Miss lebanon in hot water after selfie with Miss Israel
Miss Universe contestants are keen to proclaim their desire for world peace, but this year’s Miss lebanon has declared war after claiming Miss Israel muscled in uninvited during a group selfie. Saly Greige took to her Facebook page to declare that Israel’s Doron Matalon had pushed her way into a now widely-circulated photo showing the Middle Eastern beauties with Miss Japan and Miss Slovenia.
“Since the first day of my arrival to participate to Miss Universe, I was very cautious to avoid being in any photo or communication with Miss Israel (who tried several times to have a photo with me),” Greige wrote. “I was having a photo with Miss Japan and Miss Slovenia, suddenly Miss Israel jumped in, took a selfie, and put it on her social media.”
The offending photo, taken in Miami where the Miss Universe pageant is staged, appeared on Matalon’s Instagram account on January 11. Matalon responded to the controversy, saying it made her sad. “It doesn’t surprise me, but it still makes me sad. Too bad you can not put the hostility out of the game,” she wrote in English and Hebrew.
(Yahoo)
Researchers puzzled by 1882 Winchester rifle
Researchers are trying to crack the mystery surrounding the discovery of a weathered, rusted Winchester rifle in the mountains of remote eastern Nevada. The gun manufactured in 1882 was found leaning against a juniper tree on a rocky outcrop in Great Basin National Park during an archaeological survey in November.
Nichole Andler, the park’s chief of interpretation, said officials may never know when the .44-40 rifle was placed there, but it’s possible it could have been left undisturbed since the 1800s. The area along the Utah border has a history of mining, ranching and hunting, she said, and park researchers are scouring historical documents to learn who might have owned the rifle.
“I would say the possibilities are wide open as to who owned the rifle and why it was left there,” Andler said. “It leaves a lot to the imagination and it may be a mystery that’s never solved.” The rifles, which sold for $35 to $50 in the 1880s, now can fetch up to $15,000 in excellent condition. They were among the most popular guns on the Western frontier.
The unloaded rifle’s wooden stock was cracked but still intact, while its barrel was rusted. Its serial number was still visible, which allowed experts at the Buffalo Bill Center to determine it was made in 1882. Though a 1919 ad campaign branded the Winchester rifle as “The Gun that Won the West,” the Colt single-action Army revolver probably deserved the reputation more.
(AP)
British MI5 won’t hire agents with tattoos
New job descriptions posted by MI5 — the British domestic security and counter-terrorism agency — ban hiring agents with tattoos. “Being able to blend into the background and remain covert is of paramount importance in our investigations,” one job description says. “Any distinguishing features such as tattoos on your face, neck or forearms would make you more recognisable to someone who is under surveillance and would therefore make you unsuitable for this role. likewise, if you are male you will need to be 6’1” or under. Females must be 5’8” or under.”
The Telegraph notes that Sean Connery was forced to hide a tattoo on his forearm that says “Scotland Forever” when he played James Bond, a fictional MI6 — MI5’s foreign-affairs counterpart — agent. The job descriptions also stress the importance of patience, good vision and hearing, communication skills and driving skills.
(UPI)
Saudi Cleric Calls Snowmen Anti-Islamic, Issues Fatwa
A prominent Saudi Arabian cleric has whipped up controversy by issuing a religious ruling forbidding the building of snowmen, describing them as anti-Islamic. Asked on a religious website if it was permissible for fathers to build snowmen for their children after a snowstorm in the country’s north, Sheikh Mohammed Saleh al-Munajjid replied: “It is not permitted to make a statue out of snow, even by way of play and fun.”
Quoting from Muslim scholars, Sheikh Munajjid argued that to build a snowman was to create an image of a human being, an action considered sinful under the kingdom’s strict interpretation of Sunni Islam. “God has given people space to make whatever they want which does not have a soul, including trees, ships, fruits, buildings and so on,” he wrote in his ruling. That provoked swift responses from Twitter users writing in Arabic and identifying themselves with Arab names. “They are afraid for their faith of everything... sick minds,” one Twitter user wrote.
Another posted a photo of a man in formal Arab garb holding the arm of a “snow bride” wearing a bra and lipstick. “The reason for the ban is fear of sedition,” he wrote. Sheikh Munajjid had some supporters, however. “It is imitating the infidels, it promotes lustiness and eroticism,” one wrote. “May God preserve the scholars, for they enjoy sharp vision and recognise matters that even Satan does not think about.”
(Reuters)