#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007061

Mohammed Nassri, a 20-years-old Palestinian living in the West Bank, has successfully tamed some of the worlds most dangerous snakes and make a decent living from them.

For some people, giant and dangerous snakes like pythons are reptiles to be feared. But Mohammed Nassri, a 20-years-old Palestinian living in the West Bank, has successfully tamed some of the world’s most dangerous snakes and make a decent living from them.

A green anaconda, corn snakes, an Indian cobra, Burmese python, and tens of other venomous and non-venomous snakes found a harbor at his home.

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All of them are kept inside a vast room built outside of his house. He provides them with suitable food and heat necessary for their growth.

“When I was only 12 years old, I bought my first small snake. It was a 30-cm corn snake which cost me 50 U.S. dollars from the savings I have been collecting for several months,” the young man told Xinhua, while he was wrapping the yellow snake on his shoulders.

Palestinian Mohammed Nassri holds a snake at his house, in Bir Nabala village south of the West Bank city of Ramallah, on Sept. 29, 2021. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

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Back then, he said, he did not know how to take care of the snakes. So he surfed the Internet for answers.

“I watched dozens of films about reptiles, snakes, and pythons and how we can deal with them without putting ourselves in dangerous situations,” he recalled.

Nassri’s hard work paid off as his “little friend” grew bigger, reaching 70 cm. But then it died, leaving Nassri heartbroken and sad.

“I felt that I lost one of my best friends. I cried a lot, but I decided to buy another one raise it longer and bigger than my first corn snake,” he recalled.

Nassri spent a whole year saving enough move to buy a non-venomous Burmese python. It was 60-cm long, but with good food and conditions, it grew to be as long as four meters.

Palestinian Mohammed Nassri holds a snake at his house, in Bir Nabala village south of the West Bank city of Ramallah, on Sept. 29, 2021. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)

“I sold it for 1,300 U.S. dollars and I made some hundreds of dollars when I was 15 years old. It was a great emotion for me and I was so proud of myself,” he said.

It was when Nassri realized that he could turn his hobby into a business. Initially, he bought chicken snakes, whom he raised for months before selling them and making some 5,000 dollars.

Then, in order to be “unique and special,” he decided to buy the heaviest and most dangerous snakes, including anaconda python, rock python, and reticulated python. Later, he also purchased the Indian cobra and tens of other snakes.

“Currently, I possess ten big snakes, as well as dozens of small snakes and I managed to tame all of them,” he said.

To feed them, the young man, who is now a student of business administration at Birzeit University, established a small farm, where he raises rats and rabbits that are being fed to the reptiles.

Yet, Nassri’s dream does not stop at that. Now he is planning to raise venomous snakes and use their venom for medical purposes, especially to develop anti-snake vaccines.

His dreams, however, collide with the daily Palestinian reality. There are no scientific laboratories that would extract antibodies from snake venom.

“If we have techniques to extract the snake venom, we will sell each gram of it for 4,000 dollars at least,” he said, as he flashed his smile.

After ten years from now, he aspires to establish his own farm that would carry his name, and that would contain all sorts of unique animals and reptiles. He is also hoping this place will end up becoming a tourist attraction.

Palestinian Mohammed Nassri inspects a snake at his house, in Bir Nabala village south of the West Bank city of Ramallah, on Sept. 29, 2021. (Photo by Ayman Nobani/Xinhua)
 

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007060

The European Medicines Agency approved booster doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for all people aged 18 and over, recommending the booster doses be considered at least 6 months after the second dose.

The European Union’s (EU) medicines agency on Monday approved booster doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for all people aged 18 and over.

The Amsterdam-based European Medicines Agency (EMA) said in a statement that data for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine had shown a rise in antibody levels when a booster shot is given approximately 6 months after the second dose in people aged 18 to 55.

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It recommended that the booster doses “may be considered at least 6 months after the second dose for people aged 18 years and older.”

Meanwhile, the EMA also recommended an extra dose of Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines for those with severely weakened immune systems.

A medical worker administers a booster COVID-19 vaccine shot to a recipient at Santo Spirito hospital in Rome, Italy, Sept. 21, 2021. (Photo by Alberto Lingria/Xinhua)

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The EMA said that it had given the green light after studies showed that an extra dose of these vaccines increases the ability of organ transplant patients with severely weakened immune systems to produce antibodies against the virus that causes COVID-19.

