Three British Islamic extremists were today found guilty of conspiring to murder thousands in an unprecedented airline bomb plot. Abdulla Ahmed Ali was responsible for the most complex and daring UK-based terrorist conspiracy of modern times.

The 28-year-old, along with two other men, had planned to detonate home-made liquid bombs in suicide attacks on transatlantic aircraft bound for major North American cities. With thousands killed in the air and on the ground, the explosions would have exceeded the carnage of the September 11 attacks. All three will be sentenced on Monday after being found guilty by a jury at Woolwich Crown Court.

British-born Abdulla Ahmed Ali, of Walthamstow, was inspired by the July 7 bombers and Osama Bin Laden and considered taking his baby son on his suicide mission. He planned to smuggle homemade bombs disguised as soft drinks on to passenger jets run by United Airlines, American Airlines and Air Canada. The hydrogen peroxide devices would have been assembled and detonated in mid-air by a team of suicide bombers. He singled out seven flights to San Francisco, Toronto, Montreal, Washington, New York and Chicago that departed within two-and-a-half hours of each other. Authorities on both sides of the Atlantic would have been left powerless to stop the destruction once the first bomb exploded.

The liquids ban is likely to stay in place until there is a machine that can not only monitor all liquids, but do so without causing lengthy delays, which experts predict will take five years. THE BOMB PLOT HAS COST THE AVIATION INDUSTRY AN ESTIMATED £200MILLION, WITH BAA ALONE SPENDING £75MILLION ON A FURTHER 2,500 SECURITY GUARDS.

Researchers at Imperial College London have found evidence a chemical in broccoli and other green leafy vegetables could boost a natural defense mechanism that protects arteries from the clogging that can cause heart attacks.

In a study funded by the British Heart Foundation charity and conducted on mice, the researchers found that sulforaphane - a compound occurring naturally in broccoli and other brassicas - could "switch on" a protective protein which is inactive in parts of the arteries vulnerable to clogging.

"We know that vegetables are clearly good for you, but surprisingly the molecular mechanisms of why they are good for you have remained unknown for many years," said Paul Evans of the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College. "This study provides a possible explanation for how green vegetable consumption can promote a healthy heart."

Despite signs that an economic recovery is taking shape, a soft job market and flat incomes could hinder a sustained recovery, Mohamed El-Erian, Pimco's CEO, told Reuters in an interview. He spoke after the Labor Department reported that US unemployment jumped to a 26-year high in August of 9.7 percent, although the pace of job losses slowed. Employers cut 216,000 jobs from payrolls in August, fewer than forecast, and down from a 276,000 drop in July.

"THE RISK OF A DOUBLE DIP FOR US ECONOMIC GROWTH IN 2010 IS INCREASING," with a 50 percent chance of such a scenario next year, said El-Erian, who oversees $850 billion in assets for Pacific Investment Management Co, known as Pimco. "This challenges equity markets that are currently pricing a V-like recovery in corporate revenues and credit availability."

The summer rally in equity markets and lower-quality bonds has outpaced what is warranted on the basis of forward-looking indicators for demand, revenue, profits and credit flows, El-Erian said. He also cited lingering concerns about the banking system, with investors still nervous about the condition of regional banks in the United States and some European banks. That's one factor behind a huge upward move in gold prices, which has just broken through the $1000 per ounce barrier. DEMAND FOR GOLD IS ALSO BEING DRIVEN BY INFLATION EXPECTATIONS, as well as tighter regulation on financial commodity-based products.

Cheng Siwei, former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee and now head of China's green energy drive, said Beijing was dismayed by the Fed's recourse to credit easing. "We hope there will be a change in monetary policy as soon as they have positive growth again," he said at the Ambrosetti Workshop, a policy gathering on Lake Como.

