Antonio Banderas is Pablo Picasso in season 2 of NatGeo's 'Genius'

A trailer has been released for the upcoming second season of the National Geographic series "Genius" starring Antonio Banderas as Pablo Picasso.

Image credit: Mr WTF/YouTube

Both Antonio Banderas and the legendary painter Pablo Picasso were born in the city of Málaga in southern Spain. Now Banderas, 57, will be giving something back to his much-loved home by portraying a fellow son of Málaga in the role of Picasso in the Fox 21 and National Geographic series titled “Genius”..
read more on Blasting News.

Watch as huge street battle in Coín leaves 2 dead and 5 injured

A massive street fight between Romani clans occurred Friday night in Coín, an inland town on the Costa del Sol.

Image credit @JesusNavarro/Twitter

Guardia Civil from surrounding areas were called in after a fight between two rival Romani clans broke out in Coín. The battle in the La Fuensanta neighbourhood saw two brothers dead and at least five injured – one seriously – and it reportedly took some four hours for authorities to calm down the bloody battle, which involved clubs, knives and sticks.

🔴 #VÍDEO Momentos de #tensión y #enfrentamientos entre los #agentes de la #GuardiaCivil y #vecinos de la barriada de La Fuensanta de #Coín (#Málaga) tras la #pelea en la que han muerto apuñalados dos hermanos. pic.twitter.com/Mw2cKIBuvI

— Jesús Navarro (@JesusNavarro) January 5, 2018

The bloody confrontation is thought to have started at around 5 p.m. Friday, when the 112 emergency control centre started receiving calls about a huge fight in which knives were being used. As reported by Euro Weekly News, medical teams, Civil Guard, Local Police and firefighters were dispatched to sort out the street fight, where at least one vehicle was set on fire.

🔴 #VÍDEO Noche larga y tensa en #Coín (#Málaga) tras la #pelea multitudinaria en la que han muerto #apuñalados dos #hermanos y otras dos personas han resultado heridas de gravedad. La #GuardiaCivil y la #PolicíaLocal mantienen un importante #despliegue en el municipio. pic.twitter.com/u1lBzKGIkR

— Jesús Navarro (@JesusNavarro) January 5, 2018

Costa del Sol shaken by two earthquakes in 24 hours

The National Geographic Institute in Spain recorded two earthquakes in 24 hours on Tuesday and Wednesday at a magnitude of over 3.0.

Small quakes shake up the Costa del Sol - Image credit National Geographic Institute Spain

While most of us likely felt nothing, the Costa del Sol was shaken up by two earthquakes on Tuesday, within a period of 24 hours. At 7 p.m. Tuesday night, the National Geographic Institute of Spain recorded a quake with a magnitude 3.2 on the Richter scale, at a depth of 34 km, north east of Comares.

According to Euroweekly News, early on Wednesday morning, another quake was recorded in the sea off Torremolinos at a magnitude of 3.1, with a depth of 34 km. 

On Friday last week, the National Geographic Institute recorded a magnitude 4.0 quake south of Malaga in the Alboran Sea. This was followed by a series of five small aftershocks, measuring from 2.0 to 2.6. The Andalucia emergency control centre received many calls from Torremolinos, Malaga, Rincon de la Victoria and Estepona, but no reports have been received of any injuries or damage to property. 

Did any reader feel the earthquakes? Let us know in the comment section below.

Spanish National Police capture French hitman in Halloween devil mask

A notorious French hitman was nabbed at a Halloween party in Malaga, southern Spain, while wearing a devil's mask and a black cape and wig.

Photo courtesy Policia Nacional

Hammid Hakker, 47, a fugitive on France's most-wanted list, was arrested together with two Spaniards who police suspect were helping him to hide in the country. According to a statement by the National Police, the man was disguised as a devil,in order to blend in with the other party-goers.

According to a report by The Local, Hakker is wanted for drug trafficking, murder and money-laundering and was sentenced by a French court back in 2005 to 15 years in jail for the murder of a minor drug trafficker. However after the jail in northern France granted him a temporary leave of absence in November 2013 Hakker has been on the run.

