NCRI- A man has been arrested by Ministry of Intelligence and Security for follow up of his brother's case, a political prisoner in Iran.
Masoud Kordpour was arrested in Mahabad by MOIS agents and transferred to an unknown location. There is no information on his whereabouts and he has not been able to contact his family
Russian scientists may have found new life under Antarctic ice
Posted 2013/03/07 at 1:18 pm EST
MOSCOW, Mar. 7, 2013 (Reuters) — Russian scientists believe they have discovered new life forms sealed off for millions of years in a subglacial lake deep under the Antarctic ice, the RIA news agency reported on Thursday.
A man stands near drilling apparatus at the Vostock research camp in Antarctica in this January 13, 2006 handout photograph. REUTERS/Alexey Ekaikin/Handout
After more than a decade of stop-and-go drilling, Russia pierced through Antarctica's frozen crust last year and took back samples of water from a vast lake that has lain untouched for at least 14 million year.
Scientists say the icy darkness of Lake Vostok, under some 12,139 feet of ice, may provide a glimpse of the planet before the Ice Age and clues to life on other planets.
"After excluding all known contaminants, bacterial DNA was found that does not match any known species in world databases," Sergei Bulat of the St Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute told RIA.
"If it (the bacteria) had been found on Mars, then without a doubt we would have said there is life on Mars - but this is DNA from Earth," he said. "We are calling this life form unidentified or unclassified."
Scientists from the United States and Britain are close on Moscow's heels to probe what life may exist in one of the most extreme environments on Earth.
This year, a U.S. expedition said they had seen living cells under a microscope in field samples taken from the shallower subglacial Lake Whillans, but more study is needed to determine what kinds of bacteria they are and how they live.
A British effort to reach a third body, Lake Ellsworth, was called off in December because of problems drilling.
What life is found in the icy depths may provide the best answer yet to whether life can exist in the extreme conditions on Mars or Jupiter's moon Europa.
The Russian discovery came from analyzing water that froze onto the end of the drill bit used to bore through to Vostok - the largest of a network of hundreds of lakes under the ice cap that acts like a blanket trapping the Earth's geothermal heat.
Bulat and other members of Russia's Antarctic mission could not be reached for comment to Reuters on Thursday.
But Bulat told RIA that scientists are waiting for more samples from the lake to confirm their discovery.
Because of the technology used to keep from polluting the pristine lake, Russia will only obtain clean water samples - uncontaminated by drilling fluid - for analysis later this year.
To answer concerns kerosene and anti-freeze from the borehole would seep into the lake, Russian engineers withdrew the drill to allow the water to percolate up into the borehole and freeze there, only returning this year to collect it.
But Bulat said the unknown microbes were found after separating out species of bacteria that are known to exist in the drilling fluid.
"When we tried to identify the DNA, it did not coincide with any of known species. It's degree of similarity was less than 86 percent," Bulat told RIA.
"That is practically zero when working with DNA. A level of 90 percent tells us the organism is unknown."
Frozen samples from deeper in the borehole collected during this year's Antarctic summer season in February are now being carried back by boat and are due in St Petersburg in May.
"If we again identify the same group of organism in that pure sample of water, then we can confidently say we have found new life on Earth," Bulat said.
Saudi princess who fled £5 million Paris hotel bill to have assets seized
A Saudi princess who fled Paris's luxury Shangri-La hotel in the middle of
the night to avoid paying a £5 million hotel bill is to have her assets seized
in France, a judge has ruled.
A spokesman for the Shangri-La
said the hotel was pleased at the judge's ruling, but did not expect the bill to
be settled soonPhoto:
shangri-la.com
By Ian Sparks
2:50PM GMT 07 Mar 2013
Maha Al-Sudairi was caught ordering her entourage of 60 to load scores of
suitcases into a fleet of limos outside the hotel at 3.30am in June last year.
She had racked up the vast bill after checking into the hotel six months
previously, taking over an entire 41-room floor.
But when King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia refused to pay for her stay, she
attempted the early morning dash, claiming diplomatic immunity and moving to the
nearby five-star Royal Monceau Hotel, near the Champs-Elysees, which is own by
"family friend" the Emir of Qatar.
She then left France a month later and has not returned since.
On Wednesday a court in Nanterre, west of Paris, ruled that her assets in
France must be seized to pay back at least six creditors, including a five star
concierge company, Cinquième Etoile, that she used to hire a limousine and
chauffeur.
The company also used sub-contractors to coordinate security, catering, and
housekeeping for the princess and her entourage.
The princess is known to have bought three storage units in central Paris,
where she is believed to have stashed her wares from her shopping trips around
the French capital – said to include luxury leather goods, artworks, jewellery,
and clothing worth up to £10 million. The judge has ordered that those units
must be opened up within the next few days.
Their contents will reportedly be seized and could be sold to pay off the
princess's debts, barring a complex legal process.
Princess Al-Sudairi's lavish foreign trips have even proved too much for King
Abdullah, who confined her to a palace in the oil-rich state in 2009 after she
left a trail of unpaid bills across Europe.
But the ex-wife of Nayef ben Abdel Aziz, the
former Saudi Crown Prince, who died weeks after the Paris incident, escaped and
headed for France.
Princess Maha has a history of frustrating foreign police forces.
