Zanzibar Acid Attack Victim Tweets Her Thanks

Zanzibar Acid Attack: Two Held

Updated: 4:59pm UK, Friday 09 August 2013

Two girls from London who had acid thrown in their faces on the Indian Ocean island of Zanzibar have arrived back in Britain.

:: WARNING: This story contains a graphic image depicting acid burns

A medevac plane carrying Katie Gee and Kirstie Trup, both 18, landed at RAF Northolt at lunchtime and the pair were taken away in two ambulances.

They were then transferred to the specialist burns unit at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and reunited with their families.

The teenagers were attacked by two men on a motorbike as they walked through the historic capital Stone Town on Wednesday night.

The acid was splashed over their faces, chests, backs and hands.

Their arrival back in Britain came as a Zanzibar police chief told Sky News that five people have been questioned over the acid attack.

Regional police commander Mkadam Khamis said two of the suspects are being detained for further interrogation while the other three have been released.

Police on the island have also offered a reward of 10 million Tanzanian shillings (£4,000) for information leading to any arrests. 

Sky News Foreign Affairs Correspondent Lisa Holland said there were some suggestions that one of the people held was a local shopkeeper who had been in an altercation with one of the girls a few days before.

But she added that the motive remained unclear - with other reports of eyewitnesses saying the acid was not intended for the British teenagers but someone else walking down the road.

The pair, who had been volunteering at an orphanage on the island, were taken to hospital in Dar es Salaam on the Tanzanian mainland, before being flown home.

Miss Gee's mother Nicky Gee told Sky News her daughter had suffered burns to her "whole face and her whole body" in the "vicious attack".

A photograph released by the girls' families showed the injuries Miss Gee of them suffered in the attack.

The girl is shown wearing an open striped shirt and a silver necklace. What appear to be acid burns are clearly visible on her chin, neck and upper chest.

Miss Trup also reportedly received horrific burns and was said to be "inconsolable".

The young women, who are from north London and were planning to start university in the autumn, were enjoying the last week of a trip as volunteer teachers to the predominantly Muslim island when a corrosive substance was thrown at them.

The trip had been organised by i-to-i Travel, which is based in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and runs gap year trips to parts of Africa, Asia, central and South America and Australia.

Trips to teach in Zanzibar, based in Stone Town, start at £669 for two weeks, according to its website.

In its latest statement, i-to-i Travel confirmed the girls had been repatriated to the UK and said: "We welcome the proactive investigations being carried out by local authorities in Zanzibar and continue to liaise with them.

"We wish the girls a fast and full recovery and our thoughts are with them and their families at this difficult time."

The organisation added that it had advised all its customers still in Zanzibar "to remain vigilant" and anyone due to fly out there this weekend had been given the option to volunteer at a different project, but all had chosen to continue to travel to Tanzania.

The Foreign Office travel advice for Tanzania warns that although most visits to the country are trouble-free, "violent and armed crime is increasing".

The advice, available on its website, says: "Mugging, bag snatching (especially from passing cars) and robbery have increased throughout the country."

It adds: "In Zanzibar, incidents have taken place in Stone Town and on popular tourist beaches."

Jakaya Kikwete, Tanzania's president, is reported to have visited the women at the Aga Khan Hospital in Dar es Salaam and promised that the men responsible for the "shameful" attack would be found.

Zanzibar is an archipelago of islands in the Indian Ocean around 22 miles off the mainland.

The semi-autonomous region of Tanzania is predominantly Muslim and has been the scene of some religious violence in recent years.

Earlier this year two Christian leaders were killed and in November a cleric was treated in hospital after an acid attack. This is the first such assault on foreigners in the popular tourist destination.

A further announcement from the police in Zanzibar regarding the case is expected later today.

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FA Boss: Summer World Cup In Qatar 'Impossible'

Fifa Boss: Move 2022 World Cup

Updated: 7:21am UK, Saturday 10 August 2013

Fifa's president says the organisation still has enough time to switch the 2022 World Cup to the winter to avoid Qatar's intense summer heat.

Sepp Blatter said he would discuss the plans with his executive committee in October.

The move would cause major disruption to various domestic leagues around the world.

But Mr Blatter insisted: "We still have enough time.

"The executive committee will certainly follow my proposal. Then we will have dealt with the topic for good."

Summer temperatures can reach 50C (122F) in Qatar, and there are currently plans for games to be played in air-conditioned stadiums.

But there is pressure for the tournament to be moved to the winter, when temperatures reach a high of 24C (75F).

Mr Blatter said: "The Fifa World Cup must be a festival of the people. But for it to be such a festival, you can't play football in the summer.

