International

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:09 UTC

  First convictions from the Costa Concordia shipwreck that killed 32 people

  

  A court in Italy has convicted five people of manslaughter over the Costa Concordia shipwreck off Giglio Island which killed 32 people in January 2012. Two officers, the helmsman, the head of cabin service and the head of the crisis team were given up to two years and 10 months in jail for multiple manslaughter, negligence and shipwreck.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 06:04 UTC

  New Zealand fishing company gets burnt fingers in Argentina with hoki

  

  The New Zealand Maori co-owned deep-sea fishing company Sealord is walking away from its disastrous hoki venture in Argentina with an estimated 60 million dollars loss, reports the NZ media.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 00:22 UTC

  Scandal-hit Vatican bank struck by ‘gay lobby’ conspiracy claims Italian magazine

  

  A few hours before Francis started his first overseas tour to Brazil, the Vatican’s ‘gay lobby’ was back in the headlines after the alleged exposure of a homosexual prelate appointed by the pope to a key position at the Vatican bank, IOR.

• Monday, July 22nd 2013 - 00:18 UTC

  Introducing the Exlana sheep after eight years of development

  

  The concept of an easier care animal is not new – as SIG, a group of eight sheep farmers developing Sheep Improved Genetics, are the first to admit. But after years of breeding sheep through genetics, not cosmetics, the Exlana breeders say they have bred the ultimate animal.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 22:24 UTC

  Tickets for the 2014 World Cup final will range from 440 to 990 dollars

  

  FIFA has released the price list for tickets to the 2014 World Cup to be held in Brazil. Fans have until 10 October to apply and a ballot will decide which of the applications are successful.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 06:34 UTC

  Falkland Islands brought into the IMF-siding-with-Argentina controversy

  

  The IMF decision to side with Argentina in its dispute with the US hedge funds has triggered strong criticism in the UK and the issue was brought up in Parliament, according to a piece in the Daily and Sunday Express under the heading: “The British cash cow: Fury as UK money helps Argentina fight £66bn debt”.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 06:27 UTC

  UK embassy and Buenos Aires City sponsor English language teachers contest

  

  A contest for English language teachers in the city of Buenos Aires is part of 'English Week' that will run from 23 to 28 September. The “English Week contest” has been launched by the Buenos Aires City Foreign Language Operational Office (Dirección Operativa de Lenguas Extranjeras GCBA) and the English Teachers Association of Buenos Aires (APIBA, in Spanish) to enable teachers in the city to share the intercultural experiences of their students.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 05:46 UTC

  Money exchange controls limit Argentines from travelling to Brazil to greet Pope Francis

  

  Despite the pope is Argentine and on Monday he will be making his first pastoral trip overseas to Brazil, Argentine government strict currency controls are making it difficult for prospective pilgrims to travel. An estimated 60.000 Argentines are expected to travel to Rio do Janeiro for the grand event.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 05:42 UTC

  Operation clean up to reform scandal–plagued Vatican administration

  

  Pope Francis, moving to overcome major crises in the Holy See, set up a special commission to reform its economic and administrative departments, the Vatican said on Friday.

• Saturday, July 20th 2013 - 05:31 UTC

  Brazil Catholic church losing ground to Protestants and Pentecostals

  

  Brazil's Catholic population has declined since 2000 while its Protestant population has grown during the past two decades, a Pew survey fund.