Moscow A Russian art-house cinema screened the satirical film The Death of Stalin to a packed house yesterday despite the Russian culture ministry withdrawing its licence for general release on the ground that it mocked the country’s Soviet past. Asked about the screening at the Pioneer cinema in Moscow, the ministry said that anyone defying the ban would be held legally accountable for their actions. The film, the work of the Scottish director Armando Iannucci, portrays infighting among Stalin’s closest allies after his death in 1953. (Reuters)
Rhino poachers threat
Johannesburg South African efforts to stem the poaching of rhinoceroses failed to prevent 5 per cent of the population being slaughtered last year. A total of 1,028 were killed, 26 fewer than the previous year, despite patrols, electronic surveillance and monitoring of ports and borders. Arrests of suspected poachers fell by almost a quarter. South Africa has more than 80 per cent of the world’s 25,000 rhinos. (Reuters)
Mine kills 13 civilians
Bamako A landmine blew up a civilian vehicle in central Mali, killing 24 people including women and four babies, and wounding several others. The vehicle had crossed the border from Burkina Faso, and was heading towards a market in Boni. Mali, and allies including France, have been battling to contain jihadists who have previously been confined to its Saharan expanses in the north. (Reuters)
Dancing on the ceiling
Frankfurt A nightclub is throwing a party in zero gravity inside an aircraft used to train astronauts. The event, billed as the first of its kind, will take off on February 7 from Frankfurt airport with 20 clubbers representing all continents dancing, or at least floating, to the beats. The fun will be brief, with the modified Airbus A310 returning to Earth after 90 minutes, with only 25 minutes spent in zero gravity. (AFP)
Travel ban for Lula
Rio de Janeiro The former Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is not allowed to leave Brazil, the justice ministry said after an appeals court upheld his conviction on corruption charges. Lula, who was once seen as the favourite for this year’s presidential election, was planning to travel to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for a meeting organised by the UN food and agriculture organisation. (AFP)