Following is a summary of current odd news briefs.
Swedes, Norwegians pounce on Chinese garlic smuggler
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Nordic customs officials have arrested a truck driver after he tried to illegally import 28 tons of Chinese garlic into the European Union. The driver was intercepted last month as he drove the pungent truckload from Norway, which is outside the EU and where garlic is exempt from customs’ duties, into Sweden, where garlic is subject to a 9.6 percent EU-wide duty.
Netanyahu bodyguards’ guns go missing on U.S. visit
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Four handguns belonging to the bodyguards of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have disappeared from airline cargo during a U.S. visit, Israel’s Shin Bet security service said on Wednesday. "The pistols were part of the equipment sent ahead to Washington, and got lost," a Shin Bet spokesman said, adding that Israeli and U.S. authorities were investigating.
Hotel opens in battle-scarred city
SANAA (Reuters) – Rebel insurgency and civil war were not enough to deter Sultan Amin from opening a tourist hotel in the north Yemen city of Saada this week, even as the region teeters on the brink of renewed conflict. "We had to stop every time the war was renewed. But two weeks ago we finally finished," the investor told Reuters of the two-star hotel, which cost nearly $450,000 and took three years to build.
Motorists hit jackpot with coins on highway
ROME (Reuters) – It wasn’t exactly pennies from heaven but it was perhaps the next best thing: a truck carrying 2.5 million euros in coins overturned on a highway in southern Italy and motorists picked up the money like mushrooms. In the accident, the truck’s rear door popped open and what followed must have seemed like a massive slot machine win.
Corporate "firewalk" ends with burnt feet in Italy
ROME (Reuters) – A "motivation day" organized by one of Italy’s biggest real estate agencies ended in tears and scars when nine staff had to be treated in hospital after walking barefoot on a bed of hot coals. Alessandro Di Priamo, a former athlete now turned motivational trainer for companies, said the nine salespeople from the Tecnocasa agency had suffered light burns and none were seriously hurt.
Men get guidance for modest haircuts
TEHRAN (Reuters) – Women in Iran must cover their hair in public to comply with Sharia law, and men, too, are expected to have modest haircuts — but what exactly does that entail? A new set of hairstyles has gone on display aiming to guide barbers and their customers away from the temptations of decadent western coiffures.
Fired up feminists burn cash over pay gap
VISBY, Sweden (Reuters) – Sweden’s Feminist party roasted a pile of bank notes worth 100,000 Swedish crowns ($13,010) on Tuesday in a stunt designed to highlight wage disparities between men and women ahead of a national election. Feminist party leader Gudrun Schyman pulled handfuls of cash from a plastic bag and threw them onto a smoking barbecue as a small crowd leaned in to take pictures. It took about 25 minutes to burn the bag’s contents.
