The Queen has highlighted respect and understanding between nations as the key to peace in her annual message to the Commonwealth.
The Queen's address to 2.4 billion citizens promotes this year's Commonwealth Day theme of "a peace-building Commonwealth".
With division over Brexit in the UK and instability around the world, the theme seeks to reaffirm the Commonwealth's charter principle that "international peace and security, sustainable economic growth and development and the rule of law are essential to the progress and prosperity of all".
The Queen's message forms part of the annual Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey being held on Monday afternoon and attended by the monarch, Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry, Duke of York and the Earl of Wessex.
In the message, printed in the event's order of service, the Queen writes: "The cornerstones on which peace is founded are, quite simply, respect and understanding for one another. Working together, we build peace by defending the dignity of every individual and community.
"By upholding justice and the rule of law, and by striving for societies that are fair and offer opportunities for all, we overcome division and find reconciliation, so that the benefits of progress and prosperity may be multiplied and shared.
"As members of the Commonwealth family, we can find much to be thankful for in the inheritances we have received from those who came before us. Through consensus and co-operation, great things have been achieved."
During the service, former Olympic gold medallist Jessica Ennis-Hill will carry the Queen's Baton for the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, escorted by Australian and UK athletes including Victoria Pendleton.
The baton will be launched on a global relay from Buckingham Palace by the Queen.
Joseph Muscat, the prime minister of Malta and chair-in-office of the Commonwealth, will give a reflection in the Abbey, and there will be performances from Australian heartthrob Cody Simpson and Maltese poet and writer Immanuel Mifsud.
Guests among the 2,000-strong congregation will include Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Scotland, alongside high commissioners, ambassadors and dignitaries, senior politicians from across the UK and Commonwealth, faith leaders and 800 schoolchildren.
Commonwealth Day will begin with the Band of the Coldstream Guards and the Commonwealth Youth Choir debuting a piece of music composed to mark the 65th anniversary of the Queen's accession to the throne.
The performance will take place during a flag raising ceremony at Horse Guards Parade to mark the start of celebrations worldwide.
Later this evening, Charles and Camilla will be guests of the Secretary-General at a reception at Marlborough House, the home of the Commonwealth's civil service.
Monday, March 13, 2017
Kim Kardashian West begged Paris robbers: 'Let me live'
Kim Kardashian West has revealed she begged with her Paris robbers to spare her life.
Kardashian was robbed of around €10m (£7m) worth of jewellery when a gang of masked men burst into her luxury apartment during Paris Fashion Week.
The robbers, wearing ski masks and dressed as police, broke into the building, near the historic Madeleine Church in the 8th arrondissement, at around 3am on 3 October.
They held a gun to her head before tying her up and locking her in the bathroom.
In a preview of the new series of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, the 36-year-old describes the moment she was attacked, saying through tears that she pleaded "let me live" to the gang.
Your turn west coast!! #KUWTK season 13 premieres in 15 minutes!! pic.twitter.com/1rY8Z23IjU— Kris Jenner (@KrisJenner) March 13, 2017
"They had the gun up to me and I knew they were just going to shoot me in the head," she said.
"Then he duct-tapes my face.
"Please I have a family. Let me live."
In another preview, Kardashian West said the robbers demanded money but she told them: "I don't have any money."
"They dragged me out on to the hallway on top of the stairs," she went on.
"That's when I saw the gun, like clear as day.
"I was kind of looking at the gun, looking down back at the stairs."
I love this opening #KUWTK season 13 starts now!— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) March 13, 2017
Kardashian West is also shown telling her sisters Khloe and Kourtney that she had a "split second" to decide whether to try to escape.
"Am I going to run down the stairs and either be shot in the back? It makes me so upset to think about it," she said.
"Either they're going to shoot me in the back, or if I make it and they don't, if the elevator does not open in time, or the stairs are locked, then like I'm f*****.
"There's no way out."
At the time, French police said she had made herself a target by flaunting her lavish lifestyle on social media.
Days before the raid, Kardashian West posted a photograph of a huge diamond ring on her left hand captioned with three diamond emojis.
The moment the reality TV star learned that her rapper husband, Kanye West, had been admitted to hospital with exhaustion, also features in the upcoming show.
West, 39, was taken to the Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at the University of California in November and the remaining dates on his world tour were abruptly cancelled.
Season 13 of Keeping Up With The Kardashian begins in the UK on E! on 19 March.
Kardashian was robbed of around €10m (£7m) worth of jewellery when a gang of masked men burst into her luxury apartment during Paris Fashion Week.
