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| Soldier killed was injured in earlier blast Captain Daniel Read returned to frontline last month after recovering from injuriesThe soldier killed in an explosion in Afghanistan on Monday had been injured in an blast three months ago, the Ministry of Defence said today.He was named as Captain Daniel Read, 31, from 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment, the Royal Logistic Corps. Read, who died in a blast in the Musa Qaleh area of northern Helmand province, returned to the frontline last month.Lieutenant Colonel Gareth Bex, commanding officer of 11 EOD Regiment, paid tribute to Read's "selfless commitment, loyalty and deep-seated courage"."Such was his professionalism and determination that even an injury sustained in a bomb blast in October 2009 could not keep him away for more than two months and he returned to theatre in December 2009. Despite the inherent dangers, Dan was determined to return to Afghanistan – he had a job to finish and a team to rejoin."Read, who went to school in Rainham, Kent, joined the Corps of Royal Engineers in 1996. He dealt with 32 improvised explosive devices in his role on the frontline in Afghanistan."He made the ultimate sacrifice but his actions have saved countless numbers of the lives of both his fellow soldiers and the Afghans whom he fought to protect," Bex said.Read's wife, Lorraine, said: "Dan was so brave, he was my hero and best friend, he was a loving husband, son, brother, uncle and friend. He will never be forgotten and always in my heart."Captain Martin Birch Hansen, officer commanding engineer detachment, Danish Battle Group, said Read decided to avoid the "easy way"."After his injury, I was not surprised when I was told that Dan had re-entered theatre after his recuperation," he said."That was him exactly – not choosing the easy way. He had a job to finish. I will always remember his serious approach to the job in front of him and his humorous approach to just about everything else."MilitaryAfghanistanguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Football magic of George Best dances back Belfast troupe will re-create key moments in the life of the superstarOn the pitch, George Best's dribbles, shimmies, passes and goals were regarded as art in motion. Now a multinational, Belfast-based dance troupe will act out some of Best's greatest moves in a homage to the late Manchester United and Northern Ireland footballer. Maiden Voyage are staging a performance next month in which key moments of Best's life, both on and off the football field, will be laid out in a series of dance moves.Although the first tour of Best takes in only his native Belfast, Derry and four other Northern Ireland towns, the choreographer behind the production said his dream would be for his dancers to perform on the Old Trafford turf where the player once weaved his magic.Scottish choreographer and football fanatic Andy Howitt was putting his dancers, who come from across Europe, through their paces inside the Church of Mary Magdalene in south Belfast last week. A self-confessed "football addict" who supports Dundee United, Howitt said his dancers would act out key moments from Best's life in 1948, 1958, 1968 and 1978. The performance would take Best from his early days on Belfast's Cregagh estate to Manchester, then the European Cup final against Benfica and finally his life in Los Angeles.Howitt described the production as a "labour of love. I chose to do this because people can understand it. They think they know the Best story. They think they know the man. For me it's about being able to show a new way of telling the Best story."Some of the dance moves from the 1958 section of Best's life were inspired by letters he had written to his mother back home, he said. "Some letters were really beautiful, sensitive and show that he is this young man suddenly taken out of his roots in Belfast and now living alone in Manchester. We tried to convey how moving those moments were."The dancers will also reproduce one of the most controversial Best goals of his career – the ball he kicked out of Gordon Banks's hand, then headed into the England net at Windsor Park on 15 May 1971. At the time the England goalkeeper had thrown the ball into the air in order to kick it down field. But Best's guile in outsmarting Banks was unrewarded, as the referee disallowed the goal.Nicola Curry, founder and artistic director of Maiden Voyage, said: "There is no other icon from this part of the world like George Best. We had been talking to Andy about commissioning a piece from him. Being a football obsessive, he thought George would be the ideal subject, and as a company we wanted to find a subject that would appeal to a wider audience."The marriage of dance and football is a very magical one because they are both connected to movement of the body, they require a lot of critical appreciation and interpretation."Curry said that the star's family will attend a rehearsal of the show before a charity project in South Africa supported by the George Best Foundation. The Irish Football Association is also backing the performance, which is funded by the National Lottery, Arts Council and Belfast city council.Howitt, meanwhile, said he was delighted that he had finally brought together his two passions, contemporary dance and football, thanks to the legacy of George Best. "I can now walk into my local and talk about football and dance."Best opens at the Tower Street theatre in Belfast Metropolitan College on 18 February and will then visit Armagh, Derry, Lisburn, Omagh and Downpatrick.Northern IrelandGeorge BestManchester UnitedHenry McDonaldguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Neighbour on murder suspect row A man tells a court how he heard sounds of a woman apparently being strangled in a flat above his. news.bbc.co.uk |
