SHAMELESS: THE Taliban have promised plots of lands and cash to relatives of suicide bombers who targeted US and Afghan forces, a spokesman has confirmed.
The acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani met family members at a ceremony at the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul on Tuesday to announce his decision.
According to a statement on Twitter, “the minister praised the Jihad and sacrifices of the martyrs” and even called them “heroes of Islam and the country."
At the end of the meeting families of the suicide bombers were given clothing, 10,000 afghani (£80) and promised plots of land, spokesman Qari Sayeed Khosti added.
The latest promise of rewards for suicide bombers is at odds with previous assurances made to the west regarding their role as “diplomatic responsible rulers."
Since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan they claimed they would not enforce the strict oppressive laws of the 90s, which included many sexist rules that saw females mostly excluded from education and work.
So far, the Taliban's education authority had said that this time women will be allowed to attend university.
But the order states that classes must be segregated by sex, or at least divided by a curtain and the students must wear an abaya robe and a niqab.
However, under the brutal Taliban regime, female students must only be taught by women or "old men" of good character - and end their lesson five minutes earlier than men to stop them from mingling outside.
DEVASTATING: landslides sweep away homes after 16 INCHES of rain falls in a single day
More than 100 people have died in several days of devastating floods that have sparked landslides, sweeping away homes and roads in India and Nepal.
In Uttarakhand, 46 people were reported dead and another 11 missing today, including a family of five whose house was buried in a colossal wave of mud and rocks.
Dramatic footage showed a digger hauling a car with people inside out of a fast-flowing flood stream which had torn across the road.
In neighbouring Nepal, 31 people have been killed in the landslides, which experts say are more common because climate change is melting glaciers in the Himalayas.
A thousand miles south in the Indian state of Kerala, there have been at least 39 killed and dams have been forced to open their shutters as the water rises to the danger mark.
Experts say that intense deforestation for the construction of hydroelectric dams in the region has made the rainfall more dangerous than ever.
In Uttarakhand, a landslide in the northern Almora district killed five people after a wall of mud demolished and engulfed their home.
At least six others were killed on Monday in two remote districts of the Himalayan state.
The Indian Meteorological Department extended and widened its weather alert on Tuesday, predicting heavy to very heavy rainfall in the region.
The weather office said several areas were drenched by more than 16 inches of rainfall on Monday, causing landslides and flooding.
Authorities ordered the closure of schools and banned all religious and tourist activities in the state.
Television footage and social media videos showed residents wading through knee-deep water near Nainital lake, a tourist hotspot, and the Ganges bursting its banks in Rishikesh.
More than 100 tourists were stuck inside a resort in Ramgarh after the overflowing Kosi river deluged several areas.
ISRAEL STRIKES SYRIAN TARGETS: Iran-backed forces in Syria said on Thursday they would respond forcefully to an Israeli strike over Syria's Palmyra area in the province of Homs on Wednesday evening in the second such strike within a week.
The Syrian defence ministry said in a statement that one soldier was killed in the attack that took place at 11:34 p.m. (2034 GMT) and targeted a communications tower and caused some material losses.
Israel has kept silent about the strikes that came days after Damascus reported its air defences intercepted an Israeli missile attack above the Homs countryside, wounding six Syrian soldiers and causing some material damage.
Israeli missiles flew over Jordanian airspace above U.S. forces based in the Tanf area at the Syrian-Iraqi border, the Syrian defence ministry statement said.
The latest strikes are part of an escalation of what has been a low-intensity conflict in recent years that has seen hundreds of Israeli raids whose goal was to slow down Iran's growing entrenchment in Syria, Israeli and regional military experts say.
Tehran-backed forces including Lebanon's Hezbollah have built a presence since deploying to help President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian conflict that erupted in 2011.
A statement by the so-called operations room of Assad's Iran-backed allies said the response to the strike would be "very cruel", adding casualties would have been much higher had its forces not been well spread across the desert area.
"As a result of this attack a number of martyrs and injured from our Mujahedeen brothers have fallen," the statement said without elaborating.
"We have taken a decision to respond to this attack in revenge for the martyrs and the blood of the injured and the response will be very cruel," said the statement published on pro-Iranian news outlets whose authenticity Reuters verified.
A senior military source who requested anonymity said the strikes hit among other targets the T4 air base where Iran-backed militias launched drone strikes in recent months against U.S. bases in northern Syria.
The source says unidentified drones believed to be Israeli also hit this week Tehran-backed bases in the eastern province of Deir al Zor along the Iraqi border, a strategic supply route for Iranian-backed militias who regularly send reinforcements from Iraq into Syria
Israel's Defence Minister Benny Gantz earlier last month accused Tehran of providing foreign militias with drone training at an airbase in Iran.
