President Putin begins an historic visit to Iran today – a visit already overshadowed by allegations that suicide bombers plan to assassinate him.
The Russian President is defying security service warnings about a possible attempt on his life to arrive in Tehran for a two-day visit, the first by a Kremlin leader since Joseph Stalin in 1943. “If I listened to all the various threats and the recommendations of the special services I would never leave home,” Mr Putin said at a summit in Germany with Angela Merkel, the Chancellor, before boarding his flight to Iran.
– The Times
The Iraqi government intends to make foreign private security firms answerable under Iraqi law, even if it drives them out of the country, the human rights minister said yesterday. The decision follows a spate of incidents in which Iraqi civilians have been killed by private contractors working as security guards.
On September 16, up to 17 civilians were killed when guards working for a US firm, Blackwater, opened fire at a busy crossroads in the capital. The firm claims its men fired in self defence, but the Iraqi authorities insist that the foreign security firm shot first.
– The Guardian
Paul Scotney, the head of security for British racing, yesterday denied making a drunken claim that he would “get Kieren Fallon if it was the last thing he did”.
Scotney was giving evidence at the Old Bailey trial in which six men are accused of race-fixing and conspiring to defraud the betting public. The court heard that Scotney made his claim at a social function 11 months ago. His words were allegedly heard by the trainer, Alan Jarvis, who subsequently filed a complaint.
– The Times
