India's coast guard has made a record-breaking 1.5 tonne heroin bust worth $500 million

Ahmedabad (India) (AFP) - India's coast guard announced Sunday it had seized 1.5 tonnes of heroin worth almost $550 million from a merchant ship in what maritime authorities are calling their largest-ever drug bust.

The ship was intercepted Saturday off the western state of Gujarat, the coast guard said in a statement.

"This is the largest single haul of narcotics seized till date," it said, adding the drugs were worth an estimated $545 million.

An undisclosed number of suspects were detained for questioning by coast guard officials, police and intelligence agencies.

Anyone caught smuggling or possessing narcotics is remanded in custody without bail under Indian law.

Daughter Of Former Jigawa State Governor, Hadiza Lamido Dies At 38

Hajia Hadiza Sule Lamido, the second daughter of immediate past Governor of Jigawa State, Dr. Sule Lamido, has died. She died in an Indian hospital on Saturday morning, July 29th, after a brief illness.

Born in 1979, late Hadiza is survived by husband and three children. A family source said the funeral arrangements will be announced as soon as her remains arrives Nigeria. May her soul rest in peace, amen.

War Against Drugs: Police Gun Down Philippine Mayor, His Wife And 12 Others In Drug Raid

Authorities in Philippine have fatally shot a city mayor, who was among politicians linked to illegal drugs, and 13 others in a gunbattle that erupted Sunday morning when they reportedly resisted arrest, officials said.

Chief Supt. Timoteo Pacleb, the Northern Mindanao police chief, said elements of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) were serving six search warrants against properties of the Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog Sr, his daughter, who is the vice mayor, and four other officials of Ozamiz city for drugs and firearms when they were met with violent resistance at about 2:30 a.m in San Roque Lawis in Ozamiz City.

Okra can lead to infertility in men – Research

Okra, though very nutritious, can lead to infertility in men of reproductive age, Dr Ochuko Erikainure, a Senior Research Officer at the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi, Lagos, has warned.
Erukainure, also a nutritionist and biochemist, gave the warning on Saturday in an interview in Lagos.
According to him, too much consumption of okra, especially its seeds can lead to infertility in men of reproductive age. An online publication, www.medicalhealthguide.com says Okra, known in many English-speaking countries as lady’s fingers, is a flowering plant in the mallow family. “Okra is an annual herb that is widely cultivated for its edible green seed pods in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate climates. “Okra is a hardy plant that can grow even with less water and in hot conditions.’’ Erukainure said that okra has a unique substance called “GOSSYPOL”. “Gossypol inhibits sperm production and motility by blocking several enzymes that are highly important in energy metabolism in sperm and sperm producing cells.

Trump to sign bill imposing fresh sanctions on Russia

US President Donald Trump will sign into law a bill imposing new sanctions on Russia, the White House says.

Both houses of Congress backed the bill, which also includes measures against Iran and North Korea, but it was thought Mr Trump might veto it.

Russia has already retaliated by ordering cuts to US diplomatic staff and barring the use of some properties.

The sanctions are over Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and alleged interference in the US election.

Iran and North Korea are being penalised over their ballistic missile tests.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Mr Trump would sign the bill, but only after having negotiated "critical elements" of it. She did not specify what those elements were.

"He has now reviewed the final version and, based on its responsiveness to his negotiations, approves the bill and intends to sign it," she said.

Chinese woman undergoes plastic surgery to evade £2.8 million debt

A 59-year old woman from the central Chinese city of Wuhan transformed her appearance through plastic surgery in order to avoid 25 million yuan (£2.8 million) of personal debts, state news agency Xinhua said.

In a case highlighting the challenges facing China as it tries to establish a "credit society", police officers were reported to be "astonished" after apprehending the woman, who fled to the southeastern Chinese city of Shenzhen after a court in Wuhan ordered her to pay off her debt.

China and Russia have 'responsibility' for North Korea nuclear threat, says US

The United States has accused China and Russia of bearing “unique and special responsibility” for North Korea’s “belligerent” pursuit of nuclear weapons, after Pyongyang tested its latest ballistic missile.

