• Protesters take cover after police open fire at an anti-coup demonstration in Mandalay, Myanmar. Teenager Kyal Sin, bottom left, was shot and killed. Reuters
    Protesters take cover after police open fire at an anti-coup demonstration in Mandalay, Myanmar. Teenager Kyal Sin, bottom left, was shot and killed. Reuters
  • Medics give oxygen to anti-coup protesters who faced tear gas during clashes in Yangon, Myanmar. Getty
    Medics give oxygen to anti-coup protesters who faced tear gas during clashes in Yangon, Myanmar. Getty
  • Myanmar police run towards demonstrators to disperse a protest against the military coup in Yangon. AFP
    Myanmar police run towards demonstrators to disperse a protest against the military coup in Yangon. AFP
  • Anti-coup protesters gathered behind a barricade are enveloped by tear gas during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP
    Anti-coup protesters gathered behind a barricade are enveloped by tear gas during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP
  • Protesters use homemade shields to protect themselves during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP
    Protesters use homemade shields to protect themselves during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP
  • Myanmar protesters crouch down after police fire tear gas during a demonstration in Mandalay. AFP
    Myanmar protesters crouch down after police fire tear gas during a demonstration in Mandalay. AFP
  • Anti-coup protesters wearing protective gear gather on a road during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP
    Anti-coup protesters wearing protective gear gather on a road during a demonstration in Yangon. AFP

Myanmar actor arrested as junta cracks down on celebrities


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A leading Myanmar actor, singer and model who has backed the country's anti-coup protests was arrested on Thursday, his sister said, as the junta hunts more than 100 celebrities for supporting the movement.

The country has been rocked by daily protests since the military seized power on February 1, and the authorities have launched a bloody crackdown on dissent, with hundreds killed and more than 2,500 arrested.

Paing Takhon, 24 – a star in both Myanmar and neighbouring Thailand – has been active in the protest movement both in person at rallies and through his massive social media following.

"Some 50 soldiers with eight military trucks," came to arrest him from his mother's home in the North Dagon area of Yangon early Thursday, his sister Thi Thi Lwin posted on Facebook.

"As he's seriously ill, they arrested him calmly without violence. We do not know where he's taken," she added.

According to recent posts on his social media – where he had more than a million followers on Facebook and Instagram – Paing Takhon has been in poor health.

"I haven't been in good health for many days. I used to pray whenever I worshipped Buddha for good health and to get peace in Myanmar as soon as possible," he wrote on Wednesday.

In February he posted pictures of himself in a white tracksuit with a megaphone, hard hat and a white fluffy dog strapped to his chest at a protest.

"Help us stop crime against humanity," he posted on Instagram in February.

His social media pages have been taken down, though it is not clear whether he did this himself.

Paing Takhon is also famous in Thailand and has appeared in TV commercials and shows.

In January, he shaved his head and briefly joined the Buddhist monkhood, posting pictures of himself in burgundy robes.

The Myanmar authorities have published a list of some 120 celebrities wanted for arrest, including singers Lin Lin and Chit Thu Wai, actors Phway Phway, Eaindra Kyaw Zin and Pyay Ti Oo and model May Myat Noe.

The celebrities are facing accusations of spreading dissent against the military, an offence that carries a three year jail term if convicted.

The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler

Price, base / as tested Dh57,000

Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine

Transmission Six-speed gearbox

Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm

Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km

Who was Alfred Nobel?

The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.

  • In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
  • Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
  • Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Coming soon

Torno Subito by Massimo Bottura

When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.

Akira Back Dubai

Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as,  “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal

The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems. 

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

Example heady

Blah blah blah

UAE squad to face Ireland

Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri (vice-captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmad, Zawar Farid, CP Rizwaan, Aryan Lakra, Karthik Meiyappan, Alishan Sharafu, Basil Hameed, Kashif Daud, Adithya Shetty, Vriitya Aravind

Cry Macho

Director: Clint Eastwood

Stars: Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam

Rating:**

Results
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MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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How%20champions%20are%20made
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TO%20CATCH%20A%20KILLER
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Book%20Details
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Married Malala

Malala Yousafzai is enjoying married life, her father said.

The 24-year-old married Pakistan cricket executive Asser Malik last year in a small ceremony in the UK.

Ziauddin Yousafzai told The National his daughter was ‘very happy’ with her husband.

SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.4-litre%204-cylinder%20turbo%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20366hp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E550Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESix-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh360%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

UAE squad

Men's draw: Victor Scvortov and Khalifa Al Hosani, (both 73 kilograms), Sergiu Toma and Mihail Marchitan (90kg), Ivan Remarenco (100kg), Ahmed Al Naqbi (60kg), Musabah Al Shamsi and Ahmed Al Hosani (66kg)

Women’s draw: Maitha Al Neyadi (57kg)

Juventus v Napoli, Sunday, 10.45pm (UAE)

Match on Bein Sports

Brief scoreline:

Manchester United 1

Mata 11'

Chelsea 1

Alonso 43'