"If they keep printing money to buy bonds it will lead to inflation, and after a year or two the dollar will fall hard. Most of our foreign reserves are in US bonds and this is very difficult to change, so we will diversify incremental reserves into euros, yen, and other currencies," he said. CHINA'S RESERVES ARE MORE THAN $2 TRILLION, THE WORLD'S LARGEST.

"GOLD IS DEFINITELY AN ALTERNATIVE, but when we buy, the price goes up. We have to do it carefully so as not to stimulate the markets," he added. The comments suggest that China has become the driving force in the gold market and can be counted on to buy whenever there is a price dip, putting a floor under any correction. Mr Cheng said the Fed's loose monetary policy was stoking an unstable asset boom in China. "If we raise interest rates, we will be flooded with hot money. We have to wait for them. If they raise, we raise. CREDIT IN CHINA IS TOO LOOSE. WE HAVE A BUBBLE IN THE HOUSING MARKET AND IN STOCKS so we have to be very careful, because THIS COULD FALL DOWN."

Sheikh Salman al-Awda said such prayers were against Islamic sharia. But he added they were permissible if the interests of Muslims were harmed, so his words may have little effect on radicals who oppose the US or Israel. IT IS VERY COMMON FOR THE FRIDAY PRAYER IN ARAB SOCIETIES TO END WITH THE IMAM CALLING FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF THE "KUFFAR", THE UN-BELIEVERS, to which the worshippers respond "Amen".

Such public display of hostility to other cultures was picked up by critics as an example of how mainstream Islamic preaching contributes, perhaps inadvertently, to the radicalisation of Muslim youths. The question of reform is more urgent for Saudi society, where a puritanical interpretation of Islamic faith encourages hostility to other faiths, including even Muslim sects, such as the Shias, who complain of severe discrimination in the predominantly conservative Sunni kingdom.

However, he added that praying for their destruction should be allowed only if they were harming the interests of Muslims. But in a climate where Muslims are widely perceived to be under attack in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Palestinian territories, Sheikh Salman's appeal will have little or no impact on those who think that jihad against the Americans or the Israelis is a perfectly legitimate exercise.

Last month there were also clashes when the English Defence League - formed after British soldiers were abused by Islamic radicals at a homecoming parade in Luton - held a rally on the same day as the Unite Against Fascism group.

The English Defence League has claimed it is not racist, even saying it did not want any violence to happen at the pre-planned protest. One protester from the league, Leisha Brookes, 42, said: 'We are simply protesting about the fact that IF PEOPLE COME TO OUR COUNTRY, THEY SHOULD RESPECT OUR LAWS. If an English person went to an Arab country they would be expected to dress appropriately, and all we are asking is for them to do the same.'

The bill for the schools IS JUST ONE ELEMENT of the impact on taxpayers and families of 'uncontrolled immigration', the Cross Party Group on Balanced Migration said. It warned health, housing and other services will face similar pressures and bills. The figures on the demand for primary school places created by the migrant baby boom were calculated for the MPs by experts at the Migrationwatch think-tank.

They come after latest official figures showed that the population of the country is now more than 61million and the rise is increasingly driven by numbers of babies born to immigrants. The breakdown showed there are now 607,000 five-year-olds but 703,000 babies under one year old. Of the extra 96,000 children who will require primary school places in 2013, 54,000 have two parents who were born abroad, and 67,000 have one foreign-born parent.

Former Labour minister Frank Field and Tory elder statesman Nicholas Soames, who head the Balanced Migration group, said: 'This research illustrates how uncontrolled immigration is directly affecting ordinary families. The Government have clearly failed to plan for the consequences of the mass immigration they have permitted.'

Mr Roberts, who has close links to the Royal Family, said the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Charles had also complained to Mr Brown about the shoddy way in which troops have been treated. The allegation threatened to derail Mr Brown's latest attempt to seize the initiative on Afghanistan by announcing an international conference on the future of the war-torn country.

