holidaymaker from Lancashire believes she is lucky to be alive after a bomb attack on a cafe in Marrakesh, Morocco

holidaymaker from Lancashire believes she is lucky to be alive after a bomb attack on a cafe in Marrakesh, Morocco, that left 16 people dead.Genevieve Haines, from Garstang, had visited the Argana cafe in Djemaa el-Fna square, a major tourist spot, the night before the explosion.She told the BBC she "felt very lucky" to avoid the blast, which killed 11 foreigners and injured 20 other people.One Marrakesh official said a suicide bomber could be behind the attack.Ms Haines said she had been returning to the city after visiting the Ouzuode Waterfalls when she heard about the explosion."It was only because I got a text off my friend asking if I was...

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Briton 'among 14 tourists killed by suicide bomber' in explosion at popular Marrakesh cafe

A British tourist was believed to be among 15 killed yesterday in a  terrorist attack in Marrakesh, Morocco’s most popular holiday destination. Up to 80 victims were injured after a suicide bomber dressed in a Real Madrid shirt set off what is believed to have been a massive nail bomb.The attack happened after the man ordered a drink in a cafe overlooking the Djemma el-Fna Square in the heart of the ancient city.The Argana restaurant is hugely popular with British tourists, who used its terrace as a vantage spot to watch snake-charmers, fire-breathers and dancers.&nb...

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Palma prosecutor is seeking a two-year prison sentence for an alleged Chinese hit man accused of extorting a Chinese couple

Palma prosecutor is seeking a two-year prison sentence for an alleged Chinese hit man accused of extorting a Chinese couple. According to the prosecution, in April 2007 the defendant, now aged 49, tried to force the Chinese couple to buy out their business partner’s share of the restaurant at an exorbitant price, threatening to kill them if they did not.The suspect, who police say is part of an organized crime gang dedicated to extortion and blackmail, denied the allegations during the hearing on Monday.The male victim who reported the incident said their business partner, a woman, told them of her intention to sell her stake in the Chinese...

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THE owner of an Alicante ice cream parlour received a letter from her bank informing her that she had 90 days to pay €1,000 billion in interest

THE owner of an Alicante ice cream parlour received a letter from her bank informing her that she had 90 days to pay €1,000 billion in interest. Encarnacion Gomez, had the shock of her life upon opening the letter from the Guipuzcoano Bank and when she told her husband he thought she must have misread it.But when Vicente Asencio checked the letter, it indeed stated the couple owed €1,000,000,000,030.89.Fortunately, after contacting the branch, they were told it was a computer error and management sent a letter of apology to the couple. "They gave us a good scare," said Vicente.Encarnacion and Vicente have run the establishment located in...

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BENIDORM theme park Terra Mitica opened its door for the first time this season receiving an estimated 10,000 visitors

BENIDORM theme park Terra Mitica opened its door for the first time this season receiving an estimated 10,000 visitors Much has changed following the renovation programme over the winter months. The areas are verdant and more nebulizers have been installed to help keep visitors cool. The park generally has a more relaxed and comfortable atmosphere than previously.Although not greatly publicised, admission on the first day was free to those who had the coupons. Those who weren’t aware of the scheme turned up and paid as usual. The free first day might have artificially boosted attendance, as on the following day there were noticeably fewer people...

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18 hurt in Barcelona train crash

18 people were slightly injured at 10am on Thursday in a collision between two trains in a tunnel in Barcelona. A local cercanías commuter train ran into the back of an empty sleeper train close to the El Clot station. Some 70 passengers were evacuated from the scene, and some were treated for cuts and bruises and whiplash. All managed to walk from the scene, guided by the fire and civil protection services.Line 1 trains were diverted through Passeig de Gràcia.&nb...

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The lights go out in Jerez City Hall

A power cut as a result of an unpaid bill has paralysed the activity of Jerez City Hall. The collapse of the computer system meant that all activity had to be done by hand.A council meeting, chaired by the Socialist Mayor, Pilar Sánchez, has to be suspended given the impossibility to approve and transmit the agreements and documents through the computer system.The City Hall has called for ‘more understanding’ from the Endesa power company which is owed 3.1 million € by the ayuntamiento.Public services in the city are now reported to be under threat because the City Hall has failed to meet other payments. Bus drivers are on strike today in protest...

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Spanish submarine leaves Cartagena for Libyan waters

The Mistral will relieve the Tramontana on the mission to enforce an arms embargo on LibyaThe Defence Minister Carme Chacón at the Navy submarine base in Cartagena The Defence Minister, Carme Chacón, was at the Spanish Navy submarine base in Cartagena on Tuesday to see off the ‘Mistral’ submarine, as it left to relieve the ‘Tramontana’ which is deployed in the operation to enforce an arms embargo on Libya.The Tramontana has been in the area since March 26.The Mistral is almost 26 years old and, with a top speed of six miles an hour, will take a week to reach its destination. It’s sailing with a crew of 62, including 7 seven women, who will be...

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Town Hall has criticised the Junta for not carrying out an inventory of homes built illegally in the municipality

“People are getting more and more nervous. When they come to the Town Hall to ask about the future of their properties we don’t know what to tell them. Neither can we explain why Alcaucín has been missed out by the Junta de Andalucía when it drew up inventories of irregular buildings in most of the other municipalities in the Axarquía. The fact that the planning situation in Alcaucín is in the courts with the ‘Arcos’ case is not a valid excuse. This is unfair”. With these words the acting mayor and planning councillor, Domingo Lozano (PP), expresses the unease and concern that has been generated in Alcaucín by the regional Department of Public...

