Friendsar

Richard Chichakli, who has been tied to convicted international arms dealer Viktor Bout, has been extradited from Australia to the US. The 53 year old alleged financial muscle behind the Bout gun-running organisation had been living in Melbourne under an alias before authorities arrested him in January. Syrian-born Chichakli had managed to…

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Anti-Muslim attacks in Britain have soared since Wednesday's murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich.Faith Matters, an organisation that works to reduce extremism, said it had been told of about 150 incidents in the last few days, compared to between four to eight cases before Wednesday.Fiyaz Mughal, the director of Faith Matters, said incidents…

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A US court in Maricopa County, Arizona has found that high-profile sheriff Joe Arpaio violated the constitutional rights of Latino men and women in his attempt to stop illegal immigration. Judge Murray Snow ruled that Arpaio’s office would have to stop using race or Latino ancestry as a factor in stopping vehicles carrying Latino occupants. Arpaio…

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Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen believes “imperfections make us unique and beautiful”, and so women must look real and raw in their photographs instead of being caked with make-up. She came to realise this after working with US-based apparel brand BLK DNM’s creative director Johan Lindeberg, who persuaded her to go make-up free. “I loved his…

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Actor-comedian Russell Brand has reportedly been attacked by fans of band One Direction for daring to call the band’s member Harry Styles a womaniser. Brand reportedly called Styles as his “womanising apprentice” in an appeal for celebrities to sign his petition to decriminalise drugs and treat addiction as a disease. “My adored womanising…

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A court in Kiev has banned Ukraine’s first gay pride event. The court ruled the march, would have attracted anti-gay activists into the centre of the city, where annual Kiev Day celebrations would also have been taking place. A group of opponents led by the Orthodox Church led the objections to the march. The Church, through its Archpriest…

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Scientists have shown that a lifestyle that encourages a healthy heart could also shield patients with chronic kidney diseases from kidney failure and premature death, says a study. The findings, appearing in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN), suggest that patients with kidney diseases should be encouraged to improve their…

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Preparations are on for the four-day festival of Barsi, said to be the largest Sikh event outside of the Punjab state in India, in Gurdwara Sahib Malacca in the Malaysian state of Malacca, starting May 30. The festival commemorates the death anniversary of Sant Baba Sohan Singh Ji, a Sikh saint who lived in Malacca and passed away in 1972 at Ipoh…

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To Japanese citizens like me, the people of North Korea, though geographically close, are practically invisible. When I decided to write a novel about North Korea – now called From the Fatherland, With Love – I was faced with the challenge of creating believable portraits based strictly on source materials and the imagination. I was unable to…

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The fantasy of life without boundaries was popular in modern architecture: in the 1960s, for example, Yona Friedman of France, and Italian group Superstudio dreamed up great grids that would spread around the world, that could be occupied at will, with supplies of power and water that could be plugged into as desired. The dream was of buildings…

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A zoo keeper who was mauled to death by a tiger had no reason to be in its enclosure, according to the animal park's owner.Sarah McClay, 24, was attacked by a Sumatran tiger at South Lakes Wild Animal Park, in Dalton-in-Furness, Cumbria, on Friday afternoon. She was taken by air ambulance to Royal Preston Hospital but died later from her…

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Pop star Katy Perry reportedly encouraged actor Robert Pattinson to break up with actress-girlfriend Kristen Stewart, saying he deserves someone better. “Katy never really supported Rob’s decision to get back with Kristen. She always said they wouldn’t last,” femalefirst.co.uk quoted a source as saying. “Katy told Rob she didn’t think their…

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Italian club Inter Milan announced that Walter Mazzarri has been appointed to replace Andrea Stramaccioni as head coach of the football team. The official website of Inter announced the decision Friday and confirmed that a two-year contract has been signed with Mazzarri, reports Xinhua. Inter president Massimo Moratti said he counts on Mazzarri’s…

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Singer Mariah Carey suffered a wardrobe malfunction while chatting with a TV host, but she carried on with the show despite it. During her appearance on the show, she blurted out “my dress just popped”, and quickly placed her hands over her chest to cover her bosom, reports thesun.co.uk. Soon, she was helped to zip it back. She checked the label…

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Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, who is one of the favourites in the presidential race, has vowed to stand up to the West if he is elected next month. Saeed Jalili told a rally in Tehran that he wanted to spread the global influence of Islam. One of several conservatives among the eight candidates, he has said the president should be obedient to…

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Portuguese author Miguel Sousa Tavares has landed himself in hot water after calling the president a clown. His jibe made the front page of the leading financial daily, where he said the country didn’t need a figure like Italian comedian-turned politician Beppe Grillo, saying ';We already have a clown, his name is Cavaco Silva.'; He is now under…

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Spanish Princess Cristina is facing a new probe over suspected fraud. The daughter of King Juan Carlos had been named as suspected in a case of embezzlement against her husband, Iaki Urdangarn, earlier this month, but the decision was overturned. However, judge Jose Castro ordered a new investigation into her financial affairs after examining 10…

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California Becomes First State to Condemn Use of Torture in 'War on Terror' SACRAMENTO, CA – August 14 – The California Legislature today adopted a resolution aimed at preventing California health professionals from engaging in coercive interrogations of detainees at …

Her mother is the former editor of French Vogue, she was photographed by Mario Testino at 10, and her new baby blog rivals Gwyneth's… Julia Restoin Roitfeld is 2013's ultimate It …

Flamengo’s executive director Paulo Pelaipe has rejected reports the club is pursuing unsettled Real Madrid midfielder Kaka. The 2007 FIFA world player of the year has struggled for first-team football at the Santiago Bernabeu and is reportedly seeking a move during the European summer transfer window in a bid to revive his stalled career, reports…

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