The extra dose should be given to the severely immune-compromised at least 28 days after their second dose, the EMA said.

“Although there is no direct evidence that the ability to produce antibodies in these patients protected against COVID-19, it is expected that the extra dose would increase protection at least in some patients,” it said, adding that it will continue monitoring any new data on its effectiveness.

The EU agency also added: “The risk of inflammatory heart conditions or other very rare side effects after a booster is not known and is being carefully monitored.”

Member states will take decisions related to booster vaccines, according to the EMA. 

A medical worker registers for a recipient who will receive the booster COVID-19 vaccine at Santo Spirito hospital in Rome, Italy, Sept. 21, 2021. (Photo by Alberto Lingria/Xinhua)

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007059

Fumio Kishida, leader of Japans ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), was elected on Monday as the new prime minister, the 100th in the Asian countrys political history, forming a new cabinet expected to aim to promote economic recovery while keeping COVID-19 infections under control.

In the parliamentary extraordinary session, the 64-year-old received 311 of 458 votes in the House of Representatives and 141 of 241 votes in the House of Councillors, as the LDP-led coalition has a majority in both chambers.

“This is the real starting point. I will go forth with a strong sense of determination, with a strong resolution,” he said at the LDP’s headquarters in Tokyo in the morning.

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In his cabinet, Kishida appointed 13 first-timers of the ministerial post, including economic and fiscal policy minister Daishiro Yamagiwa and Takayuki Kobayashi, who would take a new post for economic security with a responsibility to craft a national strategy designed to end the drain of intellectual property from Japan.

There are three women in the new Cabinet, vaccination minister Noriko Horiuchi, administrative reform minister Karen Makishima, and Seiko Noda, minister in charge of gender equality and establishing a new agency for children’s policy.

Fumio Kishida, leader of Japan

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Former education minister Hirokazu Matsuno became chief Cabinet secretary, and former environment minister Shunichi Suzuki would replace his brother-in-law Taro Aso as finance minister of the country.

Moreover, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi retained their current posts.

Kishida’s first major test as prime minister will be the upcoming general election. He is planning to hold the vote on Oct. 31, and campaigning for members of the House of Representatives is set to begin on Oct. 19. To excite voters in order to obtain a strong mandate to govern, Kishida will need to change his image as a low-key consensus builder.

As Japan’s COVID-19 infections declined recently, and nearly 60 percent of Japan’s population received a second shot of the COVID-19 vaccine, the new prime minister will have to first handle tasks of gradually lifting the restrictions on social and business activities and opening the border to foreign travelers.

Fumio Kishida (R), leader of Japan

Kishida has promised to increase middle-class incomes and reduce wealth disparity under his “new form of capitalism”, which is viewed as a break from the “neoliberal policies” that the Japanese government has pursued over the past two decades.

In addition, he said that an economic package worth “tens of trillions of yen” is in preparation to help people and businesses suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kishida served as Japan’s foreign minister from 2012 to 2017 and had also worked as the policy chief of the ruling LDP. He won the presidential election of the ruling LDP over his contender Taro Kono on Sept. 29, securing 257 votes over Kono’s 170 votes in a runoff.

His predecessor Yoshihide Suga did not seek re-election, saying that he wanted to concentrate on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic for the rest of his tenure.

Suga’s cabinet resigned en masse on Monday morning, little more than a year after its formation, making him the 12th shortest-serving prime minister in the postwar era. 

Fumio Kishida (L), leader of Japan

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007041

Services of Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp had suffered outages likely due to an issue of the servers.

Global users on Monday experienced outages on Facebook, including social networks the company owns, such as Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp.

Service has not yet been restored. Navigation to these websites lead to the prompt of server error. Instagram shows a “5xx server error.”

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The sign indicates that this is an issue with Facebook’s servers, according to a report by TechCrunch.

It appears that the outage is caused by a DNS (domain name server) fail, the report said.

Users are also unable to send messages or load new content on the mobile apps for these platforms.  

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007037

The U.K. will produce electricity only from renewable and nuclear sources by 2035 under plans set out by Prime Minister Boris Johnsons government.

