Egypt’s Morsi due to stand trial on spying charges

 16 February 2014 Last updated at 07:56

 The BBC

Deposed Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is due to start a new trial, on charges of espionage and conspiring to commit acts of terror.

He and 35 others are accused of working with Lebanese and Palestinian groups to carry out attacks in Egypt.

The charges are one of four prosecutions that the Islamist former leader now faces.

Mr Morsi was ousted by the military last July following mass street protests against his rule.

Since then there has been a severe crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood group, as well as on other activists seen as hostile to the military-backed government.

You’ve got tail: Write any message with an alphabet of cat tails!

   Oona McGee

There’s something about cats. Whether they’re leaping through the air in cute GIF form or popping up in edible delights, the feline species have got us well and truly eating out of the palm of their spongy little paws. In Japan, one cat lover has paid homage to their cute ways with an alphabet made up entirely of cat tails! Now you can mesmerize your friends from A to Z with messages cute enough to print out and paste on your wall.

Created by Twitter user @Honki_Honki , this alphabet is so cute it’s got people using the word nyan (the Japanese word for meow) at the end of their sentences. The popular consensus is that these little letters are “too cute nyan” but “a little difficult to read nyan”. To test out your cat-tail-readability level, try reading the word below:

UN vows to press on with Homs aid delivery

 World body’s humanitarian chief, Valerie Amos, said aid workers were deliberately targeted by gun and mortar fire.

 Last updated: 09 Feb 2014 07:24

The UN’s humanitarian chief Valerie Amos has vowed to push on with relief deliveries to civilians trapped in Homs, after a Red Crescent aid convoy was attacked.

Amos’ comments come after the convoy came under mortar and gun attack on Saturday in the Syrian city, despite an agreed three-day ceasefire which began on Friday.

“I am deeply disappointed that the three-day humanitarian pause agreed between the parties to the conflict was broken today and aid workers deliberately targeted,” Amos said in a statement released late on Saturday.

“Today’s events serve as a stark reminder of the dangers that civilians and aid workers face every day across Syria,” she added.

20 crazy facts about North Korea

  Preston Phro

There are many fascinating countries around the world-in fact, we’d wager that there aren’t any truly boring places. But one of the most bizarrely “can’t look away from the train wreck” places in the world is North Korea. Now, there’s a lot of information (and misinformation) out there about the country, and sometimes it can be hard to separate the fact from fiction. Still, we like to try, right?

So, you can imagine how excited we were when we found a series of twenty photos and facts about North Korea have been making the Internet rounds! But we wanted to know more! Click below to see the 20 facts and some of the background information we dug up.

Thailand elections: Politics of crisis

 

By Peter Shadbolt, for CNN

February 2, 2014 — Updated 0531 GMT

A state of emergency, streets paralyzed with protesters, the fatal shooting of a leading pro-government activist and an election campaign teetering on chaos may not sound like the script from a rising Southeast Asian economic powerhouse.

But for Thailand — which manages to combine economic success and political mayhem in equal measure — this weekend’s elections are just another page in an eight-year struggle between supporters and opponents of Thaksin Shinawatra.

Quiz of the Week: Round 5 (Now with extra insults)

  Philip Kendall

Welcome to another edition of Quiz of the Week: where the best news stories from the last seven days come to die. By now you should know the drill: we throw 10 multiple-choice questions at you to see whether you’re keeping your wits about you and to introduce you to some of the best stories in town, whispering unsavoury things about your mother for every question you get wrong.

So stop drooling all over yourself and let’s test those grey cells of yours!

As ever, highlight the space between the square brackets [ mmmn, bacon] after the word “Answer:” or click the “Read more” link to check your answers.

Ready? Then let’s get started!

Question 1.

What unusual act has recently become something of an online craze in South Korea?

A: Taking “reverse selfies”, where people take photos of things besides their own stupid faces

B: Sending confession emails to numerous companies’ “support” email addresses

C: Sharing pictures of themselves in new underwear as a method of “reviewing” it

D: Spamming non-Korean companies’ websites with photos of seemingly amused goats

Philippines and Rebels Agree on Peace Accord to End Insurgency

 

By FLOYD WHALEY

The Philippine government and the country’s largest Muslim insurgency group negotiated the final details of a peace accord on Saturday that many hope will end more than 40 years of violence that has killed tens of thousands of people and helped nurture Islamic extremism in Southeast Asia.

The agreement will create an autonomous Muslim-dominated region in the restive south of the predominantly Christian country, handing much of the responsibility for security there to local authorities as well as a large share of revenues from the region’s wealth of natural resources. The militants have agreed to disarm, with many expected to join Philippine security forces.

Quiz of the Week: Round 4 (Now with 100% more otter!)

  Philip Kendall  

Don’t forget to highlight the space between the square brackets [  ]  after the word “Answer:” or click the “Read more” link to check your answers. And remember: every time you cheat, Evil Baby Sato gets a step closer to your door.

Let’s begin, shall we?

Question 1.

Which of the following everyday words originally comes from Japanese?

A: “Soap”, as in the thing you really ought to be washing your stinky armpits with.

B: “Skosh”, as in ‘”Salt and vinegar on your squirrel bits, guv’ner?” “Yeah, just a skosh!”‘

C: “Sunday”, as in the day that comes four days before Thursday.

D: “Shhhhhfrtftfpojtftffgvfvffvjvfvpcunk”, as in “the keys that I just mashed”.

Answer: [ B ] Read more

Question 2.

This advertisement caused controversy earlier this week, with many calling it “racist”. But what was the ad actually intended to promote?

Syria crisis: US hails opposition move to attend peace talks

 19 January 2014 Last updated at 04:41 GMT



US Secretary of State John Kerry has welcomed a decision by Syria’s main political opposition group to attend next week’s peace talks in Switzerland.

His praise for the Syrian National Coalition’s “courageous” move was echoed by the UK and France.

The aim of the talks, to be held in Montreux, is to start the process of setting up a transitional government to end the war in Syria.

The three-year conflict has claimed the lives of more than 100,000 people.

An estimated two million people have fled the country and some 6.5 million have been internally displaced.

No grown-ups allowed! Chef with a very sweet motive opens a kids-only sweets shop

   Krista Rogers

Children in Sanda City, Hyogo Prefecture currently have good reason to celebrate, as a huge new sweets shop officially opened in their town on December 7. But the news gets even sweeter: only kids in sixth grade or younger are allowed inside! Sounds like any child’s wildest fantasy come true, right? Parents must wait outside (and no doubt prepare themselves for the inevitable sugar-high antics to come) while their children explore the hidden wonders within.

Join us after the jump for a rare glimpse inside the shop and read what inspired the owner to open it in the first place.

The new shop, named the Future Sweets Factory, is located on the premises of the wildly popular Patisserie es Koyama, which carries a large line of pastries and baked goods, and is particularly famous in the region for its special roll cake.