Six minors, five women impregnated by UN peacekeepers in Congo

Six minors were among 11 victims of alleged sexual abuse by Tanzanian UN peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that resulted in pregnancies, a UN spokesman has said.
The allegations from the DRC came to light during the weekend as the UN had been embroiled in numerous reports of sexual abuse and exploitation by its peacekeepers over the last year.
The sexual abuse and exploitation mainly involved troops in the Central African Republic.
Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesman for UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, confirmed the allegation.
“We can confirm that out of the 11 allegedly abused women, six were minors.
“Seven of the alleged victims have already given birth and four women are still pregnant,” Mr. Haq said.
He said Tanzania, which had the primary responsibility to respond to the allegations as the troop-contributing country, had appointed a team of investigators that would travel to DRC “in the coming days”.
(dpa/NAN)

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Policeman Arrested for Crashing Into 51 Cars While Driving Drunk (See Photos)

A police officer has been caught by the law after he went and drank himself to stupor before crashing into 51 other cars.

The police officer was arrested by the police

 

Czech police say one of their officers drank too much and crashed his Jeep Grand Cherokee into a total of 51 parked cars in Prague.

 

Police say officer Karel Kadlec was detained after the incident Tuesday in Prague’s Vinohrady district and an alcohol test revealed he was under the influence. No injuries were reported.

 

 

There is a zero alcohol tolerance for drivers in the Czech Republic. Kadlec had already been suspended because he crashed into another car while drunk a year ago.

 

The case is being investigated by a special unit dealing with crimes by policemen. Interior Minister Milan Chovanec, who says he’s ready to fire Kadlec shortly, says “it’s unacceptable for someone to threaten lives and property of citizens by this way and damage the reputation of decent policemen.”

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Miracle: 18-month-old Baby Pulled Alive From Earthquake Rubble

Many were stunned, surprised and at the same time excited when fire men and rescuers pulled out alive a baby from the rubble of the earthquake in Japan

An eight-month-old baby girl has been rescued alive and unharmed from rubble after a 6.2 magnitude earthquake in southern Japan. Footage shows the child being carried to safety by firefighters after being trapped for up to eight hours. 

 

A separate video has also emerged from inside a supermarket showing the moment the quake struck. Frightened shoppers can be seen running, light fixtures and shelves shaking and items crashing to the ground.

At least nine people have been killed and around 800 others injured in the powerful quake which hit about 9:26pm (local time) on Thursday. Some 40,000 people are said to have fled their homes when the quake struck and have spent the night outside. One of the towns most badly affected is Mashiki, situated close to the epicentre, where fires erupted shortly after the quake hit, destroying many of its traditional wooden buildings.

On Friday, rescuers who had worked through the night continued to comb through the debris of flattened homes and buildings for survivors. Sky’s Asia Correspondent Katie Stallard said their efforts were being hampered by aftershocks.

 

“There have been 116 separate aftershocks since this initial earthquake. One just after midnight was magnitude 6.5 – that is a significant earthquake in its own right.

“Mothers have been seen crouching over their children, moving them away from buildings.

 

“People are terrified that these further aftershocks are going to cause more damage.

 

“The priority at this stage is finding anyone who may remain trapped.

 

“Some 1,600 soldiers have been deployed to the epicentre,” she added

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Unbelievable! 27 Men Caught Gang-raping the Sacred Statue of a Hindu God (Photo). In what may come across as one of the weirdest cases of r*pe in recent times, dozens of men have been caught gang-raping a statue of revered Hindu god.

The men who were allegedly caught raping a statue

 

The Indian police arrested the 27 men on Friday, March 18, in the state of Odisha, India, for the alleged “sexual assault” of a holy statue of the Hindu god, Ganesh.

 

The crime, which took place on Tuesday night, shocked the entire country, who had already been shaken by several sexual scandals over the last few years.

 

According to WNDR, the 27 accused are presumed to be part of a larger group of men who pierced a hole in the abdominal area of a temple statue, before engaging in s*xual intercourse with it.