The robbers, wearing ski masks and dressed as police, broke into the building, near the historic Madeleine Church in the 8th arrondissement, at around 3am on 3 October.
They held a gun to her head before tying her up and locking her in the bathroom.
In a preview of the new series of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, the 36-year-old describes the moment she was attacked, saying through tears that she pleaded "let me live" to the gang.
Your turn west coast!! #KUWTK season 13 premieres in 15 minutes!! pic.twitter.com/1rY8Z23IjU— Kris Jenner (@KrisJenner) March 13, 2017
"They had the gun up to me and I knew they were just going to shoot me in the head," she said.
"Then he duct-tapes my face.
"Please I have a family. Let me live."
In another preview, Kardashian West said the robbers demanded money but she told them: "I don't have any money."
"They dragged me out on to the hallway on top of the stairs," she went on.
"That's when I saw the gun, like clear as day.
"I was kind of looking at the gun, looking down back at the stairs."
I love this opening #KUWTK season 13 starts now!— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) March 13, 2017
Kardashian West is also shown telling her sisters Khloe and Kourtney that she had a "split second" to decide whether to try to escape.
"Am I going to run down the stairs and either be shot in the back? It makes me so upset to think about it," she said.
"Either they're going to shoot me in the back, or if I make it and they don't, if the elevator does not open in time, or the stairs are locked, then like I'm f*****.
"There's no way out."
At the time, French police said she had made herself a target by flaunting her lavish lifestyle on social media.
Days before the raid, Kardashian West posted a photograph of a huge diamond ring on her left hand captioned with three diamond emojis.
The moment the reality TV star learned that her rapper husband, Kanye West, had been admitted to hospital with exhaustion, also features in the upcoming show.
West, 39, was taken to the Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at the University of California in November and the remaining dates on his world tour were abruptly cancelled.
Season 13 of Keeping Up With The Kardashian begins in the UK on E! on 19 March.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
Dutch PM wants apology for Turkish leader Erdogan's 'Nazi' claim
Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte has demanded an apology after Turkey's president compared his country's behaviour to "Nazism".
Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to retaliate after two of his ministers were prevented from holding rallies for some of the 400,000 Turks living in the Netherlands.
Mr Erdogan is looking to gain support from them and other Turks in Europe ahead of the 16 April referendum that could give him sweeping new powers, a response to last year's attempted coup.
But the Dutch authorities view the referendum as a step away from democracy and have told Ankara to keep its ministers away.
Turkish family affairs minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya was prevented from speaking at a rally in Rotterdam, and The Hague refused to allow a plane carrying foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to land ahead of a planned rally.
Mr Erdogan was speaking at a ceremony in Istanbul on Sunday when he said: "Hey Holland! If you are sacrificing Turkish-Dutch relations for the sake of the elections on Wednesday, you will pay a price."
He had said on Saturday that the Dutch behaviour over the Turkish visits was "Nazism" and "fascism", adding that the Dutch "will pay the price of treating my citizens, my foreign minister... in an impudent way".
And he said the Netherlands was acting like a "banana republic".
Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to retaliate after two of his ministers were prevented from holding rallies for some of the 400,000 Turks living in the Netherlands.
Mr Erdogan is looking to gain support from them and other Turks in Europe ahead of the 16 April referendum that could give him sweeping new powers, a response to last year's attempted coup.
But the Dutch authorities view the referendum as a step away from democracy and have told Ankara to keep its ministers away.
Turkish family affairs minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya was prevented from speaking at a rally in Rotterdam, and The Hague refused to allow a plane carrying foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to land ahead of a planned rally.
Mr Erdogan was speaking at a ceremony in Istanbul on Sunday when he said: "Hey Holland! If you are sacrificing Turkish-Dutch relations for the sake of the elections on Wednesday, you will pay a price."
He had said on Saturday that the Dutch behaviour over the Turkish visits was "Nazism" and "fascism", adding that the Dutch "will pay the price of treating my citizens, my foreign minister... in an impudent way".
And he said the Netherlands was acting like a "banana republic".
Details of Theresa May's travel plans left on train
Documents containing Theresa May's detailed travel plans have been left on a train.
A schedule of the Prime Minister's trip to the North West and the address of a hotel she was due to stay in were among the details included in the papers.
Downing Street has launched an investigation into how the blunder, which has been branded a "serious security breach", can have occurred.
The documents were found in the first class compartment of a train heading to Edinburgh, the Daily Mirror reported.