Prison Break: Hakker has escaped from jail before

He had previously escaped from a jail in Paris back in 1998, taking the place of another man in the visiting area of the prison and was re-arrested in 2003. 

Detenido en #Halloween, y disfrazado de diablo, un líder de sicarios reclamado por homicidio, tráfico de drogas... https://t.co/xMMQZRhWcR pic.twitter.com/6p5UvzvHvl

— Policía Nacional (@policia) November 4, 2016

Reportedly the Spanish police began investigating Hakker in mid-October, after they discovered a "hitman's kit" with two guns, ammunition, a silencer, false ID documents and eight mobile phones, along with 5,000 in cash in a house in Malaga.

6.3 magnitude earthquake shook up Málaga coast on Monday morning [Updated]

At 5:22 a.m. on Monday a strong earthquake of 6.3 magnitude shook up the Málaga coast and was felt in other Andalusian provinces, including Almeria, Jaén, Granada and Seville.

UPDATE: A video is now included below, taken in Melilla as the earthquake struck. 

The writer awoke in Fuengirola to her bed shaking and a cord on the bedroom blind knocking against the window frame. A few moments later, the bed shook again. Naturally there was little sleep after that.

It was initially reported by the National Institute of Geophysics that the intensity of the quake was 5.6. Half an hour later, they updated it to 5.9 and even later it was reported that the earthquake was at a magnitude of 6.3 on the Richter scale. A smaller tremor was felt a few minutes later.

This is similar to what happened on January 21, when the coast was shaken up by a 4.8 magnitude quake, considered to be at that time the largest in a decade in Málaga. Now it seems the record has been broken yet again. 

The epicenter of the earthquake (marked with a red star in the image above) was in the Alboran Sea between Al Hoceima and Melilla on the North African coast, at a spot close to Thursday's earthquake. It was shallow, with a depth of no more than 10 kilometers. 

While the Malaga coast has had no reports of damage so far, in Melilla, where it was felt more strongly, cornice and facade damage occurred on buildings in the city, along with some landslides. Some building have no electricity.  

The Diario Sur quotes Agustín Gonzalez, who hails from Málaga and works as a teacher in Melilla, as telling them early this morning:  

"We had a tremendous scare. I'm dressing to go out because on the radio firefighters have recommended leaving our homes. Other teachers from the institute are without electricity and have taken to the streets with their families."

According to the Local, in Morocco a 12 year-old boy died of heart failure after suffering a panic attack during the earthquake, while a 35 year-old was injured after jumping out of a second-floor window during the quake. 
 
Someone in Melilla managed to catch the moment the earthquake struck on video:



More about the earthquake

Source: Diario Sur

PETA applauds Swedish stripper who jumped into bullring to comfort dying bull in Málaga

In a second recent incident of its kind, a Swedish stripper jumped into a bullring in Málaga to comfort the dying bull. Animal rights activists, PETA, have hailed her bravery. 

Amkina Axelsson, 41, attended a bull fight at the La Malagueta bullring in Málaga recently. After holding up a banner saying "No Más Tauromaquia!" or "No More Bullfighting!" during the event, she jumped over the barrier into the bullring to comfort the dying bull, but was removed from the area by the one of the matadors.

Axelsson describes herself as a Swedish stripper and adult model and lives in Marbella on the Costa del Sol in southern Spain with her husband. She told The Local, "It was a symbolic act to show that we are thinking about the bull."

"No animal should have to endure an agonizing and unnecessary death for the enjoyment of a crowd."

"I join together with PETA to urge all compassionate people to stop these cruel events, which have been condemned internationally, by never attending a bullfight."

https://t.co/7EJKs6hdgk pic.twitter.com/Sgu9JQWLlz

— Amina Axelsson (@AminaAxelsson) September 19, 2015

Axelsson says she was nervous about doing it, but was more nervous about police than the bull itself, and while she was arrested after the protest, she said the policeman was "fantastic".

