Salman named goodwill ambassador of India's Olympic contingent

Bollywood superstar Salman Khan was today named goodwill ambassador of the Indian contingent for the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro -- an unprecedented appointment in the run-up to the quadrennial extravaganza.

The announcement was made in the presence of Olympic medallists and Rio star athletes such as boxer M C Mary Kom , hockey captain Sardar Singh, and shooter Apurvi Chandela, among others.

The association between Salman Khan and the Indian Olympic Association was facilitated by IOA's official marketing agency IOS Sports & Entertainment.

Speaking on this new association with IOA Salman said, "I am honoured that Indian Olympic Association has chosen me as the goodwill ambassador for the Indian contingent for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

"It is a matter of great national pride that our athletes are performing better and better at the Olympic Games and I think we should all join hands in giving them every support and cheer for them so that Rio 2016 becomes our best Olympic tally."

Commenting on the announcement IOA President N Ramachandran said, "His association will not only attract sports lovers but also help motivate the players to do well in the Olympics. We are sure our association with Salman Khan will go a long way."

The athletes too welcomed the move with Mary Kom saying, "This is a big moment for all of us that Mr. Salman Khan has joined us as our family member during Rio Olympics. My preparations for Rio Olympic qualification are going on and I will be competing in the World Championship soon."
Source-- article.wn

Read More

Obama: UK will not be able to strike trade deal with US soon after Brexit

Britain would not be able to strike a free trade deal with the US "any time soon" if it leaves the EU, as Washington's focus would be on reaching agreement with the European Union, Barack Obama has said.

The President was speaking after Downing Street talks with Prime Minister David Cameron during a two-day visit which he has used to speak out in favour of continued UK membership of the 28-nation bloc after the June 23 referendum.

• Share
  • 
    
  • 
    
  • 
    
  • 
    

At a joint press conference in the Foreign Office, Mr Cameron insisted that the special relationship between the UK and US was not "constrained" by Britain's EU membership.

EU membership gave Britain "a powerful tool" to stand up for the values it shares with the US, said Mr Cameron, adding: "Now, I think, is a time to stay true to those values, and to stick together with our friends and allies in Europe and around the world."

Mr Obama said the UK would be "in the back of the queue" for a trade deal if it left the EU, because the US would focus on the bigger bloc.

The US president stressed that the referendum was a "decision for the people of the United Kingdom" and he was "not coming here to fix any votes".

But he defended his right to offer an opinion, saying: "In democracies everybody should want more information, not less, and you shouldn't be afraid to hear an argument being made - that's not a threat, that should enhance the debate.

"Particularly because my understanding is that some of the folks on the other side have been ascribing to the United States certain actions we will take if the UK does leave the EU - they say for example that 'we will just cut our own trade deals with the United States'.

"So they are voicing an opinion about what the United States is going to do, I figured you might want to hear from the president of the United States what I think the United States is going to do.

"And on that matter, for example, I think it's fair to say that maybe some point down the line there might be a UK-US trade agreement, but it's not going to happen any time soon because our focus is in negotiating with a big bloc, the European Union, to get a trade agreement done.

"The UK is going to be in the back of the queue."

Trying to do "piecemeal trade agreements" was "hugely inefficient", he said.

Setting out the choice facing the UK, the president said: "If, right now, I have got access to a massive market where I sell 44% of my exports and now I'm thinking about leaving the organisation that gives me access to that market and that is responsible for millions of jobs in my country and responsible for an enormous amount of commerce and upon which a lot of businesses depend - that's not something I would probably do."

He added that the UK's membership of the EU "enhances the special relationship" because it meant Washington had a trusted partner in Europe on issues including the fight against terrorism.

"Precisely because I have a confidence in the UK, and I know that if we are not working effectively with Paris or Brussels then those attacks are going to migrate to the United States and to London, I want one of my strongest partners in that conversation.

"So it enhances the special relationship, it does not diminish it."

Mr Obama said that while the vote was a matter for the British people, the US had a "deep interest" in the outcome.

"The United States wants a strong United Kingdom as a partner and the United Kingdom is at its best when it is helping to lead a strong Europe," he said.

"It leverages UK power to be part of the European Union. I don't believe the EU moderates British influence in the world, it magnifies it."

He acknowledged that all countries were concerned about their sovereignty, but said that the UK's membership of the EU added to collective prosperity and security.

"All of us cherish our sovereignty - our country is pretty vocal about that - but the US also recognises that we strengthen our security through our membership of Nato, we strengthen our prosperity through organisations like the G7 and the G20.

"I believe the UK strengthens both our collective security and prosperity through the EU."

Mr Cameron said the referendum was the "sovereign choice of the British people" but added: "As we make that choice, it surely makes sense to listen to what our friends think, to listen to their opinion, to listen to their views and that's what Barack has been talking about today."

He added: "On this vital issue of trade, where Barack has made such a clear statement, we should remember why we are currently negotiating this biggest trade deal in the whole world, and in the whole world's history, between the European Union and the United States.

"It is because Britain played an absolutely leading part in pushing for those talks to get going."