The paper said plans for a call to the NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and arrangements for a dinner in Altrincham were also included in the dossier.
Mrs May flew from RAF Northolt, west London, to Manchester before heading to a science park in Warrington for a visit on 23 January.
She was later due to travel by car to the Mere Hotel in Knutsford, Cheshire, and then to fly back to London.
It is not clear how the items came to be on a train.
Former royal bodyguard Inspector Ken Wharfe told the Mirror that leaving travel documents on a train was "inexcusable" and a "serious security breach".
A Government spokesman said: "We have been made aware of claims around a Government document and will investigate accordingly."
A schedule of the Prime Minister's trip to the North West and the address of a hotel she was due to stay in were among the details included in the papers.
Downing Street has launched an investigation into how the blunder, which has been branded a "serious security breach", can have occurred.
The documents were found in the first class compartment of a train heading to Edinburgh, the Daily Mirror reported.
The paper said plans for a call to the NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg and arrangements for a dinner in Altrincham were also included in the dossier.
Mrs May flew from RAF Northolt, west London, to Manchester before heading to a science park in Warrington for a visit on 23 January.
She was later due to travel by car to the Mere Hotel in Knutsford, Cheshire, and then to fly back to London.
It is not clear how the items came to be on a train.
Former royal bodyguard Inspector Ken Wharfe told the Mirror that leaving travel documents on a train was "inexcusable" and a "serious security breach".
A Government spokesman said: "We have been made aware of claims around a Government document and will investigate accordingly."
Bus driver kills 34 speeding away from accident in Haiti
A bus driver has killed 34 people after ploughing into pedestrians while trying to speed away from a fatal accident in Haiti.
The incident began when the driver mowed down two pedestrians - killing one.
While trying to speed away he ran over a group of street musicians.
Officials have put the death toll at 34, with another 17 people injured.
Early reports suggested the driver had been taken to a police station - but it later emerged he had fled.
The collision happened in the Haitian city of Gonaives - about 90 miles outside Port-au-Prince - at 3am on Sunday.
Emergency workers took the injured to hospital, while police tried to control an angry crowd at the scene.
"The people who were not victims of the accident tried to burn the bus with the passengers inside," said Faustin Joseph, civic protection coordinator for the area.
"The bus, the passengers and the driver were all placed into the care of the local authorities."
The musicians were taking part in a rara parade, which involves playing traditional instruments and being joined by passers-by.
Haitian roads are dangerous and chaotic, with few rules observed by pedestrians and drivers.
The incident began when the driver mowed down two pedestrians - killing one.
While trying to speed away he ran over a group of street musicians.
Officials have put the death toll at 34, with another 17 people injured.
Early reports suggested the driver had been taken to a police station - but it later emerged he had fled.
The collision happened in the Haitian city of Gonaives - about 90 miles outside Port-au-Prince - at 3am on Sunday.
Emergency workers took the injured to hospital, while police tried to control an angry crowd at the scene.
"The people who were not victims of the accident tried to burn the bus with the passengers inside," said Faustin Joseph, civic protection coordinator for the area.
"The bus, the passengers and the driver were all placed into the care of the local authorities."
The musicians were taking part in a rara parade, which involves playing traditional instruments and being joined by passers-by.
Haitian roads are dangerous and chaotic, with few rules observed by pedestrians and drivers.
Web creator Sir Tim Berners-Lee wants crackdown on fake news
The inventor of the World Wide Web has expressed his fears about fake news, as he unveiled plans to tackle "unethical" political advertising and the harvesting of data.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee said in an open letter marking 28 years since his invention that the misuse of data has created a "chilling effect on free speech" and warned of "internet blind spots" that are corrupting democracy.
The British computer scientist, 61, said one problem is that most people get their news and information from a "handful" of social media sites and search engines, which are paid whenever someone clicks a link.
"The net result is that these sites show us content they think we'll click on - meaning that misinformation, or fake news, which is surprising, shocking, or designed to appeal to our biases, can spread like wildfire," Sir Tim added.
"And through the use of data science and armies of bots, those with bad intentions can game the system to spread misinformation for financial or political gain."
Companies and governments are using widespread data collection to "trample on our rights", leading to bloggers being arrested and killed by repressive regimes, he said.
"But even in countries where we believe governments have citizens' best interests at heart, watching everyone all the time is simply going too far," Sir Tim wrote.
"It creates a chilling effect on free speech and stops the web from being used as a space to explore important topics, such as sensitive health issues, sexuality or religion."
