Homes for All
THOUSANDS PROTESTED AGAINST THE LACK OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
They briefly occupied some luxury flats being built next to City Hall
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Around 5,000 people rallied at London’s City Hall on Saturday, urging Boris Johnson to do something about rising rents and house prices, fuel poverty and the selling off of council owned housing estates.
Jasmine Stone from E15 mothers said “quite a few” of her friends had been forced out of London by rising rents. “It’s extremely unfair that young people cannot afford to stay in the city they love and grew up in,” she added.
A small group of about 50 activists stormed and briefly occupied parts of One Tower Bridge, a luxury flat development where properties are being sold for between £1.5 million and £15 million.
Later in the day, some of the protesters squatted flats on the Aylesbury estate in Elephant and Castle.
ISIS
ISLAMIC STATE KILLED A SECOND JAPANESE HOSTAGE
A video released on Saturday shows the beheading of journalist Kenji Goto
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A video released by the Islamic State on Saturday appears to show the beheading of 47-year-old Japanese journalist Kenji Goto.
The video has not yet been verified, but Japanese officials believe it to be genuine.
Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, said that Japan “would not give in to terrorism”, adding that the country would expand its support in the fight against Islamic State.
The video comes a week after the beheading of Haruna Yukawa, another Japanese citizen.
Following the release of the video, Jordan said it would do all it can to secure the release of one of their pilots captured by the group.
Occupy Central
PROTESTERS WERE BACK ON THE STREETS OF HONG KONG
Funnily enough, they’re still pretty keen on the idea of democracy
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Up to 12,000 pro-democracy protesters took to the streets of Hong Kong on Sunday – the first protests since the Occupy Central movement late last year.
The protesters marched through the city’s financial and shopping districts, flanked by 2,000 police officers, who were trying to prevent a repeat of last year’s protests, which shut these areas down by blocking intersections.
“We want to make it clear to the government that… we want true universal suffrage,” said Daisy Chan, one of the protest’s organisers.
The Chinese government has allowed elections for the city’s local authority, but plans to screen the candidates first.
Freedom of Speech
AN AUSTRALIAN JOURNALIST WAS FREED FROM AN EGYPTIAN PRISON
Peter Greste had been accused of “aiding terrorism and making false news”
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Al Jazeera journalist Peter Greste, who was held for 400 days in an Egyptian prison, was deported to Australia on Sunday, where he may have to sit out a further jail term.
The Australian national was one of three Al Jazeera journalists held in Egyptian prisons since December of 2013; in June of 2014, they were convicted on charges of aiding terrorists, making false news and belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood group.
Greste was deported to Australia under the terms of a recent decree of the Egyptian president that allows foreign detainees to sit out their jail terms in their home countries.
The Egyptian interior ministry said: “A presidential decree has been issued to deport him to continue his punishment period in Australia.”
Drunken Mistakes
A MAN WAS JAILED FOR GETTING DRUNK AND PRETENDING TO BE A COP
The 20-year-old went “on patrol” around County Durham in his friend’s uniform
Police in Manchester, not County Durham (Photo by Terry via)
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A 20-year-old man has been jailed for 14 months for getting drunk, taking some drugs, borrowing his friend’s special constable uniform and going “on patrol” in Bishop Auckland, a town in County Durham.
Samuel John Houlihan had been left to look after his special constable friend’s dog when he took the uniform, which included pepper spray, an extendable baton and handcuffs.
Durham Crown Court heard that Houlihan’s strange behaviour had alerted security staff at two venues, before he got into a cab and slurred: “Take me home. I’m the law.”
The driver refused, then Houlihan punched a window, spat on the dashboard and was ultimately arrested by a couple of real police officers.
