Sarah Palin, failed US vice presidential candidate switch of allegiance to back Donald Trump

           Palin said Trump would take on ISIL and political   correctness in the US establishment [Mary Altaffer/AP]

Former US vice presidential candidate and reality TV star Sarah Palin has given her backing to Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.

The former governor of Alaska on Tuesday told supporters gathered at a rally in the US state of Iowa that Trump would "kick ISIS ass", referring to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group.

"He is from the private sector, not a politician," Palin said in an animated speech after joining the business mogul and former host of TV's The Apprentice onstage, later asking the audience if she could "get a hallelujah?"

Palin was running mate to US senator John McCain during his unsuccessful bid for the presidency in the 2008 election, which was won by current President Barack Obama.

She said there was nothing wrong with Trump being a multi-billionaire and that it did not make him an elitist, citing all the time he had spent with construction workers as a real-estate developer.

As Trump stood alongside, Palin said: "The status quo has got to go," adding the political establishment had been "wearing political correctness kind of like a suicide vest", the Reuters news agency reported.

In a statement before the event, Trump said he was "greatly honoured" by the endorsement. "She is a friend, and a high-quality person whom I have great respect for."

Trump has led national opinion polls among Republicans for months but is in a tight contest with Ted Cruz, a Canadian-born senator for Texas, for the support of Iowa Republicans, who lean conservative and whose evangelical Christians comprise a major voting bloc.

Palin, who often discusses her Christian faith, is popular among that group and endorsed Cruz when he ran for the US Senate in 2012.

Cruz responded to her switch of allegiance with magnanimity.

"Regardless of what she does in 2016," he tweeted, "I will always be a big fan."


With Al Jazeera

Earth Alert: Researching for way to save the world from 'Armageddon asteroids'

Scientists in the United States and Europe are working on ways to save us from asteroids that may lie on collision course with planet Earth. 

Experts from NASA and the European Space Agency are looking at ways to change the paths of two asteroids - Didymos and Didymoon.

"An asteroid is very large - almost the size of a mountain - and if we hit it with a spacecraft, we only make a tiny change in the velocity. But over time that's the difference between hitting Earth and not hitting Earth," said Andy Cheng, lead investigator for the Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment (AIDA) study at NASA.

The cosmic masses are not heading our way for another couple of centuries, but the scientists say it is a "very important" mission.

"We want to have the capability to do this as soon as possible because we know these things are out there. But to find all the things that are potential threats is a very big goal," Denton Ebel of the American Museum of Natural History said.

"This particular mission is to take the next step, which is something very important. What are you going to do about it if something actually has your name on it."

The project is still in its theoretical phase, awaiting approval for launch.

Jamie Foxx rescued a driver from a burning car and called 911 near his California home Monday night

                                                             PHOTOGRAPHED BY SAFETY FOR CITIZENS

Jamie Foxx reportedly rescued the driver from this burning, flipped-over car outside his gate Monday night

Oscar winner Jamie Foxx was a real-life action hero Monday night — reportedly rescuing a driver from a burning vehicle.

Foxx, 48, wasted no time when he heard a violent wreck outside his gate in the celebrity enclave of Hidden Valley northwest of Los Angeles, TMZ.com reported.

                                                                                      DAN HALLMAN/INVISION/AP

Jamie Foxx reportedly rescued the driver from this burning, flipped-over car outside his gate Monday night

The actor ran to the scene and saw the driver in distress inside the flipped-over and smoking car, the website said.

Apparently the driver skidded on wet roads, hit a ditch and flipped upside down, TMZ said.

Worried the vehicle might explode, Foxx reportedly unbuckled the driver and dragged the man about 30 feet away from the accident.

The actor already had called 911, so first responders arrived a short time later and transported the victim to a hospital with injuries, TMZ said.

Foxx currently is the subject of intense speculation that he's in a serious dating relationship with actress Katie Holmes.

Holmes, 37, is the ex-wife of Foxx's "Collateral" co-star Tom Cruise.