"You can cool down the stadiums, but you can't cool down the whole country - and you can't simply cool down the ambience of a World Cup. The players must be able to play in the best conditions to play a good World Cup."

Hassan al Thawadi, the head of Qatar's organising committee, said the country was open to the move "if it's the wish of the football community".

Mr Blatter said medical information about the effects of the heat on players led to his change of heart.

"There has been a fresh medical investigation into what it would be like to play football there in the summer and we have to take into account the health, not of the spectators, but of the players," he explained.

Qatar defeated bids from South Korea, Japan, Australia and the US for the right to host the 2022 World Cup.

Speaking to Sky Germany, Mr Blatter also said Brazil might have been the wrong choice to host the 2014 World Cup if the tournament is affected by the wave of protests seen at the Confederations Cup last month.

Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets expressing their anger over the costs to stage the World Cup and demanding better public services.

"If this happens again we have to question whether we made the wrong decision awarding the hosting rights," Mr Blatter added.

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Ask.fm Bosses: We Can Trace Cyberbullies

The founders of the website linked to the suicide of teenager Hannah Smith said they could reveal the names of anonymous bullies to the police.

Hannah, 14, was found hanged by her 16-year-old sister last Friday at their home in Lutterworth after being abused on the social networking site Ask.fm.

Mark and Ilja Terebin, bosses of the Latvia-based website, said they had the ability to identify "almost all users" and that they are committed to supporting the Leicestershire Police investigation.

They said "in extreme circumstances such as those we've experienced this week" they can use technology to identify those behind the taunts and  "ensure this information is accessible to the appropriate legal authorities".

Hannah Smith, 14, had reportedly been bullied by users on the site

Meanwhile, major advertisers have withdrawn from the website, despite protests from the company that it does "not condone bullying of any kind".

Specsavers, Vodafone, Laura Ashley, EDF Energy and charity Save the Children have all pulled ads from Ask.fm.

A Specsavers spokesman said the company had instructed Ask.fm to remove all of its adverts from the site due to "deep concerns over cyberbullying".

Save the Children said: "We put the welfare of children first and, as a result of the tragic case of Hannah Smith, we no longer advertise on Ask.fm."

Two employees of the company refused to talk to Sky News

EDF Energy also said it had asked its media agency to prevent any further advertising appearing on Ask.fm "with immediate effect".

Ask.fm said in a statement that the company wanted to "reassure all users and parents of users that we are committed to ensuring that our site is a safe environment".

The statement added: "We do not condone bullying of any kind, or any form of unacceptable use of our site."

Ask.fm described the teenager's death as a "true tragedy" and said they had been speaking to Leicestershire Police since the incident.

Hannah's parents have found further "inappropriate postings" on Facebook

They went on to say that various measures had been implemented over the past few months to continue improving users' safety, and improved reporting policies have been put in place.

The company said: "The vast majority of our users are very happy teenagers, who use Ask.fm to converse with their peers around the world about the things that interest them.

"Bullying is an age-old problem that we in no way condone - and while its evolution online is disturbing, it certainly is not unique to our site.

"We will continue to work with the appropriate organisations to safeguard against bullying on Ask.fm - and we would welcome the opportunity to align with the rest of industry and society in fighting it on a higher level."

Ask.fm described Hannah's death as a "true tragedy"

David Cameron has said he was looking at what action to take "to try to stop future tragedies likes this".

Hannah's father, David Smith, said those who run the website should face murder or manslaughter charges.

"There's something not right with the world today if people can tell somebody to die so many times that they actually do it," he said.

Leicestershire Police confirmed they had been contacted by Hannah's father about further claims of "inappropriate postings" on Facebook.

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Revealed: The UK's Most Wanted Tax Fugitives

By Poppy Trowbridge, Business and Economics Correspondent

A rogues' gallery of the UK's most wanted tax fugitives has been released in an effort to collect hundreds of millions of pounds in unpaid duty.

One year on from releasing the details of the UK's 20 most sought-after tax criminals, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has now added the names and photographs of 10 more fugitives to that original target list.

Those on the list are being pursued for a range of crimes, including VAT fraud, tax evasion and money laundering.

Together, their crimes have cost the taxpayer close to £720m.

Among the new names on the list are Michael "Arthur" Fearon, who is wanted in connection with evasion of excise duty on nearly £8.4m of cigarettes, and is believed to be in the Republic of Ireland.

Chancellor George Osborne says tax evasion 'will not be tolerated'

Anish Anand, who is believed to be in the UK, is wanted in relation to £6m VAT and film tax credit fraud, while Michael George Voudouri is wanted in connection with a £10m VAT fraud. He is believed to be in Northern Cyrpus.