With the country grappling with a crisis that has driven natural gas and power prices to record highs and forced the collapse of a number of suppliers, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng announced plans to further cut Britain’s reliance on fossil fuels. He told a conference of the ruling Conservative party on Monday that nuclear power has to be part of the solution in the U.K. energy mix.

Fossil fuel power generation in the U.K. has fallen to unprecedented low levels, as coal stations are shut down and investment in wind and solar power increases. More than half of the electricity now comes from low-carbon sources. But the country remains heavily reliant on gas, and Kwarteng wants that share to reduce.

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“What we’re saying is that by 2035 we won’t have any fossil fuels,” he said, referring to power production. “We’ll have removed gas hopefully, as well as coal.”

A bigger share of renewables and nuclear energy will also make the country less dependent on imports, Johnson told broadcasters at the party conference in Manchester.

“The advantage of that is that it will mean that, for the first time, the U.K. is not dependent on hydrocarbons coming from overseas with all the vagaries in hydrocarbon prices and the risk that poses for people’s pockets and for the consumer,” he said.

The Climate Change Committee, which advises the government on meeting its targets, said that gas use shouldn’t go unabated after 2035. That means the U.K. will need to step up its investment in carbon capture and storage technology.

Kwarteng has promised to set out a strategy this month for how the U.K. will reach net-zero emissions by 2050. He’s also expected to unveil a long-awaited plan on how to decarbonize the country’s heat supply.

The U.K. says net zero will be hard to reach without nuclear power, but atomic stations are expensive and take years to build. The government committed in December to financing at least one large-scale nuclear project by 2025.

But it has been trying to hammer out a deal with Electricite de France for almost 10 months. Things have also been complicated by the government exploring ways to remove state-owned developer China General Nuclear Power Corp. from all future projects in the U.K., Bloomberg reported in July.

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007036

In the course of a single day, an exceptionally rare hurricane-strength storm unloaded up to four years worth of rain along Omans northern coast, causing deadly flooding.

Named Tropical Cyclone Shaheen, the tempest slammed ashore late Sunday, about 50 miles to the west of Muscat, Oman’s capital city, and very close to the coastal towns of Al Suwayq and Al Masnaah.

The storm has since departed, but not before leaving 11 dead in Oman, according to the Associated Press, mostly because of flash flooding and landslides. The storm was also blamed for two fatalities in Iran, where the bodies of two fishermen were found.

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The Times of Oman reported that up to 14.5 inches fell in Al Khaburah, which is just to the west of where the storm came ashore. The city of about 40,000 people averages between three and four inches of rain per year.

Several nearby locations received more than eight inches of rain. Al Suwayq registered about a foot, with 4.5 inches falling in just six hours.

Muscat’s Seeb International Airport received 3.7 inches in 24 hours Sunday, which is about its average annual rainfall. The airport clocked wind gusts up to 51 mph, but the most severe winds almost certainly occurred in areas to the west that were intercepted by Shaheen’s eyewall, the ring of intense thunderstorms surrounding the storm’s calm center, closer to Al Suwayq.

As the storm crossed the coast, its maximum sustained winds were around 75 mph, equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane. Waves were predicted to be 30 to 40 feet high over the Gulf of Oman before Shaheen’s landfall along Oman’s central-northeast coast.

Scenes from social media showed floodwaters and landslides overwhelming the region. The Times of Oman’s live updates on the storm described blocked and flooded roads, people trapped in vehicles, building collapses and overflowing dams. The desert landscape and its infrastructure are unaccustomed to so much rain in a short duration.

Shaheen was the first tropical cyclone to make landfall along Oman’s northern coast since 1890 and only the third on record. None have been observed in the era of weather satellites (since the 1960s) or during the month of October. According to meteorologists Bob Henson and Jeff Masters, writing for Yale Climate Connections, it struck farther west in Oman than any previous tropical cyclone.

Henson and Masters wrote that Shaheen fed off the very warm waters of the Gulf of Oman, which were between 84 and 88 degrees, several degrees above normal. Ocean temperatures have been rising worldwide because of human-caused climate change.

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007030

WASHINGTON – A high-stakes standoff between Democrats and Republicans over how to raise the debt ceiling intensified markedly on Monday as President Joe Biden said he could not guarantee that the U.S. government wouldnt default – and Republicans reiterated their refusal to address the issue.

