporters from London, Stylianides said the members of the Cypriot delegation held separate meetings with British officials on the sidelines of the official visit.

For his part, the government spokesman said he had a long meeting with the communications team at 10 Downing Street on Thursday where they mainly discussed the issue of the image of Cyprus in the United Kingdom, and more broadly in the international media, particularly following the damaging Eurogroup meetings last March.

Stylianides said he noted “a very positive climate regarding developments” since last March.

“Cyprus is regaining its credibility, and as a trustworthy country it has a very important geostrategic and political role to play in the Eastern Mediterranean as a result of the great geopolitical developments and turmoil in the Middle East. At the same time, and this is very encouraging, it is regaining its credibility once again as a financial centre,” he said.

The British communications team- consisting mainly of political advisers of UK Prime Minister David Cameron and senior British civil servants- made “very positive comments” regarding the image that Cyprus projects today, said the spokesman.

“In spite of the problems that exist, and nobody underestimates or ignores them, it seems that very positive and important steps have been made during this short period of time of ten months, since the known decisions (of the Eurogroup).”

Stylianides said he will remain in contact with the communications team, noting that it appears the UK has taken the political decision to assist Cyprus to regain its credibility on all levels.

He described the structure of Downing Street’s communications service as “impressive”, and expressed the belief that passing on this experience to Cyprus would help the country in efforts to restore its international image.

He argued that the contacts made by himself and the Cypriot ministers on the sidelines of the official visit “have deepened relations with the British government and this will be very helpful also at the level of international policy and common participation in European institutions, but also at the bilateral level”.

 

 

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Admiral leads FTSE to best week of 2014

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BRITAIN’S top share index was on course for its best weekly gain this year as it inched higher on Friday, boosted by strong UK retail sales data and a rally in motor insurer stocks.

The outlook for corporate profits, however, was less upbeat, with heavyweight Royal Dutch Shell warning on its future profitability.

Insurer Admiral Group rose 6.7 per cent to the top of the FTSE 100 as data showed a multi-year decline in car insurance prices slowed in the last quarter of last year, potentially opening the door for some earnings upgrade for shares in the industry.

“The trend would be consistent with a stabilisation and, hopefully, an improvement in prices sometime in 2014,” said Ben Cohen, an analyst at Canaccord Genuity.

Analysts have cut their profit estimates for insurers in the FTSE 350 index by 0.7 per cent in the past three months, with non-life insurance companies such as eSure, Direct Line and RSA Insurance Group suffering some of the steepest downgrades.

The three stocks rose between 1 per cent and 5.7 per cent on Friday, with the broader FTSE 350 non-life insurance up 1.5 per cent.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was up 7.12 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 6,822.54 points at 1546 GMT.

Sentiment was also supported by data showing British retailers reported the fastest annual sales growth in more than nine years in December, with activity expanding at more than double the expected pace.

The FTSE is up 1.2 per cent so far this week, its biggest rise since late last year, and it has risen nearly 12 per cent in the past 12 months.

Andy Ash, head of sales at Monument Securities, said he was taking profit on the FTSE in light of weak corporate earnings, especially in the U.S., at a time when the Federal Reserve starts to reduce its equity-friendly stimulus programme.

Royal Dutch Shell’s two listings knocked a combined 12 points off the FTSE after the oil major warned its fourth-quarter figures are expected to be significantly lower than recent levels of profitability because of oil and gas prices and problems with its refining business.

Bookmaker William Hill was the top FTSE faller on concerns about tighter gambling rules in Britain after it said on Friday it would work with the government to tackle concerns about the use of high stakes gambling machines in its betting shops.

The stock fell 3.2 per cent in volume three times its average for the past three months, compared with FTSE volume 15 per cent above the index’s own average.

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First and foremost a man of God but the Church still needs money

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Archbishop Chrysostomos II on Friday denied suggestions that he was neglecting his spiritual work to concentrate on the Church’s finances.

