Daily Archives: November 4, 2015

Η Ρεάλ Μαδρίτης και η Μάντσεστερ Σίτι έγιναν οι πρώτες ομάδες που εξασφάλισαν την πρόκριση στους «16» του Champions League.

Jerusalem (AFP) – Israel’s antiquities body claimed Tuesday to have solved “one of Jerusalem’s greatest archaeological mysteries” by unearthing an ancient Greek citadel — the Acra — buried under a car park.

Archaeologists have puzzled for more than a century over the exact location of the Acra, built by Seleucid Emperor Antiochus IV Epiphanes (215-164 BC) to control Jerusalem and the ancient Jewish temple there.

The temple was razed by the Romans in 70 AD, and two Muslim holy sites — the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa mosque were built there centuries later.

The site, known to Muslims as The Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, is sacred to both peoples and today the site of frequent disputes and clashes.

“Researchers with the Israel Antiquities Authority believe they have found the remains of the stronghold… in the Givati parking lot excavations at the City of David,” the authority said.

That was a reference to an archaeological site situated in the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan in occupied east Jerusalem.

“The Givati excavation continues to uncover numerous artifacts from more than 10 different ancient cultures from Jerusalem’s history,” the authority said.

The citadel is mentioned in both the Jewish Book of Maccabees and in the writings of historian Flavius Josephus in the 1st Century AD but its exact location was unknown until now.

Excavators uncovered a section of the citadel’s wall as well as the base of a tower of “impressive dimensions,” the authority said.

“This sensational discovery allows us for the first time to reconstruct the layout of the settlement in the city” as it was more than 2,000 years ago, archaeologists said.

Lead sling slots, bronze arrowheads and stone projectiles were also discovered at the site.

The fortification’s defences withstood all attempts at conquering it until Jewish leader Simon Maccabees took it in 141 BC after the Greek garrison starved during a lengthy siege.

Antiochus is remembered in the Jewish tradition as the villain of the Hanukkah holiday who sought to ban Jewish religious rites, sparking the Maccabean revolt.

source:yahoo.com

Hungry crocodiles in the pool of a private farm in the San Manuel municipality, Cortes department, n …

More than 10,000 crocodiles are starving to death on a farm in Honduras after the wealthy family owning them had their assets frozen because of US accusations they laundered money for drug traffickers.

AFP journalists visiting the 30-hectare (70-acre) property called Cocodrilos Continental, in San Manuel near the city of San Pedro Sula, also saw seven scrawny lions kept in cages.

“The crocodiles and lions are dying of hunger, and we are too because we haven’t been paid the last two weeks,” said one worker at the entrance to the farm who asked to go by the pseudonym Jose.

“Forty animals have already died. They were taken away in boxes by trucks to be buried,” he said.

The farm is owned by the Rosenthal family, a powerful clan in Honduras with interests spanning banking, media, property, tourism, livestock and agriculture.

On October 7, the US Treasury Department said it was targeting the family’s 79-year-old multimillionaire patriarch, Jaime Rosenthal, his son Yani Rosenthal, and his nephew Yankel Rosenthal “for their money laundering and drug trafficking activities”.

It imposed an asset freeze on them and barred US businesses from dealing with them, which notably affected their Banco Continental. The bank, headquartered in San Pedro Sula, is being liquidated on orders of the Honduras’ Banking Commission. A newspaper owned by the family has also been shut.

Yankel Rosenthal was arrested in Miami by US authorities the day before the Treasury announcement.

– Accounts blocked –

The US accusations and sanctions have rocked Honduras, which had long perceived its wealthiest families to be untouchable. That held especially true for the Rosenthals: Jaime Rosenthal was vice-president of the country from 1986 to 1989; his son Yani was a minister in the government from 2006 to 2009.

Although the crocodile farm was not one of the seven Rosenthal businesses designated for US sanctions, it has found itself caught up in the freeze affecting other parts of the business empire.

An official at Honduras’ state Forest Conservation Institute (ICF), Pablo Dubon, said the executives running Cocodrilos Continental told authorities the freezing of the Rosenthals’ assets led to the accounts used to pay the workers and buy animal feed being blocked.

Dubon said the municipality and animal protection groups were working on an emergency plan to temporarily care for the animals while a permanent solution was found. One option was to have the employees work for food while the legal status of the farm was assessed.