Mr Roberts said: 'The Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Charles are all furious with Gordon Brown over sub-standard equipment in Helmand, principally the under-armoured armoured cars and the lack of helicopters, and have been making their views known to him no uncertain terms.'

Shadow defence spokesman Gerald Howarth last night said there was 'real anger' among serving soldiers about the lack of helicopters. He added: 'It is a very serious indictment of Gordon Brown. He cut £1.4billion out of the helicopter budget as Chancellor and that is why we have a shortage today. The truth is he has never shown any interest in the Armed Forces unless there is a picture opportunity to be had.' The row came as Mr Brown made fresh attempts to win support for the mission in Afghanistan.

The drop-off rate over the last decade has been 1.016 meters per year. Now it has increased to 1.29 meters annually, according to the latest numbers. The sea has dropped roughly 25 meters in the last 33 years and over 10 meters in the last decade. Fresh water used to flow down the Jordan River to replenish the Dead Sea, thus keeping it constant throughout the millennia. However, in the 1960s, the water was diverted into the National Water Carrier for the populace to drink.

These days, THE ONLY THING THAT FLOWS INTO THE DEAD SEA IS RAW SEWAGE AND EFFLUENCE from the fish ponds along the Jordan River. In addition, the industrial processes being carried out at the Dead Sea to harvest minerals also contribute to the evaporation rate. Regional governments are aware of the problem and have commissioned the World Bank to examine the feasibility of conveying water from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. Some of the water would replenish the Dead Sea and some of it would be desalinated for Jordanian use, one of the 10 most water-poor countries in the world.

The events that unfolded over just a few days last September spread panic among investors, bankers and the wider world over the stability of the financial system. When the dust had settled, STOCK MARKETS WERE DOWN 40%, major banks in the US and UK were surviving only on government support, and the world had entered a sharp recession, the deepest in 60 years, with rising unemployment and a collapse of house prices.

It is still not clear whether the world economy is on the road to recovery - and debate still rages over the fundamental causes of the crisis. IT IS CLEAR THAT TWO COUNTRIES HAVE BEEN BADLY HIT BY THE CRISIS - THE US AND THE UK. These countries face years of damage to their public spending plans as the rescue and the economic collapse has led to huge government deficits in both countries.

It is clear the causes of the crisis were complex, and included not just the excessive lending by bankers and borrowing by consumers, but also the global imbalances in the world economy CAUSED BY THE RISE OF CHINA to become the world's leading exporter and fastest-growing economy.

Blending his trademark humor with tragic individual stories, archive footage and publicity stunts, the 55-year-old launches an all out attack on the capitalist system, arguing that it benefits the rich and condemns millions to poverty. "Capitalism is an evil, and you cannot regulate evil," the two-hour movie concludes.

"You have to eliminate it and replace it with something that is good for all people and that something is democracy." The bad guys in Moore's mind are big banks and hedge funds which "gambled" investors' money in complex derivatives that few, if any, really understood and which belonged in the casino. Meanwhile, large companies have been prepared to lay off thousands of staff despite boasting record profits.

The filmmaker also sees an uncomfortably close relationship between banks, politicians and US Treasury officials, meaning that regulation has been changed to favor the few on Wall Street rather than the many on Main Street.

A team of workers received the blueprint and materials they needed to repair the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, which carries about 260,000 vehicles a day. But fixing the problem by Tuesday, when the workweek begins and the bridge had been set to reopen, poses "quite a challenge," said CalTrans spokesman Bart Ney.

The bridge was shut down Thursday night so a section of the eastern span could be cut out and replaced with a new double-deck section as part of a long-planned seismic upgrade. California transportation workers used the closure as an opportunity to inspect the bridge from top to bottom, and they discovered the crack Saturday. The damaged link — part of a network of eight similar pieces — is about 2 inches thick and was cracked halfway through.

The last full inspection of the bridge was in 2007, and the crack likely appeared since then, Ney said. He said he did not believe it was related to the construction project.

