British electricals retailer Comet to shut 41 stores

LONDON: British electrical goods chain Comet, which went into administration at the start of November, said on Saturday it would close 41 stores by the end of the month if a buyer could not be found.

"A closing down sale with increased discounts has, therefore, begun in 27 stores Saturday and will begin in a further 14 stores early next week," administrators Deloitte said in a statement.

"While the administrators will look to redeploy staff from any stores which do face closure to other stores nearby, there will inevitably be redundancies."

Comet runs around 240 stores across Britain and operates online.

Deloitte had already announced 330 redundancies but there have been no job losses among shop staff so far.

The collapse of Comet marks one of the biggest high street casualties since the demise of Woolworths in 2008.

Comet was founded in 1933 as a two-man business charging batteries for wireless radios.

Electrical retailers operating out of stores are facing dual pressure from tough economic conditions and online competition, while other retailers are also feeling the pinch.

British retail chains had shut an average of 20 stores per day in the first six months of 2012, according to consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers.

- AFP/de

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Bal Thackeray dies, life comes to a halt in Maharashtra

MUMBAI: Life virtually came to a halt in several parts of Maharashtra following the death of Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray today.

Shopkeepers and hoteliers downed shutters immediately after the news of his death.

There were some stray incidents of stone pelting in some areas in Mumbai and Thane. Taxis and autos were off the roads while local trains and BEST buses were plying in Mumbai though BEST authorities suspended operations in select areas where incidents of stone pelting were reported.

Officegoers tried to rush back to their homes as the news of Thackeray's death spread.

The central railway has cancelled the mega block on both Central and Harbour lines in Mumbai on Sunday to help the people to attend the last rites of the departed leader.

Cabs and autos which remained off the roads today at the airport would also not operate tomorrow as a mark of respect for the departed leader, authorities said.

Reports coming from many cities including Pune, Nashik, Aurangabad and parts of Konkan said that shops and restaurants remained closed there and autos were off the roads after the news of Thackeray's death was received.

There were stray incidents of pelting of stones on BEST buses at Pantnagar in suburban Ghatkopar, Naupada (Thane), Prateeksha Nagar, Kamothe (Navi Mumbai). The BEST suspended its operations in Mulund, Bhandup, Kandivali, Sion, Shivaji Nagar, Jogeshwari (E) and Kalanagar in Bandra. However, the transport undertaking said that it would operate its bus services tomorrow for the convenience of people who would come to pay last respects to Thackeray.

20,000 police personnel deployed

Security was beefed up across Maharashtra, particularly in Mumbai where 20,000 police personnel were deployed, to keep a tight vigil following the death of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray here today.

"The entire police force is on an alert in Maharashtra. Lakhs of people are expected to visit Mumbai to take a last glimpse of Thackeray," a senior police official at Maharashtra Police Headquarters said.

In Mumbai alone, over 20,000 city police, 15 companies of State Reserve Police Force and three contingents of Rapid Action Force have been deployed.

"The funeral procession will begin tomorrow at 7 AM. We have deployed enough number of police force at Sena Bhavan in Dadar, Matoshree in Bandra and at Shivaji Park where the last respects would be paid," Mumbai Police commissioner Satyapal Singh said.

"I appeal to people to remain calm and maintain law and order. Citizens should step out of the houses only if it is urgent. There would be traffic restrictions, particularly in Bandra and Dadar areas," Singh added.

Police have made an appeal to motorists to avoid Western Express Highway as roads connecting Kalanagar area, where Thackeray's residence is located, have been cordoned off.

The entire city wore a deserted look as shops, hotels, restaurants and other commercial establishments were closed and there was sparse traffic on the streets.

"We did not ask anybody to keep their shops shut. People are doing it voluntarily," Singh said.

Appropriate arrangements have been made at the Shivaji Park where VIPs are also expected to reach to pay homage tomorrow, Singh added.

Tributes

Personalities across the political spectrum and social sphere today condoled the death of Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray.

"Maharashtra has lost a veteran, experienced leader....He was a politician, cartoonist, editor, organiser as well as art-lover and orator," chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said.

Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said that Thackeray, as cartoonist, arrived on the scene like a storm after the collapse of communists in Mumbai, and took forward the legacy of his reformist father, 'Prabodhankar' Thackeray.

Shinde said he knew Thackeray for over four decades, and always felt he will survive the current bout of illness.

"He considered King Shivaji his idol. He worked for the people all his life. We took inspiration from him while governing in Maharashtra," said BJP chief Nitin Gadkari, who served as a PWD minister in the saffron alliance government in the state between 1995-1999.

State PWD minister Chhangan Bhujbal, a former Sena leader who later switched loyalties to the Congress and then NCP, said Thackeray created history by founding Shiv Sena and taking it to great heights politically.

"He was fearless while speaking...word 'compromise' never existed in his dictionary," Bhujbal said.

NCP chief Sharad Pawar's daughter and MP Supriya Sule said the Pawar family had very close relations with the Thackerays, though in the political arena the two rivals never spared each other.

"There were political differences for sure. But Pawar and Thackeray were the best of friends in the personal sphere. Thackeray helped a lot ahead of my marriage," she reminisced.

Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi said Thackeray was a strong patriot and a good cartoonist who carved an identity of his own in Maharashtra. "He had great affection towards me and was a guide for me," Modi said, offering his condolences.

Singer Asha Bhosale said she had lots of memories and it was a "sad day" for her. Lata Mangeshkar said Maharashtra has been "orphaned" today.

Tamil superstar Rajnikant described Thackeray as a great personality, and said he has lost a "father figure".

The 86-year-old cartoonist-turned-politician breathed his last at 3.30pm today at his residence Matoshree in suburban Bandra.

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Lonesome George Not the Last of His Kind, After All?

The tide may be turning for the rare subspecies of giant tortoise thought to have gone extinct when its last known member, the beloved Lonesome George, died in June.

A new study by Yale University researchers reveals that DNA from George's ancestors lives on—and that more of his kind may still be alive in a remote area of Ecuador's Galápagos Islands.

This isn't the first time Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni has been revived: The massive reptiles were last seen in 1906 and considered extinct until the 1972 discovery of Lonesome George, then around 60 years old, on Pinta Island. The population had been wiped out by human settlers, who overharvested the tortoises for meat and introduced goats and pigs that destroyed the tortoises' habitat and much of the island's vegetation.

Now, in an area known as Volcano Wolf—on the secluded northern tip of Isabela, another Galápagos island—the researchers have identified 17 hybrid descendants of C.n. abingdoni within a population of 1,667 tortoises.

Genetic testing identified three males, nine females, and five juveniles (under the age of 20) with DNA from C.n. abingdoni. The presence of juveniles suggests that purebred specimens may exist on the island too, the researchers said.

"Even the parents of some of the older individuals may still be alive today, given that tortoises live for so long and that we detected high levels of ancestry in a few of these hybrids," Yale evolutionary biologist Danielle Edwards said.

(See pictures of Galápagos animals.)

Galápagos Castaways

How did Lonesome George's relatives end up some 30 miles (50 kilometers) from Pinta Island? Edwards said ocean currents, which would have carried the tortoises to other areas, had nothing to do with it. Instead, she thinks humans likely transported the animals.

Crews on 19th-century whaling and naval vessels hunted accessible islands like Pinta for oil and meat, carrying live tortoises back to their ships.

Tortoises can survive up to 12 months without food or water because of their slow metabolisms, making the creatures a useful source of meat to stave off scurvy on long sea voyages. But during naval conflicts, the giant tortoises—which weighed between 200 and 600 pounds (90 and 270 kilograms) each—were often thrown overboard to lighten the ship's load.

That could also explain why one of the Volcano Wolf tortoises contains DNA from the tortoise species Chelonoidis elephantopus, which is native to another island, as a previous study revealed. That species is also extinct in its native habitat, Floreana Island.

(Related: "No Lovin' for Lonesome George.")

Life After Extinction?

Giant tortoises are essential to the Galápagos Island ecosystem, Edwards said. They scatter soil and seeds, and their eating habits help maintain the population balance of woody vegetation and cacti. Now, scientists have another chance to save C.n. abingdoni and C. elephantopus.

