Inquest rules killer’s death as suicide

A jury at the inquest of the killer Raoul Moat, who shot himself in the head last year, returned a unanimous verdict of suicide. Police fired Tasers to incapacitate him as he prepared to kill himself in Rothbury, Northumberland, but they had no effect, the inquest heard. MORE

ITV ran video game clip as real IRA attack

ITV has admitted that a documentary about the IRA mistakenly used a scene from the video game Arma II and claimed it was a real IRA attack. Monday’s Exposure: Gaddafi and the IRA lifted footage from the internet of a clip from the game, but described it incorrectly as from a 1988 IRA attack on a British Army helicopter.

Freezer the cause of family fire tragedy

A devastating house fire that killed five children and their mother is believed to have been caused by a freezer, the London Fire Brigade said yesterday. Muna Elmufatish, 41, and her children, aged between 14 and two, died after their London home was engulfed in flames on Saturday.

Revolutionary jet takes off for Japan

A Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the first carbon-composite passenger jet, took off from its factory yesterday to enter service with Air Nippon in Japan. Many expect the fuel-efficient aircraft to transform air travel. MORE

Train crash leaves hundreds injured

More than 270 people were injured after a Shanghai underground train rear-ended another that had stopped between stations. Some of the injured were rushed out on stretchers, but no one was seriously hurt, according to medical officials. It is the latest in a series of problems for the city’s transport network. MORE

‘At least’ 16 die in Typhoon Nesat

Residents in the capital, Manila, waded through waist-deep floodwaters and dodged flying debris yesterday as Typhoon Nesat struck the Philippines, killing at least 16 people and sending waves crashing over seawalls. Downtown areas suffered their worst flooding in decades.

Rioters appeal lengthy sentences

Britain’s top-ranking judge said lengthy sentences given to rioters reflected the “ghastliness” of the unrest that swept through England in August. The Lord Chief Justice made the remarks as he heard challenges by defendants jailed for their involvement at the Court of Appeal in London. MORE

Cancer patients given ‘false hope’

Dying cancer patients should be spared expensive treatment which can offer “false hope” in the last weeks of life, say experts. Warning of a tendency to “overtreat and overpromise” in the The Lancet Oncology journal, they said the medical profession had created “unrealistic expectations” regarding the disease. MORE

Pupils’ right to sue for missed degree places

The parents of private school pupils may sue universities if their children are turned down for degree places under plans to penalise them for having gone to top-performing schools. The plans, published by Britian’s biggest exam board, the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, will rank all candidates according to the schools they attend. MORE

MP’s wife filmed taking love rival’s cat

The wife of an MP who denies breaking into the house of her husband’s mistress to steal a kitten was told yesterday she had been caught on CCTV. Christine Hemming, 53, is accused of taking the tabby, named Beauty, from the home of the mistress of her husband, Liberal Democrat MP John Hemming. The trial continues. MORE

Devon angler hooks 6ft shark from kayak

A Devon man sea-fishing from a kayak was dragged for half a mile after hooking a 6ft shark. Rupert Kirkwood, 51, a conservationist and vet, was fishing from the tiny craft a mile off the Devon coast in the Bristol Channel when he hooked the harmless tope shark after feeling a “great tug” on the line. MORE

Fidel Castro attacks Obama’s UN speech

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has accused Barack Obama of talking “gibberish” in his recent address to the United Nations. In a recent newspaper column, Castro, 85, accused the US President of misrepresenting the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan, adding that Nato was guilty of a “monstrous crime” in Libya.

Magic carpet leaves Disney duo hanging

Princess Jasmine was left dangling upside down from a flying carpet after a mishap during a performance of the musical Aladdin at Disney’s California adventure park. A video posted on YouTube shows the princess and another performer, who were strapped in, crying for help above the stage after the carpet flipped over.

Car driver drops in unexpectedly

Stunned onlookers examine the scene after a driver in the city of Tianjin in northern China failed to spot a gaping 4 m sq pothole. The car knocked over two plastic barriers before being swallowed. The driver escaped without serious injuries.