Car Bomb Explodes AT Spains Navarra University in Pamplona

Car Bomb Explodes AT Spains Navarra University in Pamplona
The explosion happened at 10:58am this morning after a phone warning in the name of ETA an hour beforehand. There has been a car bomb explosion at Navarra University in Pamplona this morning. The device exploded at 1058am in the car park near the library, and set fire to five other cars nearby and also to a nearby building.Several people are reported to be slightly injured from flying glass

Spanish mortgage market has continued to take a battering this week

Spanish mortgage market has continued to take a battering this week after the Spanish Housing Association announced that the number of mortgage transactions has continued to fall.The number of house transactions in August fell by 36 percent compared to last year, which signalled that the situation is getting worse. Spain’s initial housing boom a decade ago meant that the economy was able to grow at the fastest rate in the euro zone. However in the aftermath of the financial crisis, the housing collapse that has ensued has taken the property market and the economy down too.As a result of its sudden demise, unemployment is now at a European-Union high of 11.3 percent in this quarter with the fear that Spain could now be the latest country that is deemed to be in recession.

Equatorial Guinea’s exiled opposition leader, Severo Moto, has been arrested in Spain after allegedly trying to transport illegal weapons

Equatorial Guinea’s exiled opposition leader, Severo Moto, has been arrested in Spain after allegedly trying to send illegal weapons to the oil-rich African nation.
The arrest was the latest twist in a tangled case that has implicated figures such as Mark Thatcher, the son of the former British Prime Minister, and Simon Mann, the Eton-educated mercenary, who is facing trial in Malabo for his alleged role in a failed 2004 coup attempt. Mr Thatcher, who now lives on the Spanish Costa del Sol, was given a suspended jail sentence after he pleaded guilty to unwittingly financing the coup attempt and breaking the anti-mercenary laws of South Africa. The arrest of Mr Moto raises questions about whether a fresh coup attempt was under way.
According to Spanish court sources, he was arrested on Monday on the orders of a judge after weapons were found in the boot of a car in the port of Sagunto, near Valencia, on March 6. Mr Moto has run a self-proclaimed government-in-opposition from Spain, where he has had political asylum since 1986. He was sentenced in absentia to 62 years in prison in Equatorial Guinea for his alleged role in the failed coup against President Teodoro Obiang Nguema. His status as a political refugee was revoked by Spanish authorities in 2005 after they accused him of using the country as a base for several coup attempts against the Government in Equatorial Guinea. The Spanish Supreme Court overturned the ruling on appeal last month, stating that Mr Moto posed no danger to Spain. Mr Moto has denied any role in the attempted overthrow of the Government. Critics have accused the Spanish Socialist Government of being too close to the regime of Mr Obiang, which is considered to have one of the worst human rights records in Africa. The former Spanish colony is the third-largest African oil producer. Equatorial Guinea issued an international arrest warrant for Mr Thatcher last month, accusing him of being a prime instigator behind the plot to overthrow Mr Obiang on behalf of Mr Moto, in return for access to the oil wealth of the country. Mr Thatcher has admitted to paying $275,000 (£128,000) to charter a helicopter used in the coup attempt. He claimed he thought that it would be used for commercial purposes.
The prosecution in Equatorial Guinea said that Mr Mann implicated Mr Thatcher in the plot. It said: “Thatcher knew all about the operation. If we can gather enough evidence we will start a case against him.” Armengol Engonga, the deputy opposition leader in exile of Equatorial Guinea, urged caution yesterday over the arrest of Mr Moto.
“As long as we don’t know what this accusation is based on and the nature of the charges, we cannot say anything,” he told the AFP news agency. Mr Obiang has called parliamentary elections for May 4, about a year earlier than expected. The trial of Mr Mann, who was arrested four years ago, is expected to begin after the vote and could be embarrassing for Britain and Spain as he seeks to show he had official support for his alleged attempt to overthrow the Government.

Gary Glitter planning to buy a posh pad in Puerto Banus

Marbella Casino theft arrests

The man then admitted involvement in a theft from Marbella Casino. A Málaga man, named with the initials A.J.R.E. has been arrested in connection with a robbery at the Casino in Marbella. The man went to the police station to renew his D.N.I. identity card, but as the official keyed in his data his named was flagged as he was wanted for questioning. He soon found himself in the cells and confessed to his involvement in the crime. It’s not as strange an occurrence as you may think. National Police say they arrested another man on the same day in the same circumstances.

San Miguel Local Police and Guardia Civil were deployed

San Miguel Local Police and Guardia Civil were deployed on Wednesday to the football field in La Centinela to stop rival gangs from Arona and San Miguel having a full street fight. One of the gangs comprised more than 30 youths, some only children, armed with iron bars and clubs.Apparently, there was "history" between the two gangs and following an encounter about a month ago, scores were to be settled. Gang "members" were convoked to the event by mobile telephone.On this occasion there were no arrests, but several of the apparent leaders' details were taken in case there is a recurrence of the event ... which is likely, because scores are still not settled.