A week ago, the ICF delivered 1.5 tons (3,000 pounds) of chicken meat to the farm but workers refused to feed it to the animals until they were paid their monthly wages of $340 each.

“The 3,000 pounds doesn’t amount to much because a crocodile eats the equivalent of half a horse in a day,” said Jose, the worker at the gate.

“But at least something is being done,” he added.

According to security guards at Cocodrilos Continental, there are 11,000 American crocodiles spread out over 135 pools hidden by weeds and bushes turned green by recent rains. Some 60 newborn crocs are among them. An on-site clinic meant to look after around 70 ailing crocodiles has ceased to function.

The farm’s website says the crocodile business was created to generate profits by exporting meat and skin to the United States, while also “preserving the species”. It had a yearly budget of $1 million to pay employees’ wages and food for the animals.

Three farm employees who refused to give their names told AFP they were thinking of looking for jobs elsewhere because they haven’t been paid beyond the second week of October.

But if they did so, they warned, people living nearby would likely rush in to grab the crocodiles to eat.

Source:yahoo.com

Asian carp are on the move in Illinois, and that could spell bad news for the Great Lakes.

from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) discovered two small Asian silver carp—an invasive species brought into the country in the last century— in the Marseilles Pool of the Illinois River, marking a 12-mile advance toward Lake Michigan in just one month.

Since the beginning of the year, juvenile carp have moved 66 miles closer to the lake, according to the FWS.

“It’s the furthest we’ve seen in sampling of juvenile carp going back 12-to-15 years,” said Charlie Wooley, FWS deputy regional director. “In past years we’ve seen very little movement of this caliber. This is a really big jump in just one year. It’s a big concern.”

If the carp finally reach Lake Michigan, they could severely impact native species, Wooley said, including threatened and endangered fish, mollusks, plants, mammals, insects, and reptiles.

The presence of juvenile fish mean the carp are successfully spawning closer and closer to the lake.

Wooley said conditions have become more favorable for Asian carp to spawn recently, including higher water levels, longer lasting flood conditions, and warmer water temperatures.

Once they mature, the fish have no natural predators in U.S. waters. Asian carp reach seven feet in length and weigh 110 pounds, though the average size is around 30-to-40 pounds. Asian bighead and silver carp consume as much as 20 percent of their body weight daily—mostly algae and other microscopic organisms—which form the base of the food web for larger fish and other species. Black carp, another Asian species, feed on mollusks, threatening native mussel, and sturgeon populations.

The carp can also damage property and injure people. Silver carp are startled by boat motors, causing them to leap up to 10 feet in the air, slamming into vessels and the people on them.

Asian carp were imported from Southeast Asia to the southern United States by fish farms. Flooding allowed them to escape into the Mississippi River system, where they migrated into the Missouri and Illinois rivers.

AUSTRALIAN pop princess Jessica Mauboy was reportedly dumped from her planned role singing the national anthem at the Melbourne Cup because of “issues over clothing and preparation”.

This morning, 2GB radio host Alan Jones suggested Mauboy refused to wear shoes supplied by the offical race sponsor, Myer.

Mauboy was booked to sing Advance Australia Fair before the race that stops a nation, and was even introduced by announcers. But officials had to scramble to find a replacement.

It was hastily announced that another singer — Nadia Aya, would be singing the anthem instead.

The Australian reported a representative for Mauboy had admitted there were issues over “clothing and preparation”, and said the singer was “incredibly sorry”.

Mauboy’s disappearance was criticised by Victorian Racing Club President Simon Lowe in a statement.

“We were very disappointed that Jessica Mauboy was on course, and didn’t perform today,” he said.

“We were grateful that Nadia Aya could perform the national anthem ahead of the Emirates Melbourne Cup.”

The Herald Sun understands Ms Aya, who gave a well received performance, had 30 seconds warning before she had to start singing.

It is unclear why Mauboy did not fulfil her duties despite being at Flemington.

The This Aint Love singer is considered to be one of Australia’s hardest working pop singers.

Her management has been approached for comment but is yet to respond.

Mauboy was yesterday singing for crowds at radio duo Hamish Blake and Andy Lee’s ‘Race that Slows the Nation’ in the rural Victorian town of Wedderburn.

She also ran the handicapped race in a horse costume, placing 21 out of 50.

source: heraldsun.com.au