Two military sources familiar with the affair say the site that was hit on Wednesday was near a secret facility which Tehran was using to transfer "know-how" on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) technology.
The Palmyra area where the strikes were conducted are close to a major concentration of Russian bases and where its troops conducted in recent days manoeuvres with Syrian troops, military experts say.
Israel wants Iranian and Iran-backed forces kept away from its border and more broadly, removed from Syria entirely.
PICTURED: Killer' had been flagged for radicalisation and had restraining order after threatening his father with a gun
This is the face of the suspected terror attacker accused of killing five people in a bow and arrow rampage in Norway, as it's revealed he once threatened to kill his father with a gun and had a restraining order against him.
Espen Andersen Bråthen is the 37-year-old Danish man arrested over the attack, police have confirmed, after officers said the suspect is a Muslim convert flagged for radicalisation and the attack 'appears to be a terrorist act'.
Bråthen was identified by several neighbours in the town of Kongsberg before a now-deleted YouTube video was uncovered in which he reads out a kind of manifesto in English - calling himself as 'a messenger' who 'comes with a warning.' 'Bear witness that I am a Muslim,' he adds.
Meanwhile court documents and testimony from neighbours painted a bleak picture of Bråthen's life - an 'unstable' loner with a collection of weapons, who rarely left his flat, hadn't held a job in years, suffered from mental health problems, used drugs, and was estranged from his family.
Bråthen also has a lengthy criminal history, including an incident in May last year in which he went to his father's house and threatened to kill him while carrying a handgun - before fleeing and leaving the gun behind.
Two relatives then took out a restraining order against him, which he breached last August. Court documents also reveal that he has prior convictions for aggravated theft and drugs going back at least as far as 2011, though likely earlier. He appears to have been out of work since the early 2000s, VG reported.
Police today sealed off the suspect's house, which is located close to the supermarket where the attack began, while forensic officers were pictured searching what appears to be an art studio on a nearby street.
Ole Bredrup Sæverud, chief of police for south-east Norway, said officers were first called about the attack at 6.12pm Wednesday after locals near a Coop Extra market were shot at with a bow and arrow.
NEVER FORCED: TEXAS Governor Greg Abbott has accused Joe Biden of “bullying” as he banned all Covid vaccine mandates in the state "by any entity"
It comes just a month after the president urged businesses to order their workers to be vaccinated against the virus.
It’s reported that several thousand people have already been fired after refusing to comply with the order.
Abbott is opposed to making Covid-19 vaccinations mandatory.
In an executive order, he said: “In another instance of federal overreach, the Biden Administration is now bullying many private entities into imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates, causing workforce disruptions that threaten Texas' continued recovery from the COVID-19 disaster.”
He said “no entity in Texas” could compel proof of vaccination by any individual, including employees or customers.
The White House didn't respond when approached by Reuters for comment.
Tech giants Facebook and Google, who employ large numbers in Texas, have reportedly told employees that they will need proof of vaccination if they want to return to the office.
It comes just months after Abbott signed an executive order against mandatory vaccines for people who work in government agencies, public schools, and universities.
He is also facing a challenge from Republican rival Don Huffines – who is running to become the next Texas governor.
Huffines, who is also opposed to vaccine mandates, said: “Greg Abbott knows which way the wind is blowing.
Last month Biden announced a sweeping range of federal vaccine requirements, affecting up to 100million Americans.
'TYRANNICAL ORDERS' Biden’s top health boffin Dr. Anthony Fauci claimed that vaccine mandates “work”.
He told CNN: “We’ve obviously been trying very hard. We try to get our trusted messengers out there and try and get this away from being an ideological or political statement, get back into the realm of pure public health, and try to convince people. But we know that mandates work.”
A top army officer claimed to have resigned over Biden’s vaccine mandate.
In August, the Pentagon said it would require all service members to receive the jab.
Lt. Col. Paul Douglas Hague said he wrote to his superiors saying he would be leaving his post after almost two decades of service.
In the letter, he said: "First, and foremost, I am incapable of subjecting myself to the unlawful, unethical, immoral and tyrannical order to sit still and allow a serum to be injected into my flesh against my will and better judgment.
"It is impossible for this so-called ‘vaccine’ to have been studied adequately to determine the long-term effects."
Hague, who is based at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, also cited what he called an "ideologically Marxist takeover of the United States government at their upper echelons.
"I would like nothing more than to continue in the Army to reach my 20 years of active federal service and retire with my pension.
