Iraq sentences 27 men to death for roles in 2014 Speicher massacre

Iraqi soldiers salute a mass grave that is thought to hold as many as 1,700 bodies that were killed in the Camp Speicher massacre.

Iraq sentenced 27 prisoners to death for their part in a 2014 massacre that killed as many as 1,700 men in ISIS-controlled territory, according to a statement released by Iraq Central Criminal Court.

"The Central Criminal Court issued a verdict to execute 27 defendants convicted of participating in the Speicher massacre," Judge Abdul Sattar al-Beeraqdar, a spokesman for Iraq's Higher Judicial Council, said in a statement released Tuesday.

However, Beeraqdar said the decision is "preliminary and can be appealed."

This is the second mass conviction relating to the so-called Speicher massacre committed by ISIS members in 2014.

ISIS released videos after the massacre that showed a line of Iraqi military recruits being marched at gunpoint. Later, ISIS posted images showing mass murders.

'Where are our sons?' demand families of soldiers captured by ISIS

In 2016, Iraq hanged 36 people for taking part in the massacre. They were executed at Al-Hoot prison in Nasiriyah province, south of Baghdad.

The killings have come to be known as the Speicher massacre because they took place at Camp Speicher, a former US base near Tikrit, after ISIS forces took control of the area.

The massacre was described by Human Rights Watch as the "largest reported incident" where "ISIS captured more than 1,000 soldiers fleeing Camp Speicher ... then summarily executed at least 800 of them."

A mass grave was uncovered in Tikrit in 2015, where as many as 1,700 bodies were recovered. Officials believe these bodies were of the men involved in the Speicher massacre.

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Powerful earthquake kills at least 19 in China, hundreds injured

At least 19 people were killed and 247 more injured late Tuesday after a powerful earthquake struck a popular tourist area in southwest China, according to state media.

Of those hurt, about 40 are in a serious condition, state news agency Xinhua reported.

The quake struck Jiuzhaigou County in China's southwestern Sichuan Province late on Tuesday night.

At least five of the people who died were tourists, Xinhua reported, citing the information office of the provincial government. About 2,800 people were evacuated from the severely damaged Intercontinental hotel.Rescuers are still working to clear the rubble, and there are people buried beneath the debris, state broadcaster CCTV said.

There was some disagreement over the size and power of the earthquake.

The US Geological Survey reported a magnitude-6.5 quake 35 kilometers (22 miles) west-southwest of Yongle, Xinhua reported it was 7.0-magnitude, citing the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Residents in Chengdu, the provincial capital -- 300 kilometers (186 miles) away from the epicenter -- told state media they had felt the quake.

Chinese paramilitary police search for survivors after an earthquake in Jiuzhaigou in southwest China's Sichuan province early on August 9.

The China Earthquake Administration has launched a Level I emergency response, the highest of its four levels, according to state media.

Almost 400 fire trucks and more than 1,100 firefighters were dispatched to the scene, CCTV said. They are bringing with them 55 life detectors, 30 rescue dogs and 24 generators.

Local authorities announced the closure of the Jiuzhaigou tourist area, which includes a national park known for its waterfalls and topographical formations, beginning Wednesday.

Yu Qian, a local taxation bureau official, told Xinhua that the earthquake cut off power and disrupted phone service in her neighborhood.

Firefighters in China's Gansu province preparing to head to Sichuan on August 8.

Photos from the scene showed what appeared to be pieces of buildings lying in the street, a stone the height of a small automobile in the street and a heavily damaged hotel entrance, its revolving doors twisted and rubble lying in front of them.

The temblor wasn't the only quake in China in the past 24 hours.

On Wednesday morning, a magnitude-6.3 earthquake struck northwestern China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, close to the border to Kazakhstan, the United States Geological Survey said.

The quake struck at 7:27 a.m. local time. Its epicenter was 107 kilometers (67 miles) south-southeast of Dostq, Kazakhstan, at a depth of 25.9 kilometers (16 miles), the USGS said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, due to the sparsely populated nature of the area.

