British man has died in hospital after being attacked two weeks ago near his hotel in Portugal.

Ian Haggath, 50, from Dunston near Gateshead, was beaten up in Albufeira. He died from his injuries last Wednesday.A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "I can confirm the death of a British national in Faro on May 25. We are in touch with the family and we are providing consular assistance."According to reports Haggath suffered serious head injuries after being attacked by four people. There is speculation that the same gang is responsible for attacking two other tourists this year.According to the Daily Mirror, David Hoban, 44, from Dublin was stabbed in the same area of Albufeira in April but survived.A few days before Darren Lackie, 22, a soldier...

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Authorities in the Czech Republic and Austria have taken some Spanish-grown cucumbers off store shelves over fears they are contaminated with E.coli.

The move came after illness in Germany caused by infected cucumbers led to at least 10 deaths.The cucumbers, believed to have been imported from Spain and contaminated with E.coli, left people ill with hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS).Hundreds of people are said to have fallen sick.Officials in the Czech Republic said affected cucumbers may also have been exported to Hungary and Luxembourg.Austria's Agency for Health and Food Safety said some tomatoes and aubergines had also been included in the ban.Meanwhile a European Union spokesman said two greenhouses in Spain identified as sources had ceased their activities.They were now being investigated...

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Carol Anne Sievwright is being investigated by authorities in Spain over a crash which left two of her friends dead.

A Scots woman faces a manslaughter probe after two pals in the hire car she was driving died in a Spanish road crash.An investigating judge quizzed Carol Anne Sievwright, 58, at a private court hearing in Alicante yesterday after she allegedly jumped a red light and was hit by a bus.Passengers Jean Hardy, 71, and Margaret Clarke, 62, died instantly when the bus smashed into their Fiat Panda around 11pm on Monday.Mrs Sievwright, originally from Auchencairn, Dumfriesshire, suffered shock and bruising.Another female passenger, Sheila Johnson, from Suffolk, was also injured.The dead women were travelling in the back of the hire car, which ended up...

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36 year old man from Sweden was injured in the early hours of Wednesday in the second ‘balconing’ incident in Magaluf this week.

He fell from the third floor of a hotel on Calle Cala Blanca at around 4.30 am in the Calvià holiday resort, landing on the roof of the hotel’s dining room. There is no firm news on the extent of his injuries, but he is understood to be under treatment on the Son Espases Hospital.Just two days earlier, a 19 year old from Britain survived a fall from the seventh floor of another Magaluf hotel, in what is thought to have been another case of balconing, when people jump from balcony to balcony or towards the hotel’s swimming po...

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26 flights between the UK and Spain were cancelled on Tuesday

26 flights between the UK and Spain were cancelled on Tuesday, because of the ash cloud from the new eruption of the ‘Grimsvotn’ Icelandic volcano.The Ministry for Development is meeting with technicians from AENA, the Spanish Airports Authority, to discuss the effects on Spanish air space.The ash cloud is over Scotland and Northern Ireland today, and by tonight will also cover the south of the Scandinavian peninsular, Denmark and parts of the north of Germany. This morning, Wednesday, Denmark, Norway, Sweden Finland and Germany are the most affected. Eurocontrol has said that the ash could ‘possibly’ move south, to reach France and Spain, maybe...

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The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it was likely that flights from parts of the country would be disrupted on Tuesday by an ash cloud billowing from a volcano in Iceland

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said it was likely that flights from parts of the country would be disrupted on Tuesday by an ash cloud billowing from a volcano in Iceland.The Met Office is predicting a plume of ash from the Grimsvotn volcano would cover all of Ireland, Scotland and parts of northern Britain by 7 a.m. British time on Tuesday.Asked whether this would cause some disruption to flights, a CAA spokesman said: "That's the way it's looking certainly at the momen...

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The British energy company that has angered British environmentalists by drilling off Greenland is exploring for oil off the sun-drenched beaches of southern Spain.

The British energy company that has angered British environmentalists by drilling off Greenland is exploring for oil off the sun-drenched beaches of southern Spain.Cairn Energy, which is run by former Scottish rugby player Sir Bill Gammell, has won the rights to operate oil rigs in 4,000 square kilometres in the Gulf of Valencia.The Edinburgh-based group confirmed it was in the "very early stages of the exploration process" and having obtained two licences from the government in Madrid. It is evaluating data on the area and did not expect any drilling to start for at least two years. The acreage which takes in water depths of up to 1,000 metres...

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Hundreds of demonstrators in Spain are planning to extend their protests against the Spanish government's austerity measures and the political parties that they blame for soaring unemployment.