The UK had "set the agenda for what could be an absolutely game-changing trade deal for jobs, for investment" because it was part of the EU.

Mr Obama rejected a description of the EU as being "in crisis", but said it was "under strain" as a result of the difficulties of the single currency and the numbers of migrants entering the continent.

He added: "I am confident that the ties that bind Europe together are ultimately much stronger than the forces that are trying to pull it apart."

Europe had enjoyed "an extraordinary stretch of prosperity" that might be unmatched in world history, said the President.

"When you think about the 20th century and the 21st century, 21st-century Europe looks an awful lot better, and I think a majority of Europeans recognise that," said Mr Obama.

"They see that unity and peace have delivered sustained economic growth, reduced conflict, reduced violence, enhanced the quality of life of people, a nd I'm confident that can continue.

"But I do believe it is important to watch out for some of these fault lines that are developing."

While Mr Obama accepted it was "right" for UK voters to make their judgment on June 23 on the basis of what will be good for them and for Britain's economic prospects and jobs, he added: "I do also think this vote will sent a signal that is relevant about whether the kind of prosperity we have built together is going to continue or whether the forces of division end up being more prominent."

In a clear reference to the president's warnings against Brexit, Mr Cameron said Mr Obama was "a very good friend" of the UK who could be relied upon for "sage advice".

The Prime Minister said the "strong and essential partnership" between Britain and the US has "never been more important" on issues such as the fight against terrorism, action against nuclear proliferation and resistance to Russian aggression.

He added: "In all the areas we've discussed today, our collective power and reach is amplified by Britain's membership of the European Union.

"When it comes to the special relationship between our two countries, there's no greater enthusiast than me... But I've never felt constrained in any way in strengthening this relationship by the fact that we are in the European Union.

"In fact, quite the reverse. We deliver for our people through all the international groups that we are part of. We enhance our security through membership of Nato. We further our prosperity through the G7 and G20.

"And like those organisations, Britain's membership of the EU gives us a powerful tool to deliver on the prosperity and security that our people need and to stand up for the values that our countries share.

"Now I think is a time to stay true to those values, and to stick together with our friends and allies in Europe and around the world."

Mr Cameron added: "I've always found Barack someone who gives sage advice, he's a man with a very good heart and he has been a very good friend - and always will be a good friend, I know - to the United Kingdom."

Responding to Mr Obama's comments, the co-founder of the Leave.EU campaign, Richard Tice, said: "We don't have a trade deal with the United States now because we're members of the European Union.

"The proposed EU-US trade deal, TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership), would be disastrous for British workers.

"Obama doesn't have the authority to deny us a deal, as he will be long gone before any such proposals are on the table."

In a statement issued by main Brexit campaign Vote Leave, Justice Minister Dominic Raab focused on Mr Obama's comments on the migration crisis rather than his warning about a trade deal.

Mr Raab said: " The president made clear that uncontrolled immigration into the EU is a threat to national security. I agree - that is why it is safer to take back control so that we can stop terror suspects from Europe coming into the UK.

"He argued that he thinks it is in America's interests for the UK to stay in the EU but what is good for US politicians is not necessarily good for the British people. We want more international cooperation after we Vote Leave, but the EU is not fit for purpose, and cannot cope with the multiple crises we face like terrorism, Syria and mass migration.

"The US would not dream of opening its border with Mexico, so it is hypocritical for President Obama to insist that we do the same with Europe."

Labour's shadow business secretary Angela Eagle said: "President Obama's comments confirm what we have been saying for months - that Britain's ability to negotiate trade deals would be hugely diminished after Brexit. It is simply not credible for the Leave campaign to suggest we could swiftly negotiate a favourable trade deal with the United States and other countries."

Source- article.wn

Read More

3 kids survive slaying of 8 family members in Ohio

CNN)Eight family members found dead in a rural southern Ohio community were shot in the head "execution style," most while they slept, authorities said Friday.

Officers are searching for the killer or killers, who are probably armed and a danger to surviving family members, Pike County Sheriff Charles Reader said.

"We have a specific family that's been targeted but I don't think there's been a threat to any other members of the community," he said. "I've given the family precautionary measures to make. They know we're available."

Investigators discovered seven adults and a 16-year-old dead at four crime scenes, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said. The victims included a mother slain while her 4-day-old child lay beside her, he said.

That child, along with a 6-month-old and a 3-year-old, survived the killings, Reader said.

He didn't name a suspect or give a motive, but said all victims are members of the Rhoden family.

"We're advising family members to be very careful and take particular caution," DeWine said. "This is a matter of public safety, especially for the Rhoden family."

'Doesn't happen every day'

Residents are grappling with a kind of violence rarely seen in Piketon, a town of about 2,000 residents 90 miles east of Cincinnati, Dewine said.

"What makes this particularly grisly is you have three children involved who were there when the executions took place," he said.

The sheriff's office was notified about 7:53 a.m. Friday that two bodies had been found in a bloody scene, Reader said. Officers were flagged down and told other bodies had been located.

At first, officers found seven people killed at three residences in the county, two "within walking distance" and the third about half a mile away, Reader said.

On Friday afternoon, an eighth body was located in a fourth residence about 8 miles away, Reader said.

