Polish historian hopes crumbling bunker hides Amber Room

A HISTORIAN in northeastern Poland says the moss-covered ruins of a German World War II bunker may hide Russia’s precious Amber Room, a national treasure that went missing during the war.

The 18th-century Amber Room, made of amber panels and gold leaf, was fitted into Russia’s Catherine Palace near St. Petersburg, where it remained until it was looted by Germany’s Nazis in 1941.

Tests in September by earth-penetrating radar in the woods near the Polish village of Mamerki suggest there’s a small room at the base of a bunker that was the German army’s wartime headquarters, according to the head of Mamerki Museum, Bartlomiej Plebanczyk.

The bunker is located about 100 kilometres from Russia’s Kaliningrad region — which was the German region of Koenigsberg during the war and where the Nazis brought the Amber Room in 1941.

Plebanczyk told TVN24 that he is “almost certain” that the crumbling concrete bunker hides the Russian treasure. He has informed local Polish authorities in the town of Wegorzewo, who will now decide what to do.

Wegorzewo Deputy Mayor Andrzej Lachowicz told authorities will try to see what’s in the bunker.

“If not the Amber Room, then maybe some other treasure,” Lachowicz said.

The British heavily bombed Koenigsberg in 1944. The current whereabouts of the Amber Room is unknown. In a project that took decades, Russian authorities reconstructed a replica of the Amber Room at the same palace.

According to Plebanczyk, a resident claimed right after the war that he saw German trucks bring heavy cases to the bunker. In the 1960s, residents said they saw a top Nazi, Erich Koch, brought to the site from a Polish prison where he was jailed for wartime crimes. Koch was a top official in Koenigsberg until 1945 and authorities believed he knew the treasure’s whereabouts, Plebanczyk told The Associated Press.

Last year, other Polish explorers said they had located another Nazi German treasure: a gold train that reportedly went missing at the end of the war in Walbrzych, in what is now southwestern Poland. Some search work was done but no train has been found so far. The search has attracted thousands of tourists to the region.

Woman harasses ex-boyfriend with hundreds of pictures, videos and over 130 calls in one day after he dumps her

Timothy Harris took his ex girlfriend, 30 year old boutique owner , Nicole Peri, to court for calling his phone for over 130 times in just one day, he said she also sent sexually explicit photos of herself and audio messages begging to see him. Mr Harris releasesd a statement in court which read: 

"I estimate I've had over 300 missed calls from private numbers. I don't answer all the calls. "One day in March I was at the gym and had 130 missed calls. "I have ignored all these messages, hoping they would stop but they didn't. "I don't know what else I can do to stop her contacting me. I continue to feel there is no escape from Nicole. "All I want is for her to leave me alone and stop harassing me. The whole thing is making me feel low, like I cannot live a normal life and move on."

Police were called out several times from March 2015 to deal with altercations between the couple, whose relationship was described as chaotic.

Peri, who lives in Rayleigh, Essex pleaded guilty to one offence of harassment.

Magistrates gave her a one-year community order, with 120 hours unpaid work and ordered that she undergo 20 days of rehabilitation. She was also slapped with a bill for £165 court costs.

She was banned from making any contact with Timothy, or going to his home in Chelmsford, Essex, after a 12-month restraining order was granted.

Japan earthquake: 8-month-old baby pulled out alive from collapsed building

A video footage shows the moment an eight-month-old girl is pulled out alive from a collapsed building following a devastating earthquake in Japan. Rescue workers can be seen gently lifting the baby out of the rubble and then rushing her into a waiting ambulance and taken to hospital.

It was a moment of light relief for the country following the magnitude 6 tremor which killed at least nine people and injuring hundreds, local media said.
The tremor struck 7 miles east of the city of Kumamoto, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). 
There was no tsunami warning before the earthquake and at least one person was killed after being crushed by a collapsing building. More than 400 people were taken to the hospital.
About 44,400 people had also been evacuated and more than 100 aftershocks had been recorded since the quake, which struck shortly before 9.30 pm local time.

Photos: Beautiful 22-year-old Leigh-Anne Mahachi stabbed to death in UK

22-year-old Leigh-Anne Mahachi died following an incident in Sheffield on Tuesday, April 12. According to Sheffield Police, the 22-year-old was stabbed during an incident in Spotswood Close, Gleadless Valley, at around 8.15am. Leigh-Anne was taken to hospital but died a short time later.