With a grant from the National Geographic Society's Committee for Research and Exploration, which also helped fund the current study, the researchers plan to return to Volcano Wolf's rugged countryside to collect hybrid tortoises—and purebreds, if the team can find them—and begin a captive-breeding program. (National Geographic News is part of the Society.)

If all goes well, both C.n. abingdoni and C. elephantopus may someday be restored to their wild homes in the Galápagos. (Learn more about the effort to revive the Floreana Galápagos tortoises.)

"The word 'extinction' signifies the point of no return," senior research scientist Adalgisa Caccone wrote in the team's grant proposal. "Yet new technology can sometimes provide hope in challenging the irrevocable nature of this concept."

More: "Galápagos Expedition Journal: Face to Face With Giant Tortoises" >>

The new Lonesome George study was published by the journal Biological Conservation.

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Israel Targets Hamas Headquarters

In the early hours of Saturday morning, Israel's Air Force reduced the headquarters of the militant group Hamas to rubble. It was one of several Hamas buildings and homes targeted, part of Israel's continuing effort to destroy the group's command and control structure as speculation mounts over an Israeli ground invasion.

The Israel Defense Forces released aerial drone video of the attack on the government building, the seat of Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Hanniyeh. Israeli warplanes have also struck the main police station, the interior ministry and the homes of top Hamas leaders.

As of Saturday morning, almost 900 "terror sites" had been targeted by Israel, including weapons caches and rocket launching sites. Around 600 rockets have been fired into Israel by Hamas and other militant groups, around a third of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome anti-missile system, according to the Israeli military.

The loud thud of Israeli missiles hitting Gaza and the buzz of drones overhead were consistent on Saturday, as Israeli tanks and troops massed on the border in preparation of a ground invasion. Israeli media also reported that 20,000 reservists have been called up.

PHOTOS: Airstrikes and Rocket Attacks Continue

"We are preparing for any possibility, a ground invasion is a possibility although it hasn't been decided at this point," said IDF spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Avital Liebovich. "We are ready to continue this operation "Pillar of Defense "until the peace and quiet and normality will return."

Israel Showdown: Tel Aviv Braces for More Rocket Attacks Watch Video

On Friday, Jerusalem was targeted for the first time in this escalation by militants in Gaza. A rocket landed around ten miles south near the West Bank Israeli settlements of Gush Etzion. And for the second day, sirens sounded in Tel Aviv as a rocket landed off the coast.

Three Israelis were killed Thursday by a rocket attack in the southern town of Kiryat Malachi. As of Saturday morning 39 Palestinians had been killed, among them more than half were civilians, according to Gaza health officials.

"Up until now we can say the situation is stable," Dr. Ayman al-Sahbani, the head of the emergency unit at Gaza's main al-Shifa hospital, said on Friday. "If it continues, we can't [cope]. Of course we can't. We hope to stop the [Israeli] aggression."

Israel's Iron Dome Proves Effective

Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil visited the strip for three hours Friday morning, raising hope a ceasefire would be brokered. Qandil and the Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, are both from the Muslim Brotherhood, of which Hamas is an offshoot. They have the delicate task of trying to coordinate between Hamas, Israel and the United States.

"What I am witnessing in Gaza is a disaster and I can't keep quiet," Qandil said, "The Israeli aggression must stop."
Israel says this operation, dubbed "Pillar of Defense," is the result of the rockets that regularly fly into southern Israel from Gaza. This operation started when Israel assassinated the top commander of Hamas' military wing, Ahmed Jabari.

"As long as Israel keeps killing us, we will keep defending ourselves by any means possible," the spokesman of Islamic Jihad, Daoud Shahab said in an interview. "If Israel stops its aggression, we are ready to stop firing the rockets."

In Washington, the Obama administration reiterated its view that Israel has the right to defend itself.

"It's a matter of the international community and particularly regional states with influence to do what they can to make clear to Hamas that this is not benefiting the cause of the Palestinian people, and it's certainly not benefiting the cause of regional stability," said State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland.

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