A show-of-hands vote at a meeting in Madrid's central Puerta del Sol square, where demonstrators have erected a makeshift camp, saw protesters indicate that they planned to stay at least until May 29."We have decided to stay at least until Sunday at 12pm [10:00 GMT]," a protest organiser declared after the vote.Tens of thousands of Spaniards have demonstrated in the past week in city squares across the country ahead of local and regional elections that are now under way.The protesters have called on Spaniards to reject the Socialists and the centre-right Popular Party, the two main political options in Spain.But they are not expected to shift...

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The homeless Bulgarian man who brutally attacked and murdered Jennifer Mills-Westley in a Tenerife shop last week has been described as drug-addicted psychopath by Bulgarian, British and Spanish media alike.

The homeless Bulgarian man who brutally attacked and murdered Jennifer Mills-Westley in a Tenerife shop last week has been described as drug-addicted psychopath by Bulgarian, British and Spanish media alike.Hailing from the northern Bulgarian riverside town of Rousse on the border with Romania, Deyan Deyanov has been described by the Daily Mail as the son of a "wealthy family" that was part of the communist nomenklatura. But despite coming from a "healthy, wealthy and educated" background, his life turned irreversibly for the worst.He became addicted to hash and heroin from a young age, and deserted from the ranks of the Bulgarian army, Bulgarian...

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Bulgarian who beheaded British grandmother released five days after previous assault

Scottish police are investigating whether the Bulgarian vagrant who allegedly beheaded a British grandmother in a Tenerife supermarket is linked to unsolved crimes after it emerged he recently worked in Edinburgh.By Fiona Govan in Los Cristianos, Tenerife 10:00PM BST 17 May 2011His former flatmate in the Leith area of the city, Vlad Chmurny, 36, from Slovakia, said Deyan Deyanov, spent hours smoking drugs and “weeping” over his lack of friends.He also suggested that Deyanov was a fantasist who boasted of a wealthy family and lots of girlfriends, although he only ever saw one woman at the flat.Mr Chmurny said the Bulgarian left Scotland about...

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A British teenager has drowned after rescuing his brother while swimming on a Spanish beach known for its dangerous currents.

The search - involving two helicopters, three boats, a jet ski and beach patrol units - had widened across the stretch of coast The 18-year-old was last seen swimming off Playa de la Bota, a two mile stretch of white sandy beach in Punta Umbria on the Huelva coast in southwestern Spain, on Sunday evening.It is understood that the youth, who has not been identified, did not return to the shore after going to the aid of his brother, who also suffered difficulty in the water.Emergency services were called to the beach at 7.15 on Sunday by a caller who said a young man "was having problems getting out of the sea".But they were unable to locate...

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Spain’s regional and local administrations have “hidden” debt, not included in the official accounts

Spain’s regional and local administrations have “hidden” debt, not included in the official accounts, amounting to about 26.4 billion euros ($37 billion), according to research by Freemarket Corporate Intelligence, a consulting firm, the Financial Times reported.The latest figures from the Bank of Spain show that the country’s 17 autonomous regions have almost doubled their public debt, to 115 billion euros, since 2008, while municipal and provincial debt has risen to 35 billion euros and central government debt stands at 488 billion euros, the newspaper said.However, public companies owned by local and regional governments also have substantial...

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Europe faces extinction of many species

The Iberian lynx that prowls the grasslands of southern Spain. The Mediterranean monk seal swimming waters off Greece and Turkey. The Bavarian pine vole that forages in the high meadows of the Alps.These are among hundreds of European animal species — up to a quarter of the total native to the continent — that are threatened with extinction according to a warning issued this month by the European Union."Biodiversity is in crisis, with species extinctions running at unparalleled rates," said a statement from the European Union's Environment Commissioner, Janez Potocnik.The threatened species include mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds and butterflies....

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HEAVY rain has put up the price of tomatoes by 61 per cent – and they could get even more expensive.

Downpours in Spain have delayed planting, with crops in Andalucia down 35 per cent and those in Extremadura 22 per cent, says analyst Mintec.One importer said: “It’ll be OK if the weather lifts. But if it’s still raining in a week or two, that is ba...

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The British woman who was brutally beheaded on the island of Tenerife had complained just minutes before the attack that she was being followed.

