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"The Sun is god!” cried JMW Turner as he died, and plenty of other people have thought there was much in his analysis. The Aztecs agreed, and so did the pharaohs of Egypt. We are an arrogant lot these days, and we tend to underestimate the importance of our governor and creator. We forget that we were once just a clod of cooled-down solar dust; we forget that without the Sun there would have been no photosynthesis, no hydrocarbons — and that it was the great celestial orb that effectively called life into being on Earth. In so far as...

Canadian passports found on badly burned bodies of two insurgents. One Frenchman among the terrorists... Some of the gunmen 'given short-term contracts by the oil and gas giant'. Attackers 'arrived in cars painted in colours of Algerian state energy firm'. Two of the dead Islamists from Canada were found in the smouldering remains of a compound at the BP gas plant. One security source today confirmed that the Canadians are suspected of having travelled to Libya, where they joined extremists waging Jihad against the west. The men's badly charred corpses were found close to their victims, many of whom had...

'Cuba has been swept by a new craze - the red, white and blue of the UK's flag. The Union flag is now all the rage, sported by young Cubans on their clothes, nails - and even spotted as tattoos, and shaved into the back of people's heads. While for some it is just another fashion symbol, others say the trend began with the London Olympics, which were followed avidly in Cuba and hugely popular.'

'Wilko Johnson, the influential British rock guitarist who recently played mute executioner Ilyn Pane in the HBO series Game of Thrones, has announced details of his farewell tour, one week after going public with news that he is suffering from terminal cancer. Johnson first sprang to fame in the early 1970s as the guitarist for Dr Feelgood, an Essex 'pub rock' band whose style and attitude opened the door for punk rock and new wave music. Johnson's aggressive style of guitar playing was picked up and mimicked by bands including The Clash, The Stranglers and The Sex Pistols. The farewell...

The UK and Australia will strengthen their long-standing relationship today with a new defence treaty to provide a framework for the many strands of co-operation between the 2 countries. The treaty, to be signed in Perth today, Friday 18 January, with the Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith, will see the 2 countries working together in areas such as cyber security, defence reform, personnel exchange, equipment, and science and technology. Defence Secretary Philip Hammond and the Foreign Secretary William Hague are in Perth attending the annual Australia/UK ministerial summit. Last year the corresponding event was held in London. During their trip,...

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A former British airlines worker was just told by a European human-rights court that she does, in fact, have the right to wear a crucifix on her neck. That such a thing would even have to go to court seems quite the sign of the times. It comes as Brits are faced with same-sex-marriage legislation that, if passed, would likely leave churches facing lawsuits when some clerics inevitably refuse to carry out such weddings. The decision came down on "Religious Freedom Day" here in America. "Foremost among the rights Americans hold sacred is the freedom to worship as we choose,"...

There have been calls for an inquiry after minister disclosed that birth rates for girls and boys vary noticeably according to where their mothers were born. It was the first official statistical evidence potentially backing up concerns that sex-selection abortions are being carried out in Britain. Fiona Bruce, the Conservative MP for Congleton, has tabled an early day motion which calls on the Department of Health to ensure the data of aborted foetuses is reported “so that statistical evidence of crime cannot be hidden”. The early day motion was also signed by Jim Dobbin, the Labour MP for Heywood...

Worried parents will ban their children from making snowmen and having snowball fights this winter - for fear they will catch a cold, a study found. The protective one in five mums and dads, 20 per cent, will try to stop their youngsters falling ill by keeping them wrapped up warm indoors. Furthermore, 29 per cent say it is "too dangerous" to let them outside because they may slip on ice or be bruised by a tightly-packed snowball. That is despite many parents admitting they "enjoyed" playing outside when they were younger, the study by Chessington World of Adventures Resort...

A girl of 11 was sold to a child trafficker who branded her with his initial, a court heard yesterday. Mohammed Karrar, 38, also loaned her to abusers around the country for £600 an hour, it was alleged. Over five years she was repeatedly raped by large groups of men in what she described as ‘torture sex’, the jury was told. Seven men of Pakistani origin and two from North Africa are accused of 79 offences against six vulnerable white British girls. The charges include child rape, sexual trafficking and child prostitution. Noel Lucas QC, prosecuting, said Karrar – known...