National Police officers received a tip off that the group was transferring ‘hashish’ in a van to the United Kingdom

The gang were stopped by National Police officers after they received a tip off that the group was transferring ‘hashish’ in a van to the United Kingdom. According to the National Police, they carried out operation ‘Rostel’ in a bid to stop the gang, after they discovered that there was an organised group based in south-east Spain who had managed to smuggle a large quantity, thought to be about a tonne, of the drug through a Murcian port. They said that they suspected the drugs were bound for the UK and that they expected it to be transferred in vehicles through France and across the Channel. Police discovered a member of the group getting ready to load a van at a villa in Garruchal, where one of the gang’s main members resides and following extensive investigation, they raided a house in the Benijófar area. They arrested three people at the house in Benijófar and found a van outside the house containing 500 kilograms of hashish. Later, following a judicial court order, the National Police raided the house in Garruchal and arrested two more people, as well as seizing a Russian manufactured pistol and removing a luxury car from the property for further investigation.

54,000 newly built homes in Málaga province which remain unsold on the market.

latest study from the Ministry for Housing shows that there are 54,000 newly built homes in Málaga province which remain unsold on the market.
Local promoters however doubt the number, which they say is closer to 25,000.The regional government, the Junta de Andalucía, has plans which will convert some of the empty homes into VPO assisted housing, but this is proving to be practically impossible in practice. The promoters say that the requirements for eligibility for the VPO plan need to be relaxed.It comes as forecasts for the local economy as a whole will see growth next year of 0.6%, compared with just under 2% for this, and will not create any new employment. Economic analysts from the Unicaja Group, said that there will be a fall in production in the province next year, and the economy will see no real recovery in 2010 either.

Body of a 44-year-old English man was found in a dried-up river bed near Órgiva

Body of a 44-year-old English man resident in Molvízar (Granada), who was reported missing by his family several days ago, was found in a dried-up river bed near Órgiva yesterday. An autopsy will be performed today, but it seems, at this stage, that investigators are not ruling out the possibility that the man may have taken his own life as his van was found abandoned nearby. A Guardia Civil mountain rescue team was called in to recover the body, which was found at the foot of a very high bridge on the N-323 freeway.

Thousands of Spaniards and hundreds of foreigners fear seeing their seaside residences seized by the state in an attempt to protect the coastline

Thousands of Spaniards and hundreds of foreigners fear seeing their seaside residences seized by the state in an attempt to protect the coastline from urbanisation and pollution, the daily El Pais reported Monday. The government has stepped up the 1988 law prohibiting the construction of housing near the coastline, according to the daily. The government is now nationalising such houses, although owners are granted the right to use them for up to 60 years. The measures can also affect houses which were built before the law went into force.
Britain and Germany, where most of the affected foreigners are from, are in touch with the Spanish authorities to protest over the expropriations, El Pais said.
Germany has requested information from Spain, diplomatic sources confirmed. Some of the affected property owners have lodged complaints with a Spanish ombudsman or at the European Parliament. The Spanish government has, however, won the vast majority of court cases over the law, sources of the environment ministry were quoted as saying. Environmentalists have long been concerned about the impact of urbanisation on Spain's coastline.

Kevin Russell Hawkes, drowned on the Carvajal beach in Fuengirola

Kevin Russell Hawkes, drowned on the Carvajal beach in Fuengirola . Health workers tried in vain to reanimate the man as his recently married wife urged them to continue with their efforts. The Briton had decided to take a swim at 4,15pm yesterday despite the large waves seen on the beach at the time and reports say he was soon in difficulties some 50m from the shore. A group of surfers were the only people on the beach who could help, but by the time they reached the man he was unconscious.The couple was staying with a group of friends in the Gardenia hotel in the town and were on their honeymoon.

Tamboskaya mafia organisation Vladislav Reznik being investigated on the orders of a Spanish judge

Vladislav Reznik, a deputy of Putin's United Russia party and the chairman of the State Duma Financial Markets Committee, is being investigated on the orders of a Spanish judge for alleged links to the Tamboskaya mafia organisation.The gang is accused of a series of serious crimes including murder, kidnap, arms and drugs trafficking, money laundering and racketeering and has been mentioned in connection with match fixing UEFA cup games.A luxury villa belonging to Mr Reznik in the exclusive La Toro resort on the island of Majorca was raided by the Guardia Civil who seized computers, files, and works of art including paintings and sculptures.
Cars, including a Mercedes SL 600, a Toyota SUV and a Renault Clio, were also confiscated from the property, which is reportedly protected by a sophisticated security system.Mr Reznik, who was not at his Spanish home at the time of the raids, is being investigated over his supposed connections with fellow Russian Gennady Petrov, the suspected kingpin of an international crime organisation that allegedly used a network of Spanish registered companies to launder money earned through illicit activities.Petrov, who also has a property on the Balearic Island, was arrested in June along with more than a dozen others as part of the ongoing Operation Troika, led by Spanish Judge Balthasar Garzon.It has emerged that Mr Reznik, who declared earnings of $47m in 2006, bought his Majorcan villa – named Casa Artemis – from Petrov several years ago and the pair were regular seen together on the island.According to local sources, Mr Reznik was a well known member of the island's Russian billionaire elite and regularly attended services at Majorca's Russian Orthodox Church and played alongside Petrov in golf tournaments held exclusively for Russian visitors at the local club.It is thought that Judge Garzon is seeking an international arrest warrant for Mr Reznik but is being thwarted by his immunity as a Senator of the Russian state.