“This is not true and these comments have been made by people who have nothing to do with the Church nor do they know what we do,” he said.

Speaking to the public broadcaster CyBC, the Archbishop said that spirituality was of the utmost importance to him.

“I deal with Church matters first and then with everything else,” he said.

The Archbishop said that the reporter was asking the wrong questions.

“Why don’t you ask when have I ever been absent from mass? Or when have I not spoken on spiritual matters?” he asked.

The Archbishop said it was only natural for the Church to make investments as it needs to find a way to pay the people that work for it.

“The Church is a non-profit organisation and of course it will make investments and even that is a religious matter because we need more than €1 million to pay our employees and our priests,” he said.

The Primate added that he was constantly quizzed by reporters on matters concerning the economy and politics.

“On television and the radio all you hear is people talking about those subjects so it’s hardly my fault if that is what I’m commenting on,” he said.

 

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Turkey seizes assets of opposition party’s mayoral candidate

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Mustafa Sarýgül

Turkish authorities seized the assets of Mustafa Sarigul, the main opposition party CHP’s candidate for Istanbul mayor, an official said on Friday, ahead of a crucial local election due to take place in March.

Turkey’s Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) seized Sarigul’s assets after he and his business partners failed to repay a loan dating back to 1998, the TMSF official said.

The move coincides with heightened political tensions amid a far-reaching corruption scandal that has led to the detention of prominent businessmen as well as sons of former cabinet ministers close to Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

Sarigul will run against Istanbul’s incumbent mayor, Kadir Topbas of Erdogan’s centre-right AK Party. Polls suggest Topbas, who has run Turkey’s largest city and business capital for about a decade, will beat Sarigul, though the race may prove tight.

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Suicide bomber kills 13 in Kabul restaurant attack

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Suicide bombing hits Kabul restaurant

AT least 13 people, including both Afghans and foreigners, were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a popular Lebanese restaurant in the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday.

Islamist militant Taliban insurgents claimed responsibility for the attack in the Wazir Akbar Khan district, which hosts many embassies and restaurants catering for expatriates.

“More than 13 people were killed, Afghan and foreigners,” said Mohammad Zahir, Kabul’s police chief, adding that the nationalities of the foreign casualties were not immediately clear.

A Taliban spokesman said that those killed were German nationals. In Berlin, the foreign ministry said it could not confirm that Germans were involved.

The assault was carried out around dinner time in the heavily fortified district where many wealthy Afghans also live. Bursts of gunfire followed the attack.

“First there was a suicide attack near a restaurant for foreigners where a man detonated his explosives attached to his body, and then possibly one or two insurgents entered the restaurant,” one Afghan security source said.

Some officials suggested militants were still inside the venue but no gunfire could be heard more than an hour after the attack and it was unclear if any customers were still inside.

Hashmat Stanekzai, a spokesman for Kabul police, said an operation to clear the building was under way.

“The clearance operation is still ongoing. Our security forces are not inside the restaurant yet,” he said. “There might be some insurgents inside so we have to act carefully to avoid possible casualties.”

The attack came at a tough time for Afghanstan as most foreign forces prepare to leave the country this year after more than a decade of war and almost daily attacks.

Security concerns have been also rising ahead of an April presidential election when Afghans will vote to choose a successor to President Hamid Karzai, an event likely to be targeted by Taliban insurgent.

On Friday night, gunfire continued for about 20 minutes after the initial blast and the main road leading to the area was cordoned off.

Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi said three suicide bombers approached the building, one of whom detonated his bomb whereas the other two were shot by security forces.

Security remains a major concern as Afghanistan and the United States struggle to agree on a key bilateral security pact, raising the prospect that Washington may yet pull out all of its troops this year unless differences are ironed out.

Two years ago, the U.S. ended its military mission in Iraq with a similar “zero option” after the failure of talks with Baghdad.

