SA And US Free $1.5 Billion Libya Aid – The United States and South Africa reached a deal on Thursday to let the UN Security Council release $1.5bn of seized Libyan assets for emergency aid, diplomats said. The last-minute accord meant the United States would not press for a vote at the Security Council to force the release of the money. [news24]
Gaddafi Reads Playboy - Babak Dehghanpisheh visited a Gaddafi family home this morning and discovered a secret palace hidden behind an ordinary façade. Read about the garden labyrinth, 40-foot deep bunker, hot tub, waterfall, Playboy magazine collection, yachting brochures and an empty box of Coronas. [dailybeast]
Gaddafi’s Double Agent – For more than five months in a city locked down by forces loyal to Col. Moammar Gadhafi, regime opponents in Tripoli’s Fashloom neighborhood relied on a fellow resistance leader who told them with uncanny accuracy how to evade security sweeps and tipped them off to impending raids against them. [wallstreetjournal]
Idols Contestant To Undergo Surgery After Fight – The Idols star who was assaulted outside a club at the weekend will undergo surgery on his crushed cheekbone soon. But first 22-year-old Freddie Van’Dango will perform with James Blunt and Chante Moore at the Idols Spectacular tonight. [timeslive]
Newlyweds Bust Stealing Food For Reception – They had all they needed for their wedding reception: Something blue, something borrowed – and $1,000 worth of something stolen. Two Pennsylvania newlyweds were busted Friday after police said they were caught swiping items for their wedding reception. [dailymail]
Astronomers Find Planet Made Of Diamonds - Astronomers have spotted an exotic planet that seems to be made of diamond racing around a tiny star in our galactic backyard. The new planet is far denser than any other known so far and consists largely of carbon. Because it is so dense, scientists calculate the carbon must be crystalline, so a large part of this strange world will effectively be diamond. [reuters]
Sims On Facebook Is World’s Fastest Growing Social Game – Heads up, Zynga: looks like you have some serious competition in the Facebook game space at last. The Sims Social, a reboot of Electronic Arts’ bestselling $4 billion games franchise, has only been out of beta since last Thursday — but it already has 4.6 million people playing it daily, according to AppData, a traffic tracking service from Inside Network. [mashable]
Alex Baldwin Is Moving In With His 27 Year Old Yoga Instructor – Alec Baldwin is settling down as he advances his political ambitions. The 53-year-old perennial bachelor, who has his eye on a mayoral run, also seems to have his heart set on marriage with 27-year-old yoga instructor Hilaria Thomas. Sources close to the “30 Rock” star confirmed that Baldwin has sold his 300 Central Park West apartment at the famed Art Deco Eldorado to move in with his girlfriend downtown. [nypost]
News International Paid Coulson’s Legal Fees – News International, the British arm of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, has been footing the bill for the DLA Piper lawyer representing former top News of the World editor Andy Coulson—but may stop doing so, according to the Financial Times. [lawdaily]
Warren Buffett To Invest $5 Billion In Bank Of America – Warren Buffett will invest $5 billion in Bank of America Corp, stepping in to shore up the largest U.S. bank in the same way he helped prop up Goldman Sachs and General Electric during the financial crisis. Bank of America shares rose nearly 26 percent at one point, but gave up most of those gains by early afternoon, closing 9.4 percent higher at $7.65. [reuters]
Austria Gets Another Fritzl - Police in Austria have arrested a man suspected of imprisoning and sexually abusing his two daughters in his village home over 40 years. The man, now 80, denies the abuse, which allegedly began when one girl was aged 12 and the other four. Police say the case was reported in May, when the daughters escaped after one reportedly knocked over the father as he tried to rape her. [bbc]
Giant Rat Killed With Pitchfork In New York - It sounds like an urban legend: giant mutant-looking rats roaming a city housing project. Only there’s a picture. A photo making the rounds shows Housing Authority worker Jose Rivera minutes after he speared the humongous rodent with a pitchfork at the Marcy Houses. It’s covered in white fur and looks well-fed. It appears to be about three feet long, including its hideously dangling tail. [nydailynews]
Clever Dolphins Use Shells To Catch Fish – Already famed as Earth’s first tool-using marine mammals, the bottlenose dolphins of Australia’s Shark Bay have proved handy yet again, by using conch shells to trap tasty fish, then shaking them into their mouths like sardines from a tin. [wired]
Mexico Casino Attack: 40 Killed - At least 40 people were killed and a dozen more wounded Thursday, officials said, when a northern Mexico casino was attacked by men who fired off guns and ignited drapes, rugs and furniture. Some witnesses reported that the attackers threw grenades into the Casino Royale in Monterrey, while others said gasoline bombs started the fire. The flames trapped customers and staff in the building. [washpo]
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