"However, I instead will join those who have served before me in pledging my Life, my Fortune, and My Sacred Honor to continue resisting the eternal and ever-mutable forms of oppression and tyranny – both from enemies outside our nation‘s borders and those within."
SNAKE ON THE LOO-SE: Terrified West Midlands woman flees her house in the middle of the night after popping to the toilet and finding a 4ft PYTHON trapped in the u-bend
A woman was shocked after she went to use her toilet in the early hours of the morning only to find a snake in the bowl.
Laura Tranter, 34, went to use the loo early on Saturday morning when she saw the large snake in the bowl.
She was so stunned by the reptile she ran to tell a friend who was convinced she was drunk.
Laura says she called the RSPCA but got a message saying they didn't open until 7am so she had to improvise - and contacted a mate who helped.
Terrified Laura, of Stourbridge, said she think the snake was an escaped pet.
She said: 'I woke up at half-past five in the morning to go to the toilet, and it was just there.
'It scared the hell out of me, I nearly sat on the thing. Its head was just resting on the seat.
'I shut the toilet door and thought, have I really seen that, so I double-checked if it was real - but I really thought I was hallucinating.
'I went around my mate Sarah's house at half five in the morning in my dressing gown and trainers. She was so confused she asked if I'd been drinking.'
She added: 'My mate's brother, Dan, is really interested in spiders and snakes and stuff so I called him and he got his friend who lived twenty minutes away, Steve, to come and get it out.
'It was actually stuck in my toilet, because it was so fat in the middle that it couldn't get out and couldn't get back.
'We couldn't actually get it out, so we had to put washing up liquid down the toilet and then flush it to help get it out.
'Steve and Dan think that someone might have let it out after keeping it as a pet and deciding they didn't want it, and it had got into the sewer somehow.
'I still can't get my head around it, I really can't.' The snake has been handed to the RSPCA.
QUAKE HORROR: Earthquakes have hit two different parts of the US in two days, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
On Monday morning, Alaska, suffered a 6.9 magnitude earthquake around 70 miles (114km) east of the small city of Chignik, which has a population of about 100 people.
The US Tsunami Warning System did not issue an alert after the quake and there were no immediate reports of any damage or of any injuries.
Indonesia was also rocked by a 4.9 magnitude earthquake and Chile was hit by a 4.6 tremor as well on Monday, according to the United States Geological Survey.
The Alaska Earthquake Center said it took place at a depth of 43 miles and is an aftershock of the Chignik quake that hit earlier this year.
The 8.2 magnitude tremor recorded in July triggered a tsunami watch in Hawaii - with a warning that waves may even reach as far as Australia.
Monday's quake was felt along the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island, according to the state's earthquake centre.
Four smaller earthquakes were recorded in the area by the USGS, with magnitudes of between 2.7 and 3.3. Typically people report feeling those larger than about 3.0.
The quake comes after two strong earthquakes struck off the coast of the Big Island in Hawaii on Sunday.
The USGS said the first quake had a magnitude of 6.1 and struck about 17 miles (27 km) south of Naalehu.
The agency added that a 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck about 20 minutes later in the same area.
No injuries or fatalities have been recorded, and no tsunami warning was issued.
RUNNING ON EMPTY: Lebanon runs out of power and will be without electricity 'for days' after power stations run dry of oil - while India warns its coal-fired plants could go dark in just three days and blackouts hit China
Lebanon has no centrally-generated electricity after the country's two biggest power stations shut down due to a fuel shortage, plunging six million people into darkness.
Production stopped at Zahrani power station today hours after the Deir Ammar plant shuttered yesterday when diesel supplies were reportedly exhausted.
A government official confirmed the country's power network 'completely stopped working at noon today' and warned production was unlikely to restart 'until next Monday, or for several days'.
The official said the state electricity company would try to use the army's fuel oil reserve to operate the power plants temporarily, but that would not happen anytime soon.
The shortages are likely a result of the mismanagement after months of power wrangling between the country's different factions.
But it comes against a backdrop of energy shortages world wide and fears of global fuel shortages after India warned its coal-fired plants could go dark in just three days and electricity blackouts hit China.
Officials said Lebanon's network ground to a halt today after energy production dropped below 200megawatts - enough to power only about 5,000 homes.
In July, Lebanon agreed a stop-gap deal with Iraq to supply fuel in a desperate bid to ease the crippling blackouts and shortages of essential supplies.
The shortage has caused huge hours-long lines for basic goods spilling out on to the streets in what have been branded 'queues of humiliation' by locals.
Many Lebanese normally rely on private generators run on diesel, although that is also in short supply.
At times, people have queued for miles to fill up their vehicles, often resulting in chaotic scenes filled with violence.
