France declared state of emergency after Paris attacks.
Police stand outside the Bataclan concert hall (Image courtesy of Getty Images)
At least 140 people have been killed in a series of attacks in Paris after gunmen stormed several locations including various restaurants, the Stade de France, and the Bataclan concert hall. The deadliest attack was at the concert hall, where gunmen randomly fired at people watching a US rock group Eagles of Death Metal. Four attackers were killed after police stormed the concert hall, three of whom had blown themselves up.
Around 40 people were killed in restaurants and bars. The last site of attack was the Stade de France, where French President Hollande and 80 000 spectators were watching a friendly international between France and Germany.
Mr. Hollande later announced a state of emergency for the first time in France since 2005. Public places were closed, and police were been deployed across the city. It is believed that the all the gunmen are dead, but it is unclear whether there are any accomplices on the run.
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Earthquake in Japan causes small tsunami.
The quake occurred at a depth of about 10 km (Image courtesy of JMA)
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off the south-western coast of Japan, triggering a small tsunami. The Japan Meteorological Agency said that a 30 cm tsunami was registered on the southern Nakanoshima island, although the tsunami warning was later lifted.
Approximately 230 000 people have yet to return to their home towns after a massive earthquake in 2011.
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Homeopathy could be placed on blacklist of treatments GPs in England are banned from prescribing.
A consultation will take place to determine whether or not to continue to spend NHS funds on homeopathy (Image courtesy of irishhealing.ie)
Homeopathy is a controversial practice based on the concept that diluting a substance that causes illness has healing properties. For example, pollen could be used to treat hay fever. Common homeopath treatments are used for asthma, hay fever, depression, allergies, and arthritis. Homeopaths believe that the more diluted the pill, the greater the effect. However, critics say patients are being given ineffective sugar tablets. The National Health Service (NHS) has said that there is no good evidence that homeopathy is an effective treatment for any health condition. Homeopathy costs an estimated around four million pounds.
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Traditional Turkish festival banned by government.
The annual World Raki festival which celebrates Turkey’s national drink Raki, was shut down by the Islamic state. The festival was planned to take place in Adana, Turkey on 12 and 13 December. The event attracts 20, 000 people every year. Several religious groups have prevented the celebration to continue this year. The mayor of Adana had expressed that the situation is a way of stripping away freedom and human rights
Raki is a national drink in Turkey. (Image courtesy of Istanbulforfun.com)
Over 4 600 people have signed a petition online asking to overturn the ban. However, a petition demanding that the celebration be cancelled has 800 signatures. Oppositions of Turkey’s leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has said that they fear the country will be overrun by the Islamic state.
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Lost island found by geo-archaeologists.
The ancient city of Kane is located in the Aegean province of Izmir’s Dikili district. (Image courtesy of Thema News.)
A group of geo-archaelogists has discovered a lost island near Kane, an ancient city. The island was found in the Aegean province of the Izmir’s Dikili’s district. Geo-archaelogists from Cologne university and the German Archaeology Institute were involved in studying the peninsula. Many archaeologists from multiple districts and others in the field were involved in locating the island.
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