The following year, she needed to again be bailed out by her after she
ordered £18,000 worth of glassware and silverware from a Paris store.
Her fabulously wealthy credentials meant her IOU notes handed to shopkeepers
reading 'payment to follow' were usually accepted.
Over the past years, up to 30 of Paris's most exclusive luxury goods
retailers have fallen foul of her credit notes, according to French newspapers.
Jacky Giami, owner of Paris's Key Largo leisure wear store, said the princess
and her relatives pillaged his shop of more than £100,000 worth of stock three
years ago.
He said he spent days loitering in the bar of the Georges V hotel hoping to
confront her, only to learn she had fled to London.
In 1995, Princess Maha was accused of assaulting a servant in Orange County,
Florida, whom she suspected of stealing $200,000 from her. No charges were
filed.
Several people were wounded Sunday in an explosion in Bandar Imam Khomeini, a port city in Iran, but few details have been released.
AAFont Size
By Chana Ya'ar
First Publish: 3/10/2013, 4:55 PM
Satellite image of Persian Gulf
NASA
Several people were wounded Sunday in an explosion in Bandar Imam Khomeini, a port city in Iran, but few details have been released.
The city is located some 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) southwest of Tehran, in the oil-rich Khuzestan province.
Members of Iran’s Arabic-speaking minority have occasionally held demonstrations in recent years in the area, demanding more rights.
The Arvand and Ghadir Petrochemical Companies are both located at the port, which is northeast of Kuwait City, and on the banks of the northwestern end of the Persian Gulf.
Several cars were damaged and windows in nearby buildings were shattered, including those at a hotel, according to the report late Saturday by the semi-official Iranian news agency ILNA.
There were no details offered about the cause of the blast.
In the past, Iran has blamed such explosions on intelligence agents from Israel or Western nations such as the United States or Britain.
International Women's Day: Bahraini Women imprisoned, tortured, killed, stripped from nationality, .. and impunity for abusers
7 Mar 2013
On the International Women's Day, the Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses its grave concern and condemnation over the continued violations of women's rights in Bahrain. With Bahraini women's important role in the Bahraini uprising, calling for democracy and political reform, they have been violently targeted by the authorities. At least 13 women were victims of extra-juridical killing. Many were detained, tortured and sentenced to years in prison. Today there are several women in prison over politicized and false charges for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, illegal gathering and helping injured.
It is important to note that the cases presented in this report are just a sample of hundreds of other cases in regards to arrests, harassment, sackings, beatings and torture of women in Bahrain.
Extra-Judicial Killings
At least 13 women died as a result of authorities’ use of excessive force, teargas and intimidations since Feb 14, 2011. No one has been held accountable for any of these deaths. Teargas is the number one cause of death amongst women, 70% died due to authorities’ excessive use of teargas on a daily basis and the targeting of homes of citizens.
In her heyday, her sharp olfactory senses helped nab many hardened criminals and curb narcotics smuggling in the city. With age and instincts failing her, the oldest female canine in the Delhi Police dog squad is being retired at the ripe age of 11.
Bought for Rs. 5,000 from a local dog breeder in 2002 when she was just seven months old, she was fondly named Anu for being the “most friendly” canine. She will be relieved of her duties by the end of March after serving the police force for over 10 years.
“She is the only dog who can roam around freely, be it the training ground or the office. Not even the senior officers mind this…she is loved by all,” a police officer told IANS, requesting anonymity.
The only female Doberman in the head unit of the city’s dog squad in Model Town in north Delhi which has 14 more dogs – all Labradors – the veteran canine also assisted in the training of several other dogs before their induction.
Representational image: Reuters
“Handlers took her help in training the new dogs as she was so experienced… but sadly she is not in her prime physical shape due to her age,” said Constable Vidyasagar, Anu’s handler.
He added that an NGO would be adopting her after her retirement.
According to many other handlers, Anu was the star of several dog shows when she was young and had won many awards for her intelligence and agility. While age has slowed her down, it has failed to affect the winner in her.
“Recently, she won a bronze medal in the All-India Police Duty Meet competition held in Haryana,” the handler added.
According to Sub-Inspector Digvijay, in charge of the Model Town dog squad unit, the canines are inducted when they are eight months old and normally remain in service till they turn eight.
“The dogs are very important as they help us detect explosives, seize drugs and track criminals,” Digvijay told IANS.
According to Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat, a Labrador would be replacing Anu and will be purchased from the Indian Army.
“We have already written to them for purchasing two dogs,” Bhagat told IANS.
At present, 59 dogs of four different breeds are in the dog squad of Delhi Police’s Crime Bbranch located in Chanakyapuri and R.K. Puram in south Delhi, Kalyanpuri in east Delhi and Janakpuri in west Delhi, apart from the main unit in Model Town.
Of the 59 dogs, 45 are Labradors, five are Dobermans, seven are Cocker Spaniels and two are German Shepherds.
Most of the dogs were bought from the Indian Army’s Remount Veterinary Corps based in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh.
A puppy aged around eight months costs between Rs 20,000 and Rs 35,000 while an older canine trained by the army would cost around Rs 2.5 lakh, a police officer said.
NCRI- A man has been arrested by Ministry of Intelligence and Security for follow up of his brother's case, a political prisoner in Iran.