And Sumir Soni (aka John Soni, John Miller, Samir Soni, Bhader Singh), who is believed to be in Kenya, is wanted in connection with evading duty of £3.6m from the illegal sale and distribution of alcohol, and the illegal importation of nine million cigarettes.

Anthony Judge, who was wanted for his role in over £350,000 of tax fraud and had been on the run for 10 years, was detained at Heathrow Airport last month as he attempted to enter the UK on a forged passport.

He is the second of HMRC's most wanted to be captured since the rogues' gallery was first published.

In May, John Nugent was apprehended in the US after the authorities there saw the list.

The gallery has been viewed more than 1.5 million times, with new intelligence received from the public on the current whereabouts of 17 of the 20 named on the original list.

HMRC has also launched an interactive map of the world to illustrate where the tax fugitives are believed to be.

The crimes of those on the list have cost the taxpayer £720m

Chancellor George Osborne said: "Our message is clear, tax fraud and evasion is illegal and will not be tolerated.

"The Government has stepped up HMRC's enforcement activities to enable them to pursue tax cheats relentlessly around the world."

"This new list will help put more tax fraudsters in the spotlight and bring them to justice."

The Chancellor has faced public outrage in recent months over the number of large, multinational corporations operating in Britain that pay little or no corporation tax on earnings which can top billions of pounds each year.

Yet some tax experts say HMRC is missing the real problem in tackling tax avoidance.

Richard Murphy, of Tax Research UK, told Sky News: "The problem is very large companies who aren't paying very large amounts of tax that they might owe because of skilful tax avoidance by accountants and lawyers.

"The second problem is actually ordinary people avoiding and evading income tax by putting cash in their pockets … paying their builders, their plumbers, their cleaners, their tutors and everybody else without tax being paid and that is a massive problem in our economy.

"But the big problem is not this form of crime of which this list is being published about."

Taxpayers Alliance chief executive Matthew Sinclair said part of the difficulty was with the UK's "hugely complex and fundamentally dysfunctional tax system".

He said reforming taxes to make them simpler would reduce the scope for evasion and free up HMRC resources to focus on fraud.

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Two British Women In Acid Attack In Zanzibar

Two teenage British charity workers have had acid thrown in their faces in a late night attack on the island of Zanzibar.

The 18-year-old women were attacked as they were walking through the streets of Stone Town, the historical centre of the capital of the east African island, by two men on a moped.

The acid splashed their faces, chests and hands and they had to be flown to hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for treatment.

Police said that the two teenagers were working for a charity, on the island, which is a popular destination for gap year students doing voluntary work.

Deputy Police Commissioner Mkadam Khamis said: "Police in Zanzibar have launched a manhunt, and we ask for public assistance in identifying the attackers."

He added: "The motive for the attack on the volunteers, aged 18 years, has not been established."

Saleh Mohammed Jidawi, a senior health ministry official, said that the women's wounds were "not life threatening".

The assault is the first against foreigners in the popular tourist destination, however, there have been a series of attacks in the archipelago, mainly on grounds of religion.

A Muslim cleric was subjected to an acid attack in November. In February a Catholic priest was shot dead and in December another priest was shot and wounded.

The Indian Ocean islands, famed for their white sand beaches and historical buildings in Stone Town, listed as a world heritage site by Unesco,  are mainly Muslim, with 3% of the 1.2 million people Christian.

The attack on the island, 22 miles off the coast of Tanzania, came at the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan as people began to celebrate the Eid holiday.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: "We are aware of an incident and are providing consular assistance."

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Hannah Smith: Charge Site Over Death Says Dad

The father of a teenager who killed herself after being bullied online has called for the owners of the website on which she was abused to be charged with manslaughter.

Hannah Smith, 14, from Lutterworth, Leicestershire, took her own life on Friday after being abused on the social network site ask.fm.

Dave Smith has accused the website owners of not caring that "teenagers are dying and killing theirselves".

Speaking to the Daily Mirror in his first on-camera interview since Hannah's death, Mr Smith said: "The people that run it should get done for manslaughter or murder because you try contacting them and they don't care.

"These websites should be got rid of, if nothing else they need to be regulated and they need to stop people from doing this.

Hannah and her best friend Georgia Clarke (R)

"If David Cameron was sitting here now I would want to know why he hasn't done something about this six, 12 - two years ago. Modern technology has gone on but the laws have stuck the same."

Ask.fm allows users to post anonymous questions and messages but has been criticised for not doing enough after several other teenagers took their lives - apparently after receiving abuse on the site.

