The News Matrix: Saturday 11 October 2014

Postal workers hurt by chemical leak

Two men were left injured after a suspected chemical leak from a package at the Royal Mail Office in Orpington, Kent, yesterday. The office was temporarily evacuated but the evening mail collections were not affected. Police are investing the cause of the leak.

Aunt: ‘Jihadi bride’ radicalised online

The aunt of Yusra Hussein, from Bristol, who is believed to have fled to Syria as a jihadi bride has said she thinks the 15-year-old was radicalised online. Sucdi Ali said the family was heartbroken. “If it can happen to Yusra it can happen to anyone. She was just a normal, young girl.”

Juarez drug cartel boss is arrested

Federal police used a traffic checkpoint to arrest Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, the alleged drug cartel boss accused of turning the border city of Juarez into one of the deadliest places on the planet. The Attorney General Jesus Murillo Karam called the arrest “a capture of great importance”.

German captive freed by Taliban

Germany’s foreign ministry said yesterday a German man taken captive in Pakistan two years ago was now free and in the care of German authorities in Afghanistan. The ministry declined to give any further details, but wrote on Twitter: “He is in good health.”

Microsoft boss sorry for ‘karma’ pay gaffe

The boss of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, has apologised for remarks he made advising women not to ask for a pay rise but to have “faith in the system”. At a conference to celebrate women in technology, he suggested that women not asking for a rise was “good karma”.

Drug bust uncovers heroin worth £39m

Police have found Germany’s biggest-ever stash of heroin, with an estimated street value of £39m hidden in a truckload of pickled cucumbers and garlic. Police discovered 330kg of the drug in a truck in the western city of Essen and arrested two men.

Police get automated access to phone data

Mobile phone operators EE, Vodaphone and Three have made customers’ call records available to police through automated systems. Operators are legally obliged to store a year’s worth of calls for all their customers, allowing police to access them without a warrant.

Devolution report will not be popular

Lord Smith of Kelvin, hired to deliver proposals for further devolution of Scotland, has warned the report will not satisfy everyone. The Scottish Government wants control of taxes and welfare. The Lib Dems say that Scotland should raise the money it spends.

Lion cub born to war-devastated zoo

Hundreds of Sarajevan children queued impatiently yesterday for their first glimpse of a six-week-old lion cub, born after the city zoo last year received its first lions since its previous inhabitants perished in Bosnia’s 1992-95 war. The zoo reopened in 1997.

May challenged over secret drug reports

The Labour party and charities have challenged Home Secretary Theresa May over claims the Conservatives suppressed two reports covering drug abuse since July. Maryon Stewart, founder of the Angelus Foundation, said time has been wasted.

Kim Jong-un misses key ceremony

The country’s leader Kim Jong-un did not appear at a celebration of the anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party yesterday, increasing speculation that something is amiss with the leader who hasn’t been seen publicly in more than a month.

Party divided over Palestinian state

After instructing Labour MPs to vote in favour of a decision to recognise Palestine next week, it is understood Ed Miliband is facing backlash from members of the Shadow Cabinet who think it should only be recognised as part of a wider Middle East peace settlement.

Clooney and wife buy home in Sonning

Newlyweds George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin have purchased their marital home in Sonning, near Reading. The couple will live in a Grade II-listed mansion worth £10m, set on a four-acre plot on the banks of the river Thames. Sonning is also home to Uri Geller.

Bacall’s possessions should fetch £1.8m

Lauren Bacall’s art, jewellery and furniture will go under auction at Bonhams next year, with the 700 items expected to raise £1.8 million. The late actress’s possessions include works by Picasso as well as furniture from the house she used to share with Humphrey Bogart in Los Angeles.

British film board to phase out spoilers

Film plots will be kept under wraps as the British Board of Film Classification aims to phase out spoilers on the card displayed in cinemas before the film begins, after audience complaints. The BBFC said the issue could be solved “in a pragmatic way”.

Pooch protester passes on peacefully

A dog that became famous after being seen barking alongside protestors during Athens’ anti-austerity riots in 2011, has died. Loukanikos (Greek for sausage), was buried by a tree near the city centre. In 2011 Time magazine listed Loukanikos as one of its personalities of the year.