A post-mortem was carried out on Tuesday night found that she died as a result of multiple stab wounds. A 37-year-old man identified as Douglas Furusa from the Colchester area, was arrested yesterday after a murder investigation was launched.

He's due to appear at the city's magistrates later and has been remanded in custody, BBC reports

Investigating officer Detective Inspector Steve Ashmore said:

"This is an extremely distressing incident and the victim’s family is currently being supported by specially trained officers. We are treating this as a targeted attack and I can reassure members of the public that we have a large number of resources at the scene and are pursuing a number of lines of enquiry to establish the full circumstances. A murder investigation is underway and we urge anyone with information or anyone who saw or heard anything in the Spotswood"

Photos: Dubai set to build another tower higher than Burj Khalifa

Dubai is set to build a tower higher than the existing record-braaking skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa, which is presently the world's tallest building. Construction for the new tower which is to be known as The Tower at Dubai Creek, will start at the end of June this year and is hoped to be finished before Dubai hosts the World Expo in 2020. The tower is said to cost around $1 billion and will be a notch taller than Burj Khalifa which opened in January 2010 and stands at 828 meters high.

Nine Somalis Dumped in Egyptian Sea After Kidnapped and Organs Removed by Traffickers in Egypt

(Cabays) — The political unrest that rocked Egypt since the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak in 2011 seems to have shaken the country’s law enforcement apparatus, creating loopholes for organ traffickers.

The Coalition for Organ-Failure Solutions, a non profit international health and human-rights organization, released a study that shines a spotlight an underground trade that world health experts say thrives there and affects thousands of African refugees in the country.

But for the first time Somalis have fallen into the hands of organ traffickers that target African and other migrants either travelling through North Africa or seeking sanctuary in Egypt.

Nine Somalis, including a mother and her two young children are reported of their organs removed and their bodies dumped in the sea near the Alexandria, the Mediterranean port city in Egypt. Horrific pictures showing the Somali victims with autopsy like scars and blood stains emerged and circulating in the social media

Reports also say the nine Somalis dumped in the sea were originally lured onto a migrant boat told it was heading for Italy, but after were led to undisclosed location in Alexandria and locked up for organ removal.

After pictures of three seemed Somali or Sudanese appeared on social media, a Somali mother and her two children who were among nine reported Somalis that organ traffickers dumped their bodies in the sea and were recognised by their friends and family members .

The Somali mother was named as Adar Hassan Adaawe, who died along with her son, Abukar Abdikarim who was just three months old, Anfa Abdikarim who was just one year and half old and unnamed man with clear scars showing his body was ribbed apart.

But for the first time Somalis have fallen into the hands of organ traffickers that target African and other migrants either travelling through North Africa or seeking sanctuary in Egypt.

Nine Somalis, including a mother and her two young children are reported of their organs removed and their bodies dumped in the sea near the Alexandria, the Mediterranean port city in Egypt. Horrific pictures showing the Somali victims with autopsy like scars and blood stains emerged and circulating in the social media

Reports also say the nine Somalis dumped in the sea were originally lured onto a migrant boat told it was heading for Italy, but after were led to undisclosed location in Alexandria and locked up for organ removal.

After pictures of three seemed Somali or Sudanese appeared on social media, a Somali mother and her two children who were among nine reported Somalis that organ traffickers dumped their bodies in the sea and were recognised by their friends and family members .

The Somali mother was named as Adar Hassan Adaawe, who died along with her son, Abukar Abdikarim who was just three months old, Anfa Abdikarim who was just one year and half old and unnamed man with clear scars showing his body was ribbed apart.

Tributes pour in on Facebook after horrific pictures circulated by Somalis confirming the identity of the Somali victims slaughtered by the ruthless organ traffickers that don’t spare no one they could coercive.

The COFS researchers said they believe many other nations’ citizens also suffer as victims of illicit organ harvesting. COFS estimates that there are likely to be hundreds of Sudanese as well as numerous others from Jordan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Iraq and Syria. COFS estimates the total number of victims of organ trafficking in Egypt to be in the thousands.