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Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale has suffered his third calf muscle injury of the season

Bale, 26, limped off shortly before half-time during Real's 5-1 La Liga win at home to Sporting Gijon on Sunday.

The Wales international, who has scored 13 goals in Spain this season, is reportedly set to be out for three weeks.

"He has been diagnosed with a soleus (calf) muscle injury in his right leg," Real said on their website.

"His recovery will continue to be assessed."

Reports in Spain suggest Real are hoping to have Bale back for the last-16 Champions League tie against Roma on 17 February.

Bale has missed eight games over two separate spells this season because of calf injuries.

He was criticised in the Spanish media after suffering a recurrence of the original while playing for Wales against Andorra in October.

Since returning to fitness at the beginning of November, he has scored 11 goals in as many games for Real.

With BBC

Alert:Serial killer known as 'The Pusher' has killed at least 60

                  CHRISTOPHER FURLONG/GETTY IMAGES

                                           A general view of Canal St. in the city of Manchester.

A serial killer known as "The Pusher" is terrorizing a British city and has taken more than 60 lives, some people claim.

Family members and experts say dozens of men have been pushed into canals in Manchester, but cops say there is no evidence of foul play. A documentary airing on Britain's Channel 4 on Tuesday night is set to examine the deaths more closely and add fuel to the debate.

There were 61 bodies found in local canals between 2008 and 2015, according to a Freedom of Information request, the Mirror reported.

“It is unlikely that such a high number of cases are the result of just accidents or suicides as canals are not popular suicide spots, especially for men," Professor Craig Jackson of Birmingham City University said, according to the British newspaper.

However, Jackson withdrew his comments after meeting with Manchester authorities, according to the Mirror.

Many family members believe that a serial killer is on the loose, or that foul play is involved.

"It needs to be investigated to find out if there is really a serial killer in this case," dad Santanu Pal said in the documentary, according to the Mirror. "There must be involvement of a third party. That could be a straight case or that could be a serial killer."

The body of his 18-year-old son, Souvik, was found in the Bridgewater Canal in January of 2013, three weeks after he was booted from a New Year’s Eve party, the Mirror reported. Souvik was seen walking with an unidentified man, and surveillance footage showed them crossing a canal bridge. One of them attempted to climb a railing and only one of the them returned, according to the Mirror.

“Despite extensive investigation it can not be ascertained where or how he entered the water," coroner Joanne Kearsley said, the Mirror reported.

The parents of another possible victim, 21-year-old David Plunkett, heard "screaming and howling" in their last phone call with their son, according to the paper.

"Something had terrified him," dad Michael said, the Mirror reported. "He was on the phone but our son could not speak to us. And that’s not because he was drunk."

The mother of 21-year-old Nathan Tomlinson said her son's coat, phone, passport and wallet were missing when his body was found early in 2013, according to the newspaper.

"I have always thought Nathan's death was suspicious," she said. "There were a lot of flaws in the investigation and the police were slow at the start."

An author believes that a serial killer is targeting gay men, or men the killer believes are gay. Thomas Sheridan claims he was followed by "a tall man wearing a hood" while investigating the deaths, according to the paper.

"I'm convinced foul play is a point concerning some of the bodies," he said, according to the paper. "I concur with the people of Manchester that 'The Pusher' is almost certainly the cause of some of these deaths."

Cops dispute the notion that foul play was involved. Detective Chief Inspector Pete Marsh said some died from alcohol, while others committed suicide, according to the paper.

“Down near Canal St. it is mainly young men and a lot of them are drunk late into the evening," Marsh said, according to the paper. "There are meeting places and the side of the canals. Drink and water don’t mix. Those individuals may be putting themselves more at risk. There is nothing that links any of these deaths."

“If a serial killer decided to cause their deaths by pushing them into the water, how could that person guarantee they would die?" Ex-Derbyshire Detective Chief Superintendent Tony Blockley said, according to the paper.


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