The British woman who was brutally beheaded on the island of Tenerife had complained just minutes before the attack that she was being followed.The Sunday Times of London reports Jennifer Mills-Westley, 60, went to a shopping centre Friday morning in the town of Arona on the Spanish island and walked into an employment centre to complain to staff that she was being followed.Guards at the centre had told the man to go away. Mills-Westley, a British retiree, then walked over to a Chinese supermarket nearby. Soon after, she was stabbed and then beheaded.Sarah Mears, one of Mills-Westley's two daughters, told the Times her mother was "full of life,...

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British tourist dies on Morgán beach

41 year old British tourist suffered a heart attack while on the Morgán beach in Gran Canaria. It happened in the early hours of Monday morning, according to the Canarias 7 newspaper.The woman was on the waterfront with her boyfriend and failed to respond to the efforts of the SUC Canaries Emergency Service when they arrived. They could only certify her death.Two ambulances from the SUC went to the scene with members of the Local Police and Guardia Civil, the latter are organising the paper work ahead of the repatriation of the body.&nb...

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Ryanair appeal against Alicante airbridges turned down by the court

mercantile court in Elche has thrown out an appeal from Ryanair against the new rules from AENA Spanish Airports which oblige airlines to use airbridges for passenger access to and from their planes at the new terminal at Alicante Airport.Ryanair claims these are ‘unnecessary facilities’ which will cost them more than €2 million a year, and has threatened 80% cutbacks at its Alicante base from October if AENA does not reverse its decision.It’s understood from EFE that the company had based its appeal on the financial losses the new regulations would incur and the ‘irreversible’ damage to its image as a low cost airline. Ryanair also claimed in...

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Two teenage boys have been found guilty of the murder of a 71 year old British pensioner who was found dead at his holiday home in Arona last year

Two teenage boys have been found guilty of the murder of a 71 year old British pensioner who was found dead at his holiday home in Arona last year, the UK’s East Riding Mail reports.The guilty ruling was handed down on what would have been his 72nd birthday.Peter Cockshutt from East Yorkshire was found dead at his home on an urbanisation on the Costa del Silencio, on the south of Tenerife, on February 9 2010. He had been stabbed twice in the chest and once in the leg, in what the court considered was a burglary which had gone wrong.Two youngsters from Latin America, aged 14 and 16, were arrested in connection with his death later that day.Sentencing...

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earthquake measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale shook parts of the Murcia Region shortly after 5pm on Wednesday, with the epicentre 7 kilometres to the east of Lorca.

earthquake measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale shook parts of the Murcia Region shortly after 5pm on Wednesday, with the epicentre 7 kilometres to the east of Lorca.There were no reports of any injuries, but locals say the quake, which was followed by a smaller tremor, caused table lamps and other household items to fall over and shook loose parts of cornices from buildings.EFE reports that many people in Lorca rushed out into the street for fear of injury from the quake, and the 112 emergency service was inundated with calls.The tremor was also felt in the nearby towns of Totana, Mazarrón and Águilas, and even as far away as Murcia City and Cartagena....

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FIRE in the leading telephone exchange in the city of Málaga has left residents all over the Costa del Sol with no connection since Saturday.

Telefónica says it is unable to confirm when the problem will be resolved.About 50 per cent of users are now back on the telephone, whilst others are still waiting.The situation is thought to have affected thousands of residents in Marbella, Fuengirola, Benalmádena, Mijas and  Benahavís, among other towns.Some  200 telephone engineers are working in the region the clock to restore the connection, which Telefónica says is 'completely burnt-out' and 'cannot be  used'.A new line altogether will have to be installed.The company believes in the region 50,000 people have no telephone line and 4,000 have no ADSL internet connection as...

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The Spanish government is ruling out help for thousands of Britons who have lost money – and sometimes their homes

The Spanish government is ruling out help for thousands of Britons who have lost money – and sometimes their homes – despite promising to overhaul its house-buying process to avoid such problems in the future.Beatriz Corredor, the Spanish housing minister, has visited Britain to launch what she calls a "roadshow" publicising "a wide range of real estate at more accessible prices than a few years ago". She has met British pension funds and other investors to encourage them to buy some of the country's 700,000 empty new homes. Some 61% of these are holiday properties on the coast which have remained unsold for up to four years.But while Corredor...

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BRITISH expat wanted for dodging a five star hotel bill has a track record for conning people on the Costa del Sol

BRITISH expat wanted for dodging a five star hotel bill has a track record for conning people on the Costa del Sol, the Olive Press can reveal.A host of victims have come forward to denounce ‘Scarlet Pimpernel’ charmer Alwyn Funke – who fled the Gran Hotel Guadalpin Banus owing 1,200 euros two months ago.Over half a dozen readers insist they have lost tens of thousands of euros after falling victim to the gardener, who was struck off as a company director for 12 years in the UK.“He is a conman by habit – not for lack of money – and he is very clever,” explained florist Zoe Strutton, 48, from Nueva Andalucia.It comes after Strutton’s business...

