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African Union peacekeepers come under attack in Mogadishu Ugandan peacekeeper troops come under fire before they even begin patrolling in troubled Somalia. DUP and Sinn Féin make gains in Northern Ireland Assembly election Results are coming in for the Northern Ireland Assembly election held on Wednesday 7 March. The election is a crucial step in restoring devolved government to Northern Ireland.

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Two winners confirmed in US 'Mega Millions' jackpot There are at least 2 big winners in Tuesday night's $370 million "Mega Millions" lottery drawing, but lottery officials say that no one has come forward to claim their millions.

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Tropical Cyclone George crosses the coast of northwest Western Australia near Port Hedland, resulting in at least three deaths and serious property damage in the area. Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives propose legislation that would remove all U.S. troops from Iraq by August 2008 or sooner if certain requirements are not met. The People's Republic of China launches a landmark property law that will better protect individual property rights. Sri Lankan Civil War: Thousands of civilians flee their homes in Sri Lanka because of fighting between government troops and the Tamil Tigers. African Union peacekeepers are ambushed by insurgents in Mogadishu for a second successive day. U.S. President George W. Bush departs on a tour of Latin America that will take him to Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico. Greek Cypriots dismantle the portion of the separation fence between the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in Nicosia

UEFA Cup - Round of Sixteen first leg results

The first leg of the round of sixteen in the UEFA Cup occured earlier today, with all eight games being played. Spain boasted the most teams in the competition with four (Espanyol, Celta Vigo, Sevilla, and Osasuna), while England (Tottenham, Newcastle), Portugal (Braga, Benfica), Germany (Bayer Leverkusen, Werder Bremen) and France (Lens, PSG) each had two teams still in the Cup. Other represented countries were Israel (Maccabi Haifi), Scotland (Rangers), Ukraine (Shakhtar Donetetsk), and Holland (AZ Alkmaar).

Matches

Newcastle United 4 - 2 AZ Alkmaar

English side Newcastle United was visited by the Dutch AZ Alkmaar at St. James' Park. Both teams played a very disciplined match, and referee Massimo Brusca only was forced to deal out one yellow card to AZ's Steinsson. Newcastle raced out the lead with an own goal by Steinsson after 8 minutes. Kieron Dyer doubled the lead for the hosts after 22 minutes, and then Newcastle's top scorer Obafemi Martins made the game 3-0 only a minute later. AZ Finally made a reply on 31 minutes when striker Shota Arveladze scored for the visitors, but the lead would soon be restored as Martins earned himself a double on 37 minutes. Danny Koevermans scored late in the game to give AZ a crucial away goal, but the Dutch side will have to have a better defensive showing if they hope to advance in the second leg.

Maccabi Haifi 0 - 0 Espanyol

Espanyol traveled to Israel to take on Maccabai Haifi at the Kiryat-Eli'ezer Stadium. The game ended in a draw, leaving Maccabi needing only a draw in the second leg to advance to the next round.

[edit]

Rangers 1 - 1 Osasuna

The Spanish team Osasuna visited Rangers at Ibrox Stadium. Osasuna scored first after 17 minutes, with Raul Garcia scoring the crucial away goal. Rangers let the game go very late before tying the match through Brahim Hemdani on 92 minutes. The tie gives Osasuna a slight advantage next game, as long as they can keep Rangers off the scoresheet.

Braga 2 - 3 Tottenham Hotspur

In a nervy game at the Estadio Municipal de Braga, Tottenham came away with a fantastic result, defeating Portugese side Braga at their home field. All the scoring occured in the second half, and Tottenham struck first through Robbie Keane. Steve Malbranque then doubled the lead for Spurs on 72 minutes. Braga fancied a comeback, and Paulo Jorge game them a lift on 76 minutes to cut the lead in half. Ze Carlos the tied the game for the home side after 81 minutes. All would be for naught for the homeside however, as Robbie Keane earned a brace in stoppage time to give the visitors the win.