'There may be more than one' killer

"It would appear all of them were shot in the head," DeWine said. "It would appear it occurred at night. ... The mother was killed in bed with the 4-day-old right there."

The deaths are homicides, DeWine said. Nobody killed themselves.

"The Rhoden family was targeted and we've talked to the family and expressed our concern," he said. "The sheriff's office will work with them for protection."

Reader said other law enforcement agencies have come to Pike County to help his department, which has 13 road deputies.

"We have a lot of people dedicated to finding this murderer, or these murderers," DeVine said.

Pastor Phil Fulton of Union Hill Church told CNN affiliate WLWT the situation was "very out of character" for the community.

"It's a tragedy," he said.

The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation. It sent more than a dozen agents to assist the Pike County Sheriff's Office after the request for help came in at 8:21 a.m.

Schools in Pike County and surrounding counties were on lockdown earlier Friday as a precautionary measure, WLWT reported. They were "back to normal" by Friday afternoon, Adams County Ohio Valley Local School Superintendent Richard Seas told WLWT. 

Source-- article.wn.

Read More

ISIS Carrying Out Brutal Killings in Syria’s Yarmouk Refugee Camp

The Islamic State militant group (ISIS) has beheaded rival jihadis and one civilian in Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria, according to activists.
The reports emerged on Friday amid claims that the Syrian regime is aiding ISIS’s growth in the besieged area of Damascus.
Subscribe now - Free phone/tablet charger worth over $60 Salim Salamah, a Syrian refugee who spent 22 years in Yarmouk before fleeing to Sweden in late 2012 and is now head of the Palestinian League for Human Rights in Syria, tells Newsweek that ISIS has slit the the throats of four Nusra Front fighters and one civilian in the besieged camp.
He adds that Nusra fighters have killed three ISIS fighters in similar fashion, and recent clashes between the two radical Islamist groups have left at least eight civilians dead.
The confirmation of the brutal killings comes just days after the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) envoy to Syria, Anwar Abed al-Hadi, said that ISIS militants had executed, beheaded and raped Palestinian residents of the camp.
The group now controls at least 60 percent of the camp, according to Salamah and al-Hadi, who puts the estimate higher at 70 percent. ISIS entered the embattled Palestinian camp in April 2015 before being pushed back by Palestinian factions, it has since increased its territorial hold within the camp again after capturing territory held by the Nusra Front, aided by defections by Nusra fighters.
The population of the camp has continued to fall amid a siege by the jihadi groups and the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad, down to around 5,000 from 15,000 in 2015 as thousands move to other besieged areas of the Syrian capital.
Salamah says that the Syrian regime is still carrying out military action in the camp but it is not targeting ISIS militants, only Nusra fighters, an Islamist Syrian rebel group seeking to topple Assad. The claim suggests that Assad’s forces are allowing the group to grow at the expense of the rebel group and the Palestinian residents of the camp.
“The bombardment of the regime is targeting areas either bordering or within the area of Nusra. This is not happening in the case of the territory of ISIS,” he says, according to information from the Palestinian League for Human Rights in Syria’s sources within the camp.
While concrete estimates of ISIS fighters within the camp are difficult to verify, al-Hadi estimated there to be some 3,000 militants in the camp and the neighboring Hajr al-Aswad suburb, while Salamah puts the number at “2,000 maximum.”
Source--europenews

Read More

Creators Of New Smartphone App Hope To Get Indians To

A startup called Juggernaut is trying to get India’s smartphone users to read more with its new e-books app, Mashable reports.
Although India has the second-largest and one of the fastest-growing smartphone markets in the world, few of its 220 million smartphone users are avid book readers.
Juggernaut is launching its app with 100 book titles, priced as low as 10 rupees (15 cents) and up to 150 rupees ($2.25). Among these, a set of serialized erotic short stories by popular Canadian-Indian star Sunny Leone has generated the most buzz. The list of authors also includes Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy, historian William Dalrymple and American businessman Rajat Gupta.
Chiki Sarkar, Juggernaut co-founder and former Penguin Random House India editor-in-chief, spoke to Mashable about the new app.

"The first premise is, if we bring the world of books into the same space as your phone, will you be more likely to read. What if the price and length became much more accessible?" – Chiki Sarkar

The e-books have been adapted for reading on smartphones, with a focus on short reads and serialized stories. This means that most commissioned books are fewer than 25,000 words in length. The reading design is clean, classic and easy on the eye. There is an emphasis on genres that are the most popular and commercially-successful in India, such as romance, sex, crime, self-help and fantasy, non-fiction, and books for young adults and teens.

While Juggernaut's most obvious parallel is with Amazon, the founders say they're much closer in spirit to Netflix. Co-founder Durga Raghunath says they looked at Netflix's easy user experience, exciting mix of partners and original content, and the way they've matched their users to genres "in a genius way." Like Netflix, its app intuitively suggests books for readers based on their past preferences and will eventually have time-bound subscriptions.
Source- article.wn

Read More

Hannibal's route through Alps may have been found

The Carthaginian general Hannibal led his troops over the Alps to attack the Roman Republic from the north.