The brinkmanship played out over a series of tersely worded letters and statements between Congress and the White House, with three of the most powerful political leaders in Washington all trying to assign early blame if they do not avert the outcome in the next two weeks. Democrats and Republicans agree that the consequences of inaction would be financially calamitous, but they are at odds over how to proceed.

At the center of the fight is an insistence by Republicans that Democrats alone should be responsible for raising the debt ceiling, with Republicans saying they do not want to help Democrats increase spending. Democrats counter that the debt ceiling must be raised to pay trillions of dollars that has already been promised, bills that increased precipitously during the Trump administration.

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The controversy over the debt ceiling comes amid a political battle in Washington over the budget and spending levels, and Democrats have clashed with one another over how much new spending they should authorize. Biden last week called for Democrats to be patient as they try to unify around a single plan, but those talks will be upended if the debt ceiling is not raised soon, because of the expected economic fallout.

Speaking from the State Dining Room, Biden blasted Republicans for not supporting an increase to the country’s borrowing cap, calling their stance “hypocritical, dangerous and disgraceful.” Twice in the past two weeks, GOP lawmakers led by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have blocked the chamber from taking action that would stave off a default in federal debts, prompting Biden to accuse them of pulling a “reckless” political stunt.

Asked after his speech whether he could guarantee the debt ceiling would be resolved, Biden said: “No, I can’t. That’s up to Mitch McConnell.”

Biden’s comments came shortly after McConnell issued a fiery statement accusing Democrats in Congress of “sleepwalking toward significant and avoidable danger.” In a letter to Biden, the GOP leader added that Republicans have made clear for months now that they would not support an increase to the debt ceiling, as part of their broader opposition to the president’s roughly $4 trillion economic agenda. Instead, McConnell called on Democrats to address the issue on their own.

“For two and a half months, we have simply warned that since your party wishes to govern alone, it must handle the debt limit alone as well,” he said.

Trying to create new urgency, Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., on Monday informed lawmakers in a letter that they must resolve the looming debt-ceiling cliff “by the end of this week” – even if it meant working through weekends.

“We do not have the luxury of waiting until October 18, as it is our responsibility to reassure the world that the United States meets our obligations in a timely fashion and that the full faith and credit of the United States should never be in question,” Schumer wrote on Monday. “The consequences of even approaching the X date could be disastrous for our economy and devastating to American families.”

Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen has told lawmakers that her agency could run out of flexibility to continue making payments on Oct. 18 if Congress does not act.

The exchanges left the country on an uncertain path. In recent history, the government has come close to defaulting, but Congress has always stepped in after the mere prospect rattled financial markets, springing unsettled lawmakers into action.

The federal government spends much more money than it brings in through revenue, requiring it to borrow the balance by issuing debt. Without a congressional response, economists widely agree a breach risks financial and economic havoc, with the federal government potentially forced to miss payments, such as Social Security checks to seniors. A default could even plunge the U.S. back into a recession only months after emerging from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

Seeking to further illustrate the stakes Monday, Biden likened the possibility of a debt default to the prospect of a “meteor headed to crash into our economy.” He also warned about the immediate prospect of higher interest rates, stressing that the public could feel the impact this week as fresh financial-market jitters sink in.

“They need to stop playing Russian roulette with the U.S. economy,” Biden said of Republicans. “Not only are Republicans refusing to do their job, but threatening to use their power to prevent us from doing our job – saving the economy from a catastrophic event – I think, quite frankly, is hypocritical, dangerous and disgraceful. Their obstruction and irresponsibility knows absolutely no bounds.”

Twice in recent days, Senate Republicans have opposed Democratic attempts to raise the debt ceiling, including by voting against a measure that would have funded the government. GOP lawmakers in the Senate are expected to scuttle it a third time if Schumer attempts to move another increase this week that previously passed the House.

Democrats stress they voted several times to raise the debt ceiling during the Trump administration, even when he pursued policies they did not support. During that time, the White House and Congress approved policies that added nearly $8 trillion to the federal debt, including a dramatic increase in military spending, coronavirus relief funds and a big tax-cut package. To emphasize the point, White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Monday displayed a large slide during her daily briefing showing the debt increase during the Trump presidency far outpacing the increase during Biden’s tenure.