North Korea conducted its second intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test late on Friday in what it called a warning to the “beast-like US imperialists”. It came less than a month after its first such experiment, on 4 July.

“If the Yankees brandish the nuclear stick on this land again despite our repeated warnings, we will clearly teach them manners,” KCNA warned.The test-launch sent “a grave warning to the US” that it “would not go scot-free if it dares provoke” the North, Pyongyang’s official news agency, KCNA, said in a statement.

Baby dies after days 'strapped in a car seat without food'

A young mother has been arrested after her son died after allegedly spending days strapped to a car seat in her home without food.

Lovily K Johnson has been charged with felony murder and first-degree child abusefollowing the death of her son Noah Edward Johnson at their apartment in Wyoming, Michigan.

Police said Johnson had arrived at the local hospital last week with Noah who was already “clearly deceased and had been for some time”.

In a statement the force said: “Johnson . . . admitted that Noah was under her care and no one else’s care for the last four days.

“Johnson admitted to being at home multiple times a day during that time frame.

“She knowingly and intentionally deprived him of the necessities of life by not feeding him since Monday evening.

“During this time, Noah remained buckled in a car seat on the upper floor of Johnson’s apartment with no air conditioning.’’

Did you know that it is illegal in Equatorial Guinea to name your newborn 'Monica'?

Laws exist in order to regulate society; to protect people; to enforce rights and to solve conflicts.

However, some countries make laws that are deemed outlandish and whose intentions remain unclear. In some cases, these laws are dictatorial and go to show just how much control governments have in such countries.

From banning imports of fruits, mineral juice to not being allowed to call your new born 'Monica', here are some of the strangest laws in African countries:

• Madagascar

It is against the law for pregnant women to wear hats in Madagascar.

• Swaziland

A woman that is seen wearing pants/trouser in Swaziland, can be punished by having the pants ripped off of her, and torn into pieces by soldiers. In fact, a Swazi woman was banned from being nominated to stand as a member of parliament because she was wearing trousers at the nomination centre.

Brand New Ferrari Burns To A Crisp Just One Hour After It Was Bought (Photos)

According to a Facebook post by South Yorkshire Police, a driver watched his newly-bought Ferrari 430 Scuderia go up in smoke after he crashed the supercar just an hour after collecting it.  

The luxury motor veered off a highway and "burst into flames". Photos of the incident's aftermath show the burned-out remains of the car smoldering on grass.

South Yorkshire Police say they were surprised to see that the driver had escaped the blaze mostly unharmed, adding that he was "very lucky" to walk away from the crash with only "minor cuts and bruises"

Justin Bieber Officially Banned From Performing in China for 'Bad Behavior' Until He Matures

Justin Bieber has been banned from performing in China over "bad behavior."
The Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture published a statement on its website Tuesday explaining why the 23-year-old pop star would not be allowed to perform in the country as part of the Asia leg of his Purpose world tour, according to the New York Times.
"Justin Bieber is a gifted singer, but he is also a controversial young foreign singer,” the bureau reportedly wrote. "In order to maintain order in the Chinese market and purify the Chinese performance environment, it is not suitable to bring in badly behaved entertainers."
However, the bureau also expressed hope that the ban can one day be lifted: "We hope that as Justin Bieber matures, he can continue to improve his own words and actions, and truly become a singer beloved by the public."The statement didn't cite any specific instances of "bad behavior," but Bieber was arrested in 2014 for driving under the influence and drag racing.

Cop Suspended After Body Camera Video Shows Him Planting Drugs

A Baltimore officer's police powers have been suspended after defense attorneys released a body camera video that they said shows an officer planting drugs.
Two other officers were put on non-public-contact administrative duty, Police Commissioner Kevin Davis said at a news conference Wednesday.
The video released Tuesday by the public defender's office was taken during a drug arrest in January. It shows an officer placing a can in a trash-filled lot as two other officers look on, then activating the camera and returning to pick up the can and pulling out a plastic bag of white capsules.
The cameras save 30 seconds of video before they're activated.
The video was one of four body camera videos of the incident. Davis showed parts of the videos at the news conference.