Karzai is still deliberating whether to allow some U.S. troops to stay to help his nation regain calm and stability after years of conflict. If no agreement is reached Afghan forces would be left to fight insurgents on their own.

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Obama bans spying on ally leaders, scales back NSA programme

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NSA allegedly collecting mobile phone text messages worldwide

PRESIDENT Barack Obama announced a ban on U.S. eavesdropping on the leaders of close friends and allies, and reined in the vast collection of Americans’ phone data in a series of reforms triggered by Edward Snowden’s revelations.

In a major speech, Obama took steps to reassure Americans and foreigners alike that the United States will take into account privacy concerns that arose after former spy contractor Snowden’s damaging disclosures about the large monitoring activities of the National Security Agency.

Obama promised that the United States will not eavesdrop on the heads of state or government of close friends and allies, which a senior administration official said would apply to dozens of leaders.

The step was designed to smooth over frayed relations with Germany after reports surfaced last year that the NSA had monitored the mobile phone of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Among the list of reforms, Obama called on Congress to establish an outside panel of privacy advocates for the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that considers terrorism cases.

While the speech was designed to address concerns that U.S. surveillance has gone too far, Obama’s measures were limited.

One of the biggest changes will be an overhaul of the government’s handling of bulk telephone “metadata.”

In a nod to privacy advocates, Obama decided that the government should not hold the bulk telephone metadata, a decision that could frustrate some intelligence officials.

In addition, he ordered that his government will take immediate steps to modify the programme so that a judicial finding is required before the database is queried.

Obama also decided that communications providers would be allowed to share more information with the public above government requests for data.

While a presidential advisory panel had recommended that the bulk data be controlled by a third party such as the telephone companies, Obama did not plan to offer a specific proposal for who should store the data in the future.

Obama is balancing public anger at the disclosure of intrusion into Americans’ privacy with his commitment to retain policies he considers critical to protecting the United States.

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Eighteen die in India stampede at home of muslim spiritual leader

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Dawoodi Bohra Muslims crowd around the vehicle carrying the body of their spiritual leader Syedna Mohamed Burhanuddin during his funeral procession in Mumbai January 18, 2014. At least 18 people died in a stampede in Mumbai early on Saturday after thousands gathered to mourn the death of the 102-year-old leader of a Muslim sect,

At least 18 people died and nearly 50 were injured in a stampede in India’s financial capital of Mumbai early on Saturday as thousands of mourners gathered following the death of the 102-year-old leader of a Muslim sect, police said.

The stampede took place outside the home of Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, the spiritual leader of the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community, in Malabar Hill, a wealthy part of the city.

He died on Friday and his body had been placed in his home to allow followers to pay their respects.

Witnesses said a large crowd of mourners was pressed against the gates of the house at the time of the stampede.

“There were a lot of people pouring in, and there was not much attention given by the government and the police, who should have been here and who should have managed things,” said one man wearing traditional white flowing Bohra Muslim attire.

Mumbai police commissioner Satyapal Singh said neither police nor organisers had expected such a large number of mourners.

Several of the injured were released after treatment at nearby hospitals, said a city official who declined to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Later on Saturday, tens of thousands of people lined narrow streets along the route of the funeral procession as it headed towards a mausoleum in south Mumbai where the leader will be buried alongside his father.

“People have come from outside India, and more will keep coming. Everyone was very fond of him,” said 62-year-old Mumbai-resident Juzer Lokhandwala, who attended with his family to pay their last respects.

The origins of the Shia Muslim sect can be traced to Yemen. In India, some of the largest Bohra Muslim communities live in the western state of Gujarat, where many are merchants.

The community, widely seen as mostly prosperous and philanthropic, runs a large speciality hospital in Mumbai.

Stampedes frequently happen at religious sites in India but they are rare in large cities, such as Mumbai, where there is a greater police presence to monitor the flow of people.

Last October, about 115 people were killed in a stampede at a Hindu temple in the central state of Madhya Pradesh.