Until recently, Egyptian law prohibited organ donation from the deceased so that organ donation was only from the living. This resulted in an unregulated system which has only exacerbated the issue.
A report by the Coalition for Organ-Failure Solutions (COFS), a non-profit international health and human rights organisation, indicates that human traffickers in the North African country are increasingly targeting Africans, especially refugees and other immigrants.

The current horrific pictures of Somali victims would increase the awareness of the dangers face by the illegal migrants but they also add to the tragedy many people ended up when they risk their lives for seeking better.

Sad photo of two orphan boys laying on their parents' grave

A Malaysian page shared this photo of two siblings whose parents died in road accident. Whenever the boys miss their parents, they visit the graveyard, lay on their tomb and cry. "For those who still have both my mother and father...Cherish them" the page wrote.

Saudi Arabia's top cleric says women will be 'exposed to evil' if allowed to drive

Saudi Arabia's most senior cleric, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin-Abdullah al-Sheikh has defended the kingdom's ban on female drivers on the grounds that they will be 'exposed to evil' if allowed to drive. He said men “obsessed with women” and with "weak spirits" could end up causing female drivers harm and that male relatives would not know their whereabouts.
Although women driving in Saudi Arabia is not against the law, in practice women are unable to obtain driving licences. Exceptions are occasionally made in rural areas if a woman needs to drive for her family life.
Despite stifling conservative norms, the Kingdom has made some progress in women rights, women were allowed to vote for the first time last year.

In February 2015, Saleh al-Saadoon, a conservative historian, sparked an outcry by saying that women in Saudi Arabia should not be allowed to drive on the grounds that they might get raped if their cars broke down.
Western women drove, he explained, because rape was not such a big deal to them.

Meet the Indian teenager who is seen as a god by villagers because of his hairy appearance

Mohammed Raihan is only 13 but his hirsute appearance belies his tender age. He suffers from Werewolf Syndrome, a rare genetic condition which causes his hands, legs, back and stomach to be covered in hair. He has however refused medical treatment because he believes it is a blessing from God despite the fact he gets a lot of name-calling from peers, they call him Hanuman after a Hindu monkey God. 

Muhammed said: 

"I am not bothered with such attention - some people laugh at me, others just come to me for a blessing. Sometime people would flock to my house from far-off villages to just have a glimpse of me. They think I am a god or have special powers, but this attention is okay because I know I look different."

The devout Muslim lost his dad ten months ago and lives with his mum and four siblings on the Island of Borneo. His mum Pardan, 45 said: 

"He had more hair on his body than my elder son but I was not worried as every child is different. However my concern grew when the hair grew longer and thicker. His father and I were worried about the excessive hair growth and took him to several doctors but none could treat him. Some did offer laser surgery but it was beyond our financial capacity so we stopped."

 Pardan has instead instilled confidence and faith in God in Muhammed.
 She says: 

"He is a gift of God and we believe his appearance is the will of Allah. I have taught him to never complain about his condition but instead accept it with grace. And for Muhammed, who shares a room with his unaffected siblings, he feels blessed to have a distinct appearance and wishes to serve as a mosque cleric in thanks. I am blessed by God and this makes me happy. I am his favourite child and want to serve him my whole life. I don't want any medical treatment because I'm happy this way."

Photos: Snake born with two heads found in the USA

A snake with two heads has been captured in the USA by 42 year old Jason Talbott, who found the snake living in the wild, before photographing it and taking it into captivity. Although it looks a bit beastly, the snake is harmless and Jason admitted that its bite would not be enough to break a human’s skin.

 Jason said: ‘It is estimated that it is 1 in 10,000 but it is hard to know a true number as they are wild and elusive animals and survival rate is very low.

‘I’m a massive fan of creepy crawlies and snakes – I’ve photographed hundreds of them and received a fair few bites along the way. Fortunately they were non-venomous ones.

‘The snake had been found by a few of my friends in the wild and when I heard about it, I jumped at the opportunity to get some photos.

‘What was funny about the snake was that the two-heads had different personalities. One of the heads was very aggressive and kept trying to bite at objects.

‘But the problem was, because they both shared the same body, the aggressive head needed the other one’s cooperation to move. It was quite funny to watch, really.’