Story highlights

• Scientists examine ancient horse dung to determine Hannibal's route through the Alps
• Great Carthaginian general led thousands over mountains to attack Roman Republic from north

(CNN)Amazing what you can learn from horse manure.

In 218 B.C., the Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca led an army of more than 30,000 men, 15,000 horses and mules and -- famously -- about 40 elephants northeast through Europe and crossed the Alps to attack the Roman Republic from the north.

It's considered one of the great achievements in military history.

But what was Hannibal's precise route? For centuries, historians have debated the question.

Now, Chris Allen, a microbiologist at Queen's University Belfast, thinks a research group has solved the puzzle -- thanks to "modern science and a bit of ancient horse poo," he writes in a blog post.

Allen and a team led by Bill Mahaney of Toronto's York University believe that Hannibal and his troops crossed the Alps at Col de Traversette, on the border of France and Italy southeast of Grenoble.

The surrounding terrain is incredibly rugged; even 22 centuries later, Google Maps recommends that a traveler from France cross into Italy and double back to arrive at the pass, though some single-lane roads in France will get you close.

Allen and the team "unveiled a mass animal deposition of fecal materials -- probably from horses -- at a site near the Col de Traversette," Allen writes. Thanks to carbon isotope analysis, the group dated the dung to about 200 B.C. Descriptions of the area in historical writings also fit.

The UK's Guardian notes that discussion about the route dates to the ancient historians Livy and Polybius. The Col de Traversette was one of many paths considered, but its narrowness and height -- it's close to 10,000 feet above sea level -- made it daunting.

Allen believes that Hannibal may have taken the dangerous route because of his fear not of the Romans but of tribes that lived in the region.

He cautions that the group's research is not complete. Gene analysis needs to be expanded, he writes, and he's hoping researchers discover parasite eggs preserved in the mire.

"With more genetic information we can be more precise about the source and perhaps even the geographical origin of some of these ancient beasts by comparison with other microbiology research studies," he writes.

Hannibal's travels were not without fatalities. Accounts differ, but it's generally believed that he lost more than 10,000 men and possibly many more. Moreover, all but one of his elephants died.

However, his success led to his greatest victory, at Cannae in 216 B.C. The Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage raged on until 202 B.C., when Hannibal was defeated at the Battle of Zama.

The findings of the international team of researchers are published in the journal Archaeometry.

Source- edition.cnn.

Read More

History meets high fashion in Alexia Sinclair's stunning photographs

"When people first see my images they often think they're paintings," claims Australian photographer Alexia Sinclair, who in fact compiles her artworks from photographs embellished with hundreds or sometimes thousands of layers of details and effects added in post-production.

Oresegun Olumide: The Nigerian artist making a splash

Sinclair's work is heavily influenced by fine art, and in particular the 19th-century paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites, who she believes would probably have adopted the medium of photography to produce their realistic depictions of romantic and spiritual scenes had such a tool been available to them.

"A lot of my inspiration in the early days came from the Pre-Raphaelites and the way they would reimagine a narrative," Sinclair explains. "I guess I'm not interested in the raw grit of life that a camera can capture, it's more a sense of it being able to more accurately represent what I'm imagining."

Real and surreal

Her imaginings often take the form of historical or allegorical figures portrayed within scenes that employ symbolism and detail to tell a tale about their personality or the period in which they lived.

From Elizabeth I to Genghis Khan and Marie Antoinette, the people at the heart of these images are brought to life through images in which realism and surrealism converge.

In addition to the intricate process of building the complex scenes layer by layer, using sophisticated computer software, Sinclair also gets hands-on in the creation of the scenery, props, costumes and hairstyles.

Agrippina - The Regal Twelve by Alexia Sinclair

For the recent Rococo series, she even grew many of the flowers strewn around the models in her own garden, while a lion that appears in an image of the Roman Empress Julia Agrippina was photographed by Sinclair inside its cage at a local circus.

A fashion influence

As well as referencing classical paintings, Sinclair's work is strongly influenced by the expressive outfits produced by modern fashion designers.

During the completion of her Masters degree from 2004-2007, Sinclair looked to the work of designers like Alexander McQueen and Christian Lacroix, whose clothing evoked similar styles and periods to those she herself was interested in when developing her series The Regal Twelve.

Sinclair sees parallels between the dream worlds created by these designers and the theatrical way in which her artworks represent historical themes.

I continually look at fashion designers because they're also always reinterpreting the past.

Alexia Sinclair

"I'm not trying to recreate something like a painter of that period would have, it's about being inspired by and understanding the period and making it contemporary," she says. "I continually look at fashion designers because they're also always reinterpreting the past."

Hidden surprises

Alongside her personal work, Sinclair produces images for commercial clients such as Qantas, Queensland Ballet and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Although she claims to enjoy the variety and different pace of these projects, the jobs are predominantly a way to fund her laborious personal projects.

Having recently moved to London with her husband James and two-year-old daughter Heidi, Sinclair is currently focusing on settling into the rhythm of a new city before delving back into post-production on a new set of portraits shot last year for the Rococo series.