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Man arrested on drugs charges

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A 36-year-old man has been arrested in Paphos after police said they found seven grammes of cannabis in his car.

According to the police report, the 36-year old was stopped by Drug Enforcement Unit officers. A search of his car yielded a plastic bag with 7 grammes of cannabis, it said.

Police then searched his apartment and said they found another 12 grammes of cannabis and a weighing scales.

 

 

 

 

 

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Fugitive being held in north for three months

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Michael Voudouris as he appears on the most wanted list

Wanted tax-dodger Michalis Voudouris will be spending the next three months in a cell in the north, according to Turkish Cypriot media.

Voudouris is being held awaiting trial on charges relating to a case of identity theft and illegal entry.

According to reports in the north, Voudouris crossed in 2012, showing fake travel documents to the officers at Ayios Dhometios checkpoint in Nicosia.

If found guilty, Voudouris is expected to be expelled to Turkey where he would face extradition back to the UK. Britain does not have an extradition treaty with the north.

According to Scottish news reports, British authorities are seeking to confiscate over €10m worth of his assets.

An arrest warrant for the 46-year-old was issued in 2012 after Voudouris failed to appear in an Edinburgh court to hear his sentence after pleading guilty to two cases of money laundering.

The British Cypriot had confessed in November 2012 to hiding over £10m (€12m) in accounts in Cyprus, Greece and Switzerland, collected from claiming VAT on bogus transactions. He originally faced charges of money laundering involving £45m (€54.4m), which was reduced following his confession.

Voudouris also pleaded guilty to a separate charge of hiding £1.2m (€1.5m) from the taxman.

He was released on bail but ended up skipping bail, doing a runner reportedly to the breakaway regime in the north which has no extradition treaty with Britain.

 

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Turkey purges regulators, state TV in graft probe backlash

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At least twelve people were fired at Turkey's state channel TRT, including department heads and senior news editors

Turkey has extended a purge of official bodies to the banking and telecoms regulators and state TV, firing dozens of executives in moves that appear to broaden Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s backlash against a corruption investigation.

The authorities have already sacked thousands of police officers, dozens of prosecutors and some state television officials in response to the corruption investigation, which has become the biggest challenge to Erdogan’s 11-year rule.

Investigators are believed to have been looking into allegations of corruption at a state-run bank and bribery involving big real estate projects, although details of their charges have not been made public.

The combative prime minister says the investigations, which began a month ago with arrests of high profile figures including the sons of three of his cabinet ministers, are part of an attempted “judicial coup”.

His opponents say they fear a purge of official bodies will destroy the independence of the judiciary, police and media.

“It’s like reformatting a computer. They are changing the whole system and people in various positions to protect the government,” said Akin Unver, assistant professor of International Relations in Istanbul-based Kadir Has University.

Among dozens of officials dismissed in the latest sackings, Turkish media reported on Saturday that the deputy head of the banking watchdog BDDK and two department heads had been removed.

Five department chiefs were fired at the Telecommunications Directorate (TIB), a body that carries out electronic surveillance as well as serving as telecoms regulator, and a dozen people were fired at Turkey’s state channel TRT, including department heads and senior news editors.

A government official said the firings were carried out for “the benefit of the public” and more could come: “Right now we are working on this issue and if we identify cases problematic to the public’s benefit, more dismissals could be considered.”

Pictures of money-counting machines and reports of cash stacked in the homes of people linked to the graft probe have caused uproar among the Turkish public.

Unver said the aim of the purge at the telecommunications watchdog could be to prevent further videos and pictures being published on the Internet by tightening the government’s grip.

“They are seeking a monolithic structure over the Internet,” he said.

MORE REMOVALS MAY COME

Erdogan has suggested the graft inquiry, which has led to the resignation of three cabinet ministers and detention of businessmen close to the government, is an attempt to undermine his rule by Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based cleric with influence among the police and judiciary.

Many of the people who have been fired are believed to be associated with the cleric’s Hizmet movement, which claims more than a million followers and runs schools and charities throughout Turkey.