Sevilla 2 - 2 Shakhtar Donetsk

Two penalties kept this match tied, as Shaktar of the Ukraine visited current La Liga leaders Sevilla. Sevilla, who have been on a high as of late after beating Barcelona, struck first in this match with Jose Luis Marti getting the goal. Tomas Hubschman tied the game for Shaktar on 18 minutes, and the took the lead on 60 after a penalty was awarded to them by referee Viktor Kassai. The guests looked set for the win, but Sevilla earned their own penalty on 88 minutes, and Enzo Maresca converted the chance to tie the game.

Lens 2 - 1 Bayer Leverkusen

French side Lens defeated Bayer Leverkusen of Germany at the Stade Felix-Bollaert in France. The home side scored first and Olivier Monterrubio got the goal on 17 minutes. Karim Haqui responded for the Germans after the break to tie the game at one. Lens were then awarded a penalty, and Daniel Cousin scored to give Lens the win.

Paris Saint Germain 2 - 1 Benfica

The visitors scored first in the match at the Parc des Princes in France, but PSG were not deterred by the early goal by Simao Sabrosa. Simaos compatriot Pauleta tied the game for PSG on 36 minutes, and Pierre-Alain Frau gave the homeside the lead 5 minutes later. PSG hung on to give them the advantage in the second leg of the cup series.

Celta Vigo 0 - 1 Werder Bremen

Visitors Bremen won the game thanks to an 84th minute goal by Hugo Almeida. The win gives the Bundesliga side a great chance at advancing to the quarterfinals, while Celta will have to play hard in the next leg and earn a win on the road if they hope to continue in the competition.

DUP and Sinn Féin make gains in Northern Ireland Assembly election

The election is a crucial step in restoring devolved government to Northern Ireland, which has been under direct rule from Westminster since October 2002, when the Assembly was suspended after allegations that an IRA spy ring was operating there. The resulting court case collapsed. Attempts to get the leading unionist and nationalist parties to resume power-sharing had failed until the St Andrews Agreement was reached in October 2006. This agreement commits Sinn Féin to accepting the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the DUP to accepting power-sharing.

So far 81 out of 108 seats have been filled (counting having resumed at 9.00 GMT on Friday). Among others, DUP leader Ian Paisley has been elected in North Antrim, as has Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams in West Belfast. DUP deputy leader Peter Robinson topped the poll in East Belfast, where Naomi Long of the Alliance Party was also elected. The leaders of the other two main parties were also elected: Mark Durkan of the SDLP was elected on the first count in Foyle, while Ulster Unionist leader Sir Reg Empey was elected on the third count in East Belfast. Alliance Party leader David Ford was elected in his constituency of South Antrim on the fifth count. Dawn Purvis, leader of the Progressive Unionist Party (PUP), was elected on the last count in East Belfast.

Anna Lo of the Alliance Party has become the first candidate from an ethnic minority background to have been elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly, winning a seat in South Belfast with the fourth highest first preference vote in the constituency, 3829 votes. She said her decision to stand had been an extension of her community work, and that she wanted to give a voice to Chinese people who never felt they had any part to play in Northern Ireland politics. She also said she hoped that indigenous voters who were fed up with "tribal politics" would give her their support, and that she was determined "to be much more than a candidate for ethnic minorities".

Counting the votes cast in the 600 polling stations will continue through to Friday 9 March. Turnout has been reported to be higher than in the 2003 election in some areas including East Londonderry, North Antrim and parts of Strangford. Assembly elections use the Single Transferable Vote (STV) method of proportional representation, with each constituency returning six MLAs.

A new power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive is to be formed by 26 March, according to the St Andrews Agreement. The election of a First Minister and Deputy First Minister requires the support of a majority of unionist MLAs and of nationalist MLAs ("parallel consent"). In practice this means that the largest unionist party and the largest nationalist party must agree to share power. If they cannot agree by the deadline the Northern Ireland Assembly at Stormont will be suspended again and MLAs will have their salaries and allowances stopped. Though there has been criticism of the deal reached at St Andrews by elements within both the DUP and Sinn Féin, the government in Westminster believes that these dissenters are in a minority.

Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain said to CNN: "I'm optimistic that we can achieve a working government on March 26, but it's a very stark choice for them — get into power, or shut up shop". But he also warned that "if this falls over on March 26, there is no prospect of another settlement for a very long time, maybe years". On Friday 9 March Mr Hain began separate meetings with the leaders and deputy leaders of the DUP and Sinn Féin.

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said he had "no problem" with working with the Unionists and shaking the hand of Ian Paisley: "I think it is very, very important in terms of representing a community that for a long time was marginalized and excluded. We're about reaching out to the Unionists".

But Ian Paisley claimed that Sinn Féin's decision to support the police had been "qualified", and said, "you can't pick and choose how far you are prepared to go for peace." He also said that Sinn Féin had to "turn from their evil ways". To the BBC he said: "We will enter into talks tomorrow with the Secretary of State, we will be meeting the Prime Minister next week, and the hard negotiations are now going to start. Sinn Féin are not entitled to be at the table until they declare themselves for democracy. I am a democrat, I don't speak to loyalist paramilitaries, I don't speak to Sinn Féin".

On Friday 9 March British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern made a joint statement. They said, "The message of the electorate is clear. After so many years of frustration and disappointment, they want Northern Ireland to move on to build a better future together through the restored institutions. Many of the practical issues which have been raised in this election campaign can and should be resolved locally." They said that they would work closely with the Northern Irish parties to restore devolved government by the deadline of 26 March and praised the progress already made in this direction. "The people of Northern Ireland have suffered grievous pain and loss. But enormous progress has been made and there is now no good reason why we should not be able to complete this historic process. All must now take responsibility in government for building and consolidating peace, this is what the people of Northern Ireland want. They deserve no less."

Gormley's statue Another Place stays in Sefton, UK

Antony Gormley's artwork Another Place is to stay on Crosby Beach.

Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council changed its mind after revised plans were put in relocating some of the statues in order to reduce impact on wildlife and danger to visitors. Bootle Town Hall was packed for the meeting of the planning committee which was attended by Mr Gormley.

The original plan had been for a 2 year placement at the beach. However when it was decided to transfer the statues to another site, several local campaign groups were started with the intention of keeping the statues.

Afterwards, Mr Gormley said:It's wonderful that a piece of beach should become a permanent place of contemplation and reverie. I'm a sailor and I understand that people feel their ability to use coastal waters is being diminished, but I do not believe the loss is as great as they’re saying.

After plans to move 19 statues where submitted, 13 where to be removed from the area around a coastguard station and three to improve emergency access and the rest from the birds feeding area. Councillors voted nine to five to keep the work.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency still want the work removed as it draws visitors into areas of the beach were they can become stuck. While directors of art organisations in the area such as Liverpool Biennial have expressed support for the decision.

British actor John Inman dies at 71

The British stage and television actor John Inman has died at the age of 71. Mr. Inman, born in Preston, Lancashire, had been suffering from the Hepatitis A infection for some time.

"John, through his character Mr. Humphries of Are You Being Served? was known and loved throughout the world. He was one of the best and finest pantomime dames working to capacity audiences throughout Britain," said Inman's manager, Phil Dale.

Most famous for his role in the BBC comedy series Are You Being Served?, Inman entered popular culture with his appearance as the camp store assistant, Mr Humphries, and popularised the catchphrase "I'm Free!" across British society.

Tributes from across the acting and stage professions have been coming in all morning, since the death was announced by Mr Inman's spokesman earlier this morning. According to the Londonpaper, dated 8th of March, Inman's long-term partner, Ron Lynch, was said to be "devastated" at his death. His co-star, Wendy Richard who played opposite him in the BBC show, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme, "John was one of the wittiest and most inventive actors I've ever worked with. He was a brilliant, brilliant pantomime dame and he was a very good all-round actor, really. He was a true professional."