"He was also against bullfighting, he was definitely on my side."

However, Axelsson will have to pay a fine for her actions, but says this doesn't worry her.

"I’m still going to stand up for what I believe in."

Watch Axelsson jump into the bullring in the video below.



Axelsson's protest was nothing new to Málaga, as in August this year a Spanish woman, Virginia Ruiz, also jumped into the bullring, but in her case she managed to give the bull comfort as it lay on the ground dying.

After the event, Ruiz told the Spanish TV station Telecinco, "I wanted to give him love before he left this world." Her protest can be seen in the video below.



PETA released a statement Monday where Mimi Bekhechi, director of PETA UK, condemned bullfighting practices in Spain, which she said included "subjecting the animal to electric shocks" along with "tranquilizing" the bulls before the corridas.

According to PETA, 12 people died in July and August after being gored by bulls, making this the deadliest summer bullfighting season in 15 years.

Source: The Local / PETA

Animal circuses to be banned in Málaga, animal rights to be protected

An announcement was made on Sunday by the mayor of Málaga that animal circuses are to be banned in the southern Spanish city.  A further ban will be made on the pony ride carousels, popular at local fairs.

 

Photo of elephant in "training" - CC by-SA Heather Norwood PETA

Local government unveiled a new federation for the protection of animal rights in the city, which is the first of its kind in Andalusia, and third nationally.  The Federation of Protectors of the Province is to be dubbed "Tidus," after a dog who died after suffering severe injuries in a fire in Valencia.  Videos telling Tidus' story can be seen on YouTube here.
 
The circus ban in Málaga itself follows the lead of several other Spanish cities, Alicante, Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, Tarragona, Vigo and Vitoria, who also decided to ban circuses that use animals in their acts.

Further work will be done on the proposal in the weeks ahead in order to reach the widest consensus possible. Meetings will shortly be held with the newly-formed Federation of Protectors of the Province and the prohibition is to be brought before the whole city council in January 2015.

Several animal rights groups have been demanding a ban on both animals in circuses and the pony rides saying that the training used is "aggressive" and produces "unnecessary animal suffering,"

The secretary of Tidus, and president of the Málaga Society for the Protection of Animals, Carmen Manzano, spoke to the media about other animal suffering, including that of dogs, saying "animal lovers and animal rights campaigners have had enough of knowing that there are breeding centres and kennels throughout Málaga where dogs are tied up day and night, often without shelter, mistreated and abandoned."

She explained that Tidus was set up show that the group "will not be silent until animals have the respect and love that, as living beings, they deserve."

 

Pony rides at the local fair in Málaga are to also be banned.

Photo: Copyright © Anne Sewell

Sources:

Gnomes
The Local

Automobile Museum in Málaga, Spain (Photo)

Málaga city, capital of the Málaga province in southern Spain, is a great travel destination with many attractions. History, beaches and art are on offer here along with many excellent restaurants, wine bars and other cultural offerings.

One really unusual attraction, however, is the Museo Automovilístico de Málaga, a place of sheer delight for lovers of vintage and classic cars and a fun visit for the whole family.

Photo: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic rosergoula

The museum houses a collection of 85 classic and vintage cars from several different eras and is situated in what used to be a tobacco factory, called “Tabacalera.” The building was renovated by the city of Málaga and made suitable for its precious inhabitants at a cost of around 9 million euros.

The cars themselves are worth around 25 million euros and the whole collection belongs to Joao Manuel Magalhaes, who hails from Oporto, Portugal. Apparently, his father started up the collection and Joao decided to keep it in the family, adding more of these wonderful vehicles along the way.

The cars are displayed within thematic groups by their various eras, some of these themes including Belle Epoque, The 20’s, Eccentricity, and more.

An amazing range of car models are on show including Auburn, Bentley, Bugatti, Delage, Ferrari, Hispano Suiza, Jaguar, Mercedes, Packard, Rolls Royce and more. All the vehicles have been lovingly restored or cared for, including their attractive, luxurious interiors with crocodile or ostrich leather, rare and beautiful wood, ivory and silver handles and other exotic trimmings.