INDIA India has warned coal reserves are at record lows with coal-fired plants set to go dark in just three days.
Government data shows over half of the country's 135 coal-fired power plants have fuel stocks of less than three days, far short of federal guidelines which recommend supplies of at least two weeks.
The crisis has already seen lights go dark in some northern and eastern states with fears the capital New Delhi may be next - and officials have warned the shortages could last through the winter.
The chief minister of New Delhi Arvind Kejriwal urged the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allocate more coal and gas to power plants supplying the capital amid fears of electricity cuts for the capital's 20 million people.
CHINA Meanwhile China is battling through its worst electricity crisis in a decade with the country so short on power cities have been hit by blackouts and factories forced to close or else open for just a couple of hours per week.
The crisis, which began biting a fortnight ago, was caused by the cost of coal spiking as the economy reopened post-Covid, meaning power stations were operating at a loss and began to shut down.
Power outages have been reported in southern Guangdong province, but are most severe in the north eastern manufacturing hubs of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning.
Shopkeepers in China have reportedly been left to light their premises with candles amidst a recent three-day blackout that also brought down mobile networks.
An additional 16 provinces are thought to be rationing energy due to a shortage in supply, though have avoided full-scale blackouts.
Fuel shortages are also affecting Europe amid a spike in demand for energy around the world as the global economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic.
A massive landslide crashed down a mountainside in northern China.
Footage filmed in the city of Linfen on Wednesday (October 6) shows massive mud tumbling down a mountainside sending dust into the air, after a rainstorm.
Four people are dead and Several vehicles were buried.
CHILLING THREAT: CHINA will soon be capable of mounting a full scale invasion of Taiwan, after warning war could be ‘triggered any moment’
Chiu Kuo-cheng's warning comes as Beijing said war could be triggered "at any time" in a chilling warning to the West.
Beijing launched into a tirade against the US and its allies after 56 Chinese warplanes crossed into Taiwan's air defence zone on Monday.
Chiu said the relationship between Taiwan and China was at its lowest for forty years.
Chiu said he feared that by "2025, China will bring the cost and attrition to its lowest".
"For me as a military man, the urgency is right in front of me"
At the same time, an armada of aircraft carriers including HMS Queen Elizabeth were taking part in wargames in the region.
As tensions mount, Joe Biden said he spoke to Chinese president Xi Jinping and the pair affirmed that they would "abide by the Taiwan agreement".
The President was referring to Washington's long standing policy under which it officially recognizes Beijing rather than Taiwan.
Washington merely acknowledges China's stance that the island belongs to it and that there is "one China" but takes no position on Taiwan's sovereignty.
It comes after China flew 129 warplanes close to Taiwan over three days, part of a pattern of incursions which are widely seen as a rehearsal for invasion.
Beijing has been ramping up its bellicose rhetoric over Taiwan with state-run paper The Global Times saying the "peaceful atmosphere" on the island had all but disappeared.
Pressure from the West had resulted in a "sense of urgency that the war may be triggered at any time".
Four more fighters entered the zone at night, bringing the total to 56 planes, the ministry said.
The US State Department accused China of carrying out "provocative military activities" that "undermines regional peace and stability", adding its commitment to Taiwan was "rock solid".
China hit back in the scathing Global Times piece, saying its display yesterday was a "severe warning" to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which it accused of trying to secede from the mainland.
It said the "secessionist forces" on the island would "never be allowed to secede Taiwan from China under whatever names or by whatever means".
The paper claimed that "mainstream public opinion" in China was that the country should prepare for all-out war with the US.
"Now, we will like to warn the DPP authorities and their supporters: do not continue to play with fire.
"They should see that the Chinese mainland’s preparation to use force against Taiwan secessionist forces is much stronger than ever before.
"If the US and the DPP authorities do not take the initiative to reverse the current situation, the Chinese mainland’s military punishment for 'Taiwan independence' secessionist forces will eventually be triggered.
US INFRASTRUCTURE BILL: It doesn't matter whether it is Six minutes, Six days or Six weeks. We're going to get it done; President Biden vowed to get the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed after meeting with house democrats at the capitol.
ABORTION RIGHTS: Tens of thousands of women have marched across cities in the United States to protest increasing restrictions on abortion.
The 660 demonstrations around the US on Saturday, including on the steps of the Supreme Court in Washington DC, were largely sparked by a Texas law that bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
The measure, which went into effect last month, is the most restrictive in the country.
In Washington, DC, protesters filled the streets surrounding the Supreme Court, shouting: “My body, my choice,” and cheering loudly to the beat of drums.