She'll also continue developing a series called The Golden Age that she was invited to shoot using photographic supplier Phase One's new 100-megapixel camera.

The Cabinets of Curiosity, 2013 -- A Frozen Tale by Alexia Sinclair

A selection of images from the series, A Frozen Tale, were recently exhibited at the inaugural Dubai Photo Exhibition, where their large dimensions (sometimes more than two meters in width), rich colors and striking subjects lent them a captivating presence.

I want them to zoom right in and experience the tiny little details that maybe only I know about.

Alexia Sinclair

Sinclair insists that such exhibitions offer a crucial opportunity to show the works as they were made to be seen: "That's the reason I shoot on a really big camera and I've always used medium format," she explains, "because I want people to see a big piece on a wall like you would experience a large painting. I want them to zoom right in and experience the tiny little details that maybe only I know about."

If you take another look at these fantastical photographs you may uncover some hidden surprises, but their painterly quality and most intimate secrets are only revealed when viewed up close and in person.

Source- edition.cnn

Read More

World Sleep Day: 10 tips for a good night's sleep

How important is a good night's sleep? 07:21

Vital Signs is a monthly program bringing viewers health stories from around the world.

(CNN)With over 100 types of sleep disorders to contend with, and around 40-50% of us experiencing insomnia at some point in our lives, it's vital to keep an eye on your sleep habits and seek help if you need it, according to Antonio Culebras, organizer of World Sleep Day 2016, a global initiative educating the public about sleep.

Many of us don't even know the basic facts about sleep. For instance, it should take you 10 to 15 minutes to fall asleep, with seven to nine hours being optimal for most of us, ideally at a temperature of around 60-67°F (16-19°C).

Tired all of the time? 07:58

Test your knowledge with our sleep quiz

To celebrate World Sleep Day we asked you to share your top tips for a good night's sleep on Twitter. You replied with loads of ideas, from drinking a soothing cup of camomile tea, to going to the gym, or having sex. Here are our favorite ones and what the experts have to say about them ...

1. Turn off your gadgets

This is a good strategy according to Russell Foster, director of Oxford University's SCNi (Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute), as blue light emitted from smartphone, TV and computer screens can suppress melatonin (a hormone helping you sleep) and increase your alertness.

@cnni When I really want a good night's sleep, so I stop checking my iPhone at least 30 minutes before going to bed! #goodnight

— Gabriela Cestafe (@gabrcestafe) March 12, 2016

"What it probably will do is increase levels of alertness and therefore delay sleep onset ... it's a good rule of thumb to reduce light exposure," says Foster, advising to switch off your screens half an hour before bed and relax in a softly lit room.

You can even buy special light bulbs mimicking sunlight -- "white and color ambience" bulbs can gradually wake you up and send you to sleep by slowly brightening, dimming and alternating the light's frequency.

2. Avoid a bedtime tipple

However enjoyable nightcaps may be, unfortunately they could lead to more shallow sleep.

@cnni #WorldSleepDay
✔ ✈ mode📱
✔ Full-body stretches
✔ Dim all💡1hr before
✔ Read a good 📖
✔ ✒ thoughts in my journal
✔ No late-night 🍻's
✔ 😴

— Johnny Dangerously (@Enjoneer01) March 13, 2016

"Alcohol will actually disrupt some of the important things going on in the brain such as memory consolidation," says Foster.

A shallower sleep could lead to a negative cycle where you're dependent on sedatives to sleep, and stimulants such as caffeine or sugary food to stay awake during the day.

3. Get up early

If you're having trouble sleeping, getting up earlier could be the solution for you. It may seem brutal, but it can get results.

"Expose yourself to morning light as much as you can. That has been shown to stabilize the sleep/wake timing of the human body clock," says Foster.

You should also avoid napping, especially if it's for over 20 minutes, as waking up from deep sleep can make you feel even more groggy. By getting into a routine of getting up early and experiencing daylight your body clock adjusts to sleep earlier in the evenings, ridding you of those restless nights.

4. Forget your worries

Setting aside a quiet time in the evening to meditate, relax or pray was a popular response on Twitter.

It's important to let go of the worries that build up during the day as they can effect both the initiation and maintenance of sleep.

"The worries of the day should not be brought to bed," says Culebras, "A typical example here in the United States are people who work on their personal income tax and returns in bed ... of course they never match, so that's a typical thing that leads to insomnia."

5. Work out

Whether you're swimming, running, or practicing yoga, regular exercise can make for a great night's sleep.

It's best to work out around six hours before you go to bed as your body stays overheated for several hours after vigorous exercise, causing wakefulness.

"Exercise stimulates the nervous system, and it can cause insomnia if you exercise too late in the day," advises Culebras.

6. Work out a little more ...

For those of you with something a little spicier on your minds, sex was suggested as a good way to get a good night's sleep -- although bear in mind this could also be considered a form of exercise.

It's also included in World Sleep Day's Ten Commandments of Sleep, which are guidelines for attaining the best sleep possible. As Culebras explained, "Bed is good for two things: number one, sleep; and number two, sex with your bed partner. It is a type of activity that is helpful and accepted."