Inman’s manager Phil Dale told the BBC - "John was known and loved throughout the world. He was one of the best and finest pantomime dames working to capacity audiences throughout Britain". Mike Berry, who played Mr Spooner in Are You Being Served?, told the BBC: "I felt like going home at the end of the day and ironing my face, he made me laugh so much! As funny as he was in front of the camera, he was funnier off.”

It was revealed on Friday, March 9 that Australia's premier gay and lesbian publication, SX, would publish a special tribute in Inman's honour, commemorating the actor with a feature article written by the magazine's star journalists, Katrina Fox and Peter Hackney.

John Lewis Partnership announces increased profits, 18% partner bonus

The British stage and television actor John Inman has died at the age of 71. Mr. Inman, born in Preston, Lancashire, had been suffering from the Hepatitis A infection for some time.

"John, through his character Mr. Humphries of Are You Being Served? was known and loved throughout the world. He was one of the best and finest pantomime dames working to capacity audiences throughout Britain," said Inman's manager, Phil Dale.

Most famous for his role in the BBC comedy series Are You Being Served?, Inman entered popular culture with his appearance as the camp store assistant, Mr Humphries, and popularised the catchphrase "I'm Free!" across British society.

Tributes from across the acting and stage professions have been coming in all morning, since the death was announced by Mr Inman's spokesman earlier this morning. According to the Londonpaper, dated 8th of March, Inman's long-term partner, Ron Lynch, was said to be "devastated" at his death. His co-star, Wendy Richard who played opposite him in the BBC show, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme, "John was one of the wittiest and most inventive actors I've ever worked with. He was a brilliant, brilliant pantomime dame and he was a very good all-round actor, really. He was a true professional."

Inman’s manager Phil Dale told the BBC - "John was known and loved throughout the world. He was one of the best and finest pantomime dames working to capacity audiences throughout Britain" [1]. Mike Berry, who played Mr Spooner in Are You Being Served?, told the BBC: "I felt like going home at the end of the day and ironing my face, he made me laugh so much! As funny as he was in front of the camera, he was funnier off.”[1]

It was revealed on Friday, March 9 that Australia's premier gay and lesbian publication, SX, would publish a special tribute in Inman's honour, commemorating the actor with a feature article written by the magazine's star journalists, Katrina Fox and Peter Hackney.

African Union peacekeepers come under attack in Mogadishu

Ugandan troops arriving in Somalia as part of an African Union(AU) peacekeeping force, came under attack even before they went on patrol.

The Ugandan troops, 400 of whom arrived on Tuesday and another 400 the day after, were deployed to the capital Mogadishu as replacements for Ethiopian troops to support the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP).

Ethiopia intervened to help the TFP oust the Islamic Courts Union (IUC), which had held power for six months.

"Convoys of Ugandan troops were ambushed as they were passing the main junction in Mogadishu, and they exchanged heavy gunfire with the insurgents," said Shino Abdukadir, an eyewitness.

Somalia's Deputy Defense Minister Salad Ali Jelle said the Ugandan troops suffered no casualties. There were 10 civilians killed in the attack.

Assane Ba of the African Union said: "The AU has promised to deploy in Somalia and in Mogadishu. The attacks and threats do not set back the deployment."

A Mogadishu radio station broadcast a message from IUC member and Hizbul Shabaab leader, Aden Hashi Ayro, calling for attacks on the peacekeepers. "It is time for the Somali youth to fight the occupation by Ethiopia and others. The Muslims shall not surrender to non-believers."

France bans filming of violence

On Saturday, the French Constitutional Council announced its approval for a proposed law that would make it illegal for anybody other than professional journalists to videotape acts of violence.

The law is, as the Associated Press dubs it, a "clumsy effort" to curb the urban youth activity known as happy slapping in which an act of violence, such as kicking a helpless victim, is filmed by the attacker's friends for entertainment purposes.

