Diverse and Interesting Topics

[Sandra]

One of the RAF's most historic squadrons will no longer be called 'The Crusaders' after claims the name is offensive to Muslims.

14 Squadron got its nickname after its airmen flew sorties over Gaza and Palestine during World War I. 
A RAF crew member filed a formal complaint with top brass insisting the term was insulting.

To the dismay of many, senior officers upheld the grievance.
Now crews have been ordered to remove any references to 'Crusaders' around their hangar.

The Crusades were religious wars between Christians and Muslims in the medieval times to secure control of holy sites in the Middle East.

14 Squadron has connections to the region dating back to both world wars.

The squadron's motto 'I spread my wings and keep my promise' is taken from the Koran and even appears in Arabic on its royal crest.

 

[Sandra]

[Sandra]

'You don't tell me to wear a bikini': Egypt's Olympic volleyball duo compete fully clothed in Paris.



Following Egypt's 2-0 loss to Spain, the pair were seen embracing in their long-sleeve top, leggings, and headscarf while the Spanish duo celebrated their victory in a tight red bikini and matching sun visor.

[Sandra]

A garden centre has started selling its Christmas decorations on the hottest day of the year so far.

The weather outside might have been blisteringly hot but the climate inside this Essex garden centre is decisively wintery.

Summerhill's in Basildon has decided to deck the halls with boughs of holly over five months before December 25th - with the garden centre's shelves already filled with fake Christmas trees, baubles and Father Christmas figurines.

Meanwhile, the rest of the country has been basking in the heatwave as Brits flock to beaches and parks to make the most of the nice weather - which reached as high as 32C in Kew Southwest London.

However, Summerhill's manager insists the early decorations are due to high demand which she claims sees some customers travel as far as Scotland to pick up their festive knick-knacks.

Charlotte Harrington, the store's manager,  'For many, many years now, we've opened our Christmas department on the August bank holiday.

'The stock comes in early and we gradually start putting it out on the shop floor.
This is just a small fraction of what we have.

'But our Christmas displays are so spectacular it takes time to get everything set up, so we have to start early.'

The 40-year-old said that the garden centre will keep adding more decorations to its Christmas displays from now until October.

She added that the high demand for their festive products has seen customers ring as early as June and store is already looking at order for Christmas 2025.

[Sandra]

The sun is shining, temperature is rising and people are headed to the beach to relax and bask in the summer weather. But that hasn't stopped Asda unveiling it's Christmas range - almost five months before December 25.
The UK supermarket has shared a sneak peak and it's festive range, studded with traditional turkey offerings and more quirky vegan  dishes.

Asda has spent more than 12 months perfecting the 540-product strong collection complete with festive favourites as well as fresh innovation.

[Sandra]

Drinking from plastic bottles can raise blood pressure due to microplastics entering the bloodstream, study suggests

Microplastics have also been found in fluids in glass bottles, according to other research, and experts say the associated higher blood pressure can lead to an increased risk of heart disease.

[Sandra]

Now the price of your tea is skyrocketing! As food inflation bites and a coffee surpasses a fiver, how the price of a humble cup of English breakfast is soaring above £4

While a good old cup of tea is a staple of the nation, with Brits enjoying around 100 million cups daily, the price is getting increasingly less affordable to have outside.

[Sandra]

Taylor Swift concerts cancelled in Austria over 'ISIS bomb plot': 'Tragedy is averted' after radicalised 19-year-old 'who also planned to drive car into crowd of fans and had friends hired as security guards' is arrested

    A 19-year-old suspect had a 'focus' on Swift's Vienna concert, police confirmed
    The suspect had pledged an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State group (ISIS)

[Sandra]

Iraq proposes lowering legal age of marriage for girls to NINE

Protesters demonstrated in Baghdad this week to express their outrage at changes that would allow aspects of personal status matters to be legislated by religious sects over courts.

[Sandra]

Europe in flames:
100-foot high Greek wildfires move
'like lightning'
 and
 threaten Athens
-
 while Portugal and Italy suffer infernos
-
 as France and Germany swelter under tropical

'heat dome'

[Sandra]

Migrants keep coming: More cross English Channel to arrive in UK as people traffickers step up trips to take advantage of calm summer seas

About 70 people were seen being escorted to land at Dover in Kent by Border Force officials in the week daily crossings hit a new high level for the current government.

[Sandra]

Tiny newbuild flats get go-ahead - despite 'being for people with no sex life' because they don't have enough room for a double bed

Councillors had expressed concerns about the cramped conditions in the proposed flats in Cambridge as tenants would have to accept their sex life was 'completely without prospect'.