Remembrance Day first

Cassie Biggs

• Last Updated: November 13. 2009 6:12PM UAE / November 13. 2009 2:12PM GMT

World leaders joined tens of thousands of people across the world in marking the 91st anniversary of the end of the First World War. Angela Merkel joined the Armistice Day commemorations in Paris, becoming the first German chancellor to do so. The commemorations came days after the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The two events, Mrs Merkel said, were a reminder for the need to fight for “the invaluable goods of peace and freedom”.

Adrift on the ice

An Inuit teenager trapped on a floating ice sheet had to shoot and kill a charging polar bear which was sharing it with him. The 17-year-old had been hunting in Canada’s northern territory with his uncle when one of their snowmobiles broke down. As he went to seek help, the ice he was standing on cracked and began drifting away. After shooting the polar bear he spent three nights enduring temperatures of minus 20°C with her two cubs cowering by their mother’s carcass close by. He was eventually picked up after being spotted by paratroopers from a Hercules transport plane and was treated for hypothermia and frostbite.

UAE takes the helm

The UAE Navy assumed command of a multinational task force in the Gulf responsible for, among other things, co-ordinating anti-smuggling, piracy and trafficking operations. The command, probably the Navy’s largest undertaking, will last for three months. The task force includes frigates, support ships and patrol boats from a number of countries including the US, Britain and Australia as well as GCC members. It is part of a wider force of 24 nations that responds to situations in the Gulf, parts of the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea.

Yellow Sea skirmish

South Korea sent two ships to guard its Yellow Sea maritime border after a skirmish with Pyongyang, the first naval firefight between the two foes in seven years. The South Korean ship fired on the North Korean vessel after it failed to heed a warning not to cross the border, disputed by the North, sparking a return of fire. The North’s ship caught fire and headed back into its own waters. Clashes in the disputed waters also took place in 1999 and 2002.

Kim’s train set

Meanwhile, North Korea’s paranoid leader, Kim Jong Il, has beefed up his security. He refuses to travel on an aeroplane and instead is said to have six armoured luxury trains decked out with conference rooms, satellite phones and other hi-tech equipment. One train carries Kim and his aides, another his bodyguards and personnel. Nineteen stations around the country are for the exclusive use of his trains.

Astronaut sentenced

A former astronaut, who was said to have driven 1,600 kilometres in a nappy so she would not have to stop for bathroom breaks before confronting a rival in love, was sentenced to one year’s probation and 50 hours of community service. Lisa Nowak, who flew on a Discovery mission, will also have to send a letter of apology to Colleen Shipman, the woman she attempted to pepper spray in a car park. Nowak’s lover, Bill Oefelein, also a Nasa astronaut, had left her for Ms Shipman. Nowak, a mother of three, had faced an intent to murder charge but that was dropped. She pleaded guilty to burglary of a car and misdemeanour battery.

Gold gang thwarted

Dubai Police revealed how they foiled the theft of 25 gold bars worth Dh6 million (US$1.6m) within hours of it taking place. A gang of four Mexicans and a Costa Rican had snatched a jeweller’s suitcase at Dubai International Airport, shipped the gold to Costa Rica, driven to Abu Dhabi and jumped on a flight to Hong Kong. But 90 minutes into the flight, police determined they were on the plane and alerted Hong Kong authorities who put them on a return flight. A gold-coloured rental car parked at the Dubai International Airport aroused police suspicions and was traced back to a Mexican. A security check on all Mexicans entering the country threw up a group ticket with the names of the gang members, who had also booked tickets on to Hong Kong. The gold, hidden in electronic equipmenet, was later intercepted in Europe.

Too posh to pay

Hard-up middle-class Britons, keen to hang on to their lavish lifestyle despite a drop in spending power, are apparently behind a surge in shoplifting. According to the Centre for Retail Research, customers stole almost £5 billion (Dh30.6bn) worth of goods in the 12 months to June – more than in any other European country and an increase of 20 per cent on the previous year. Fashion clothing stores saw the highest rise in shoplifting, followed by speciality food and convenience stores. Items stolen included exclusive cheeses and meats.

A hit with customers

Forget yoga or meditation, women in a gritty urban town in north-east China have a new option for releasing their pent-up stress: a human punchbag. Xiao Lin, a gym coach, has already had two customers since he advertised himself as a punchbag, although he has not yet told his family. “By being a punchbag for women, I can make some money and also practise my self-defence skills and work on my fitness at the same time,” he told a local newspaper. Mr Lin charges 100 yuan (Dh54) for 30 minutes. “It does people good to let off some steam.”

Life for court murder

In the same Dresden courthouse where he stabbed Marwa Sherbini to death, Alexander Wiens, a German of Russian parents, was sentenced to life for her murder. Sherbini, an Egyptian, was three months pregnant at the time of the attack. She bled to death in front of her husband, who was also stabbed as he tried to protect her, and her three-year old son. Wiens was in court at the time of the attack to appeal a conviction for insulting Sherbini on racial and religious grounds. The killing led to accusations of Islamphobia in Germany.

US trio face spy trial

Iran threatened to put three Americans who strayed across the border from Kurdish Iraq on trial for spying. Shane Bauer, Joshua Fattal and Sarah Shourd were arrested in July and have since been moved to the notorious Evin jail. The announcement by the government that it had found evidence the three were spies came as negotiators were discussing the Islamic republic’s nuclear ambitions. If found guilty, the three could be sentenced to at least 10 years in jail.

Grande champion

The UAE set out to find its best barista, or coffee maker. Entrants had to make a dozen drinks in 15 minutes, including four espressos, four cappuccinos and four signature drinks, for a panel of seven judges – four sensory, two technical and one head judge – in the country’s first ever such competition. Not surprising considering each UAE resident drinks the equivalent of 3.5kg of coffee a year – nearly twice as much as people in any other GCC country, experts say.

Pitch invasion

Hundreds of fans poured on to the pitch at Zayed Sports City after the UAE beat Manchester City 1-0 after a penalty. It was the first time the English Premier League side had played in front of their new owner, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, and as many as 20,000 people, including 300 travelling fans from Britain, had packed the stadium for the match. Captain Saeed al Kas scored the home side’s goal in the ninth minute.

* The National