Gair Rhydd

Chinese dam blasted

Three Gorges takes the strain as engineers blow protective dam and $100 billion project moves step closer to completion

China moved another step closer to completing the controversial Three Gorges hydro-electric project when they destroyed the temporary barrier behind the main dam.

The barrier, known as a ‘cofferdam’, was used to contain the Yangtze River on which the Three Gorges Dam was built while construction was underway.

Snake charmer

Indian woman ‘marries’ snake

A woman from the state of Orissa, Eastern India has fallen in love and married a King Cobra, according to the Press Trust of India.

2,000 guests are reported to have watched priests chant sacred mantras to seal the Hindu marital ceremony between Bimbala Das and the largest, most venomous snake in the world.

Earthquake rocks Indonesia

Two weeks after an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale struck Indonesia, the death toll has reached over 6,200, while thousands more have sustained serious injuries and lost their homes.

The earthquake hit early on Saturday May 29 and the area to suffer the worst was the southern coast of Indonesia’s largest island, Java. The region is near Mount Merapi, Java’s most active volcano, which has been spewing ash and lava for a number of weeks and seismologists fear may still pose a hazard.

Renewed hope for Somalia

The recent bloodshed in Somalia has possibly come to an end as Islamist militias seized control over the country’s capital, Mogadishu, last Monday.

The Union of Islamic Courts declared that the reign of the warlords, who have fought for power since the fall of dictator Siad Barre in 1991, is over in Mogadishu.