They carried signs that said: “Mind your own uterus”, “I love someone who had an abortion” and “Abortion is a personal choice, not a legal debate.”
Some wore T-shirts reading simply “1973″, a reference to the landmark Roe v Wade decision, which made abortion legal for generations of American women.
“No matter where you live, no matter where you are, this moment is dark,” Alexis McGill Johnson, president of Planned Parenthood, told the crowd at the Rally for Abortion Justice in Washington, DC.
She spoke of women who have been forced to drive for many hours across state lines – sometimes multiple state lines – to end pregnancies since the Texas law went into effect.
“No matter where you are, this fight is at your doorstep right now,” McGill Johnson said. “This moment is dark, but that is why we are here.”
The so-called “heart beat” law signed by Governor Greg Abbott bans abortion after cardiac activity is detected in the embryo, usually around six weeks. That is before most women know they are pregnant and earlier than 85 percent to 90 percent of all abortions are carried out, experts say.
The law relies on ordinary citizens to enforce the ban, which makes no exceptions for rape or incest, rewarding them at least $10,000 if they successfully sue anyone who helped provide an illegal abortion.
HOLY MOSES: BIBLICAL archaeologists have claimed to have located the holy mountain where the Bible says God gave Moses two stone tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments.
They believe features and archaeological remains on the site in Saudi Arabia directly line up with the passage in the holy tome, some of which are fenced off as protected areas by the Saudi theocratic regime.
According to the Book of Exodus in the Bible, Moses leads the Israelites to Mount Sinai which is enveloped by fire, smoke and thunder.
The prophet then ascends the mountain where he convenes with God to receive the Ten Commandment.
For this reason, Mount Sinai is one of the most important sacred places in the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions.
But while most people think this miraculous event is a work of fiction — written hundreds of years after it supposedly took place — there are some who claim mounting evidence that indicates it really happened.
A mountain range in Egypt was for hundreds of years thought to be the site of the holy mountain.
But sleuths from the biblical archaeologist organisation the Doubting Thomas Research Foundation claim this is wrong and have compelling evidence to prove this.
Foundation president Ryan Mauro, who is a Middle East expert, told the Sun: "One of the main reasons certain scholars claim that the Exodus is a myth is because little to no evidence for what the Bible records has been found at the traditional Mount Sinai in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
"But what if these scholars have actually been looking in the wrong spot?
"Move over into the Arabian peninsula and you find incredibly compelling evidence matching the Biblical account."
'SCORCHED MOUTAIN PEAK'
The real holy site, he says, is in the northwestern province of Saudi Arabia and there is strong evidence to prove this.
The researchers then went on to identify Jabal Maqla, a peak within the Jabal al-Lawz mountain range, as Mount Sinai.
The Bible said God descended on Mount Sinai as a fire.
And they claim the mountain, with its clearly blackened peaks, suggests this is the site.
'SIGNS OF PATH UNDER RED SEA'
In the Book of Exodus Moses holds out his walking stick and God parts the waters and they manage to flee.
The story goes that the water then came rushing back in and crushed the pursuing troops.
The foundation believes Nuweiba Beach is the most likely crossing point because studies have found land paths below the water.
They argue this evidence found by Swedish scientist Dr Lennart Moller reveals the remnants of the fleeing army.
It is claimed they found what they believe were the shapes of chariots which were encased in coral, although the metal and wood was long since dissolved.
Across the Red Sea, there is said to be evidence that is allegedly a possible match for the Biblical campsite Elim, noted to have 12 wells and 70 palm trees with a dozen of the water sources remaining today.
MOUNT HOREB SPLIT ROCK
On the path to the suspected Mount Sinai is a towering split rock sitting upon a large hill.
The rock and hill beneath show signs of massive amounts of water erosion — yet this is in an area that receives very little rainfall.
Mr Mauro said: “We believe this distinct landmark could be the rock that God commanded Moses to strike which water then gushed forth from miraculously, providing for the Israelite population."
MOSES ALTAR
At Jabal al-Maqla there is an ancient altar site composed of uncut granite stones at the base of the mountain and the remains of what appear to be small, ancient pillars composed of marble beside it just as in the Book of Exodus.
Moses is said to have built an altar made of uncut stones at the base of Mount Sinai and sets up 12 pillars representing the 12 tribes of Israel beside it.
So far nine pillars have been found with several broken pieces of marble scattered throughout the area.
'GOLDEN CALF WORSHIP SITE'
Two more crucial pieces of evidence at this mountain are what is believed to be the Golden Calf worship site and signs of a graveyard.
Chapter 32 of Exodus tells of the Golden Calf incident, where the Israelites make a golden calf, which was an Egyptian god, and worship it while Moses is on Mount Sinai.