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Neptune storm 'extremely surprising'

A storm 6,000 miles wide has been found raging on Neptune in what scientists say is an 'extremely surprising' discovery.

The massive system is marked by bright clouds near the equator where they have never been seen before.

Experts say such clouds are normally closer to the poles.

They believe a huge high-pressure, dark vortex anchored deep in the atmosphere may have caused the storm, which is almost as big as Earth.

Gases rising up in the vortex are thought to be cooling and condensing out to form clouds.

Unlike the watery clouds on Earth, those on Neptune consist of methane.

Professor Imke de Pater, from the University of California at Berkeley in the US, said: 'Historically, very bright clouds have occasionally been seen on Neptune.

'But usually at latitudes closer to the poles, around 15 to 60 degrees north or south. Never before has a cloud been seen at or so close to the equator, nor has one ever been this bright.'

But it may not be linked to a vortex and instead could be a huge convective cloud similar to those seen on other planets, including one detected on Saturn in 2010.

However, a convective cloud would be expected to 'smear out' significantly over a period of about a week.

UC Berkeley graduate student Ned Molter made the discovery during a dawn test run of the WM Keck Observatory telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii.

Mr Molter, who observed it getting much brighter between 26 June and 2 July, said: 'Seeing a storm this bright at such a low latitude is extremely surprising.'

Neptune, the fourth biggest planet in the solar system, is the windiest with wind speeds at the equator reaching up to 1,000mph.

In comparison, a Category 5 hurricane on Earth has wind speeds of 156mph and the most powerful tornadoes spin at around 300mph.

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Teenager sentenced over boyfriend's death

A woman who encouraged her suicidal boyfriend to kill himself in dozens of text messages has been sentenced to 15 months in jail for involuntary manslaughter.

Michelle Carter was convicted in June by a judge who said her final instruction to Conrad Roy III caused his death.

Carter was 17 when the 18-year-old Roy was found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning in July 2014.

Juvenile Court judge Lawrence Moniz on Thursday gave Carter a two-and-a-half-year jail sentence but said she had to serve only 15 months of that. He also sentenced her to five years of probation.

Carter's lawyer, Joseph Cataldo, asked the judge to spare his client any jail time and instead give her five years of probation and require her to receive mental health counselling.

Anyone who may be feeling distressed can contact the following organisations for support.

SANE Helpline 1800 18 72 63

Lifeline 131 114

Beyond blue 1300 22 4636

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US rapper fronts court on murder charge

A founding member of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five stabbed a homeless man to death because he thought the man was hitting on him and he feared he would be robbed, a New York prosecutor says.

Rapper Kidd Creole, whose real name is Nathaniel Glover, was returned to jail without bail by Judge Phyllis Chu on Thursday after an initial appearance in a Manhattan court on a second-degree murder charge.

Assistant District Attorney Mark Dahl said Glover, 57, a lyricist with the pioneering group, gave a detailed account of the encounter.

Defence lawyer Patrick Watts told the judge the evidence was 'circumstantial'.

Dahl said Glover was heading to his job at a building where he did security and maintenance when he encountered John Jolly, who asked him: 'What's up?'

Dahl said Glover told him after his arrest he thought Jolly was hitting on him and thought he was gay 'and that infuriated him'.

The prosecutor said Glover kept walking but became convinced Jolly was going to rob him when the 55-year-old approached him in a 'threatening voice and manner', saying: 'All I said to you was 'What's up!"

Dahl said Glover reached into his sleeve and pulled out a steak knife, leaving Jolly with two stab wounds to the chest.

Jolly picked up a beer after the stabbing and took a swig, the prosecutor said, then he collapsed and was taken to the hospital.

Glover 'turned around and went to work' immediately after the stabbing, he said.

Dahl said Glover washed blood off his hands and the knife before deciding to go home.

He said Glover told him he tossed the knife into a sewer grate in the Bronx.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five is best known for their 1982 song The Message.

