Australia

Uber driver ‘admits murdering UK Embassy worker’ in Beirut

Rebecca Dykes, 30, was found strangled to death in a dumpster outside Beirut
Uber driver Tarek Hess..

Rebecca Dykes, 30, was found strangled to death in a dumpster outside Beirut
Uber driver Tarek Hesso, 35, was arrested at 3am in the Lebanese capital today
Suspect is said to have admitted carrying out the attack, according to local news

By Martin Robinson, Uk Chief Reporter For Mailonline

Published: 02:04 EST, 18 December 2017 | Updated: 18:05 EST, 18 December 2017

Rebecca Dykes (pictured) was abducted after leaving a party in Beirut

The heartbroken family of a British diplomat who was allegedly raped before she was murdered in Beirut today said she was 'irreplaceable' and they will 'never recover'.

Rebecca Dykes, 30, was abducted after leaving a party in the Lebanese capital on Friday night.

Her body was reportedly found in a dumpster by the roadside and officials are investigating whether she was sexually assaulted before the attack.

A 35-year-old Uber driver, identified as Tarek Hesso, was arrested in a 3am raid on Monday. He has previously served several prison sentences.

Ms Dykes' family today said she was 'simply irreplaceable and we will never fully recover from this loss', in a statement released by the Foreign Office.

According to Lebanon's NNA agency, Hesso admitted picking the diplomat up in his taxi, attempting to rape her and then strangling her before ditching her body.

The body of the former public schoolgirl was found by a motorway on Saturday evening several miles from the nightspot where she was last seen alive.

Investigators told MailOnline Hesso is 35 but a second senior security official in Lebanon said the suspect was aged 41 and had been arrested on drug-related charges in the period 2015-17.

A police official said today that the suspect was traced through security cameras that showed his car driving from Beirut to the area where Dykes' body was found, just north of the Lebanese capital.

'He was detained at his apartment,' the official said, adding that the suspect is a Lebanese citizen.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said the suspect is a taxi driver who picked up the woman from Beirut's Gemayze neighborhood, known for its restaurants and pubs, then drove to a nearby neighborhood where she lived but did not drop her off there.

Instead, the suspect drove the car to the site where Dykes' body was later found. NNA said the man tried to sexually assault her, then strangled her with a rope. The police have not confirmed those details.

This chilling image was drawn by a local artist to try and help identify her and she was recognised after the sketch

Rebecca Dykes, a UK diplomat who worked at the British embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, has been found dead

Police are investigating whether Ms Dykes (pictured), 30, was sexually assaulted before her body was found

Rebecca Dykes was said to have been at a leaving party at the Demo nightclub (pictured) in Beirut before she went missing

The driver then 'tried to rape her and when she resisted he strangled her… took her wallet and threw her in a dumpster,' an official said.

The murder has shaken Lebanon, where such crimes, particularly against foreigners, are relatively uncommon.

Earlier, a forensics official told The Associated Press that the woman was strangled with a rope.

Ms Dykes (pictured) started working for the government in 2010 and started working as a programme and policy manager in Lebanon since January

Lebanese police have launched an investigation following the discovery on Saturday evening.

One security source said the diplomat was found with 'a piece of string around her neck'.

Miss Dykes worked for the Department for International Development as a programme and policy manager and moved to Beirut in January.

In a statement, her family said last night: 'We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Rebecca. We are doing all we can to understand what happened.'

The diplomat, who was understood to be planning to fly home for Christmas on Saturday, had been at a leaving party for a British embassy colleague at a bar in the Gemmayzeh area of central Beirut.

She left alone just after midnight and is thought to have been abducted minutes later.

Police sources gave the cause of death as strangulation following a post-mortem examination, but added that another test is to be carried out.

Ms Dyke is believed to have gone missing in the Gemmayzeh district at about midnight after a night out on Friday. Her body was found on Saturday evening

Such crime is rare in the Lebanese capital, a city which is considered generally safe, including for tourists and foreign residents.

One official involved in the investigation said: 'Our first impression is that it's not politically motivated.'

He said her body was found 'on the side of the Emile Lahoud road', east of central Beirut.

One friend said: 'It's horrific. We had no idea what happened to her until we got a call today to go to the police station to give statements.'

Hugo Shorter, the British ambassador to Lebanon, said: 'The whole embassy is deeply shocked, saddened by this news. My thoughts are with Becky's family, friends and colleagues for their tragic loss.

'We're providing consular support to her family and working very closely with Lebanese authorities who are conducting a police investigation.'

Miss Dykes was a boarder at Malvern St James girls' school in Worcestershire and then spent two years at Rugby School, one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.

She graduated in social anthropology at Manchester University in 2008.

Miss Dykes then completed a master's degree in international security and global governance at Birkbeck, University of London.

She joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2010 and worked in Iraq as a research analyst before working in Libya as a policy manager.

