IS Atrocities
THE ISLAMIC STATE BEHEADED A BRITISH HOSTAGE
The victim, 44-year-old David Cawthorne Haines, was an aid worker in Syria
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On Saturday, the Islamic State released a video that showed the beheading of David Cawthorne Haines, a British aid worker who was seized in Syria last year.
Experts have said that the killer is the same man – dubbed "Jihadi John" by the press – who features in the IS videos showing the beheading of American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff.
In this video, rather than addressing American President Barack Obama – as he has done before – the masked killer directs his message to the British Prime Minister, saying, “If you, Cameron, persist in fighting the Islamic State, then you – like your master Obama – will have the blood of your people on your hands."
The video ends with a warning that another British hostage, named as aid worker Alan Henning, will soon be beheaded.
In response to the video, David Cameron said: “This is a despicable and appalling murder of an innocent aid worker. It is an act of pure evil […] We will do everything in our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes."
Swedish Elections
THE SWEDEN DEMOCRATS ARE NOW THE COUNTRY'S THIRD BIGGEST PARTY
The Social Democrats won and the Moderate Party leader resigned.
Sweden Democrat leader Jimmie Åkesson with his girlfriend Louise Erixon in 2011 (Photo via)
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On Sunday, the general elections took place in Sweden. The Social Democrats won, which changed the government after eight years, from right-leaning to left-leaning.
Fredrik Reinfeldt, Sweden's Prime Minister up until yesterday – and leader of the Moderate Party – resigned, and the anti-immigration party the Sweden Democrats almost doubled their votes to about 13 percent, making them Sweden's third-largest political party.
Former Left Party leader Gudrun Schyman's pink party the Feminist Initative lost the elections and didn't make it into parliament. Schyman said, "We have to admit that we're a bit disappointed."
Sweden's new Prime Minister, Stefan Löfven, has never worked in the Swedish Parliament before. He's expected to have some pretty tough months ahead forming a new leaft-leaning government. Upon winning the elections, he said about the Sweden Democrats, "Remember, 87 percent of Sweden didn't vote for them."
Scottish Independence
THE REFERENDUM DEBATE KEPT ON ROLLING
With all sorts of people – some welcome, some less so – pitching in
The Queen, who pitched in on the Scottish referendum publicly for the first time this weekend (Photo via)
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Tensions mounted as the vote for Scottish independence draws nearer, with thousands of Yes campaigners protesting outside BBC Scotland's Glasgow headquarters on Sunday, accusing the broadcaster of being biased in favour of retaining the Union.
Elsewhere, the Queen chimed in on the issue for the first time, reportedly telling a member of the public that she hopes “people will think very carefully about the future” when they head to the polls this Thursday.
In celebrity news, a video was released showing The Simpsons' Groundskeeper Willie backing independence, while Piers Morgan tweeted that he would do the UK a solid by "going straight back to America" if Scots decided to vote No.
As to the campaigners themselves, Alistair Darling – leader of the Better Together campaign – said he's been shocked by the aggressive behaviour of some Scottish nationalists, with Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond admitting there have been "idiots" on both sides of the debate.
According to numerous opinion polls published over the weekend, the No campaign appears to be holding onto its narrow lead.
Totalitarian Regimes
NORTH KOREA SENTENCED A US CITIZEN TO SIX YEARS OF HARD LABOUR
They accused him of committing "hostile acts" against the state
Statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, North Korea (Photo via)
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On Sunday, an American citizen was sentenced to six years of hard labour by a North Korean court.
Matthew Miller – who reportedly ripped up his tourist visa on arriving in Pyongyang in April, saying he wanted to seek asylum – was accused and found guilty of entering the country illegally and undertaking “hostile acts” against the state, North Korean state media said.
Miller, 24, told American journalists earlier this month that he had written to President Barack Obama requesting help, but had not yet received a reply.
North Korea is currently detaining two other US citizens: Jeffrey Fowle, who was detained after leaving a copy of the Bible in a public toilet, and Kenneth Bae, an American missionary who was arrested for allegedly plotting to overthrow the regime.
Ceasefire Collapse
UKRAINE BATTLED PRO-RUSSIAN REBELS OVER DONETSK AIRPORT
In some of the fiercest fighting since the ceasefire was announced
A VICE News dispatch from May of this year, when pro-Russian rebels fought Ukrainian military for control of Donetsk airport for the first time.
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Pro-Russian rebels attempted to capture the airport in the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk late on Friday, but were fought off by Ukrainian forces.
Ukraine said it had killed a dozen rebel fighters in the battle, the first Ukrainian-inflicted casualties admitted by the Kiev government since a ceasefire with the rebels was agreed on the 5th of September.
Donetsk itself is controlled by the rebels, and a convoy of three Russian rocket launchers were seen moving through the city on Saturday morning.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk suggested that the ceasefire would not hold, saying on Saturday: "We are still in a stage of war, and the key aggressor is the Russian Federation […] Putin wants another frozen conflict [in eastern Ukraine].”
Pop Penalties
A WOMAN HAD TO PAY A FINE FOR LISTENING TO JAMES BLUNT
She denies the allegation, saying she hates "his sound"
(Photo via)
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Rebecca Hope, a 19-year-old from Ipswich, UK, has been ordered to pay a nearly £900 [€1,130] fine for listening to James Blunt and 90s girl band B*Witched too loudly.
Ipswich Borough Council said the noise coming from her flat had been a consistent nuisance to her neighbours, and she was found guilty of four offences of breaching a noise abatement notice.
Vaguely denying the allegations, Hope said, “I hate the sound of James Blunt so why would I listen to him? I don’t know anything about B*Witched. I am into more modern music,” before blaming the complaints on the fact her walls are really thin.
Hope was fined £500 [€627] and has to pay £374 [€469] costs and a £20 [€25] benefits surcharge.