Air France Flight 447 captain not in the cockpit

The flight recorders from Air France Flight 447, which crashed into the Atlantic in June 2009, reveal that the captain was not in the cockpit when the aircraft began its fateful descent. Instead, the plane’s two co-pilots were at the controls. Pilots on long flights often take turns at the controls to rest and remain alert. The revelation comes as part of the ongoing crash investigation being conducted by the French agency, BEA. The flight recording devices were recently recovered from the bottom of the ocean. They also indicated that the plane...

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The Serbian president has confirmed that alleged war criminal Ratko Mladic has been arrested following an anonymous tip-off.

Mladic, now 68, is accused of masterminding the 44-month siege of Sarajevo that left 10,000 people dead in 1995 and the massacre in July of the same year of around 8,000 Muslim men and boys at Srebrenica.He was the most prominent Bosnian war crimes suspect at large since the arrest of Radovan Karadzic in 2008.Mladic had managed to evade capture for sixteen yearsSerbian President Boris Tadic confirmed that Mladic had been arrested and said that "all war criminals must face justice."He said: "This is the result of cooperation of Serbia with the Hague...

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The tycoons of Europe's troubled southern periphery are buying up homes in London's billionaire enclaves and shifting cash to the City's banks as they flee the euro zone's debt crisis.

Estate agents report buyers from Spain, Italy and Greece are muscling in on the residential market in London's elite neighbourhoods such as Mayfair and Belgravia, joining established colonies of rich Russians, Indians and Gulf Arabs.Data from upmarket British property consultant Savills (SVS.L) shows that buyers from Spain, Italy and Greece have increased their share of property purchases in central London's smartest neighbourhoods since the start of the year."Southern European numbers seem to have increased," said Yolande Barnes, head of Savills...

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Spanish police have foiled the sale of combat helicopters and other military materials to Iran and Venezuela

Spanish police have foiled the sale of combat helicopters and other military materials to Iran and Venezuela, police said Thursday.Police detained five Spanish businessmen, who operated under the cover of an aircraft repair company, and three Iranians.The Iranians had travelled to Spain apparently to seal the sale of nine US-made Bell-212 combat helicopters, which are used for transporting troops and weapons. Their sale to Iran would have violated United Nations' sanctions against the country.The helicopters were kept at warehouses near Madrid...

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New York police have denied reports of finding DNA traces from Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former IMF chief, on a maid's clothes.

Investigators had so far given "no result and no information" about the DNA test results, they said on Tuesday, following news reports earlier that the DNA tests had given a positive result.A spokesman from the New York Police Department denied that the results from the genetic testing had been released.On Monday a spokeswoman from the prosecutor's office would not comment on the report saying there would be "nothing until the trial."Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, faces sexual assault charges over the alleged...

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Cannes film festival organisers have banned Lars von Trier from their event

Cannes film festival organisers have banned Lars von Trier from their event after he caused a furore by joking about being a Nazi at a press conference to promote his new film, Melancholia.The Cannes board of directors declared the Danish director, formerly a festival favourite as much for his outspoken persona as his taboo-breaking films, "persona non grata, with effect immediately" following a bizarre performance in front of the media on Wednesday when he declared he had sympathy for Adolf Hitler."Cannes provides artists with an exceptional forum...

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Good Cannes – a festival with confidence, glamour, conspicuous wealth and a spring in its step.

No matter by what criteria you choose to judge it, this has been a good Cannes – a festival with confidence, glamour, conspicuous wealth and a spring in its step. Some years the sunshine, the enthusiasm of the crowds and the glamour of the red carpet processions can seduce you into thinking that everything seems fine; yet those elements can mask problems behind the scenes, and an industry gritting its teeth against hard times.No one can say that about Cannes 2011. In the market, below stairs in the imposing Palais, where the festival’s most important...

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Strauss-Kahn believes he was victim of Russian plot to have him sacked as head of IMF, French politician reveals

An author linked to Dominique Strauss-Kahn today claimed he 'loved sex', but dismissed the sexual assault allegations against him.Spanish-born writer Carmen Llera, 58, is said to have had a two-year relationship with Strauss-Kahn between 2003 and 2005 and a picture has been circulated of the two of them walking in Paris.In 2008 she published a book of poems in French and Italian called Gaston, which is said to have hinted at the relationship she had with the former IMF chief.Scapegoat: Carmen Llera, pictured with her then husband Alberto Moravia...

