Owner and manager of Moroccan factory arrested over 55-fatality fire
February 21, 2020
Sunday, April 27, 2008 Police have arrested the owner of a mattress factory in Hay Hassini, Casablanca, Morocco which burned down in a disaster that claimed 55 lives. His son, who was the factory's manager, was also arrested. Those killed — 35 of whom were women — were trapped inside by locked fire exits, which were barricaded to stop theft during working hours. "The people who died were either asphyxiated or burned," commented a firefighter. 17...
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German hotels step up boycotts against online travel agency HRS
February 21, 2020
Thursday, March 15, 2012 A third call for boycott and second boycott hit the German online travel agency Hotel Reservation Service (HRS) this week. After a recent boycott against HRS in Münsterland, a boycott in Bremerhaven was next and is soon to be followed by the next round in Bremerhaven starting in the middle of March. Hotels in the city of Bremerhaven already have to pay a new "bed tax" to the state of Bremen of...
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Four new breeds in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
February 21, 2020
Tuesday, February 12, 2008 This year, four breeds of dogs are competing for the first time in the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, United States. The new breeds making their Westminister debuts this year, are the Plott, a hunting hound originally bred by two German immigrant brothers in North Carolina; the Tibetan Mastiff, once described by Marco Polo as "tall as a donkey with a voice as powerful...
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Political pundits debate Fred Thompson’s younger wife
February 20, 2020
Saturday, July 14, 2007 Political analysts widely regard Fred Thompson as a potential, if not likely, candidate in the United States presidential election in 2008. Thompson is a lawyer, lobbyist, character actor and former Republican Senator for Tennessee now residing in McLean, Virginia near Washington D.C. A recent article in The New York Times (NYT) labelled his wife, Jeri Kehn Thompson as a "trophy wife" and a potential liability in the 2008 race. The NYT article...
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Home-invaders pose as NYC police
February 20, 2020
Monday, July 16, 2007 In two separate incidents, men posing as members of the New York Police Department (NYPD), have invaded homes in the New York City area. In both cases, they robbed the residents, but in the most recent, they sexually assaulted a woman. On Saturday, July 14, at 1:09 a.m. EDT (UTC-4), four men knocked on the door of a Yonkers, New York, apartment. The 33-year-old male that lives there opened the door, as...
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Scientists confirm new superheavy element
February 19, 2020
Saturday, September 26, 2009 Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, California have confirmed the existence of the superheavy element 114 — otherwise known as ununquadium — ten years after its first observation by Russian scientists. Containing 114 protons, this is the heaviest element detected in multiple laboratories and another step towards the theorised island of stability, the "holy grail" of such research. The elusive element was first detected in 1998 at the Joint Institute for Nuclear...
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Local council in Australia rejects McDonald’s development plan
February 19, 2020
Wednesday, December 3, 2008 The development application for a McDonald's restaurant at Minyama, on Queensland's Sunshine Coast in Australia, has been rejected by the Sunshine Coast Regional Council. "We knocked back a Hungry Jack’s on Nicklin Way because of the nuisance code," said divisional councilor Chris Thompson. "We already have a 24-hour McDonald’s at Mooloolaba, only one kilometre away, and there are already [anti-social] issues at that site." Local residents previously vowed to fight any McDonald's...
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Five police officers killed in Dallas, Texas during sniper attack
February 18, 2020
Sunday, July 10, 2016 On Thursday, five police officers were killed and seven were injured after a sniper attacked a public protest march in downtown Dallas, Texas. Sources indicate at least three other people were taken into custody for questioning relating to the attack. The march was held to protest the shooting deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota during engagements with police officers. Police identified 25-year-old Micah Johnson as the suspect....
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UN adds to criticism of Australian offshore centers
February 17, 2020
Tuesday, February 5, 2013 File:UNHCR.svg The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) echoed criticism from other human rights groups yesterday as its new report called on Australia to cease the practice of holding asylum seekers in an uncertain status in its offshore facilities. The UNHCR spent three days in January at an Australian facility located on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea. Following Australian mandatory policy, the more than two hundred detainees held there were detained...
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News briefs:May 16, 2010
February 17, 2020
 Correction — August 24, 2015 These briefs incorrectly describe BP as 'British Petroleum'. In fact, such a company has not existed for many years as BP dropped this name when becoming a multinational company. The initials no longer stand for anything.  Wikinews Audio Briefs Credits Produced By Turtlestack Recorded By Turtlestack Written By Turtlestack Listen To This Brief Problems? See our media guide. [edit]
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