“Why let McConnell off the hook or Republicans off the hook? I mean, this is their debt, that they chalked up themselves,” she said.

In blocking its advance, McConnell instead has argued Democrats instead should use the process known as reconciliation to lift the cap. The tactic would allow Democrats to adopt spending legislation using 51 votes, as opposed to the normal 60 votes required to overcome a filibuster in the deadlocked chamber.

Democrats have resisted this move, which could require them to raise the debt ceiling by a specific amount, potentially exposing them to a flurry of uncomfortable political attacks. Schumer and other Democrats also have described the process as “risky,” potentially taking so much time that the country could default before Democrats even finished legislating.

Biden on Monday explained why he does not like the reconciliation pathway, arguing the process would be cumbersome and could take too long to accomplish. The president instead beseeched McConnell to simply allow Democrats to vote on the debt-ceiling hike by not filibustering the measure.

Psaki later clarified that Democrats are not resolute in refusing to use it.

“He wasn’t ruling out options,” she said.

In his remarks, the president tried to head off any confusion about the debt ceiling’s connection to the rest of his domestic agenda. At a moment when Republicans are portraying Democrats as reckless free-spenders and some Democrats have urged more restraint, Biden emphasized that he is not trying to raise the debt limit to finance his sweeping proposals.

“Let me be really clear. This is really important to know. Raising the debt limit is about paying off our old debts. It has nothing to do with any new spending being considered,” the president said. “It has nothing to do with my plan for infrastructure or building back better. Zero.”

The comments were notable as the battle lines around government spending, inflation and how wide the social safety net should be are hardening ahead of next year’s midterm elections. Biden and his aides have shown some sensitivity in recent weeks to attacks from Republicans, stepping up efforts to explain rising costs and underscore the ways they plan to finance their ambitious agenda.

But Biden’s agenda has slowed on Capitol Hill over disagreements within the president’s party. In related comments Monday, the president acknowledged that a massive plan to expand the social safety net would have to be pared down from what he proposed.

“It’s going to be less,” the president said as he was asked about attempts by centrists including Sens. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., to whittle down its price tag and policy scope. “I need 50 votes in the Senate. I have 48.”

The battle over the debt ceiling this week is reminiscent of the high-stakes showdowns in 2011 and 2013 during the Obama administration. Those partisan fights ultimately cost the U.S. economy as much as $180 billion and 1.2 million jobs by 2015, throwing financial markets out of whack and creating business anxiety, one economic analysis found. Fitch Ratings has recently warned that the United States could be hit with a credit downgrade as brinkmanship continues over the matter, which could drive up the costs of borrowing.

The White House has examined unilateral measures to deal with the debt ceiling, even circulating internal memos reviewing the possibility of minting a $1 trillion coin to finance the government’s debt. The administration has ruled out those ideas as impractical and likely to still lead to financial calamity.

Congressional Republicans have uniformly backed McConnell’s position on the matter. They have pointed to Biden’s decision not to vote for raising the debt ceiling while he was a senator. Biden rejected that criticism Monday, arguing his votes were different because they were part of up-or-down votes on measures that passed anyway.

“Biden opposed raising the debt ceiling three times. And now he’s sanctimoniously lecturing Republicans about responsibility as he pushes for a $3.5 trillion reckless spending plan,” Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said on Twitter in response to Biden’s speech. “Give me a break.”

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007029

The number of Covid-19 cases crossed 12.29 million across Southeast Asia, with 39,566 new cases reported on Monday (October 4), lower than Sunday’s tally at 43,584. New deaths are at 566, increasing from Sunday’s number of 550. Total Covid-19 deaths in Asean are now at 265,236.

Laos announced on Monday that it has plans to authorise self-isolation and at-home care for those infected with Covid-19, or people who have had close contact with an infected person after infections have increased in many communities and soon the provincial hospitals and field hospitals will be at full capacity. The country also announced the extension of disease control measures in Vientiane until October 15 to curb the outbreak.