Thai court charges disgraced 'jet-set monk' with rape

Disgraced ex-Buddhist monk Wiraphon Sukphon

A Thai court charged a disgraced former monk Thursday with the rape of an underage girl, fraud and money laundering, after he was extradited from the United States.

Thailand is an overwhelmingly Buddhist nation with around 300,000 men in orange robes, but the clergy are beset by high-profile scandals.

Wiraphon Sukphon, 37, was arrested on arrival at Bangkok's main airport late Wednesday from the US where he established an unofficial Buddhist teaching centre after fleeing Thailand in 2013.

He faces a total of five charges, including raping a minor under 15 years old, which carries a jail term of up to 20 years.

"The Criminal Court has accepted to hear the case against Wiraphon," Worranan Srilum, a spokesman for the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) police unit, told us

Two Dead And Dozens Hurt As Quake Hits Greek And Turkish Resorts, Triggering Tsunami

Powerful magnitude-6.7 quake has struck off the south west coast of Bodrum, Turkey, triggering a tsunami and leaving two people dead and hundreds more injured.

The earthquake struck overnight. The tsunami that resulted thereof hit tourist resorts in the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas, damaging buildings across the region, carrying away cars and depositing boats in town streets. Tourists fled their hotels in terror and some even jumped from balconies as they ran for their lives.

Two male tourists - a 22-year-old from Sweden and a 39-year-old from Turkey - died on the Greek island of Kos after being crushed under a collapsed ceiling at the packed White Corner Club bar. Several others are injured with one tourist from Sweden losing both of his legs. A state of emergency had been declared on the island of Kos. 

Rescuers have been sifting through rubble searching for trapped survivors. In Turkey, at least 70 people were admitted to hospitals in Bodrum. Video taken when the quake hit showed staff and patients at Bodrum State Hospital cowering for cover. The disaster caused a large electrical fire to break out in the city after a power pylon came crashing to the ground

Many tourists were forced to sleep outside, along the roads, or beaches after they were warned not to re-enter hotels damaged by the quake. Kristian Stevens, 48, from Nelson in Lancashire said he had just gone to bed when, at around 1.30am local time, he felt the building he was in "shake like a jelly".

He said: "It was quite surreal as I had just laid down in bed and the whole building shook. The whole building shook like a jelly. Many of the locals rushed out into the streets still in underwear. Some have been seen with blankets and pillows not sure if it is safe to return home."

Sophie Wild said she ran from her third floor accommodation when she woke to a loud banging noise.

She said: "We were asleep and were awoken by what sounded like banging on our door, it got louder and louder and the building started shaking. We jumped up ran to the balcony to see what it was (my first thought when we heard the banging was that we were being attacked). When we realised it was an earthquake, we got an immediate sense to get out, we thought the building was going to crumble around us. We ran down our stairs (from the third floor". People were running out of rooms, banging on people's doors to make sure they were out. Everyone just ran outside and waited for a couple of hours - it's only now that people are starting to go back to their rooms. There are a few cracks in the walls but otherwise staff says it's safe."

The 50 most dominant athletes alive

How do you define dominance? How do you compare the achievements of athletes all around the world, in different leagues, in different sports?

There's no exact formula, but we're once again giving it a shot by ranking the most dominant athletes in the world.

Every aspect counts — athletes who crush opponents with power, speed, or technique, athletes who win individual accolades, athletes who reach the pinnacles of their sports, both individually or with a team.

Our list skews toward recent performance: while longevity and history counts, we favored athletes who have had successful years or stretches since our last edition in 2016. 

The result is a wide variety of competitors in a wide variety of sports — football, basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer, golf, tennis, swimming, gymnastics, track and field, ice skating, and more.

Take a look below.