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TWO Irishmen were in custody last night after they were arrested in connection with the shooting of a British ex-pat at his home on the Costa del Sol in Spain.

TWO Irishmen were in custody last night after they were arrested in connection with the shooting of a British ex-pat at his home on the Costa del Sol in Spain.Detectives detained a 52-year-old Cork-born suspect last week in the holiday resort of Fuengirola in connection with the attempted murder of Peter Christley (58) three months ago.He has been remanded in custody.Meanwhile, a 45-year-old Irishman was also arrested last week at a four-star hotel in the Uruguayan capital Montevideo.Police detained him on an international arrest warrant.Spanish police are expected to fly to south America and escort him back to Europe in the next few days, after...

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Royal Navy and Gibraltar police were accused of “acting like pirates” after clashing with Spanish police who had arrested drug smugglers in British territorial waters.

A Guardia Civil officer was left with arm injuries after two boats collided as the Gibraltar forces tried to snatch Moroccan suspects from his ship.The incident, which saw the Spanish customs boat surrounded by seven Royal Navy and police vessels, stoked existing tensions between the two countries.Reports in the Spanish media said the situation was “five minutes away from a clash of incalculable consequences”.The Unified Association of the Guardia Civil issued a statement yesterday alleging that its members had been subjected to “serious insults, harassment and threats” and claiming the Royal Navy and Gibraltar police had acted like “pirates,...

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Students rampage in Moroccan campus after murder

Masked students with sticks and knives went on the rampage in a Moroccan university campus on Friday after a student from the disputed Western Sahara territory was stabbed to death, official media reported.The MAP news agency said the head of security from the City of Knowledge in the capital Rabat had been taken hostage during the riot, but that the trouble had been brought under control. It did not say whether anyone was hurt.It said some of the students who committed "vandalism and violent acts" originated from the Western Sahara territory, referred to by Morocco as the Southern Region. It said they set up barricades with gas canisters, beams...

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staggering 32 per cent of Britons said they had been unwell while staying on the Iberian Peninsula

staggering 32 per cent of Britons said they had been unwell while staying on the Iberian Peninsula, compared to just six per cent in Italy and three per cent in Thailand.While many people may believe they are more likely to fall ill in Middle Eastern destinations such as Egypt or Turkey, Spain is actually the place where most travellers claim they have had problems.Holiday upset: Half of British travellers fall ill while abroadIn a poll of holidaymakers conducted by the company behind Bimuno Travelaid, a sickness preventative, around a third of Britons said they had experienced an upset tummy in Spain, with Greece a close second and France -...

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Terra Sana has won the first stage of its legal battle

POPULAR restaurant chain Terra Sana has won the first stage of its legal battle against the owner of three of its franchises.The group has managed to secure a court order to remove the current owner from the branches in Puerto Banus, San Pedro and Nueva Andalucia.Under an injunction from the Mercantile Court of Malaga, businessman Ned Latif has been temporarily suspended from running the trio.As the Olive Press revealed last issue, the bosses claimed they were owed two million euros from Latif following the sale of the franchises in September.The founders insisted he had been ‘weakening the brand’, after they received countless complaints from...

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living it up at the five-star Gran Hotel Guadalpin Banus, British expat Alwyn Funke disappeared

HE arrived at the hotel pleading with an old friend who worked there that he needed just one night’s accomodation after finding his apartment roof had fallen in.But, after eight nights living it up at the five-star Gran Hotel Guadalpin Banus, British expat Alwyn Funke disappeared without paying a penny. Now, the hotel on the so-called Golden Mile has sent out an appeal, via the Olive Press, to find him. “We would definitely like to find him,” said hotel manager Victor Villar, confirming that the bill was over 1,500 euros. “The contact numbers and email he gave us do not work and we have no way of locating him. “I understand he is a well known...

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Alicante-based CAM is presenting the Bank of Spain with a new business plan

STRUGGLING Spanish savings bank is in discussions over the possibility of becoming nationalised, after a planned merger fell through.The Alicante-based CAM is presenting the Bank of Spain with a new business plan and an application for money from Spain’s state-financed Fund for Orderly Bank Restructuring (FROB).Analysts have estimated that the amount needed by the bank would give FROB control of more than 50 per cent of the bank.Nationalisation of the bank would be the first since the Spanish government set new minimum capital requirements.CAM, Spain’s 10th largest lender, had been in advanced merger talks with three smaller banks, Cajastur,...

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Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall rode a city centre tram as they arrived in Seville, southern Spain

Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall rode a city centre tram as they arrived in Seville, southern Spain.The royal couple are on the final day of an official visit to the country where they have been hosted by the crown prince, Felipe, and his wife Letizia.After arriving in the Andalusian capital, famous for its architecture and arts, Charles and Camilla were met by regional president Jose Antonio Grinan Martinez at his offices in the 17th-century San Telmo Palace.The prince and the president held a private meeting where they discussed Andalucia's Three Cultures Foundation, a project which builds bridges between the Christian, Jewish and...

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