The new law was tucked inside a much larger anti-crime bill put before the Council, and has been chastised for being "deliberately" vague and allowing the prosecution of non-guilty parties who simply videotape events of police brutality, urban riots or other violence. Under the new legislation, written by Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy, convicted "citizen journalists" could face up to five years in prison.

Media freedom group Reporters Without Borders has called the act "dangerous", and warned that it can be used to target "regular citizens" who film acts of violence. The group has also attacked proposed French legislation that would designate certain media outlets as "government-approved sources of information", citing the dangers of censorship.

Computer glitch delays online tax filing in Canada

Computer systems used by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for the handling of tax filing data for Canadians have been temporarily shutdown due to infrastructure problems. A March 7 article in the Toronto Star states that due to errors in the electronic filing system, Canada Revenue Agency will be unable to accept any tax filings electronically or corrections to prior filings.

A fact sheet from the CRA states that "until the problem is resolved, we cannot process returns filed on paper, or returns filed electronically before the system interruption. Refunds will be delayed until processing is resumed".

A check of the taxing authority's website regarding the issue states "We have temporarily shut down public access to electronic services to ensure the integrity of taxpayer information." and that "We have now traced the source of the problem to software maintenance conducted on March 4, 2007. We are currently working to bring all systems back online gradually."

A CRA press release dated March 6 states "Commissioner of the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) Michel Dorais today instructed some computer applications related to personal income tax filing to be temporarily halted." he also said, "there is no indication that this situation was caused by intrusion, hacking, or computer virus". Further, "These applications include online services like Efile, Netfile, and My Account. Mr. Dorais said that he instructed that this preventative measure be taken following indications that CRA computer systems have run into infrastructure problems. In order to safeguard existing systems and to maintain the integrity of CRA's taxpayer information holdings, Mr Dorais ordered tax filing processes halted."

An article in The Globe and Mail states that taxpayers "can wait for Netfile to return to service, or they can print their returns and mail them to the CRA", which will be processed when the computer glitch is resolved.

The deadline for Canadians to submit tax returns is April 30. The CRA indicates it is too soon to speculate on whether the filing deadline will be extended. They expect to restore all services, including EFile and Netfile, well in advance of the filing deadline.

The shutdown also affects third-party companies that prepare tax returns and electronically file the data using the EFile facility on behalf of clients. According to the CRA, millions of individual Canadians use the Netfile service each year.

The Agency will provide updates daily to the media until the situation is resolved.

Malta applies to join euro

Malta has formally applied to join the Eurozone in January 2008 and adopt the euro currency. The request was made through a letter sent by the Prime Minister, Dr Lawrence Gonzi, and Central Bank of Malta Governor Michael Bonello to both the European Commission and the European Central Bank, asking both institutions to set in motion the mechanism to provide Malta with a convergence report on whether it has reached all Eurozone membership conditions, known as the Maastricht criteria.

Today in History
1841 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that captive Africans who seized control of La Amistad, the trans-Atlantic slave-trading ship carrying them, had been taken into slavery illegally.

1862 - Ironclad warships USS Monitor and CSS Virginia fought to a draw in the Battle of Hampton Roads.

1916 - General Pancho Villa led Mexicans raiders in a cross-border attack against Columbus, New Mexico, prompting a punitive expedition from the U.S. military.

1945 - A bomb raid on Tokyo started a firestorm (pictured), killing 100,000.

1959 - Barbie, the world's best-selling doll, debuted at the American International Toy Fair in New York City.

March 09 is Baron Bliss Day in Belize

Quote of the Day

Nobody reads a mystery to get to the middle. They read it to get to the end. If it's a letdown, they won't buy anymore. The first page sells that book. The last page sells your next book.
~ Mickey Spillane

Word of the Day

portmanteau; n

A large travelling case usually made of leather, and opening into two equal sections.

(linguistics) A word formed which combines the meanings of two words by combining the words themselves.

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