Twitter 'confuses' Iyad El-Baghdadi for Islamic State leader

An Arab Spring activist says his Twitter account was suspended after administrators mistook him for the leader of the so-called Islamic State.

Iyad El-Baghdadi said his account was suspended for about half an hour.

Mr El Baghdadi had been misidentified as IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in Indonesian newspaper Republika and the New York Post.

He has more than 70,000 Twitter followers and frequently mocks IS. Twitter has made no comment.

Twitter recently updated its rules on "abusive behaviour and hateful conduct" in a bid to better protect users. It has been criticised for not doing enough to stop IS using the platform for propaganda purposes.

The company says users are not allowed to threaten or promote terrorism.

Mr El Baghdadi told the BBC he received a message from Twitter saying he had "violated" its rules but not specifying the offence. He has accused Twitter of being racist.

"I don't think a single Arab country exists that doesn't have a family with the surname El-Baghdadi," he tweeted.

The activist, who also researches radicalisation, said the alleged incident raised questions about Twitter's security processes. He said the company needed to be "more transparent" about why and how people are suspended.

Twitter should "engage power users who deal with trolls regularly", he added.

The company does not comment on individual users' cases for privacy reasons.

Judge rules Bill Cosby's wife must give deposition in civil suit against husband

The wife of comedian Bill Cosby must give a deposition to lawyers representing seven of his alleged sexual assault victims, a federal judge ruled Thursday. 

The Boston Globe reported that U.S. Magistrate Judge David Hennessy rejected Camille Cosby's motion to quash a subpoena, saying in part that "Mrs. Cosby’s dual role as [Cosby]’s wife and business manager, render it at least plausible that Mrs. Cosby is in possession of information" relevant to the lawsuit filed against Bill Cosby in federal court in Massachusetts. 

Hennessy's ruling came one day after Cosby was charged in Pennsylvania with aggravated indecent assault over claims that he drugged and sexually assaulted a woman less than half his age at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. The charge was brought after a barrage of accusations from dozens of women, including the seven who filed the civil suit. 

The women allege that Cosby sexually assaulted them years ago, then used his representatives to defame them in the press when they came forward. 

Attorneys for the women had claimed in court papers that Camille Cosby "has more knowledge of Mr. Cosby’s sexual proclivities and encounters (consensual and nonconsensual), as well as his use of Quaaludes and other sedatives" than anyone apart from Cosby himself. Camille Cosby's attorneys claimed that the subpoena was a "thinly veiled attempt to pressure" the Emmy-winning entertainer.

Cosby has acknowledged a string of extramarital affairs and sexual encounters, but has insisted that all were consensual. Cosby, who makes his home mostly in Shelburne Falls, Mass., has also admitted that he obtained quaaludes in the 1970s to give to women "the same as a person would say, 'Have a drink.'" However, he denied giving women drugs without their knowledge.

In addition to the criminal case and the Massachusetts civil case, Cosby also faces defamation and sexual-abuse lawsuits filed in Los Angeles and Pennsylvania. But in nearly every case, it is too late to file criminal charges. One exception: a 2008 case involving a model at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles. It is still under investigation by police.

New Guidelines 'To Tell Drinkers To Cut Back'

The current NHS guidance on alcohol was issued 20 years ago

A reduction in the maximum daily intake for men to the same level for women is also expected to be announced by chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies, the Daily Mail said.

The report will say there is no "safe" alcohol limit and even drinking small amounts could cause illnesses including cancer.

Dame Sally has been leading a review into the current NHS guidance on alcohol, which was established more than 20 years ago.

The current guidelines say men should not drink more than three to four units a day - up to 21 units or less per week - while women should drink no more than two to three units a day, or 14 units a week.

Since the review was launched in 2012, scientific research has emerged suggesting abstaining from alcohol could help prevent serious illness, particularly later on in life.