A caucus of euroskeptic Conservative MPs has issued a manifesto today (16 January), two days before Prime Minister David Cameron is set to make a landmark speech on Europe, stating that “the status quo is no longer an option” and demanding “a new and different relationship” with the European Union. The Fresh Start group of Conservative backbenchers—numbering nearly 100 of the party’s 304 deputies—sets out proposals to repatriate legislative powers to the UK and cut Britain’s bill for EU membership by billions of pounds a year. … The MPs also raised the possibility of the UK withholding funds for EU...

In Amenas is operated by the Algerian company Sonatrach with BP and Statoil Islamist militants have attacked and occupied a gas facility in Algeria, killing a Briton and an Algerian and taking foreign workers hostage.Algerian Interior Minister Daho Ould Kabila said troops had surrounded the living quarters at In Amenas, where some 20 people were being held.Norwegian, French, British, US and Japanese citizens are among them.Mr Ould Kabila said the militants wanted to leave Algeria with the hostages, which he would not allow.Earlier, the AFP news agency quoted one worker as saying the militants had demanded the release of 100...

A helicopter has crashed into a crane in Vauxhall, south London, plummeting into the ground. The crash involved two cars and an unknown number of people, London Fire Service said. Sky sources said one person was aboard the aircraft, which is believed to be an Augusta 109.

The 3D scan of a disabled baby's smile that convinced his mother not to abort him - and why she is grateful she was able to cuddle him with joy for a few precious hoursA mother was unable to abort her severely disabled son despite doctors' warnings after seeing her baby's smile in a 3D scan picture. Katyia Rowe was told her baby's brain had not formed properly and that he would never walk or talk and would need 24-hour care. But after seeing real-time moving scans of him smiling, blowing bubbles, kicking and waving his arms she made the...

Gov. Mitt Romney finishes up his overseas trip to Britain, Israel and Poland this week. The trip began inauspiciously, due to what some called Romney’s “gaffe” about the London Olympic Games. “There are a few things that were disconcerting,” said Romney, who organized the Salt Lake Games in 2002, when asked about London’s preparations. That rather bland remark—which turned out to be at least partly accurate, as ticket and transportation problems have plagued the Games—became the narrative for most major media outlets. But if anyone cares to know what a gaffe really looks and sounds like, consider President Barack Obama’s...

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI), which made the discovery, said the burgers were produced by two processing plants in Ireland, Liffey Meats and Silvercrest Foods, and Dalepak Hambleton in the UK. In nine of the 10 burger samples from the four retailers, and from the Irish chain Dunnes Stores, horse DNA was found at very low levels. However, in one sample, from Tesco, the level of positive DNA indicated horsemeat accounted for 29% relative to the beef content.

The 92-year-old music store become the latest high street casualty of the credit crisis and called in administrators. Some 4,350 jobs are at risk if the chain closes. The blow follows the recent collapses of camera trader Jessops and electrical retailer Comet that together cost more than 8,000 jobs. Today restructuring giant Deloitte will be confirmed as administrator and will look to trade HMV’s 230 UK stores and find a buyer. But experts said that at BEST a profitable “core” of stores will remain trading. It is understood HMV has emailed all stores telling staff not to accept gift card...

An '11 or 12 year old' victim of a child sex ring was forced to miscarry after her attacker used an 'instrument' on her in a home abortion when she became pregnant, a court has heard. A gang of nine men face accusations of grooming and horrifically abusing vulnerable girls from the age of 11 - making their lives a 'living hell. The men, all from Oxford, allegedly plied six girls with alcohol, cocaine and heroin before repeatedly raping them. Kamar Jamil, 27, Akthtar Dogar, 32, Anjum Dogar, 30, Assad Hussain, 32, Mohammed Karrar, 38, Bassam Karrar, 26, Mohammed Hussain,...

Being born and raised in Belfast, I’m used to hearing about terrorists, bombs and shootings on the local news, but I can honestly say that despite all that, I considered my hometown a pretty safe place to grow up. I moved to London a year ago, and while Northern Ireland is by no means front-page news here, I couldn’t help but notice that for the past month rioting in Belfast has been featured in almost every news bulletin. The rioting began when Belfast City Council voted to end the continuous flying of the Union Flag from City Hall and hasn’t...