Sir Tim also hit out at politicians for targeting voters using sophisticated algorithms to tailor messages to ones they will support.
"Targeted advertising allows a campaign to say completely different, possibly conflicting things to different groups. Is that democratic?" he said.
Sir Tim, who submitted his original proposal for the web on 12 March 1989, urged people to lobby for greater protection laws and for Google and Facebook increase their efforts to tackle fake news.
He said the online "blind spot" in political campaigning must be closed, while alternative revenue streams must be looked at to ensure data is not sold so indiscriminately.
The Web Foundation, which Sir Tim set up in 2009, will work on these issues in a five-year strategy.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee said in an open letter marking 28 years since his invention that the misuse of data has created a "chilling effect on free speech" and warned of "internet blind spots" that are corrupting democracy.
The British computer scientist, 61, said one problem is that most people get their news and information from a "handful" of social media sites and search engines, which are paid whenever someone clicks a link.
"The net result is that these sites show us content they think we'll click on - meaning that misinformation, or fake news, which is surprising, shocking, or designed to appeal to our biases, can spread like wildfire," Sir Tim added.
"And through the use of data science and armies of bots, those with bad intentions can game the system to spread misinformation for financial or political gain."
Companies and governments are using widespread data collection to "trample on our rights", leading to bloggers being arrested and killed by repressive regimes, he said.
"But even in countries where we believe governments have citizens' best interests at heart, watching everyone all the time is simply going too far," Sir Tim wrote.
"It creates a chilling effect on free speech and stops the web from being used as a space to explore important topics, such as sensitive health issues, sexuality or religion."
Sir Tim also hit out at politicians for targeting voters using sophisticated algorithms to tailor messages to ones they will support.
"Targeted advertising allows a campaign to say completely different, possibly conflicting things to different groups. Is that democratic?" he said.
Sir Tim, who submitted his original proposal for the web on 12 March 1989, urged people to lobby for greater protection laws and for Google and Facebook increase their efforts to tackle fake news.
He said the online "blind spot" in political campaigning must be closed, while alternative revenue streams must be looked at to ensure data is not sold so indiscriminately.
The Web Foundation, which Sir Tim set up in 2009, will work on these issues in a five-year strategy.
Boris Johnson warns Russia is up to 'all sorts of dirty tricks'
Boris Johnson has warned that Russia is capable of undermining the democratic process and is up to "all sorts of dirty tricks".
His comments come as spy chiefs warn British political party leaders about the threat of Russian hacking at the next general election.
A senior Government source has confirmed to Sky News a cyber security summit will be held to discuss fears of interference from Moscow.
Officials at GCHQ, the UK's eavesdropping agency, fear Russian hackers could steal and leak internal emails or publish private databases of voters' political views, according to the Sunday Times.
The National Cyber Security Centre, which is part of GCHQ, offered in the letter to party leaders to help strengthen the parties' security systems, the newspaper said.
"You will be aware of the coverage of events in the United States, Germany and elsewhere reminding us of the potential for hostile action against the UK political system," the letter from chief executive Ciaran Martin reportedly stated.
"This is not just about the network security of political parties' own systems.
"Attacks against our democratic processes go beyond this and can include attacks on parliament, constituency offices, think tanks and pressure groups and individuals' email accounts."
Fears over potential Russian interference have heightened in recent months, amid allegations of meddling in the electoral processes of a number of countries.
US spy chiefs have accused Moscow of trying to influence November's presidential election.
His comments come as spy chiefs warn British political party leaders about the threat of Russian hacking at the next general election.
A senior Government source has confirmed to Sky News a cyber security summit will be held to discuss fears of interference from Moscow.
Officials at GCHQ, the UK's eavesdropping agency, fear Russian hackers could steal and leak internal emails or publish private databases of voters' political views, according to the Sunday Times.
The National Cyber Security Centre, which is part of GCHQ, offered in the letter to party leaders to help strengthen the parties' security systems, the newspaper said.
"You will be aware of the coverage of events in the United States, Germany and elsewhere reminding us of the potential for hostile action against the UK political system," the letter from chief executive Ciaran Martin reportedly stated.
"This is not just about the network security of political parties' own systems.
"Attacks against our democratic processes go beyond this and can include attacks on parliament, constituency offices, think tanks and pressure groups and individuals' email accounts."
Fears over potential Russian interference have heightened in recent months, amid allegations of meddling in the electoral processes of a number of countries.
US spy chiefs have accused Moscow of trying to influence November's presidential election.
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