On her LinkedIn page she described herself as 'skilled in conflict, international relations, civil society and humanitarian assistance'.

Her body was found on Saturday close to the Metn expressway (pictured) in Lebanon's capital

Miss Dykes spent four years in Hong Kong, teaching English to teenagers. She also worked as a human rights monitor, translating documents from Chinese to English.

Since her death, friends and colleagues spoke of their shock at her murder.

Bilal Al Ayoubi wrote on Twitter: 'What a great loss. The ugly face of life is when someone dedicates her life to working for peace and stability in the world gets murdered in such brutality…very sad.

'She was such a sweet and kind lady who took her job seriously and cared about Lebanon's stability.'

One friend, Brooke Anderson, wrote on Facebook: 'Simply in shock. We will miss you, Becky.'

The incident is the latest to highlight the issue of safety at Uber, which was stripped of its operating licence in London in September over concerns about its approach to reporting serious criminal offences and background checks on drivers.

A spokesman for Uber said in an email: 'We are horrified by this senseless act of violence. Our hearts are with the victim and her family. We are working with authorities to assist their investigation in any way we can.'

London police complained in April that Uber was either not disclosing, or taking too long to report, serious crimes including sexual assaults and this put the public at risk. The firm's boss has promised to make things right in the British capital.

And globally, the app has suffered a series of scandals in 2017 as a stream of executives left amid controversies involving allegations of sexual harassment and issues surrounding data privacy and business practices.

Ms Dykes was working in Beirut (pictured) and her body has been found close to the busy road

The company, valued at around $70 billion with investors including Goldman Sachs, has faced bans and protests in countries around the world as it disrupts traditional players who have accused it of cutting corners on safety.

The Foreign Office advises against all travel to several areas in Lebanon, including southern suburbs of Beirut, and all but essential travel to most other areas of the country.

Terror attacks are deemed 'very likely' in the country, and protests in Beirut are common following the US announcement on the status of Jerusalem.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: 'Following the death of a British woman in Beirut, we are providing support to the family. We remain in close contact with local authorities. Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time.'

Under Lebanon's CSSF programme, the UK government has spent millions of pounds supporting the country's armed forces to address 'security threats originating from Syria'.

Cash has also been spent on preventing 'illegal cross border activity' between Lebanon and Syria – an area where jihadists have been active – and assisting local policing.

Last night some expressed concerns that the attack on Miss Dyke might be hushed up by Lebanese authorities.

Rami Cherri wrote on Twitter: 'The lack of coverage on the rape and murder on any Lebanese news channel is disgusting to say the least. In order to have a safer society in this country our mind-set has to change for the better.

'We need to address the rise of rape and murders in Lebanon now. This is inexcusable and inhumane.'

Original Article

Daily Mail

The post Uber driver 'admits murdering UK Embassy worker' in Beirut appeared first on News Wire Now.

Australia

New Species Discovered Online By Botanists

In Australia, researchers discover several unknown carnivorous plants – not in the open air, but on the Internet. Research in front of the screen is now part of everyday life for botanists. Many creatures would otherwise remain undiscovered before they became extinct, they explain.

Social media has become a treasure trove for species researchers: a German-Australian team of scientists did not discover four out of six new carnivorous plants during field research in Western Australia, but identified them on Facebook, Instagram & Co. They were posted there by nature photographers, according to a statement on the study.

Such data, often published accidentally, sometimes intentionally, by hobby photographers and citizen scientists have become a valuable source for biodiversity researchers. And thus of great importance for the protection of many animal and plant species, emphasized Andreas Fleischmann from the Munich State Botanical Collection and the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. “In particular, it would not have been possible for us to determine the distribution areas of very rare species without this additional wealth of data.”

“Race Against Time”

He and his team had described six previously unknown carnivorous sundew species found in Western Australia and published the results of the investigations in the journal Biology. So far, only three species from the so-called Drosera microphylla species complex were known. Although many species are becoming extinct worldwide in the 21st century, new animal and plant species are still being discovered. “A race against time,” emphasized the scientists. Without the intensive work of species researchers, “many creatures would become extinct without ever having been known before”.

In the meantime, there is far more observation data from lay scientists in social media and even in scientific biodiversity databases than data from research collections, especially for the visually conspicuous carnivorous plants, according to a statement from the state collection on the study. For example, a sundew species from South Africa was known from three historical herbarium specimens and seven photos on a Citizen Science website in 2018.

Today there are already 307 observations from 131 amateur researchers interested in nature on the internet platform. “Meanwhile, the number of known herbarium specimens of sundew from South Africa in the scientific collections has remained the same.”

This article is originally published on n-tv.de/wissen

Australia

Australian Open Ban On Russian, Belarusian Flags Sparks Debate

The Australian Open tennis organization today banned the display of Russian and Belarusian flags at the tournament venue, after a man hung the Russian flag in the stands during Sunday’s opening match between Kamilla Rakhimova of Russia and Ukraine. Kateryna Kozlova.

