Eight men have been arrested over one of Sydney’s gangland executions, more than a year after Mehmet Yilmaz was gunned down in the street.
The 29-year-old was shot at point-blank range in front of his fiancee while getting into his car in a St Marys street in the city’s west on September 9 last year.
Police said Yilmaz was not formally aligned with any gang although he was closely linked with one…
MORE: Eight arrested over NSW gangland shooting | Perth Now
Malala Yousafzai – the Pakistani teenager who was shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls’ rights to education – has won a place to study at Oxford University.
People across Britain have celebrated the news, praising the 19-year-old human rights campaigner’s “strength, passion and determination” in earning a chance to do a degree at one of the world’s most prestigious universities.
“A few years ago, Malala was shot for fighting for women’s right to education,” campaigner Luke Waltham wrote on Twitter.
“Today she got accepted into Oxford University. So much respect.”
Yousafzai confirmed on social media this morning that she will be studying philosophy, politics and economics at Oxford from October.
“So excited to go to Oxford!” she wrote. “Well done to all A-level students – the hardest year.
“Best wishes for life ahead!”
Source: Malala, Who Was Almost Killed Trying To Get An Education, Is Off To Oxford
Moore made the announcement at the Wallabies training camp in Newcastle on Thursday morning, deciding to put an end date on his Test career and 12 years as Australia’s premier hooker since debuting in 2005 against Samoa.
Source: Wallabies captain Stephen Moore to retire from Test rugby at end of year
HEAVILY armed Tactical Response Group officers rushed to the scene of a comparatively minor armed hold-up in Perth’s northern suburbs overnight.
Police were called to the armed robbery at a McDonald’s in Duncraig at 8pm.
At least 30 officers quickly attended the scene, including members of the elite TRG in their protective gear. Fifteen police cars lined nearby streets as officers and the dog squad searched for the robber.
It is not known if the robber has been caught.
Seven News has asked if the robber was suspected to be Shawn Adam Newton, the man police wish to speak to about the death of Scarborough woman whose body was found in the boot of a car on the Cedric Street Mitchell Freeway on-ramp last Saturday.
Source: Armed TRG officers called to robbery at Duncraig McDonald’s | Perth Now
The first thing a pilot learns in flying multi-engine aircraft is; IF AN ENGINE FAILS, SHUT IT DOWN QUICKLY. Then land safely but ‘quickly’.
THIS WOULD STOP ME FLYING ON AIR ASIA, Unless there was a GOOD Reason for not shutting down the failed engine.
THE AirAsia X plane that suffered an engine failure on Sunday could have lost the entire engine and ripped out fuel lines, a former Airbus A330 check and training captain has warned.
The warning by the 40-year flying veteran came as the Australian Transport Safety Bureau yesterday classified the failure as a serious incident and AirAsia X defended its safety reputation.
“When an engine has severe vibrations it must be shut down immediately as the damage that can be inflicted is immense,” the former training captain said.
“The engine can detach from the wing, which could be catastrophic. Fuel lines (could be) ripped open and electrics severely damaged or degraded.
“It must be treated like an engine fire. And if after shutdown, it is free-wheeling with a missing blade and the severe vibrations continue you must divert to the nearest suitable airport,” the veteran pilot said.
AirAsia X has released few details of the incident which is understood to involve the failure of a fan blade in the No.1 engine.
It destroyed hydraulic components and an oil pump before being ingested by the engine.
The ATSB is liaising with engine maker Rolls-Royce about the failure and said it expected to produce a report in “a couple of months” after interviewing personnel and gathering additional information.
“The flight crew detected moderate airframe vibrations and the No.1 engine failed,” it said in a statement.
“The aircraft was unable to maintain altitude and the crew conducted a return to Perth.”
Why the plane continued shaking and why it did not divert to nearby Learmonth when the incident occurred near Carnarvon at 8.16am on Sunday will be investigated.
An engine expert said it was possible an out-of-balance fan could windmill after the engine was shut down and still cause a low-frequency vibration.
He said it was “a pretty massive failure” and there would be only two reasons for it: a manufacturing flaw or poor quality inspection during maintenance.