 

The scene was witnessed by a few neighbours who contacted the police, but the men had already left when the authorities arrived on the site. Fortunately for the police, two of the men bragged about their crime to a group of friends, who immediately denounced them.

 

During their interrogation, they rapidly gave the names of many other men who had participated in the crime.

 

The Odisha State police and the Bhubaneswar–Cuttack Police Commissionerate launched a vast joint operation this morning, and were able to arrest 25 of the 31 suspects they were looking for.

 

“These men took part in one of the most horrible crimes in the history of the country,” said Captain Jayesh Kumar, spokesman of the Odisha State Police. “I really hope the tribunal will make an example of them, to show everyone that such unacceptable behaviors have serious consequences.”

 

The 27 men, aged from 19 to 53 years old, were presumably drunk when they committed the crime.

 

They will now face some very serious criminal charges of desecrating a holy site, for which they could be executed if found guilty.

 

The Indian authorities are still searching for 6 other suspects who are believed to have participated in the crime, and they hope to be able to arrest them over the next few days.

 

The accused should appear before the court on Monday to register their plea.

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Operational Honours and Awards List: 18 March 2016

A total of 55 members of the Armed Forces have received honours and awards in the latest Operational Honours and Awards List.

he full list which includes awards in respect of worldwide operations for the period 1 January to 30 September 2015 as well as others for non-operational gallantry.

 

OPERATIONS

Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)

Major General Robert Bernard BRUCE, DSO
Brigadier James Richard Hugh STOPFORD

Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)

Captain Nicholas COOKE-PRIEST, Royal Navy
Major Edward Gilbert Robin CARTWRIGHT, The Parachute Regiment
Acting Colonel (now Colonel) Edward James Marston DAWES, Royal Regiment of Artillery
Colonel (now Acting Brigadier) Angus George Costeker FAIR, DSO
Wing Commander Michael Robert FORMBY, Royal Air Force

Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)

Lieutenant Commander Andrew Scott BROWN, Royal Navy
Major Andrew Richard NECKLINE, Royal Corps of Signals
Major Richard Darren WALKER, The Royal Dragoon Guards
Flight Lieutenant Rebecca Jane HUTCHINGS, Royal Air Force

Distinguished Service Order (DSO)

Captain Michael Olaf Chetwynd DOBBIN, Grenadier Guards

Distinguished Service Cross (DSC)

Sergeant (now Acting Colour Sergeant) Robert Baden John COLLEY, Royal Marines

Military Cross (MC)

Sergeant Nicholas James HILLYARD, Royal Corps of Signals
Colour Sergeant Jordan Edward MACKENZIE, The Royal Regiment of Scotland

Mention in Despatches (MID)

Colour Sergeant Stephen James WALKER, Royal Marines
Colour Sergeant Andrew Neil BRAYSHAW, The Parachute Regiment
Colour Sergeant Ian George GALLAGHER, The Royal Regiment of Scotland

Queen’s Commendation for Bravery (QCB)

Marine (now Acting Lance Corporal) Kieran Robert SCOTT, Royal Marines
Sergeant James LYNDON, Royal Marines

Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service (QCVS)