A recent University College London study found patients who gave up for four weeks saw benefits for their liver function, blood pressure and cholesterol levels and were also at lower risk of developing diabetes and liver disease.

Man Mauled To Death By His Own Dog

The fatal dog attack happened at an address in Dundonald Street

The victim was treated at the scene by paramedics but he subsequently died of his injuries.

The dog, which belonged to the man, was taken from the property in Dundonald Street, and was put down by vets.

Police were called to the address by the ambulance service at around 3.45pm on New Year's Day, following reports a man had been bitten by a dog.

DI Jane Webb of Preston CID said: "This is a tragic incident in which a man has sadly died.

"Enquiries are on-going to establish the exact circumstances and my thoughts very much remain with his family who are being supported by specially trained officers at this time."

Dubai investigates cause of luxury-hotel fire

Authorities in Dubai say they are working to determine the cause of the fire that engulfed a 63-storey luxury hotel in the city on New Year's Eve even as firefighters continue to douse its embers.

The fire erupted before the city's fireworks extravaganza and engulfed the Address Downtown, comprising hotels and residences in Dubai, one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates.

The authorities said on Friday 16 people suffered mostly minor injuries despite the presence of thousands in the area to watch the celebrations.

At least 14 people were slightly injured, one was moderately injured and one person suffered a heart attack during the evacuation, they said.

All victims have been discharged from hospital except for a pregnant women and an elderly man who were said to be "well" but were kept in "to ensure their safety", the civil defence said.

Dubai and neighbouring emirates of the UAE have faced a series of fires in highrise buildings [EPA]

Firefighters spent Thursday night trying to extinguish the blaze.

Despite the fire, officials went ahead with plans to ring in the new year and thousands gathered in the area to watch the fireworks.

The Address would have a prime spot for viewing the midnight fireworks display, centred at the nearby Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building.

The Address boasts a luxury hotel with nearly 200 rooms, along with more than 600 residential units. Rentals of a one-bedroom can run $70,000 a year.

The fire started around 9:30pm on Thursday, racing up the sides of the Address.

More than 12 hours later on Friday morning, Dubai firefighters largely watched the fire from the ground, unable at one point to use a water hose on a ladder truck.

Dubai's economy depends heavily on tourism, and New Year's Eve is one of the busiest seasons [AP]

They later regained water pressure and resumed spraying the building.

Restaurants nearby opened on Friday for business, but served limited menus as civil defence officials cut natural gas to the area.

By the afternoon, the blaze had largely died down, but small fires were still visible burning through some windows, sending smoke into the air.

Dubai Civil Defence said the fire appeared to have started on the 20th-floor terrace, according to a statement by the government media office.

Witnesses who saw the blaze start said they believed it began on the building's ground floor.

The Civil Defence said "cooling procedures" were still under way on Friday, and that the investigation was under way into the cause.

Around one million people had been expected to gather around the Burj Khalifa skyscraper to watch the fireworks.

Dubai's economy depends heavily on tourism, and New Year's Eve is one of the busiest seasons, drawing people from around the world to watch the fireworks that Dubai puts on at the world's tallest tower, as well as the Burj Al Arab and over a palm-shaped artificial island.

Dubai-based Emaar Properties, which built the Burj Khalifa, the Address Downtown and other surrounding developments, issued a statement praising authorities "for their immediate and professional support".

"An investigation is ongoing and details will be provided once they are ascertained," the statement said.

Lieutenant-General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE's deputy prime minister and interior minister, also praised first responders to the blaze for "the success of the rescue operation" in comments published by the state-run WAM news agency.

The Address was to have been a prime spot for viewing the midnight fireworks display, centred at the nearby Burj Khalifa [Reuters]

However, challenges remain as Dubai has faced a series of recent tower fires.

In November, a massive blaze engulfed three residential blocks in central Dubai and led to services on a metro line being suspended, although no one was hurt.

In February, a huge fire gutted one of the emirate's tallest buildings, destroying luxury flats in the Torch tower and prompted an evacuation of nearby blocks in the Dubai Marina neighbourhood.