AirAsia X defended its safety record in a statement and said it was co-operating with Rolls-Royce and safety authorities. It pointed out Malaysia-based AirAsia X had undergone global safety audits by the International Air Transport Association in 2015 and 2016.
“We would like to stress Air-Asia Group has always strictly followed the maintenance program prescribed by our manufacturers,’’ it said.
“We have also complied with all requirements of every country where the airline operates, including Australia.”
A source said the pilots were alerted to the problem by a monitoring system and then heard and felt the vibration from the stricken engine. They shut the engine down, did a 180-degree turn and returned to Perth.
Australia’s crash watchdog will investigate why the A330 pilots did not divert to Learmonth, 25 minutes away, rather than fly the 90 minutes back to Perth.
The loss of one engine on a twin-engine aircraft requires the crew to divert to the nearest suitable airport but the term “suitable” leaves room for pilot discretion on safety grounds.
Source: AirAsia engine failure on Perth-Malaysia flight could have catastrophic | Perth Now
“They burn extremely quickly,” he told the Daily Mirror.
Devices with plastic rather than metal backs are especially dangerous as they are incapable of containing fire.
On top of the dangerous plastic backing, the machines are often packed with highly flammable insulation, which allows the devices to burst into flames so quickly entire kitchens can be engulfed in seconds.
The fire chief explained how the fridge-freezers start fires: “Once a spark ignites in the compressor which powers the freezer, it can be as little as 90 second before the whole kitchen is engulfed in flames.
“The foam used to insulate them is highly flammable and is the equivalent to having four gallons of petrol around your freezer.
“Once ignited it produces an intense heat three times that of a large bonfire.”
He went on to describe the fires sparked by plastic-backed fridge-freezers as “some of the worst home fires we have had”.
It comes as investigators also said that cladding and insulation that was attached to the outside of the building has failed all safety tests and cops were now looking at possible manslaughter charges…
In the wake of what police are calling two terrorist incidents in London late Saturday night, U.S. President Donald Trump took to Twitter to urge support for his executive order blocking travel to the United States from six Muslim-majority countries.
“We need to be smart, vigilant and tough,” Trump tweeted. “We need the courts to give us back our rights. We need the Travel Ban as an extra level of safety!”
MORE: President Trump pushes travel ban after London ‘terrorist incidents’ – ABC News
Last night terrified witnesses to the Manchester Arena ‘terrorist attack’ spoke of their horror at the atrocity that unfolded before them.
Horrifying footage showed petrified children leaping over fences as they desperately tried to escape the 21,000-seat venue.
Here are some of the eyewitness accounts of those caught up in the traumatic attack.
Abby Mullen from Airdire, North Lanakshire who was at the event said: ‘As we were leaving a bomb or explosion went off centimetres in front of me. People’s skin and faeces where everywhere including in my hair and on my bag.
‘I’m still finding bits of God knows what in my hair. You never ever expect these things to happen to you but this proves it can happen to anybody.
This was the scene inside the Manchester Arena tonight after the suspected terror attack at the teen concert
‘That sound, the blood and those who were running around clueless with body parts and bits of skin missing will not be leaving my mind any time soon or the minds of those involved.’
Jonathan Yates, 24, from the Wirral, who attended the gig, told MailOnline: ‘The concert had finished and the lights came on almost instantly.
There was a bang, a weird bang. There were lots of balloons but I thought to myself that can’t be a balloon, that’s not normal.
‘We were sat on the floor level and it came from the higher seats, people were running and screaming.
‘Everyone stopped and I turned to my friend and said ‘we need to run’. Everyone was running and screaming and then when we got out it felt a bit more OK.
‘I heard five or six bangs that sounded like gunshots. When we got outside people were outside, crying and on their phones.
‘You don’t think it’s something that’s going to happen when you go…it was such a nice, fun concert.’
Nick Schurok, 28, from Manchester, told MailOnline: ‘Ariana Grande had just finished the concert and the lights came on. Everyone started leaving. I was on the floor and at the back of the arena people started exiting through the tunnels.