Acting Major (now Major) Henry DOWLEN MBE, Royal Marines Reserve
Petty Officer Engineering Technician (Weapon Engineering) Luke EBSWORTH, Royal Navy
Warrant Officer 1 Engineering Technician (Marine Engineering) Alan EVANS, Royal Navy
Commander Stuart Andrew FINN, Royal Navy
Corporal Matthew GOLDSWORTHY, Royal Marines
Chief Petty Officer (Underwater Warfare) Julian LEE, Royal Navy
Marine August Emanuel Nils LERSTEN, Royal Marines
Petty Officer (Diver) Stuart Russell RICE, Royal Navy
Captain David Bissett SMITH, Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Sergeant Lewis David ARTHEY, The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment
Lieutenant Colonel (now Colonel) Dominic Stead James BIDDICK MBE MC, The Royal Anglian Regiment
Staff Sergeant Andrew John COY, Army Air Corps
Sergeant (now Acting Staff Sergeant) Thomas Edward Trevithick DAWSON, The Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment
Sergeant (now Acting Staff Sergeant) Paul Anthony DILLOWAY, Royal Army Medical Corps
Lieutenant Colonel Mark Clement GIDLOW-JACKSON MBE, The Rifles
Staff Sergeant Gregory Mitchell GASKINS, Adjutant General’s Corps (Royal Military Police)
Brigadier Andrew Gordon HUGHES MBE
Warrant Officer Class 2 Paul Michael KEARNEY, The Royal Anglian Regiment
Staff Sergeant Richard Charles KERRY, Adjutant General’s Corps (Royal Military Police)
Lieutenant Colonel (now Acting Colonel) Eldon Nicholas Somerville MILLAR MBE, Corps of Royal Engineers
Brigadier Charles Spencer Thomas PAGE MBE
Major Samuel James ROBERTS, Intelligence Corps
Captain Philip Charles ROWLAND, Royal Corps of Signals
Warrant Officer Class 2 Jamie RUFUS, The Rifles
Acting Staff Sergeant Gareth David TAYLOR, Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Captain Timothy James Hamilton TOWLER, The Royal Regiment of Scotland
Flight Lieutenant Samuel John BAKER, Royal Air Force
Wing Commander Matthew Edward LAWRENCE, Royal Air Force

Non-operational gallantry

Queen’s Commendation for Bravery (QCB)

Staff Sergeant Peter James ASHTON, Royal Regiment of Artillery
Staff Sergeant Edward James CLINTON, The Royal Logistic Corps
Staff Sergeant Richard Thomas MCKINNON, The Royal Logistic Corps
Sergeant Dhaniram RAI, The Royal Gurkha Rifles
Lance Corporal Sean Joseph WILSON, The Mercian Regiment
Senior Aircraftsman Shane Joseph MITCHLEY, Royal Air Force

Queen’s Commendations for Bravery in the Air (QCBA)

Sergeant Michael Edward BEAMISH, Royal Air Force

From:

Ministry of Defence

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Adam Johnson: Sunderland player pleads guilty to sexual activity with 15-year-old girl

The 28-year-old Sunderland and England midfielder admits one count of sexual activity with a child and one of grooming

The Sunderland and England footballer Adam Johnson has pleaded guilty to kissing a 15-year-old schoolgirl after grooming her over the internet. The 28-year-old midfielder admitted one count of sexual activity with a child and one of grooming at Bradford crown court. He denies two other counts of sexual activity with a child and is due to go on trial on Friday.The midfielder, from Castle Eden, County Durham, had his case moved from Durham. Born in Sunderland, Johnson began his career at Middlesbrough before moving to Manchester City and then to Sunderland for £10m in 2012.
Johnson was suspended by the north-east club following his arrest on 2 March last year but that was lifted when his bail was extended by five weeks a fortnight later.
He went on to feature in the side that survived relegation from the Premier League and has since made four appearances in an injury-hit start to the season.
Johnson entered two guilty pleas when the charges were read out to him by the court clerk.
Johnson is accused of grooming the teenager between 30 December 2014 and 26 February 2015 and having met with her to carry out sexual activity knowing that she was under 16, the age of consent. Standing in the dock, Johnson answered “guilty”.
In a second count, Johnson is charged with intentionally touching the complainant in a sexual way knowing that she was under 16. He briefly consulted his legal team before answering “guilty, yeah”.
A panel of prospective jurors were sworn in after Johnson entered his pleas. Before they were released, the judge, Jonathan Rose, said: “This is a case you may see referred to in the press. Mr Johnson is a professional footballer with Sunderland AFC and you may see something about it in the newspaper. But let me just remind you of the oath and affirmation you have just received. You must try this defendant on the evidence heard in this courtroom, not anything else. That is very important.”

