The News Matrix: Friday 23 September 2011
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Your support makes all the difference.Troy Davis executed by lethal injection
Troy Davis, the death row prisoner whose case was one of the most disputed in American legal history, was given a lethal injection late Wednesday after the Supreme Court rejected his final request for a stay of execution. He died vigorously protesting his innocence. MORE
Sister slams MoD compensation offer
Relatives of one of the 13 killed by the British Army on Bloody Sunday in Londonderry in 1972 have rejected the idea of compensation for his death from the MoD, calling it “repulsive”. Kate Nash, whose brother William died, spoke out as it emerged other families were in talks with MoD.
NHS trust managers turn on Lansley
Senior managers across the country turned on the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley last night over his claims that parts of the NHS were “on the brink of financial collapse” and that the “clinical and financial stability” of 22 trusts was being undermined. MORE
Shelling in Sanaa kills 15 people
Renewed violence in the capital of Yemen, Sanaa killed at least 15 people yesterday as forces loyal to the regime and its opponents shelled each other’s strategic positions from nearby hills. The shelling has terrified residents and emptied out streets, already pockmarked by battles.
Women fined for wearing the veil
Two French Muslims yesterday became the first women to be fined for wearing the full-face veil in public. The pair sought conviction so they could challenge the law before the Court of Human Rights. MORE
Assange engages in row with publishers
The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was embroiled in a war of words with the publishers of his memoir yesterday over whether they had any right to put the book on sale without his consent. The former hacker accused Canongate of “profiteering” by publishing a draft of the memoir. The publisher responded by calling that account a “distorted version of events”. MORE
Sarkozy’s best man faces funds probe
Two of Nicolas Sarkozy’s associates were accused of handling illegal kick-backs on arms contracts yesterday. One of the President’s closest friends, Nicolas Bazire – best man at his wedding to Carla Bruni – was placed under investigation for allegedly embezzling funds. MORE
Nurse ‘force-fed her baby to death’
A nurse force-fed her baby daughter with a jug until the 10-month-old died, the Old Bailey heard yesterday. The baby had been forced to take solid food, including meat and cereals, through a spout for months, jurors were told. The case continues.
US satellite set to crash to Earth today
A defunct US satellite weighing six tons is expected to crash to Earth today, although it is more likely to face a watery grave than hit land. Nasa put the chances that somebody will get hurt by a falling chunk of debris at 1 in 3,200 – which means that for any individual, the chances are in the trillions to one. MORE
Parents put boot into ban on leather balls
A ban on leather footballs at a primary school has been described as “ridiculous” by parents. Pupils at Harewood Junior School in Gloucester are allowed to use only soft sponge balls in the playground after a series of accidents. One mother said: “They might as well keep [the children] in straitjackets.”
Cornish whiskey’s 300-year wait is over
Cornwall has produced its first new whiskey for 300 years. At £150 for a half-litre bottle, the limited-edition Hicks & Healey Cornish Single Malt seven-year-old is beyond the reach of the average high street drinker, but has been rated by one expert as “among the best debut bottlings of the last decade”.
Albert Einstein was wrong, say scientists
Albert Einstein’s 1905 special theory of relativity (E = mc2), that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light, appears to have been disproved by scientists in Switzerland. Research at the world’s largest physics laboratory outside Geneva has seen sub-atomic particles (neutrinos) travelling faster than light.
Actor jailed for assaulting wife
Aboriginal actor David Gulpilil – praised for his turn in Crocodile Dundee – was jailed yesterday for assaulting his wife. The 58-year-old will serve at least five months of a one-year sentence. He was in “a state of extreme inebriation” when he threw a broom at his wife, Miriam Ashley, a court in Darwin heard. MORE
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