REDUCTION of illegal homes in Marbella under threat of demolition from 700 to 500

Mayor of Marbella, Angeles Muñoz, and the regional government in Seville have agreed to legalize, in the new town plan, another 200 properties that were formerly earmarked for demolition. This reduces the number of illegal homes in Marbella under threat of demolition from 700 to 500. Now included in Marbella’s new town plan - effectively a massive planning amnesty for some 19,000 properties illegally built over the last few decades - is the Jardines del Príncipe development of 81 apartments located on Marbella’s Golden Mile. The development was over-built by 40%, blocking the sea views of various neighboring properties, whose owners took legal action and obtained a demolition order for part of the development. Under the new agreement the promoter avoids having to demolish part of the development in return for ceding the bottom floor to the town hall. It’s a similar story with the Jardines de la Costa development in San Pedro, from the promoter José María Enriquez, implicated in the Operation Malaya corruption scandal. The development will be legalized in return for donating land to the town hall in a different part of the municipality. The decision to legalize 200 properties has been criticized by local politicians from the opposition Socialist Party. They claim it mainly benefits developers who took advantage of a corrupt town hall in the past.

In other news Average Spanish property prices rose by 0.4% over 12 months to the end of September, but fell by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to the latest figures from the Ministry of Housing. Taking into account consumer price inflation, which stood at 4.5% in September, the real cost of housing has fallen by 4.1% over the last 12 months. Newly built property prices rose by 1.7% over 12 months, but fell by 0.8% in the quarter. Resale or ‘second hand’ property, which the Ministry of Housing defines as more than 2 years old, fell by 0.3% over 12 months, and by 1.7% in the quarter. According to Tinsa, 75,000 new properties were sold in the second quarter of the year, the equivalent of 41% of the number of homes finished in the period, which drove up the inventory of new homes to 680,000. Tinsa estimates there will no more than 300,000 transactions in all 2008, implying that the stock of unsold new homes will rise to 930,000 by year end.Tinsa expects the inventory of new homes to keep rising into 2009, as construction on current housing developments finishes, and that it will take at least 2 years for the market to digest the housing overhang. This very much falls in line in how we see things at Spanish Hot Properties said Managing Director Nick Stuart. “The fundamentals are still very much the same that it is a great time to sell and a terrible time to buy and only developer who are prepared to make drastic price reductions will sell there properties especially in the 1 and 2 bedroom apartment market and its still a very difficult market” Nick confirmed

Estepona corruption Carlos Barientos,charged with bribery and money laundering

Carlos Barientos,charged with bribery and money laundering. The ex Mayor has already been held on remand in prison for four months. His cousin Carlos told the judge on Tuesday about several municipal decisions in which alleged payments of backhanders are under investigation.The current councillor for beaches, Miguel Navarro, has now also been charged with perversion of the course of justice in the case.Statements were also taken from two local businessmen, Aurelio Martin Simón, President of Costa del Sol Hipermercardos, who manages a Carrefour store in the town and who is promoting a new commercial centre, touted to be the largest in Spain.Owner of the Publiluna company, Francisco Antonio Navarro, also now faces charges of perversion of the course of justice and money laundering.

Guardia Civil is currently investigating the discovery of a body, in an advanced stage of decomposition, in waters close to sa Foradada

Guardia Civil is currently investigating the discovery of a body, in an advanced stage of decomposition, in waters close to sa Foradada, between Deya and Soller. The body was found by a fisherman who, upon making a closer inspection of a large object he had seen floating in the water, realised that it was a human corpse and immediately called the emergency services. Units from the Guardia Civil, Maritime Rescue and Red Cross all took part in the recovery operation, which lasted some hours. Initial identification has been made even more difficult due to the fact that the body is so badly decomposed. In fact, at this stage, it is not even possible to say whether the body is that of a male or female.The corpse was taken to the Port of Soller where it was examined by judiciary and a forensic doctor. It had clearly been immersed in the sea for a long time and the Guardia Civil are presently consulting their missing persons records. The corpse has been taken to Palma where an autopsy is to be carried out