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MARBELLA Mayor Angeles Muñoz fears the town may not be able to recover the millions owed following a ruling against nine people, including the four children of former mayor Jesus Gil.

MARBELLA Mayor Angeles Muñoz fears the town may not be able to recover the millions owed following a ruling against nine people, including the four children of former mayor Jesus Gil. This followed news that a court sentenced the Gil’s children to pay back more than €105 million to the town.Between 1994 and 1999 Jesus Gil was deemed responsible for ‘causing losses’ to Marbella Town Hall estimated at €66.5 million to the town hall.His death does not relieve him of the civil or financial responsibility derived from his position as mayor, which instead is passed on to his children, since they accepted his inheritance, and therefore his obligations.Gil’s...

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Footballer Marcos Alonso could face trial after a woman died in a car crash in Madrid.

The Bolton Wanderers defender crashed a BMW into a wall near Real Madrid's former training complex, not far from the Bernabeu, on Monday morning.One woman suffered fatal injuries and another was seriously hurt. Mr Alonso's brother Miguel and former Real Madrid teammate Jaime Navarro were also hurt.Mr Alonso, who was uninjured, allegedly failed a breathalyser test afterwards.Police have not revealed what the breathalyser and subsequent blood test showed.'Formal suspect'Mr Alonso, 20, appeared before an investigating judge at a closed hearing on Monday evening.The judge will have to decide if the player caused the accident and the girl's death....

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Residents announce a hunger strike in Almogía to demand repairs to a local road

The group of locals in Almogía who have been holding a sit-in at their Town Hall since the beginning of March have announced a hunger strike, which Europa Press reports starts on Thursday, as they continue with their protests to demand repairs to a local road.Eight kilometres of the A-7075 have been closed to traffic for the past 15 months, since it was affected by subsidence after heavy rainfall.The group said in a statement on Wednesday that they want a written commitment from the Junta de Andalucía of the regional government’s support in addressing the problem. The group has accused both the Town Hall and the Junta of extortion, manipulation...

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hunting club of Cartaya, Huelva province, is coming to the rescue to address the rabbit problem which is affecting Sevilla Airport.

The hunting club of Cartaya, Huelva province, is coming to the rescue to address the rabbit problem which is affecting Sevilla Airport.The club’s president, Manuel Botillo, told El Mundo newspaper that the rabbit population around the airport is so great that the birds of prey they attract pose a serious threat to aircraft.The club’s members have captured 100 rabbits in the past month, using ferrets to drive them out into nets which have been placed around the burrows. They were all set free in the designated hunting area of the Cartaya countryside last weekend, an area where the rabbit population has been seriously depleted by disease.The club...

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Spain's centuries-old Almadraba bluefin tuna fishing trade threatened by overfishing

The season for an ancient and spectacular tuna-fishing technique has begun off Spain's southwest coast amid fears it could disappear because fleets of factory ships in international waters are overfishing stocks.In this method called almadraba in Spanish, fishermen here have stretched maze-like nets from sandy beaches to catch Atlantic bluefin tuna since a time when Phoenician traders sailed to these shores 1,000 years before the birth of Christ.This laborious harvest, which includes lifting nets heaving with fish onto ships, is timed to coincide with annual migrations by tuna from the Atlantic to lay eggs in warm Mediterranean waters.The fish,...

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US special forces stormed Osama bin Laden's $1million hideaway in Pakistan.

Buildings went up in flames during the firefight which claimed the al-Qaeda leader's life.Bin Laden was holed up in a house in a two-story house in the town of Abbottabad, about 60 miles north of the capital Islamabad.US reports said it was one of the largest in an affluent neighbourhood. Built around five years ago, it was estimated to be worth around a million dollars (£600,000).Surrounded by 18ft walls topped by barbed wire, the only...

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Former comedian killed in Morocco blast

Former stand-up Pete Moss has been named as one of the 16 victims of a bomb that exploded in a Marrakech café yesterday.The father-of-two, who became an acclaimed travel writer after his time as a comedian, was thought to have been in the popular Argana café when the blast ripped through the building.The Foreign Office confirmed that a Briton had died, but has not yet confirmed his identity. However, Mr Moss was named by the Jewish Chronicle, a paper he used to work for.The 59-year-old had left his family property business in the Nineties to become a stand-up, then ‘reinvented’ himself again, as a travel writer.In an interview with The Independent...

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