‘There was a bang in the left tunnel and everyone went to the middle tunnel. Then about two minutes later, there was another bang. The bang was so loud and crowds of people were running. There were lots of children and families there.’
Another witness Jenny Brewster told MailOnline: ‘We were exiting the building when it happened. We’d headed towards the main doors as Ariana was performing the last song because we wanted to beat the crowds, but – as we made our way there – a wall of security men blocked it and told us to go the other way.
‘Seconds later they shouted ‘RUN!’ and the explosion happened right behind them. Hundreds of people were running and screaming. Those men saved our lives.’
Catherine Macfarlane told Reuters: ‘We were making our way out and when we were right by the door there was a massive explosion and everybody was screaming.
‘It was a huge explosion – you could feel it in your chest. It was chaotic. Everybody was running and screaming and just trying to get out of the area.’
Erin McDougle, 20, from Newcastle said: ‘There was a loud bang at the end of the concert. The lights were already on so we knew it wasn’t part of the show.
‘At first we thought it was a bomb. There was a lot of smoke. People started running out. When we got outside the arena there were dozens of police vans and quite a few ambulances.’
A group of young men from Sheffield said they had seen at least five people covered in blood and others being carried out by bouncers.
‘Ariana Grande had just gone behind the curtain and the lights came up when there was this massive bang and a big cloud of smoke. I saw five people with blood all down them,’ said one.
Oliver Jones, 17, was at the concert with his 19-year-old sister.
He said: ‘I was in the toilet and heard a loud bang just after the concert had finished and people had started to leave.
‘The bang echoed around the foyer of the arena and people started to run.
‘I seen people running and screaming towards one direction and then many were turning around to run back the other way.
‘Security was running out as well as the fans and concert goers. Reports of blood and people injured.’
He added: ‘In so much shock and panic. You see this on the news all the time and never expect it to happen to you. I just had to run and make sure me and my sister were safe.’
Majid Khan, 22, said: ‘I and my sister, along with a lot of others were seeing Ariana Grande perform at Manchester Arena, and we were all exiting the venue when around 10.40-10.45pm-ish a huge bomb-like bang went off that hugely panicked everyone and we were all trying to flee the arena.
‘It was one bang and essentially everyone from the other side of the arena where the bang was heard from suddenly came running towards us as they were trying to exit Trinity Way and that was blocked so everyone was just running to any exit they could find as quickly as they could.
‘Everyone was in a huge state of panic, calling each other as some had gone to the toilet whilst this had gone off, so it was just extremely disturbing for everyone there.’
Another concert-goer Laura, 22, told MailOnline: ‘There was a woman leaning against a car in the car park with her head down, covered in blood and a little girl being lifted away by paramedics. There were quite a few people injured in the car park.’
Her friend, Livvy, 22, added: ‘we saw the explosion happen. Bits of it hit me. My first thought was, ‘that’s a bomb’.
‘It was just when we were leaving. We saw a flash of light and smoke.
‘We’re really shaken up. If we had been there moment earlier we would have been caught up in it rather than seeing it.’
Source: Witnesses tell of horror at Manchester ‘terrorist attack’ | Daily Mail Online
Mr Galati warned that more farmers were likely to leave the sector because of the German discount retailer, echoing similar claims from food entrepreneur Dick Smith.
Mr Galati, who owns the Spudshed chain of supermarkets, accused the retail giant of taking a loss on some fruit and vegetables to attract customers to their broader range of home-brand products.
He claimed Aldi regularly sold bananas for $1.70 a kilo, and as low as 99¢ a kilo, even though it cost at least $2 a kilo to produce. Mr Galati said Aldi’s avocados, which often sold for $1 each, were also well below the cost of production and claimed Coles and Woolworths were forced to match the prices to compete for customers.
Mr Galati said he leased his 60ha banana farm in Kununurra to another farmer six weeks ago, after realising he could not compete with Aldi’s aggressive price cuts.
It ended a dream he had held for several years to kickstart a banana industry in Kununurra.
Source: Banana dream over for WA ‘Spud King’ Tony Galati after Aldi price cuts | Perth Now
