The Iraqi government plans to sell a luxury yacht, moored off the French resort of Nice, that was one of many opulent treasures belonging to former dictator Saddam Hussein, a senior official said yesterday.
The palatial Ocean Breeze is expected to be sold within weeks, government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said.
The 270-foot pleasure boat, expected to fetch $30 million, features gold-tap bathrooms, a mini-operating theatre, a helicopter landing pad and a secret escape passageway, according to a report from the British Sunday Times.
Iraq's Cabinet had decided to delegate the sale of the yacht to the Finance and Foreign Ministries, the government said.
Saddam, who was hanged in 2006 for crimes against humanity, was known for a lavish lifestyle. His many palaces were replete with marble, gold-trimmed furniture and sumptuous gardens even as ordinary Iraqis suffered under severe economic sanctions.
Gaddafi pitches tent in Kremlin
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi pitched a tent in a Kremlin garden before talks with Russian leaders last weekend.
Located a few metres from the building where Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has his office, the military-style tent was decorated with North African fabrics and a metal barbecue grill was set up in front. A large, flat-screen television was switched on inside the tent.
Col. Gaddafi, who was born to a Bedouin herdsman in a tent in 1942, frequently greets foreign visitors in a tent next to the ruins of his Tripoli residence, which was destroyed in a bombing raid by US aircraft in 1986.
On a visit to Paris last year for talks with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Col. Gaddafi pitched his tent in the garden of the presidential guesthouse.
Saudi goats at beauty contest
Now Saudi Arabia has held its first "beautiful goat" pageant.
Owners of pedigree "Najdi" goats from around the Gulf region have converged on Riyadh, hoping to win the prize for top male and female goat, following in the footsteps of lucrative camel competitions which have taken off in recent years.
"The Najdi goat is a pure national product like nothing else in the world," said Sheikh Faisal al-Saadoun, a leading Saudi breeder who organised the show. The goats are named after the central Najd region of Saudi Arabia, where the goats have a distinctive high nose bridge and shaggy hair with a fine, silky quality. They were given a thorough shampoo for the show.
Most of the goats in the competition were bred from one star goat, Burgan (Volcano), from Mr Saadoun's stable and have been exported around the Gulf in trade worth millions of riyals.
Mr Saadoun sold dozens of goats from his stable for at least 100,000 riyals ($26,000) each at the show, adding to some eight million riyals he has made over the years breeding from Burgan.
Palin falls prey to prankster
US vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin has fallen prey to a Canadian prankster when he called her, impersonating French President Nicolas Sarkozy, and got her to accept an invitation to hunt baby seals.
In an over-the-top French accent, a member of the Quebec comedy duo The Masked Avengers, famous for tricking celebrities and politicians including Mr Sarkozy himself, asked if Mrs Palin would take him on a hunting trip by helicopter, and then in French said they could also go kill baby seals.
An apparently oblivious Mrs Palin said she thought that would be fun. "We could have a lot of fun together as we're getting work done. We could kill two birds with one stone that way."
The prankster also got Mrs Palin, Republican John McCain's running mate in next Tuesday's US presidential election, to reveal a potential ambition for the top job in Washington. Asked if she would like to eventually become president, the Alaska governor responded, "Well, maybe in eight years."
Mrs Palin's office quickly admitted they were hoodwinked.
Lethal unlicensed spirits kill 18
At least 18 people died in Bangladesh last weekend after unlicensed spirits made them sick but they were afraid to report it in the Muslim country, police said.
Police said the victims in the northern Bogra district bought the spurious liquor with a high alcohol content from an unlicensed brewer and fell sick shortly after consuming it.
They did not report immediately to police or hospitals because drinking alcohol is a punishable offence in Bangladesh, except in big hotels and some licensed bars.
Relatives informed police and reporters after the deaths.
"We confirmed 18 deaths but some more may have gone unreported," said a police officer in Bogra, 200 kilometres from the capital Dhaka.
"We are seeking more details and are trying to find the brewer," he added.