7. Have a hot drink

A hot (non alcoholic) beverage before bed is a great way to relax and prepare for sleep says Foster, as long as it doesn't contain caffeine.

"Try and wind down at least 30 minutes before you desired bedtime ... and go into a relaxed state, whatever that is for you -- it may be a hot milky drink, it may be reading a few pages of a novel."

Avoid coffee, chocolate and fizzy drinks at least six hours before you go to bed. Non caffeinated herbal teas are fine -- but don't drink too much or you may be making a midnight trip to the bathroom.

8. Listen to music

From soft new age sounds to gospel rhythms and sleep related podcasts, many of you drift off listening to music.

Soothing sounds can be a good way to doze off, but anything louder might have the opposite effect says Culebras.

"What is not as acceptable is loud rock and roll type music because that leads to excitation."

9. Only use medication as a last resort

While you may get results in the short term, it's important to be aware of unwanted effects and see your doctor if you're having trouble sleeping.

 No caffeine after 12 noon, at least one hour of exercise. For the rare emergency situations, melatonin.

— Matt Ciamaricone

"Do not abuse medications to sleep ... if you need them for a short period always do it under the supervision of your physician, do not auto medicate yourself," advises Culebras.

"Eventually all of them have what we call rebound insomnia, which means once you stop them you are going to have two or three days with very little sleep at night."

Most of the time insomnia is triggered by psychological problems such as stress, anxiety or depression. It's important to see your physician and treat the underlying issues rather than use pills or supplements for immediate respite.

"We don't have this knee jerk reaction of giving a sleeping pill to everyone who suffers from insomnia," says Culebras. "We try to determine why, and then we try to remove what's causing or perpetuating insomnia."

Source--cnn.

Read More

Raid reunites trafficked tea plantation sisters

Delhi, India (CNN)Manju Gaur climbs the staircase with a fierce but steady determination. The building is decrepit, some walls crumbling, others caked in a thin, greasy film.

Just ahead of her is a row of police officers. Some from her native Assam state; others from this working class neighborhood in West Delhi.

A few steps behind her are a handful of social workers and coordinators from Bachpan Bachao Andolan, a local charity that has rescued thousands of children from human trafficking.

But Gaur -- a victim of trafficking herself -- is here on a much more personal mission: Finding her little sister.

Manju Gaur left her home village in rural tea-producing India to find her sister in Delhi.

Gaur was born in a rural village in Assam. Her parents worked on a tea plantation, one of hundreds scattered throughout the northern state, which produces more black tea than anywhere in the world.

Officially, tea workers in her village are supposed to earn around $2 U.S. a day, plus the equivalent of around $2 U.S more as in-kind services provided by their employer, like free housing, medical care, and primary education. With no advanced education and no hope of a better life, Gaur desperately wanted a way to help her parents make ends meet. Read the Tea Industry's full response to CNN's questions

She still remembers the day the agent came knocking on her door. She was just 14.

"One morning, he came to our house and said that he would put us to good work," she says.

The agent said he could arrange for Gaur to work for wealthy homeowners in Delhi where domestic servants are often employed to do everything from cooking to cleaning to looking after young children.

Tea workers earn less than $2 a day but few know how much it product sells for across the world.

Gaur says the agent lived in her own village and was well-known. She thought she could trust him.

"I was easily convinced" she says. "We're poor and live in a broken house without a rooftop. I thought I could earn and help my parents, and my sisters, so that we could study."

She was wrong.

In Delhi, she was kept in a house with other girls from Assam -- just like her -- all waiting to be sold as domestic labor. That's when she says the violence started.

"If the girls didn't listen," she explains, "they often hit them."

In one case, Gaur says the man who appeared to be the ringleader gave one of the girls a drink that rendered her nearly unconscious, and then took her to an empty room upstairs.

"She said that they got her too drunk and she couldn't do anything to stop him. I saw with my own eyes the number of girls they abused," Gaur says.

Manju guar shows off her home village in the tea picking Assam aera. 04:26

Throughout the ordeal, Gaur says she was too afraid to report anything to authorities. For one, she was new to the city and didn't know anybody. And more importantly, she didn't have anywhere else she could go.

Police in Assam say young girls from tea plantations are easy targets. They live in poverty, have very little education, and their parents are often saddled with debt.

Most are descendants of the original bonded laborers brought in from other parts of the country by British colonial rulers. They live in the same circumstances as they did more than a century ago, with the same impoverished lifestyles.

Police say young girls see placement agencies as a way to escape the cycle, lured by promises of good jobs and a steady income. Instead, they often find themselves sold as domestic labor or forced to work in the sex industry. Police say hundreds of girls in tea districts fall victim to traffickers every year. In the worst cases, fathers sell their own daughters as a way to escape poverty.

After she realized what was happening, Gaur says she pleaded with the men.

"I tried telling them that I wanted to go home," she says. "But [the agent] said that they had already spent a lot of money on me, and that my family had to repay all of it before they could let me go. And so, I had to stay."

Final processing at the tea plant before it is shipped to market where prices rise or fall drastically.