Meanwhile, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has called on people to take extra precautions to prevent large-scale Covid-19 transmission during the Pchum Ben public holiday on October 5-7. Pchum Ben festival is the kingdom’s second largest festival after the Khmer New Year. This year’s festival is canceled to curb the spread of the disease, but the three-day holiday is maintained for all state institution and private company workers. Cambodia on Monday confirmed 219 new Covid19 cases, pushing the national total caseload to 113,475.
 

Published : October 05, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007006

World Animal Day is marked on October 4 every year to create awareness of the healthy coexistence and welfare of wildlife and people worldwide.

The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2021 chose the finalists of the competition on Friday. The winning images will be announced on October 22.

The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards was co-founded in 2015 by professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks MBE and Tom Sullam who wanted to create a competition that focused on the lighter side of wildlife photography and help promote wildlife conservation through humour.

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This year, the competition is supporting Save Wild Orangutans by donating 10 per cent of its total net revenue to the charity. The initiative safeguards wild orangutans in and around Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo.

Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards on Oct 22

This year’s shortlist of photographs showcases the biggest mix of animals seen in the competition to date.

“We were overwhelmed with the number and quality of entries we received this year, with well over 7,000 photos submitted from every corner of the globe,” says Paul Joynson-Hicks. “It was an amazing turnout, especially given the impact of the pandemic. The huge number of images we receive every year illustrates the appetite there is to engage with conservation and reminds us that wildlife truly is incredible and hilarious and, we must do all we can to protect it.”

The category and overall Winners will be announced on October 22 with the top image winning an incredible one-week safari with Alex Walker’s Serian in the Masai Mara, Kenya as well as a unique handmade trophy from the Art Garage in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Voting is also open for members of the public to choose the animal snap that made them laugh the loudest in the Affinity Photo People’s Choice Award. The public can cast their vote at on the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards website until October 10 and be in with the chance of winning a brand-new iPad.

Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards on Oct 22

“Whittling down the list of photographs was harder than ever this year,” says Tom Sullam. “There were so many funny pictures that had us laughing that we couldn’t settle on a top 40 – so we’re releasing the top 42 instead! It was great to see a range of animals, from the incredibly rare to the humble pigeon. We can’t wait to see what the public choose as their favourite and look forward to showcasing some of these pictures at The Photography Show in Birmingham this September.”

Published : October 04, 2021

#SootinClaimon.Com : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation.

https://www.nationthailand.com/international/40007001

The warships that sank during World War I off the Gallipoli Peninsula in northwest Turkey were introduced to the attention of diving enthusiasts as part of an underwater park as of Sunday.

The Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park, located off the Canakkale province in the Dardanelles Strait, which witnessed fierce fighting during the war, was inaugurated with a ceremony, exposing 14 different sunken ships.

Ismail Kasdemir, head of the Turkish Directorate of Gallipoli Historical Site, said at the ceremony held on Saturday that the area witnessed heavy clashes between the navies of the central powers, including Germany and the Ottoman Empire, and the allied forces, such as France and Britain.

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File pic taken in September 2011 shows shipwrecks of World War I at the Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park in Canakkale province, Turkey. (Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park/Handout via Xinhua)

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Kasdemir noted that with this park, “Canakkale would be one of the most beautiful diving destinations, exposing the stories of each of the sunken ships.”

One of the most significant diving spots of the park is the 120-meter-long British Royal Battleship, HMS Majestic, sunk by the German U-21 submarine off Seddulbahir Castle in 1915.

File pic taken in September 2011 shows shipwrecks of World War I at the Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park in Canakkale province, Turkey. (Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park/Handout via Xinhua)

“Unexploded artillery shells and gunpowder on the ship at a depth of 24 meters will attract the diving lovers,” a press release said.

It added that another British ship, HMS Triumph, which sank into the waters with its 73 personnel on May 25, 1915, lies at a depth of 70 meters off the Kabatepe shores.

Meanwhile, the wreckage of the French Massena battleship and French Saghalien passenger steamer could be seen at a depth of 5-7 meters in Ertugrul Bay. In November 1915, Saghalien was scuttled with Massena off Seddulbahir to form a mole for the French landing forces.

The vessels remained largely intact on the seafloor, according to officials.

File pic taken in September 2011 shows shipwrecks of World War I at the Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park in Canakkale province, Turkey. (Gallipoli Historical Underwater Park/Handout via Xinhua)
 

Published : October 04, 2021