In 2012, a blaze destroyed the 34-storey Tamweel Tower in the nearby Jumeirah Lake Towers district. It was later revealed to have been caused by a cigarette butt thrown into a bin.

There were no serious casualties in that fire.

In October, a fire broke out in a high-rise residential tower in the neighbouring emirate of Sharjah.

Around one million people had been expected to gather around the Burj Khalifa skyscraper to watch the New Year's Eve fireworks [Reuters]

16 Things Turning 16 in 2016

We made it through the Y2K freak-out mostly unscathed, but that didn’t mean the year 2000 was uneventful. In the new year, these events will hit their 16th anniversaries:

The Dow hit its dotcom-boom peak (Jan. 14): The Dow closed at a whopping 11,722.98 on that day, and then it started to go down—and down. The tech stocks that had buoyed the market began their decline in early 2000. Only two weeks into the decade and the ’90s were really over.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the stock market boom, here in the TIME Vault: Beware the Cult

The final Peanuts comic strip ran (Feb. 13): After decades with Charlie Brown and Snoopy, the world said good-bye to Peanuts, just one day after the death of creator Charles Schulz.

Read TIME’s original coverage of Peanuts, here in the TIME Vault: Comment in the Comics

Jennifer Lopez rocked the Grammy Awards in that dress (Feb. 23): The singer stole the show in a barely-there Versace gown that was still talked about months and years later. And she remembered, too: the iconic palm print made an appearance in 2014 in the video for her song “I Luh Ya Papi.”

Read TIME’s original coverage of that year’s Grammys, here in the TIME Vault: The Shoes Aren’t Bad, Either

Erin Brockovich got us on her side (Mar. 14): The film was a hit and won Julia Roberts an Oscar, though some of the actual people involved in the case that made Brockovich famous claimed the movie didn’t do justice to their story. The real Brockovich, for her part, continues to work as a consumer advocate.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the film, here in the TIME Vault: Erin Go Bra

Pope John Paul II visited Israel (Mar. 21): During the historic trip, the Pope apologized to the Jewish people for the ills done to them by Roman Catholics over the years, from the Crusades to the Church’s failure to act during the Holocaust.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the visit, here in the TIME Vault: The Pope in the Holy Land

Metallica took Napster to court (April 13): The rock band became the face of resistance to changes in the music industry, ready to do whatever it took to defend its copyright. Thanks in part to the case, Napster eventually lost its place as the primary music-sharing platform—but not before permanently changing the way we listen to music.

Read TIME’s original coverage of Napster, here in the TIME Vault: What’s Next for Napster

Elian Gonzalez was removed from his relatives’ home in Florida (April 22): Months into the international saga of where a young Cuban boy ought to live—with relatives in Miami or with his father in Cuba—Attorney General Janet Reno made the decision to have the Immigration and Naturalization Service seize the child.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the controversy, here in the TIME Vault: Elian and His Dad

The Vermont legislature approved civil unions for gay couples (April 26): Almost exactly 15 years before the Supreme Court extended the right to full marriage to all Americans, the state of Vermont made history by being the first to offer legal unions to gay couples.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the law, here in the TIME Vault: The Marrying Kind

The world was enthralled by Gladiator (May 5): Russell Crowe and Ridley Scott offered audiences a macho fantasy epic for the ages. Later that year, 2.3 million copies of the DVD sold in 10 days.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the film, here in the TIME Vault: The Empire Strikes Back

Survivor got us hooked on reality TV (May 31): An adaptation of a Swedish show, Survivor wasn’t the first reality show competition—but its runaway success ushered in a new paradigm for television. And it’s still on today.

