Vince Cable says coalition break-up “possible”
Vince Cable became the first senior Lib Dem member to intimate that the coalition government could disband before its five-year term is over, says the BBC. In controversial comments at a Lib Dem fringe event, he distanced himself from Nick Clegg saying that it was “certainly possible” that the partnership could come to a premature end. But he added that “we have not yet had those conversations” and the process would have to be driven by the Deputy Prime Minister. Cable told activists yesterday that the Lib Dems would “not be dragged down” by the Tories “ugly” politics.
Washington navy yard killer arrested twice before over guns
A gun rampage at the Washington D.C naval yard left 13 people dead on Monday, the Guardian reports. The FBI named the attacker as Aaron Alexis, a 34-year-old subcontractor and former navy reservist who was discharged in 2011 after a shooting incident while he was stationed at Fort Worth, Texas. The computer firm Hewlett-Packard confirmed that Alexis, who died after a sustained shootout with police and security staff, had clearance to the military complex. Obama lamented “yet another mass shooting” and called it a “cowardly act.” There is no known motive for the attack.
UN confirms worst gas attack in 25 years
UN inspectors confirmed that the use of sarin in the chemical attack in eastern Damascus last month was the worst in 25 years, the Telegraph reports. At the insistence of the Syrian regime, the UN mission was prohibited from identifying the perpetrator, but it did uncover evidence, including specially designed rockets, that is known to be in Bashar al-Assad’s arsenal. Ban Ki-Moon, the UN secretary general, said that the “chilling” report had presented “overwhelming and indisputable evidence” of a “war crime.”
Muslim women must remove veil to give trial evidence
Muslim woman can stand trial wearing a full-face veil, but must remove it to give evidence, a judge ruled yesterday, according to the Independent. The 22-year-old woman who argued that it was against her religious beliefs to remove her niqab in public was overruled by a judge at Blackfriars Crown Court. The woman, who started wearing her veil in May 2012, could be jailed for contempt of court if she refuses to comply.