Gulen’s lawyer says the cleric has nothing to do with the graft investigations, and his followers say they are victims of a witch hunt.

Earlier in the week the government reassigned twenty high-profile prosecutors, stepping up the purge of the judiciary.

The government has also prepared a draft bill to tighten its grip on High Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), a panel that controls the appointment of all judges and prosecutors.

There were heated arguments and even fistfights among members of parliament during talks on the draft bill last week.

Erdogan, who has presided over an extended economic boom that has transformed Turkey and lifted millions of people from poverty, remains the country’s most popular politician.

He and his moderate Islamist AK Party have long battled for influence against the secularist military establishment that dominated Turkey over the past century. Conflicts with the judiciary, police and Gulen followers add to his list of enemies.

It is still not clear what effect the crisis will have on Erdogan’s political fortunes ahead of local elections approaching in March. Last year saw mass street demonstrations among Turks who accuse the prime minister of authoritarianism, but those protests did little to undermine Erdogan’s support among his conservative base of followers.

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‘Pensions not slashed, but targeted’ says labour minister

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By Constantinos Psillides

OLD-AGE pensions will not be slashed they will be simply be targeted, Labour Minister Zeta Emilianidou said on Saturday after an outcry over reported cuts.

Asked about the government’s proposed plan to cut €10 million from pension benefits, the minister said a decision was not yet final.

Discussion was still ongoing and the ministry’s aim was to make sure spending was targeted so that lower income classes could benefit.

“Pensions up to now were given to everyone, regardless of financial situation. What we are saying is that that money will be better spent on other groups who are really suffering, like the unemployed.

The government proposal infuriated political parties and pensioners. Constantinos Skarparis, head of EKYSY (the pensioners union) said that under no circumstance would the plan be accepted. “They didn’t ask us about it, they didn’t even meet with us. There will be heated reaction if the government goes through with this,” Skarparis warned.

AKEL, EDEK and their respective unions PEO and DEOK already spoke against the proposal, with AKEL general secretary Andros Kyprianou promising his party would vote against any such proposal brought before the House.

PEO boss Pampis Kyritsis claimed that 3,000 women would be left without a pension.

 

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Paphos excavations uncover ancient bath house

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EXCAVATIONS east of the new-opened Kings Avenue Mall in Paphos have uncovered a series of clay pipes, speculated to be a part of a Hellenistic and Roman-era aqueduct and system of bath houses.

Efstathios Raptou, an Antiquities Department official told the Cyprus News Agency on Saturday that although no amphorae or statues were found, the findings were of great importance in terms of the topography of Paphos, indicating that the ancient city was far higher above sea level that originally thought.

Raptou also believes that it was possible the whole structure was decorated with murals that were destroyed centuries ago.

The system of pipes appeared to have been used to move water from different directions in the nearby hills to a series of tanks at the centre of the complex.

A total of four tanks were discovered, one of which was intact measuring nine metres in length, 4.7 metres wide and 1.65 in height, like a small bathing pool. The lower part of the ‘tank’ was embedded in the rock face.

A second, smaller tank at a higher level, which was connected to the other one by one of the clay pipes, was largely destroyed.

ÏÉÊÏÄÏÌÇÌÁ ÑÙÌÁÉÊÇÓ ÐÅÑÉÏÄÏÕ ÁÍÅÕÑÅÈÇÊÅ ÓÔÇ ÐÁÖÏThe state of the largest of the four tanks – vertically split in two – suggested the baths may have been abandoned at some stage and assigned some other use.

Fragments of marble coverings, mosaic flooring, and wall paintings were also evident at the site. The remaining archaeological material uncovered did not suggest any residential use.

The antiquities department posits that the baths were in continuous use throughout the Hellenistic period more than 300 years BC and may have fallen out of use gradually during Roman times.

“From an architectural point of view it’s a significant building,” said Raptou who supervised the excavations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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