Hannah committed suicide after repeated messages encouraging her to kill herself and criticising her appearance.

Mr Smith and Hannah's stepmother Deborah said people needed to think more about the effect of their online posts as it emerged their elder daughter Jo has also been the target of abuse on the site.

"How could you?", Mrs Smith said. "People need to stop and think. You can't just sit behind a keyboard and type something and think that doesn't matter. There's a complete lack of emotional intelligence."

Mr Smith added: "There's something not right with the world today that people can tell someone to die so many times that they actually do it."

David Smith with elder daughter Jo

He described his younger daughter was a "bubbly person" and a "pleasure to be around" and revealed he had intervened in the past to stop her being bullied at school.

He also said, on the night before she died, Hannah had told him: "Goodnight Dad, I love you."

"I was 50 miles away in a lorry," said Mr Smith, describing how he found out about her death.

"My brother turned round to me and said 'Hannah's hung herself' and I said 'is she dead?', and he said 'yeah'. I just broke down and turned the lorry round as fast as I could to get back."

Kiran, another youngster who has suffered cyberbullying, told Sky News: "I felt like I was drowning, like I was sinking because all these words were coming in and I had pressures from exams and everything was building up and the cyberbullying really got to me.

"I thought I had people there to help me and support me and actually my own peers were not there to support me they were pushing me down."

He added: "There were times when I felt I didn't want to be here any more."

Hannah received messages criticising her appearance

The Prime Minister promised the Government would look at any action it can take to stop future tragedies like Hannah's death, which he called "an absolutely appalling case".

He also said: "The people that operate these websites have to step up to the plate and show some responsibility.

"There's something all of us as parents and users of the internet can do and that is not use some of these vile sites: boycott them, don't go there, don't join them."

And he warned that people online were not above the law and could be punished for inciting anyone to do harm or become violent.

Ask.fm, based in Latvia, has called Hannah's death a "true tragedy" and said it is cooperating with Leicestershire Police's investigation.

In a statement the site said it actively "encourages users and their parents to report any incidences of bullying", either by using the in-site reporting button, or via the website's contact page.

"All reports are read by our team of moderators to ensure that genuine concerns are heard and acted upon immediately - and we always remove content reported to us that violates our Terms of Service," the statement added.

:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 08457 90 90 90 or email jo@samaritans.org.

:: BeatBullying.org is also available for advice and support.

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Outcry As Girl Called 'Sex Predator' By Judge

A paedophile who avoided jail after a judge and prosecutor described his 13-year-old victim as "predatory" in court could have his sentence reviewed.

Neil Wilson, 41, was handed an eight-month suspended sentence and walked free from court on Monday.

But the case has prompted an outcry from children's charities and his sentence is now being examined by the Attorney General's office.

It will decide whether it should ask the Court of Appeal to consider whether the punishment was unduly lenient.

Prosecutor Robert Colover reportedly told Snaresbrook Crown Court in London: "The girl is predatory in all her actions and she is sexually experienced."

Passing sentence, Judge Nigel Peters then said he had taken into account that the girl looked and behaved "a little bit older" than she was.

"The girl was predatory and was egging you on. That is no defence when dealing with children but I am prepared to impose a suspension," he said. 

Wilson, now living in York, had watched the girl strip out of her school uniform at his home in Romford, Essex, before she performed a sex act on him.

He admitted two counts of making extreme pornographic images and one count of sexual activity with a child.

Judge Peters told Wilson: "Allowing her to visit your home is something we have to clamp down on and in normal circumstances that would mean a significant term in prison."

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has said the language used by its prosecutor was "inappropriate".

A spokesman said: "The transgressor in this case was the defendant and he bears responsibility for his criminal acts."

More than 4,000 people have already signed a petition set up by a campaigner working on behalf of sex abuse victims calling for a review.

She wrote on the Change.org website: "I'm a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. I could have been that 13-year-old girl who the judge and prosecutor described as 'predatory'.

"I have seen first-hand how this kind of victim-blaming prevents women from coming forward and protects men who commit these crimes."

Caroline Criado-Perez

The NSPCC warned that the case was part of a wider pattern about how child sex abuse cases are treated in the courts.

Alan Wardle, head of corporate affairs, said: "It was quite clear in the case the predator was the man who was in the dock, not a 13-year-old child, and it is quite clear that a 13-year-old child cannot be complicit in her own abuse.

"Making sure that judges and barristers in all these cases are properly trained and understand the nature of child sexual abuse and how children are groomed in these sort of cases is important."