She wound up being sent to a middle-class home, working as a domestic servant. There was no abuse, she says, but there was also no money. Her employers told her they sent her monthly salary directly to the placement agency. She never saw a single rupee. She says she worked around the clock, but never entertained the thought of leaving.

"I was new there and didn't know anyone," she says. "Who could I have possibly escaped with?"

After a year, Gaur says she mustered up the courage to explain her situation to a friendly neighbor, who gave her enough money for a train ticket back home. She didn't tell the homeowners she was going. She just took her things and left.

Gaur says life in her village in Assam is still better than working for the trafficker, but now she has another problem. Her sister, Aarti, has been lured away by traffickers. The last time Gaur spoke with her on the phone, she was in tears.

For help, Manju Gaur has turned to Bachao Bachpan Andolan, or the BBA. Its founder, Kailash Satyarthi, is a Nobel Peace Prize winner for his work in combating child labor and trafficking.

The BBA has arranged to bring Gaur to Delhi, where they've traced the trafficker's location to a non-descript apartment complex.

As police barge through the doors, calling out the trafficker by name, they have no idea what they'll find.

Gaur is led by police, room by room, asking if she recognizes anyone. She doesn't, and when they turn the corner to the next room, they find something that unfortunately is commonplace in raids like this.

India's tea producing heart is beautiful but poverty can drive tea workers into the arms of traffickers.

Three young girls, all huddled in a corner. They look frightened and shell-shocked. They tell police they're all from Assam, and that they were lured to Delhi by a man who said he worked for a placement agency. They say they were told he received 15,000 rupees -- just over $200 -- for each girl he brought in. But they haven't seen any money.

"He told us he gave my mummy the money," the youngest girl says.

Upstairs, police finally nab the trafficker, a man with a slight pot belly. When they bring him down, he appears unremorseful, insisting the girls came to Delhi of their own free will

Outside the police station, CNN Freedom Project confronts the trafficker with accusations that he was exploiting the girls

"They were not bought" he says. "We take a 35,000 (rupees) service charge for an 11-month agreement. Those who bring them from the village get 25,000 for an 11-month base.

"Some girls' husbands bring them. Some (girls') fathers bring them. They also get a commission.

Later, inside the police station, they prepare the formal charges, including bonded labor and cruelty to a child. While the suspect awaits, he cuts a deal with the police. He agrees to tell them where Manju's sister, Aarti, is working.

Two hours later, a smiling Aarti appears, accompanied by police. Gaur runs into her arms, with the kind of hug that only a loving sister can give.

Vijay Gaur, Manju and Aarti's father, says the offers from human traffickers can seem tempting.

She knows there's a long road ahead. Aarti will be questioned by police and social workers, sent off to a nearby clinic for a mandatory health inspection, then spend weeks rehabilitating at one of the BBA's shelters for rescued children.

But still, for Manju, it's still a victory. Aarti is free. They're together again. For now, that's all that matters.

Source- edition.cnn.

Read More

Australian leader says he plans to call rare early election

SYDNEY –  Australia's prime minister says he intends to call a rare early election, with the nation likely to head to the polls in July amid waning popularity for the ruling conservative party.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's comments on Tuesday all but confirmed that Australia was on track to hold its first early election since 1987. The early election is called a "double dissolution" because both the House of Representatives and the Senate are dissolved.
Turnbull has until May 11 to officially announce an early election. He had previously said he would call for a double dissolution if the Senate failed to pass government legislation that would create a construction industry watchdog. The Senate rejected the bill for the second time on Monday, providing the trigger Turnbull had been waiting for.
Source- foxnews

Read More

Turkey: 38 arrested for 'framing' Fenerbahce with scandal

ANKARA, Turkey –  Turkey's state-run news agency says authorities have detained 38 people suspected of "framing" soccer team Fenerbahce's players and directors in a match-fixing investigation in 2011, as the government presses ahead with a crackdown on supporters of a U.S.-based Muslim cleric.
Anadolu Agency says the suspects, including former police chiefs, lawyers and at least one journalist, were detained Tuesday in raids in 28 cities.
Several Fenerbahce officials were arrested and tried as part of the match-fixing scandal but were acquitted in a re-trial last year. The club has long maintained that the case was orchestrated by prosecutors and police affiliated with Fethullah Gulen's moderate Islamic movement.
The government accuses Gulen of attempting to overthrow it and has been clamping down on his supporters and seizing newspapers and businesses associated with him.
Source- foxnews

Read More

Morocco: one of the world's oldest libraries is renovated

• 

  This April 14, 2016, photo shows the reading room of the Al-Qarawiyyin mosque in Fez, Morocco. Founded 12 centuries ago by a pioneering woman, the al-Qarawiyyin library is wrapping up a careful restoration project and King Mohamed VI is expected to preside over the reopening. But authorities haven't decided whether the public will be able to view its treasured Islamic manuscripts, or whether that privilege will be limited to university researchers. (AP Photo/Samia Errazouki) (The Associated Press)