When Moses comes back down the mountain, the golden calf worshippers are killed for their idolatry.
Mr Mauro said: "Close to the mountain, we have this site covered with depictions of people worshipping bulls and cows.
"And what's really significant is that these petroglyphs are isolated to this area. It's not like they're carved all over the mountain."
It comes as the Doubting Thomas Research Foundation and others have discovered what they believe might be Noah's Ark.
VOLCANO: hit island of La Palma has grown by almost 550 yards into the sea as lava continues to flow into the Atlantic and hardens
The Spanish island of La Palma is continuing to expand as lava from a volcano flows into the Atlantic Ocean and hardens as it comes into contact with water, scientists have said.
Since erupting on September 19 the volcano has destroyed more than 800 buildings, as well as banana plantations, roads and other infrastructure.
After meandering downhill to the coast for nearly 10 days, the lava reached the ocean just before midnight on Tuesday a kilometre west of Tazacorte.
On reaching the water, the lava cools rapidly, binding to the cliffside and enlarging the island's territory and has created a rocky outcrop more than 546 yards wide.
Copernicus, the European Union's Earth observation programme, said on Thursday that its satellite imagery showed a D-shaped tongue of molten rock building up on the island's western shore measured 338 hectares (835 acres) by the end of Wednesday.
Trade winds typical of Spain's Canary Islands were helping dispel the plumes of water vapour and toxic gases that result when the lava, with a temperature of over 1,000C (1,800F), meets the ocean, where the water is 22C (71.6F).
But authorities were on alert as Spain's weather forecaster, AEMET, indicated that the wind's direction could change later on Thursday and bring the toxic plumes towards the shore and further inland.
The hydrochloric acid and tiny particles of volcanic glass released into the air can cause skin, eye and respiratory tract irritation.
The direction the lava flow could take was also a source of concern.
Molten fluid emanating from the volcano that first erupted on September 19 was still running downhill like a river and tumbling over a cliff into the Atlantic.
But uneven terrain could make the lava overflow its current path, spread to other areas, and destroy more houses and farmland.
At least 855 buildings and 19 miles (30km) of roads, as well as other key infrastructure, have been wiped out so far.
Banana plantations that are the source of income for many islanders have also been either destroyed or damaged by volcanic ash.
More than 6,000 residents have been evacuated so far, and hundreds more were advised to stay at home to avoid the possible inhalation of toxic gases.
Residents of Spain's La Palma were struggling on Thursday to come to terms with the devastation wrought by the Cumbre Vieja volcano, which has been ejecting a destructive cocktail of ash, smoke and lava for more than 10 days.
'We never thought that the volcano was going to reach our house, never,' she said, recalling how she rushed to salvage belongings during a last-minute evacuation before the lava engulfed her home.
EARTH IS DIMMING : Warming oceans cause fewer bright clouds to reflect sunlight into space - trapping even more energy in our planet, study warns
Earth is dimming as the warmer oceans are causing fewer bright clouds to reflect sunlight into space, trapping more energy in our planet, a new study has warned.
Decades of measurements of earthshine - the light reflected from Earth that illuminates the surface of the moon - allowed the team from the New Jersey Institute of Technology to get a better picture of the impact of climate change.
They also made use of satellite measurements to discover that there has been 'a significant drop in Earth's reflectance', or albedo, over the past two decades.
The Earth is now reflecting about half a watt less light per square metre than it was 20 years ago, according to the researchers.
The team said that half the drop in light happened in the past three years, after 17 years of flat albedo, mainly due to fewer low-lying clouds over the Pacific Ocean.
Scientists had hoped that a warmer Earth caused by climate change would create more clouds, and a higher albedo to moderate the warming, but the opposite appears to be happening, which could accelerate climate change.
The team found that the Earth's reflectance had dropped by about 0.5 per cent in the past three years - now reflecting 29.5 per cent of all sunlight.
He was referring to the earthshine data from 1998 to 2017 that had been gathered by the Big Bear Solar Observatory in Southern California.
When the latest data was added to the previous years, the dimming trend became clear to the team.
Two things affect the net sunlight reaching the Earth: the Sun's brightness and the planet's reflectivity.
This matches the findings of a NASA study published in June, that found the Earth's energy imbalance had doubled from 2005 to 2019.
This means more energy is being absorbed from the Sun than is reflected back to space, throwing the Earth's energy 'out of balance' and warming the planet.
'It's actually quite concerning,' said Edward Schwieterman, a planetary scientist at the University of California at Riverside who was not involved in the new study.
