The News Matrix: Thursday 8 August 2013

Drug supplier jailed after teen girl’s death

The man who supplied a teenage girl with the illegal drug that killed her was jailed for six years and five months yesterday. Luke Carey, 25, admitted to giving methylamphetamine to 16-year-old Poppy Rodgers in April last year, at York Crown Court. Her family said that it felt as if she had been murdered.

Al-Qa’ida kidnap and bomb plot foiled

Yemen says it has foiled plots by al-Qa’ida to take over cities and attack strategic ports and gas facilities. Al-Qa’ida planned to send militants disguised as Yemeni troops to attack two oil ports in the impoverished country, the government has claimed. MORE

Barrister barred from sex-abuse trials

A barrister who refered to a 13-year-old victim in a sex abuse case as “predatory” has been barred from taking part in similar trials. Complaints against the judge in the trial, who appeared to accept the comments, are also to be looked into. MORE

Nuclear facility ‘doubling in size’

A US-based institute tracking North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme says satellite photos show the country is doubling the size of its uranium-enrichment plant. The news came as North Korea said it is lifting a ban on operations at a factory park it runs with South Korea.

Cost of reaching the final frontier: £350

Two PhD students have built a spacecraft that gets into orbit for £350. Sheffield University’s Alex Baker, 28, and Chris Rose, 26, have launched 20 successful missions, reaching an altitude of 23 miles. The craft returns by parachute after taking images of the Earth’s curvature.

Are we all related to the Megaconus?

A small mammal called Megaconus with reptilian features and poisonous spurs may be one of our most ancient relatives. A fossil found in China shows evidence of fur and other mammal-like traits.

Asylum seekers in no-go clampdown

Local authorities in Switzerland have introduced new rules banning asylum seekers from public places such as school playgrounds, swimming pools and libraries. Human rights groups have denounced the move as racist and “intolerable”. Switzerland is home to the highest proportion of asylum seekers in Europe. MORE

Council promotes breastfeeding

Symbols showing baby bottles are to be outlawed from baby changing and feeding facilities by Redcar and Cleveland Council in an effort to promote breastfeeding and improve maternal health. The council says only 52.7 per cent of mothers in its area breastfeed; the average in England is 73.9 per cent.