Besides the cars, the museum also displays a wonderful collection of approximately 300 fashionable hats from the various eras, named “From Balenciaga to Schiaparelli” and to accompany them is an appropriate collection of antique luggage.

A YouTube video gives a short tour of the museum, showing some of the vintage vehicles on display.

The museum can be found at Edificio Tabacalera, Avenida Sor Teresa Prat, 15 in Málaga, Spain.

Photo CC-by-SA Marta Malina Moraczewska

Estranged husband kills wife, 5-year-old son in La Luz, Málaga

When Estefanía T. V. failed to arrive at her parents' home where she cared for her grandmother and her young son Aaron didn't show up at school, Estefanía's father went to her home in the La Luz district of Málaga, Spain and made a shocking discovery. 

Estefanía's father arrived at the home at lunchtime, got no answer at the door.

He found a ladder and climbed in through a window of the first floor apartment in Avenida Isaac Peral, where the family has lived since the couple separated during the summer...

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/358960

'Smurfs 2' preview hosted at Júzcar, famous Spanish 'blue village'

In 2011, the traditional "white village" of Júzcar in Spain turned completely blue, as it hosted the the worldwide premiere of the blockbuster US film, "The Smurfs." Still blue today, the town saw the preview of the sequel, "Smurfs 2."

On July 23, "Smurf Town" Spain hosted a special premiere of the Smurfs' sequel movie, ten days before the film hit movie theaters nationwide.

 

Júzcar has benefited in the last couple of years from its Smurf fame, and has even recently repainted all the blue buildings in the previously typical white Andalucían village.

 

Dubbed "Pueblo Pitufo" (or Smurf Town) in Spanish, the town of only 240 residents has seen more than 210,000 tourists, gawping at its blue streets and buying Smurf-themed merchandise. Previous to that, Júzcar saw around 300 tourists per year.

 

The movie preview in the town attracted celebrities like FC Barcelona footballer Andrés Iniesta and former Miss Universe Eva González.

 

The first Smurf movie brought in €560 million in ticket sales worldwide.

 

Below is a photo of Hotel Bandolero in the blue village of Júzcar: 

 

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/355516

Spanish police nab one of the UK's 'most wanted' (video)

Despite being in a totally hidden, anti-assault "panic room" in his villa in Málaga, the 41-year-old man was arrested on Saturday after being on the run for years. He had received a 24-year prison sentence for drug dealing in the UK, in absentia.

Mark Alan Lilley is originally from Warrington in Cheshire, and skipped bail in 2000 after being charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine, heroin, ecstasy, amphetamines, cannabis and cannabis resin, and for possession of a firearm.

In his absence, he was convicted and sentenced to 24 years in jail, and since that time has regularly featured in "Most Wanted" lists published by the UK newspapers and also by crime prevention units including Crimestoppers UK.

He was described by the UK National Crime Squad as one of the “worst types of drug dealers” who used violence against people who “crossed him.”

Despite the fact that he has changed his appearance with tattoos, shaved head and body building, he finally got recognized and was found to be living in a luxury villa in the Alhaurín de la Torre area of Málaga, under a false name.

According to the police statement, Lilley's appearance had "changed considerably" and that he had become an expert in "vale tudo," a "no holds barred" Brazilian martial art.

Once the Spanish police had traced Lilley's suspected location, they called on GOES, a Special Security Task Force, who raided the property on Saturday.  The video below shows the actual raid.

On entering the house, police found two men and two women, but there was no trace of the suspect himself. Apparently, Lilley's dogs had alerted him to what was about to happen.

However, after a thorough search, officers uncovered a wardrobe with a false door in the master bedroom.  This led to a security door opening onto a "panic room" and it turned out Lilley was holed up in there, complete with a computer, monitoring the CCTV cameras.

According to the UK press, the six-foot tall man was found to be naked.

While sounding like something out of a TV series, Lilley has been arrested at last and will be returned to the UK to serve out his well-earned sentence.

To the source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/353998