For some time, many scientists had hoped that a warmer Earth might lead to more clouds and higher albedo, which would then help to moderate warming and balance the climate system, he said. 'But this shows the opposite is true.'
FIRES OF HELL: A RIVER of lava from the La Palma volcano has smashed into the sea sparking fears of toxic gas.
Dramatic images show a wall of flaming lava flowing down to the Atlantic Ocean unleashing huge clouds of steam.
Three coastal villages had been locked down since Monday in anticipation of the lava from the Cumbre Vieja volcano reaching the sea.
A security perimeter of 2.1 miles has been established and residents told to remain indoors with windows shut to avoid breathing in gases.
The emergency services have now told those outdoors to find shelter.
“When the lava reaches the sea, the lockdown must be strictly observed,” Miguel Angel Morcuende, director of the Pevolca response committee, said.
The lava from the eruption 10 days ago has formed a pyramid shape more than 150ft high in the sea and generated intense clouds of black and white smoke.
"Hardly anyone in the Canary Islands has slept and the people of La Palma have been cowering in fear with a tremendous sense of desolation," said the islands' regional head Angel Victor Torres.
He said the devastation had been vast as the lava scorched a massive furrow towards the sea, hitting the island’s banana industry and causing 400 million euros worth of damage.
"We are talking about lava flows that are 600 metres wide. In all of that area, there is nothing left, the devastation is tremendous," he said.
When lava comes into contact with the ocean, it produces a gas plume known as laze - lava and haze - through a series of chemical reactions as it boils the colder sea water.
Laze can cause eye, lung and skin irritation but should not be a problem if residents keep their distance.
"It creates a steam of hydrochloric acid, water vapour and bits of ash," volcanologist Dr Robin George Andrews told the BBC
"Obviously, it's not good to breathe in."
Lava flowing down the volcano’s western flank has destroyed more 650 buildings and forced more than 7,000 residents to be evacuated.
No deaths or serious injuries have been reported from the island's first eruption in 50 years, thanks to prompt evacuations in the first hours after the earth cracked open.
Flights to the airport on La Palma, an important tourist destination along with its neighbouring islands, remained cancelled due to a huge ash cloud of over four miles.
TOP GUNS : RUSSIAN fighter jets intercepted a US B-52 nuclear-capable bomber over the Pacific Ocean as tensions continue to rage between the nations.
Three Su-35 warplanes escorted the Stratofortress aircraft as the bomber flew close to the Russian border after being detected by radar, Putin's military officials said.
It comes as relations remain sour between Russia and the US - with Moscow and Washington locked in a power struggle and trading constantly trading barbs.
Russia has recently been hosted large scale war games which have been monitored by the US who dispatched spy planes to the region.
And the latest aerial intercept continues the two side's tit-for-tat military exercises as they each accuse the other of aggression.
Russia's national defence control centre said the B-52H bomber was detected by military forces in Russia's eastern region.
"In order to classify and escort the foreign aircraft, three Su-35s fighters from the air defense forces of the eastern military district were taken into the air," officials said, reports state-run media RIA Novosti.
Military officials added that the US Air Force plane then moved away from the Russian border and the three warplanes returned to their home base.
And they insisted the Russian aircraft carried out the intercept in "strict accordance accordance with the international rules for the use of airspace".
"Violations of the state border of the Russian Federation, as well as dangerous approaches of aircraft in the air were not allowed," Russian officials said.
Sukhoi Su-35s - dubbed by NATO with the callsign "Flanker" - make up the backbone of the Russian air force.
The jets are capable of speeds of up to 1,500mph, have a range of 2,200 miles, and are equipped with two turbofan afterburner engines.
Bristling with guns and weapons, the fighters have an autocannon along with 12 hardpoints with ordinance - capable of carrying up to 8,000kg of bombs and missiles.
JIHADI BEASTS: TALIBAN fighters lashed two starving Afghan boys to a wooden post in a sick punishment after they were accused of stealing bread to feed their families.
The jihadi militia's ruthless regime is cracking down with new medieval-style laws after they surged back to power in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of forces by the US.
It comes as last week top Taliban leaders pledged to resurrect harsh physical punishments, including chopping off the hands of convicted thieves.
And it has also been revealed that the regime has circulated edicts to barber shops and bath houses in the nation banning the trimming of beards.
Pictures show the two painfully-thin looking boys in Afghanistan tied to a wooden post - but it is unclear when and where it was taken.
The image was shared by Dawod Zai, who runs the Afghan welfare charity the Bin Dawod Foundation.
He said: “Bread thieves! Taliban have arrested two teenage boy for stealing bread from a bakery.