Read TIME’s original coverage ofSurvivor, here in the TIME Vault:Candid Cameras

Eminem returned with The Marshall Mathers LP (May 23): The rapper offended many with his lyrics—even his own mother didn’t escape his wrath—but fans gobbled up the album gleefully. More than a decade later, Enimen produced a sequel, The Marshall Mathers LP 2.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the album, here in the TIME Vault: A Whiter Shade of Pale 

Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open by 15 strokes (June 18): His margin of victory was unprecedented for Pebble Beach, and his level of fame was—for a while at least—similarly untouchable.

Read TIME’s original coverage of Tiger Woods, here in the TIME Vault: Tiger’s Tale

Scientists announced they’ve decoded the human genome (June 25): We’re still figuring out more that we can do with the knowledge, but mapping out our 3 billion chemical base pairs was a start.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the Human Genome Project, here in the TIME Vault: Cracking the Code!

Mifepristone was approved by the FDA (Sept. 28): The ability to provide abortion with a pill rather than surgery was meant to change the calculus for American women, but the new option didn’t put an end to philosophical debate.

Read TIME’s original coverage of RU 486, here in the TIME Vault: The Abortion Pill

The first crew arrived at the International Space Station (Nov. 2): The Space Station had been orbiting the Earth for years when the Russian and American crew arrived on board. In the years since, it has never been unoccupied.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the space station, here in the TIME Vault: Coming Soon to the Skies Near You

Bush v. Gore decided the election (Dec. 12): It came at the end of the year—and months after the election results were supposed to be in—but it was perhaps the most influential event of the whole 12 months. In an unprecedented move, the Supreme Court put an end to the recounts and put George W. Bush in the White House.

Read TIME’s original coverage of the decision, here in the TIME Vault: The Supreme Showdown

Kim Jong Un Promises ‘Holy War of Justice’ If Provoked

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said in an annual New Year’s speech Friday that he was ready for war if provoked by “invasive” outsiders, but he stayed away from past threats involving the country’s nuclear weapons and long-range missile ambitions.

His comments stuck to well-worn propaganda meant to lift his image for the elite residents of one of the world’s poorest, most closed countries, and could be read as an attempt to keep ties with rivals Washington and Seoul from getting worse so he can try to turn around a miserable economy and further solidify his leadership.

“We will continue to work patiently to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula and regional stability. But if invasive outsiders and provocateurs touch us even slightly, we will not be forgiving in the least and sternly answer with a merciless, holy war of justice,” said Kim, who wore thick black-rimmed glasses that continued his efforts to mimic the style favored by his late grandfather, beloved national founder Kim Il Sung.

While largely repeating the daily propaganda in state-controlled media, Kim’s words will be pored over by analysts for hints about the country’s intentions for the coming year. There is little public information about the inner workings and policy goals of North Korea’s government, which considers democratic South Korea and its ally the United States its enemies and is pursuing a long-range missile that could carry a nuclear warhead to America’s mainland.

Some observers had predicted that Kim would avoid overly provocative statements because the county wants to improve relations with South Korea and also China, its most important economic and strategic ally. Ties between North Korea and China have been cool since Kim took power in 2011, but seemed to improve when a senior Chinese official attended a high-profile military parade in Pyongyang in October.

Kim said he was open to talks with anyone truly interested in “reconciliation and peace” on the Korean Peninsula, and ready to “aggressively” work to improve ties with the South. But a far larger part of his speech on North Korea’s state TV was devoted to criticism of Seoul’s approach to inter-Korean talks and its alliance with Washington.

He vowed to improve North Korea’s struggling economy and living standards, and also called for the military to advance its technologies to develop more “diversified attack means.”

Analysts say Kim likely wants a push for tangible diplomatic and economic achievements before a convention of the ruling Workers’ Party in May, the party’s first since 1980, when he is widely expected to announce major state policies and shake up the country’s political elite to strengthen his position.

The rival Koreas have shown mixed progress in reconciliation efforts since stepping away from a military standoff in August, which started when land mine explosions that Seoul blamed on Pyongyang maimed two South Korean soldiers. The countries ended rare high-level talks last month with no breakthroughs.