The Arctic Sea, officially carrying a cargo of timber worth £1.3m, disappeared en route from Finland to Algeria on July 24. It was recovered off West Africa on August 17 when eight alleged hijackers were arrested. The Kremlin has consistently denied that the vessel was carrying a secret cargo. It claims the ship was hijacked by criminals who demanded a £1m ransom.

The official version was challenged by sources in Tel Aviv and Moscow who claimed the ship had been loaded with S-300 MISSILES, RUSSIA'S MOST ADVANCED ANTI-AIRCRAFT WEAPON, while undergoing repairs in the Russian port of Kaliningrad. Mossad, which closely monitors arms supplies to Iran, is said to have tipped off the Russian government that the shipment had been SOLD BY FORMER MILITARY OFFICERS LINKED TO THE UNDERWORLD.

The Kremlin then ordered a naval rescue mission which involved destroyers and submarines. Any evidence that the Kremlin had let advanced weaponry fall into the hands of criminals or be sold to Iran would be highly embarrassing, so military officials believe a "cover story" was concocted.

"The official version is ridiculous and was given to allow the Kremlin to save face," said a Russian military source. "I've spoken to people close to the investigation and they've pretty much confirmed Mossad's involvement. IT'S LAUGHABLE TO BELIEVE ALL THIS FUSS WAS OVER A LOAD OF TIMBER. I'm not alone in believing that it was carrying weapons to Iran."

Sources who suspect Mossad's involvement point to a visit to Moscow by Shimon Peres, the Israeli president, the day after the Arctic Sea was rescued. Peres held four hours of private talks with Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian president. Although the Israeli foreign ministry would not be drawn on the Arctic Sea, it confirmed that the two leaders had discussed the sale of Russian weapons to countries hostile to Israel. According to Israeli officials, Peres received verbal guarantees from the Russians that they would not sell advanced weapons systems to Iran or Syria. "CLEARLY THE ISRAELIS PLAYED A ROLE IN THE WHOLE ARCTIC SEA SAGA," SAID A RUSSIAN MILITARY SOURCE.

German solar firms Conergy and Solarworld have voiced strong concern about the pricing practices of Chinese panel makers - who undercut their German peers' products by around 20 percent. Chinese modules sell in Europe at about 1.70 euros per watt, according to a UBS report. Industry experts say US firms share those German concerns.

Germany's BSW solar industry association is looking into allegations of dumping by Chinese rivals as Conergy rallies support to call on the European Union to examine Chinese pricing tactics. "It cannot be the aim of our environmental and economic policy to lose to the Far East our pioneering role with regard to the last great future technology, which was raised here with great efforts," said Dieter Ammer, CEO at Conergy, Germany's second-biggest solar firm by revenue.

The once red-hot solar sector faces a massive oversupply of cells and modules that has driven down average selling prices for solar systems by more than a fifth in Germany and the United States - two major solar markets - and Chinese companies are grabbing market share by slashing costs. A solar system below 10 kilowatt costs about 3,400 euros in Germany, while a large home solar set-up would sell at more than $70,000 in the United States.

The fee now under consideration in Congress would finance a new US program to promote travel, a burden that the EU believes Americans should bear. "Only in 'Alice in Wonderland' could a penalty be seen as promoting the activity on which it is imposed," the European Commission's Ambassador to Washington, John Bruton, said in a statement Friday.

One of the bill's sponsors, Democratic Representative William Delahunt, said the EU was getting too worked up over what he called "a nominal fee." But Europeans see the issue as yet another potential hassle that the United States is preparing to burden Europe's citizens with. Visitors from most European countries have long enjoyed the privilege of visa-free travel to the United States.

Sponsors have been promoting the law as cost-free to the US taxpayer. The EU thinks it should not be. Bruton said the EU will have to reconsider whether the US registration system with the new fee would amount to a visa. THE EU MIGHT THEN HAVE TO CONSIDER VISAS FOR US TRAVELERS.