“One of them told a local journalist, ‘my family did not eat in past 3 days, i am sorry if i took that bread without permission, but i had to. There is no job & no food, what would i've done?’"
Afghanistan is facing a hunger crisis as the World Food Programme estimated 93 per cent of Afghans are not getting enough food to eat.
Millions live in desperate poverty and the Taliban takeover saw life grind to a halt as banks closed and businesses shut down.
Other disturbing pictures uploaded by Mr Zai also show a teenage boy being whipped by an older man.
As he is flogged, another male – flanked by armed fighters – appears to be reading an edict from a sheet of paper.
Mr Zai said of the pictures: “A child being tortured by the #Taliban Terrorists.The physical pain will be forgotten soon but the psychological impact of this barbarism will have a long lasting impact on his life & it will be difficult to be cured.”
And Afghan journalist Tajuden Souroush shared images of official letters sent to hairdressers in three provinces.
He said: “Taliban banned Shaving or cutting of beard in Helmand province of Afghanistan. In this letter issued by the department of vice and virtue, warns barbers and baths, in case of violation, you will be punished based on Sharia law.
“Taliban issued the same letter in Takhar and Baghlan provinces. People in these provinces confirmed to me that the Taliban banned shaving and cutting of beard.”
And over the weekend truly disturbing images emerged of men being strung up and hung from cranes in Herat.
Last week judges and officials said the strict punishments like amputations for theft, which became notorious under the Taliban's 1990s emirate, were a "necessary" part of Islamic law.
Mullah Nooruddin Turabi dismissed the outrage over the Taliban’s brutal executions in the past and pledged a return of the punishments which shocked the world before the group were ousted in 2001.
The one-eyed, one-legged enforcer said: "Everyone criticised us for the punishments in the stadium, but we have never said anything about their laws and their punishments.
"No one will tell us what our laws should be. We will follow Islam and we will make our laws on the Quran."
Turabi who is in his early 60s was the justice minister of the so-called Ministry of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice during the previous Taliban rule.
"Cutting off of hands is very necessary for security,” he said, before adding that the cabinet was considering whether to do punishments in public as before.
"We are changed from the past,” he added saying that the Taliban would now allow television, mobile phones, photos and video "because this is the necessity of the people, and we are serious about it."
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK :Noah’s Ark hunters claims they’ve FOUND boat in Turkish mountains as 3D scans detect ‘shape matching Bible description’
Biblical archaeologists used ground penetrating radar to study the boat-like formation on Mount Tendürek which has long been rumoured to be the location of the legendary vessel from the Book of Genesis.
US and Turkish investigators have boasted the initial scans are promising and suggest a manmade object heading beneath the mountain - and they remain hopeful it may be the Ark.
Creationists have long claimed that Noah's legendary ship is real and was buried beneath the rocky spot, known as the Durupınar, in the east of Turkey.
Geologists on the other hand claim the mountainous lump, which was discovered half a century ago, in eastern Turkey is simply an unusual rock formation.
But the team led by long-time ark hunter Andrew Jones believe they have images of what resembles Noah’s Ark.
The ground-penetrating radar (GPR) surveys were conducted at the site by the Oregon-based Topa 3D - who were surprised at the results.
Mr Jones told Sun Online: "This is not what you would expect to see if this site is just a solid block of rock or an accumulation of random debris from a mudflow.
"But these results are what you would expect to see if this is a man-made boat matching the Biblical requirements of Noah’s Ark."
The project - Noah's Ark Scans - claim they have discovered "parallel line and right angles below the surface" which are "something you would not expect to see in a natural, geologic formation".
And the "boat formation" is claimed to also be the "exact length" of the ark given in the Bible - which is around 150 metres, or 300 cubits in Biblical terms.
In the Book of Genesis, the mountains of Ararat in what is now eastern Turkey is the region in which Noah's Ark comes to rest after the Great Flood - which is close to Mount Tendürek.
The site was originally discovered in 1959 by Turkish army captain Ilhan Durupinar, who noticed the boat formation in aerial photographs of the area by the military.
His discovery resulted in a brief period of international interest in the site.
The Durupinar site was later visited in person by controversial researcher Ron Wyatt in the 1970s through the 1990s.
His findings in favour of the site being Noah’s Ark caused other researchers, archaeologists, and scientists to examine the formation.
The new team boast their findings should force a reconsideration of the long-rumoured site by skeptics.
And they are hoping to carry out more scans at the site, followed by drilling and then excavations.
Foreign Affairs / Taliban Honours Suicide Bombers Who Killed US Soldiers In Twisted Ceremony(Pics) by Gospelpreacher1: 7:28pm On Oct 21, 2021 