A spokesman for Barnardo's added: "It is plain wrong to imply in any way that the experiences of sexually exploited children are something they bring on themselves."

Caroline Criado-Perez, who received rape threats following her calls for Jane Austen to be the face on the £10 bank note, called the judge's decision "completely appalling".

She told Sky News: "It's really worrying that we're in the 21st century and we're still suggesting victims can be complicit in their abuse which is basically what calling a 13-year-old child a sexually predator is.

"I don't think you can ever call a child a sexual predator because they are a child. They are below the age of consent. We have laws specifically because of this kind of thing so that you can't say a child is responsible for her abuse.

"This adds to the horror that has happened to her. She has been abused and now we are blaming her for it. It's just unconscionable."

The Attorney General said a decision on whether the case is referred to the Court of Appeal will be made within 28 days.

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Violent Twitter Abuse: Man, 32, Arrested

Police have arrested a 32-year-old man in connection with violent abuse on Twitter directed at a female MP and a campaigner.

The suspect was held in Bristol following allegations made by Labour MP Stella Creasy and campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez.

He will be questioned at a local police station on suspicion of committing an offence under the Protection from Harassment Act.

Ms Criado-Perez received threats online after campaigning to have Jane Austen as the face on the £10 bank note.

Ms Creasy became a target after expressing her support, and has since been leading a "Take Back Twitter" campaign.

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Owners Of Killer Dogs May Face Life In Prison

The owners of killer dogs could face life in prison - an increase from the current maximum of two years - under new sentencing proposals.

Higher sentences for owners who allow their dogs to attack members of the public have been put out by the Government for consultation.

Life imprisonment is one option, while 10 years is the maximum term suggested for the owner of a dog which injures a person or kills an assistance dog, such as a guide dog for the blind.

Some 16 people have been killed by dangerous dogs since 2005, including 14-year-old Jade Anderson who was savaged by four dogs as she was visiting the home of a friend near Wigan in March.

Animal welfare minister Lord de Mauley said: "Dog attacks are terrifying and we need harsh penalties to punish those who allow their dog to injure people while out of control."

In February, the Government said it would introduce new measures to tackle out-of-control dogs by changing the law to ensure owners can be prosecuted regardless of where their dog attacks.

Jade Anderson was savaged by four dogs at a house near Wigan

The new consultation will run to September 1 and will be used to inform recommendations put forward in the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents postmen and women and telecoms engineers, who suffer around 5,000 dog attacks each year, welcomed the consultation.

CWU general secretary Billy Hayes said: "Current sentencing arrangements do not match the serious nature of offences.

"Sixteen people have been killed since 2005 by dogs, yet the maximum prison sentence is just two years.

"Only one person has ever been imprisoned for a dog attack on a postal worker and as the fatality rate from dog attacks grows, sentencing must get tougher."

Last month, Jade Anderson's parents, along with the parents of four-year-old John Paul Massey, who died after his uncle's pitbull attacked him in 2009, handed in a petition at 10 Downing Street calling for David Cameron to take action to prevent more attacks.

They called for preventative measures and education to put a stop to the 210,000 attacks and 6,000 hospital visits caused by dangerous dogs each year.

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Python Attack: Snake Kills Two Sleeping Boys

A python that escaped from a pet shop has killed two children by asphyxiating them in their sleep in eastern Canada.

The two boys - named locally as Noah Barthe, five, and his brother Connor, seven - were having a sleepover at their best friend's flat in the town of Campbellton when they were attacked by the snake.

The animal had escaped from the Reptile Ocean pet shop run by family friend Jean-Claude Savoie, located on the ground floor of the building.

Police outside the exotic pet store in Campbellton (Pic: CBC News)

The shop specialises in exotic pets.

Police said the African rock python entered the upstairs apartment via the two-storey building's ventilation system.

The boys were sleeping in the living room when they were attacked by the snake early on Monday morning.

"The preliminary investigation has led police to believe that a large exotic snake had escaped its enclosure at the store," the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in a statement.

An example of an African rock python (file pic)

"(It) got into the ventilation system, then into the upstairs apartment. It's believed the two boys were strangled by the snake."

The boys' mother, Mandy Trecartin, lives close to the Reptile Ocean store.

Mr Savoie told Global News that he found a "horrific scene" when he checked on the boys at about 6am.

Connor Barthe (L) and Noah Barthe (Pic: Facebook / Mandy Trecartin)

"I thought they were sleeping and I've seen the hole in the ceiling, (and) everything has fallen. I turn the lights on and I've seen this horrific scene," Mr Savoie said.

"I have so many mixed emotions right now. I can't believe this is real."

The python has been recaptured.

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