45 Americans claim asylum in Britain Home Office statistics reveal dozens of applications by people claiming persecution in the USThey hail from the land of the free, the home of the brave, a place where it is said anyone can prosper regardless of colour, creed or religion. But dozens of Americans have tried in recent years to gain asylum in the UK by claiming they were persecuted in their homeland, according to figures released to the Guardian under the Freedom of Information Act.Home Office statistics show that between 2004 and 2008, 45 Americans submitted asylum applications to the UK Border Agency claiming they had fled the US and were unable to go back because they had a well-founded fear of persecution. Fifteen Canadians also applied. All 60 were turned down.A US government source said the American applications were most likely submitted by self-declared "political refugees" claiming they faced discrimination under the last administration. The applications from the US peaked in 2008, the final year of George Bush's presidency, when 15 Americans submitted asylum claims.Between 2004 and 2008 there were 132,640 asylum claims made in the UK, according to government statistics.The Home Office refused to reveal the rationale behind the claims or why they were refused, saying a manual search of the records would be required, exceeding the time limit for Freedom of Information requests.But on various online forums, people claiming to be American refugees have outlined their cases. One Texan hoping to be allowed sanctuary in Scotland claimed he had been "persecuted as a political dissident against US government war-mongering".Liza Schuster, an asylum expert from the department of sociology at City University, said: "I don't know the details of those cases, but assume the US citizens are deserting before being sent to somewhere like Afghanistan. With the Canadians I'm really not sure. It is, as is clear from the numbers, pretty unusual – if only because it is relatively easy for those people to leave their countries and settle elsewhere. Why not just apply for a work visa and renew and then apply for leave to remain?"As someone who would not find admission to European countries too difficult, it would only make sense to claim asylum if you feared extradition back to Canada or the US, or if there was some reason you might be refused entry. It is interesting – I'd be curious to know more – not least because in spite of what the law books say, granting asylum is a criticism of the originating state."According to the Home Office figures, most of the US and Canadian applicants were aged between 18 and 59, though a small number of American asylum seekers were over 60.The Refugee Council, the largest organisation in the UK working with asylum seekers and refugees, said it had helped 18 American and two Canadian asylum seekers between 2004 and 2008. The adults ranged in age from 29 to 59 with a mean age of 44. The Americans had nine dependent children aged under 16."In this time this group of clients attended 40 advice sessions and mainly came to see us regarding their entitlement to UKBA asylum support, and issues associated with destitution," said a spokeswoman.Donna Covey, the chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: "No country is safe for every person all of the time. Those with a genuine need for protection, whatever country they are from, should have the right to claim asylum in a place of safety."A small number of Americans have successfully claimed asylum abroad over the past few decades. In 1997 the Netherlands granted asylum to Holly Ann Collins, together with her three children, when they claimed to be fleeing domestic abuse. The family had spent three years living in four different Dutch refugee camps before their application was approved.In June 2008 Texan mother Chere Tomayko and her two daughters were granted asylum in Costa Rica, also on the grounds of abuse.After America went to war in Iraq in 2003 a number of US soldiers deserted and crossed the border to Canada, where they tried to claim asylum.For a number of years Private Bethany Smith has been fighting to stay in Canada, claiming she was persecuted in the army because she is a lesbian.Smith, who now goes by the name Skylar James, told Canadian authorities she was repeatedly harassed and threatened with death, then denied an honourable discharge because her superiors wanted to send her to Afghanistan. In November a senior judge ordered Canada's immigration and refugee board to look again at her case.If you are one of the Americans or Canadians who sought asylum in the UK or you know someone who is, please contact helen.pidd@guardian.co.ukImmigration and asylumFreedom of informationUnited StatesCanadaRefugeesHelen Piddguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Freed child rapist is identified A teenager from Merseyside who stalked and sexually assaulted two little girls is identified after a court order was lifted. news.bbc.co.uk |