Next

FEZ, Morocco –  The settling dust from renovations and the banging of tools aren't ideal sights and sounds for a library — but this is no ordinary library.
Founded 12 centuries ago by a pioneering woman and nestled in the old medina of Fez, Morocco's University of al-Qarawiyyin library is one of the world's oldest libraries, home to unique Islamic manuscripts treasured by historians. Yet it's been largely hidden from the public. The architect leading its restoration, Fez native Aziza Chaouni, didn't even know it existed until she was asked to work on it.
King Mohammed VI is expected to inaugurate its reopening soon. Chaouni is hoping it will mark an ideological change, too, and open to the public for the first time in its long history. Until now, the privilege of using the library has been limited to scholars who seek formal permission, and authorities haven't decided yet whether to change that.
From calligraphic designs on the walls to ceramic patterns on the floors and wooden carvings on the ceilings, the fingerprint of almost every ruling dynasty since the 9th century can be seen in the architecture.
A devout and wealthy Muslim woman from the Tunisian town of Kairaouan, Fatima al-Fihri, provided the endowment for building al-Qarawiyyin in the 9th century. Originally a mosque, it expanded in the 10th century to become a university, Abdelmajid El-Marzi, imam and administrator of the mosque, told The Associated Press.
The library houses a collection of manuscripts written by renowned thinkers from the region, including Ibn Khaldun's "Muqadimmah." The 14th-century historical work spent six months on loan to the Louvre Museum in Paris during the renovations, library curator Abdelfattah Bougchouf said.
Other texts include a 9th-century Quran written in Kufic calligraphy, and a manuscript on the Maliki school of Islamic jurisprudence by Ibn Rochd, also known as Averroes.
The manuscripts are now kept in a secure room, with strict temperature and humidity control. They weren't always kept like this, however.
"The original manuscript room door had four locks," Bougchouf told The AP. "Each of those keys was kept with four different people. In order to open the manuscript room, all four of those people had to physically be there to open the door."
Now, he chuckled, "all of that has been replaced with a four-digit security code."
A previous renovation and expansion effort in 1940 opened up the library to foreigners and non-Muslims by creating a separate entrance. Before that, the only way to access the library was via the mosque. Non-Muslims aren't allowed to enter the Qarawiyyin mosque to this day.
"It was a sign of tolerance," Abdelfattah said.
Since ascending to the throne in 1999, King Mohammed VI has called for restorations at Qarawiyyin.
Architect Chaouni said she was pleasantly surprised when the Culture Ministry approached her in 2012 to work on the project — especially in a field dominated by men.
"I knew about the mosque, but never even knew there was a library there," she said, despite growing up in the city.
She specializes in restoring old buildings in a sustainable fashion, and is also trained as an engineer, with degrees from Harvard and Columbia universities.
The restoration is fixing a plumbing issue that increasingly threatened to drench the rare manuscripts in sewage water.
Chaouni is also lobbying for opening a public exhibition room for the first time - calling it "the biggest challenge of my soul" during the restoration project.
The Culture Ministry accepted the idea but bureaucratic control over the site shifted to the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs. Chaouni worries that this shift will squash her efforts. Authorities are also concerned about the cost of keeping the previous manuscripts secure.
Another way to improve access to the manuscripts is to digitize them, which the library has been doing, and about 20 percent are now available in electronic form.

Advertisement

Source-.foxnews

Read More

Journalist faces charges in Russia-occupied Crimea

MOSCOW –  The prosecutor general for Russian-occupied Crimea says security services are pressing charges against a Crimean journalist for undermining Russia's territorial integrity.
Shortly after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014, the parliament passed a law making it a criminal offense to question Russia's territorial integrity, which also means opposing the occupation.
The prosecutor general's office said in a statement on Tuesday that the Federal Security Service is pressing charges against an unidentified journalist for reports where he or she "called for the isolation of the peninsula." This could be the first criminal case for denouncing the occupation.
Independent media have been virtually banned in Crimea since the annexation and the few reporters who work for independent media outlets use pen names to hide their identities.

Advertisement

Source--foxnews

Read More

The Latest: More rescuers arrive in earthquake-hit Ecuador

• 

  An air force soldier stands guard trying to prevent looting in the earthquake ravaged business district of Manta, Ecuador, Monday, April 18, 2016. A Saturday night quake left a trail of ruin along Ecuador’s Pacific Ocean coast. Hundreds died and thousands are homeless. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) (The Associated Press)

Next

MANTA, Ecuador –  The Latest on the deadly earthquake in Ecuador (all times local):
3:30 a.m.
Ecuador's foreign minister says more international rescuers are heading to the country's disaster zone of flattened buildings to help in the race against time to find survivors from a powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake
Guillaume Long tweeted that 654 search experts from other nations were on the ground late Monday and that more were expected to arrive Tuesday — bringing to 13 the nationalities involved in the rescue.
The government reported Monday that the official death count had increased to 413 and was expected to rise further in the days ahead. Among the dead were an American and two Canadians.
Complicating rescue efforts is the lack of electricity in many areas, meaning noisy power generators must be used, making it harder to hear people who might be trapped beneath rubble.
More than 2,000 people were injured.
Spain's Red Cross said as many as 5,000 people might need temporary housing because of destroyed homes and 100,000 need some sort of aid.
Source-foxnews

Read More