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In Taiwan Woman pulled alive from rubble two days after quake

The quake struck at about 4 a.m. on Saturday (2000 GMT Friday) at the beginning of the Lunar New Year holiday, with almost all the dead found in the toppled Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building in Tainan city.

play Rescue personnel work on damaged buildings after an earthquake in Tainan, southern Taiwan, February 6, 2016.
(REUTERS/Pichi Chuang)

 

 

A woman was pulled alive from the rubble of a collapsed building in the southern Taiwan city of Tainan on Monday and another man has been found alive trapped inside more than 48 hours after a deadly earthquake struck, officials said.

The death toll from the quake rose to 35 earlier on Monday, with more than 100 people still missing.

The quake struck at about 4 a.m. on Saturday (2000 GMT Friday) at the beginning of the Lunar New Year holiday, with almost all the dead found in the toppled Wei-guan Golden Dragon Building in Tainan city.

Rescue efforts are focused on the wreckage of the 17-storey building, where 117 people are listed as missing and are suspected to be buried deep under the rubble.

Wang Ting-yu, a legislator who represents the area, told reporters the woman, Tsao Wei-ling, was found lying under her dead husband. Their 2-year-old son, who was also killed, was found lying nearby.

Another person has also been located, a man called Li Tsung-tian, Wang said. The man is conscious and talking to rescuers.

Tainan mayor William Lai said Tsao and Li were the only signs of life at present, although rescuers were continuing to look for others.

"We have not given up on even the tiniest of possibilities," he told reporters.

Rescuers continued to scramble over the twisted wreckage of the building as numbed family members stood around, waiting for news of missing relatives.

Lin Tong-meng said he had been waiting at the site for word of his 11- and 12-year-old nephews, who have yet to be found.

"I came back and forth all yesterday and now I'm here again," Lin said. The boy's mother and father were rescued soon after the quake. Their father also stood nearby, pacing close to the rubble in tears.

Taiwan's government said in a statement 33 of the 35 dead were from the Wei-guan building, which was built in 1994.

President-elect Tsai Ing-wen, who won election last month, said during a visit to Tainan there needed to be a "general sorting out" for old buildings to make sure they were able to cope with disasters like earthquakes.

"There needs to be a continued strengthening of their ability to deal with disasters," she said.

Outgoing president Ma Ying-jeou is also scheduled to visit.

Chinese President Xi Jinping conveyed condolences to the victims, state news agency Xinhua reported late on Sunday, and repeated Beijing's offer to provide help.

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Treasurer may front Australian abuse inquiry remotely says judge

The judge chairing the inquiry said he accepted a Jan. 29 medical report saying the former archbishop of Sydney and Melbourne had hypertension and ishcemic heart disease complicated by a previous heart attack, and said he could testify remotely.

play Cardinal George Pell
(Ytimg)

 

 

The Vatican's Australian finance controller was cleared on Monday to testify at a child abuse inquiry in his homeland via videolink because of a heart condition, a ruling bound to frustrate victim groups who wanted him to appear in person.

Cardinal George Pell, once seen as a contender to become pope, was scheduled to testify at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on Dec. 16 but asked to give evidence by videolink instead.

The judge chairing the inquiry said he accepted a Jan. 29 medical report saying the former archbishop of Sydney and Melbourne had hypertension and ishcemic heart disease complicated by a previous heart attack, and said he could testify remotely.

"Although people with the conditions that Cardinal Pell has may fly long distances, it is apparent ... that in the case of Cardinal Pell there is a risk to his heath if he undertook such travel at the present time," the judge, Peter McClellan, told the inquiry.

"Having regard to the nature of his ailments, it could not be expected that his health is likely to improve and remove these risks," McClellan said, effectively reversing his December statement that he wanted Pell to testify in person.

McClellan said Pell must testify from Rome via videolink on Feb. 29.

The inquiry heard testimony last year that priests suspected of abuse in Pell's former diocese were moved between parishes and put in church-appointed rehabilitation instead of being reported to police.

Pell, 74, has denied those allegations.

In a second blow to victim groups, McClellan declined their request to make Pell's medical report public, saying he had read the most relevant parts to the inquiry.

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