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France is ‘by far’ the leading foreign location with British buyers looking overseas,

France is ‘by far’ the leading foreign location with British buyers looking overseas, according to a leading property expert.  Charles Weston-Baker, the head of international property at high net worth agents Savills, has identified France as the leading location in ‘a new world order of property ownership’.The most recent Global Residential Review from Savills reported that property prices in France doubled between 2000 and 2007 before falling by 11 per cent and then stabilising.  Mr Weston-Baker told Country Life: “Most of our enquiries...

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Angela Merkel’s words about Portugal, Spain and Greece can only be understood in the context of the customary frivolity of election campaigns.

We’re going to pay a very high price for this populist and xenophobic drift that is spreading through the European Union. We are destroying more than five decades of peace and development. And the rich nations of Europe have a special responsibility.Angela Merkel’s words about Portugal, Spain and Greece can only be understood in the context of the customary frivolity of election campaigns. The German Chancellor threw some wood on the fire that is already burning far too enthusiastically and dangerously.The German Chancellor’s message on Tuesday...

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Banderas, Almodovar reunite in Cannes hit

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Dominique Strauss-Kahn resigned Wednesday as head of the International Monetary Fund

Dominique Strauss-Kahn resigned Wednesday as head of the International Monetary Fund after explosive accusations that he had sexually attacked a housekeeper in a Midtown Manhattan hotel room.“It is with infinite sadness that I feel compelled today to present to the Executive Board my resignation from my post of managing director of the I.M.F.,” he said in a statement dated Wednesday and issued shortly after midnight by the I.M.F. “I think at this time first of my wife — whom I love more than anything — of my children, of my family, of my friends.”His...

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New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg defended his city's police for parading a handcuffed Dominique Strauss-Kahn before the media after some French politicians voiced outrage over the IMF chief's "perp walk."

The International Monetary Fund managing director, considered a front-runner for the French presidency, was arrested over the weekend and charged with attempting to rape a hotel maid in New York. Police transporting him from a jail cell to the courthouse walked him briefly in front of a battery of cameras on Sunday night with his hands cuffed behind the back. "I think it is humiliating, but if you don't want to do the perp walk, don't do the...

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The arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on charges of sexually assaulting a hotel cleaning woman in New York City is a personal humiliation for the French politician

The arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn on charges of sexually assaulting a hotel cleaning woman in New York City is a personal humiliation for the French politician, but it is also a black mark on the International Monetary Fund that chose to overlook his previous sexual behavior. It will be fascinating to see how the grandees of French and international financial politics handle this one. Mr. Strauss-Kahn is entitled to the presumption of innocence,...

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Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s alliance with his key Northern League ally suffered a setback after losses in Italian local voting

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s alliance with his key Northern League ally suffered a setback after losses in Italian local voting, raising the chances of an early national election. Milan Mayor Letizia Moratti, Berlusconi’s candidate, trailed rival Giuliano Pisapia 41.6 percent to 48 percent in the race to control city hall in the premier’s hometown, preliminary results showed. The two will face a runoff May 29-30. Piero Fassino, of the opposition...

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Carla Bruni's father-in-law has revealed that France's First Lady is indeed pregnant.

The statement ends weeks of speculation in which the 43-year-old wife of Nicolas Sarkozy has kept the public guessing whether her long-awaited baby was on the way. Speaking to German newspaper Bild, Pal Sarkozy, 82, said: 'I'm glad to be having a grandchild.' According to the interview Sarko senior added that neither the president nor his wife 'want to know the sex the child, but I'm sure it's a girl who'll be as beautiful as Carla'. Spilling...

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The owner of a superyacht worth more than £7 million watched as his vessel was destroyed by fire.

The Mexican multi-millionaire had been preparing to take delivery of the 111.5ft Sunseeker yacht from the luxury boatyard where it was being worked on.More than 50 firefighters battled through the night to control the blaze in Poole Quay, Dorset.The 111.5ft (34-metre) Sunseeker is believed to be owned by an unnamed Mexican business magnate who had taken it to the luxury boatbuilding yard to have work done.The cause of the fire is unknown and the fire service has launched an investigation. One theory is that a lightning strike could have set it...

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Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo's apartment in Alcochete, near Lisbon, was raided by armed police after he unwittingly rented it out to an alleged violent criminal.

Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo's apartment in Alcochete, near Lisbon, was raided by armed police after he unwittingly rented it out to an alleged violent criminal. According to The Sun, the pre-dawn swoop was part of an investigation into a series of carjackings and cash machine raids."The police brought out a guy in handcuffs and black bags and took things from the garage," a neighbour said."Three guys lived there. They were always driving different, powerful cars," he added. The 26-year-old had bought the two-storey flat in 2008 while...

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