“The flags of Russia and Belarus are prohibited within the Australian Open,” the Australian Tennis Federation said in a statement.

“Our initial policy was that fans could bring them, but they couldn’t use them to disturb. Yesterday we had an incident where a Russian flag was placed next to the track,” the entity said.

“The ban is effective immediately. We will continue to work with the players and fans to ensure the best possible environment to enjoy tennis,” the text added, quoted by the AFP news agency.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, dozens of Russian athletes, teams and federations have been removed from major competitions or forced to participate without a flag.

This new sanction comes in response to a complaint from the Ukrainian Ambassador to Australia and New Zealand, Vasil Miroshnichenko, who last night called on Tennis Australia to take action against the display of these flags.

“We strongly condemn the public display of the Russian flag during Ukrainian tennis player Kateryna Kozlova’s match at the Australian Open,” he tweeted.

“I call on Tennis Australia to immediately implement its ‘neutral flag’ policy,” he added.

Ukrainian Won The Match

The Ukrainian won the match 7-5, 6-7 (8/10), 6-1 and will face American Caty McNally in the second round.

Ambassador Miroshnichenko had requested last week that the tournament completely ban players from Russia and Belarus from participating.

Wimbledon opted for this measure last year and banned players from these two countries in the tournament, which as a result did not count for the rankings by decision of the ATP and WTA.

The Russian embassy in Australia criticized “another example of the unacceptable politicization of the sport” and regretted that, in addition to carrying a neutral flag, its players “cannot be visibly supported by the fans.”

For her part, the Belarusian and world number five Aryna Sabalenka said that she was not opposed to the ban on flags “if everyone felt better like this”, but pointed out that sport “has nothing to do with politics”. .

“It’s not fair. People are dying there,” said Ukrainian tennis player Oleksii Krutykh, who assured that his country’s players were “shocked” by the appearance of Russian flags in the stands.

A Russian banner also appeared on Melbourne’s center court, Rod Laver Arena, during Russian Daniil Medvedev’s match against American Marcos Giron.

“It’s not fair what they’re doing,” said the 22-year-old Krutykh after his first-round loss to Argentine Diego Schwartzman.

“I think the guys who did it (display flags during the Koslova match) were Russians who live here, so they don’t care about what happens in my country,” said the young man, who was out of town when the war broke out. country and settled in Berlin.

“It may be ugly to say it, but if I want to go back to Ukraine, I can go back, but then I can’t leave because I’m 22 years old,” Krutykh explained, referring to the fact that he is of fighting age.

On the other hand, yesterday it became known that Russia and Belarus are off the list of countries that will broadcast the Olympic Games during the period between 2026 and 2032.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that it awarded all audiovisual rights in Europe until 2032 to the European Broadcasting Union and Warner Bros Discovery, which will broadcast in 49 countries and exclude Russia and Belarus, the Sputnik news agency reported.

This article is originally published on ambito.com

Australia

Saudi women in Sydney: Sisters’ bodies lay undiscovered for a month

Australian police are baffled after the bodies of two Saudi women, believed to have lain undiscovered for a month, were found in a Sydney apartment.

Sisters Asra Abdullah Alsehli, 24, and Amaal Abdullah Alsehli, 23, were found dead on 7 June in separate beds at home in the suburb of Canterbury.

Police, who were called to the property for a welfare check, said the women are believed to have died in early May.

But despite “extensive inquiries”, they still do not know how or why.

The sisters moved to Australia from Saudi Arabia in 2017 and may have sought asylum, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Police refused to confirm this, saying they do not comment on residential status.

A human rights organisation said it should be established whether the women fled Saudi Arabia because of domestic violence or harsh laws governing women. However, there is no evidence this is the case.

Police said they had been in contact with the women’s family, which is assisting them with inquiries.

Lina al-Hathloul, head of monitoring and communications at Saudi human rights organisation ALQST, said it “would not be the first case” of Saudi women who were killed abroad after fleeing domestic violence.

“There are no protections for women who are victims of domestic violence in Saudi Arabia, so they flee abroad,” she told the BBC.

She added: “I’m not saying that is the case here, just that we need a thorough investigation. It is frustrating not to have any information.”

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, there had been signs that something was wrong.

Last year, the women told their building manager they thought someone was tampering with their food deliveries, the paper reported.

A plumber who visited the apartment also said he believed there was “something mysterious” going on, and that police had been called in the past over concerns for the women.

New South Wales Police issued a renewed plea to the public on Wednesday, saying “any piece of information” could be the key to solving this case.

The local community is close-knit, police said in a statement, asking anyone who may have known or seen the women to come forward.

A report from Australian current affairs programme Four Corners in 2019 found 80 Saudi women had tried to seek asylum in Australia in recent years. Many of them were fleeing male guardianship laws.

Read from: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-62331116