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Men found guilty of filmed gang rape

A teenager found out she'd been gang raped at a western Sydney party when police uncovered footage of the assaults on a GoPro camera six weeks later.

The 17-minute-long video shows a group of men having sex with the 16-year-old in a bedroom at the St Clair house party in May 2015.

A jury at the Downing Centre District Court on Tuesday found Tristan Carlyle- Watson, 26, Kurt Stevenson, 26, and Andrew Waters, 25, guilty of aggravated sexual assault in company.

During the trial, crown prosecutor Sharon Harris said the victim was drunk and believed she had been drugged before the men sexually assaulted her 'sometimes ... simultaneously, sometimes taking turns.'

One man is heard saying 'One by one we'll all get a f,' she told the court.

The victim has 'slow movements, floppy limbs' and repeatedly says she's tired and wants a blanket, Ms Harris said.

'Kurt Stevenson has to direct her to take her clothes off or to move or sit up,' she said.

'They don't speak to her other than Kurt Stevenson who seems to be, you might think, pacifying her.'

The girl was invited to the party after befriending Carlyle-Watson on Facebook and asked him 'to take care of her', Mr Harris said.

Instead, the girl gave evidence she 'drank a bad-tasting frothy liquid out of a 'VB' can that didn't taste like beer'.

She has no memory of what unfolded at the party.

Six weeks later police knocked on her door and said they had found GoPro footage of her being assaulted.

Stevenson and Waters were each found guilty of multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault in company.

Carlyle-Watson was found guilty of one count of aggravated sexual assault in company, and not guilty of one count of sexual intercourse without consent.

They are is due to face a sentencing hearing in October.

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Songwriter Bernie Taupin Selling California Ranch for $4.7 Million

Elton John and Bernie Taupin

Sir Elton John’s longtime writing partner owns the 30-acre Santa Ynez Valley estate

English hitmaker Bernie Taupin is selling a 30-acre ranch in Santa Ynez Valley, California, where he’s written songs and created art for the past quarter century.

Mr. Taupin, 67, has drawn inspiration for a handful of albums written for Sir Elton John since he bought the house in 1992—which featured hit songs  like “The One,” “Something About the Way You Look Tonight” and a wildly popular version of “Candle in the Wind” rewritten as a tribute to Princess Diana after her death. The home is also the muse for Mr. Taupin’s mixed media art.

“This place has just been unbelievably inspirational for me,” Mr. Taupin said in a video of the property. “The songs that I’ve written have all been inspired by this place and just the comfort it gives me.”

Mr. Taupin is celebrating 50 years working with the pop music icon and is known for writing the lyrics to “Rocket Man,” “Tiny Dancer” and “Bennie and the Jets.” His longtime home is for sale for $4.7 million, a price cut from the last time he tried to sell the bucolic compound.

The home was last on the market a year ago for $5.95 million, according to listing records.

The property where Mr. Taupin lives with his family is called Roundup Valley Ranch and is anchored by a five-bedroom, six-bathroom main house. The songwriter has a separate studio and office space where he works. There’s also a cavernous equestrian center with a covered arena and stables, according to information provided by broker Ann Abernethy of Ranch Marketing Associates.

The Taupin family plans to stay in the U.S. but they’re looking for a different environment for their two daughters and since Mr. Taupin no longer rides horses, Ms. Abernethy said.

“They want a different kind of setup for their children,” she said.

The Mediterranean-style white stucco and blue-tile roofed main house was built in the 1980s. There’s a great room and large kitchen equipped with four ovens, plus a pizza oven where Mr. Taupin whips up meals for guests while taking in impressive valley views, he said.

Outside there’s also a pool, a pond and outdoor riding rings.

“There is this sense of tranquility and privacy here that is very hard to find anywhere,” Mr. Taupin said.

He recalled the moment he first saw the home.

“The road leading up to the house and the lake, the vistas,” he recalled. “You get that feeling ‘this is it’—well this was definitely ‘it.’”

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