Car blast wife Victoria Fabian forgives husband

Victoria Fabian, who was heavily pregnant and had her young son in the car, suffered serious leg injuries in the attack in Vigo in March 2010. Nicholas Fabian was found guilty of attempted murder and jailed for life with a minimum term of 16 years. Ms Fabian said "too much hatred and anger" would only bring her down. She remarried her first love - whom she met at the age of 14 - in December after he got back in touch while she was recovering from her injuries. Ms Fabian and Charlie, her eight-year-old son from a previous marriage, were in the car at the time of the blast. They were in a borrowed car which was being returned. Her soldier husband, who had been having an affair, had got into the family's Vauxhall Zafira with their own son Harry, then aged three. After the explosion, which was caused by a grenade planted in the car, Charlie managed to escape but his mother was too badly hurt to move. Her unborn son Freddie was delivered safely three months later. Ms Fabian still has difficulty in walking and remains in pain. Nicholas Fabian During the trial, the court heard Nicholas Fabian wanted to start a new life with his mistress She told BBC Radio Kent: "I think I have forgiven him. Obviously if things had turned out a different way it would be a different story. "I have because I feel too much hatred and anger is only going to bring me down and bring my family down and it's an energy that I don't want to carry around with me." She added: "I think it's the ability to forgive otherwise I just would've been very bitter and twisted, and I've always kept it in my head that not all men are bad." Ms Fabian said her former husband had sent her a letter about three months after last year's trial saying he was sorry for all the hurt he had caused. "But he didn't actually come out and say 'I'm sorry for what I've done'. "I don't even know if he even knows why he did what he did. "And I think I've come to terms that I probably will never get that answer." She added: "A lot of the things that used to bother me don't bother me anymore. "Life's too short to get caught up in it all. My views have definitely changed."

Tesla Goes Back To The Future With Model X Crossover SUV

esla unveiled its brand new Model X crossover sports utility vehicle this past week at a red carpet affair. CEO Elon Musk called the new SUV “revolutionary.” “We’ve created a car that has more functionality than a minivan, more style than an SUV and more performance than a Porsche 911 Carrera,” he said. The Model X has plenty to admire: The SUV, which will be available in early 2014, comes with either a 60 kWh or 85 kWh battery and is said to have a driving range of 80 to 100 miles. (Note: I have seen conflicting reports. A commenter informs me it will be closer to 200 – 270 miles; others have suggested the 180 – 260 mile range.) Musk told reporters that the base model SUV will be able to go from O to 60 miles-per-hour in 4.4 seconds. The ‘falcon doors’ are a neat futuristic spin, granting extra access to the backseats in a tight parking space. The Model X will reportedly sell anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 depending on the model. While there may be some issues with the falcon doors, such as no room for luggage or bike racks on the top of the vehicle, I think it was smart of Tesla to do something futuristic with its latest model. When we think of Tesla, or at least when I think of Tesla, our thoughts inevitably turn to Nikola Tesla himself – a man who has become a sort of mad scientist legend. If the company that bears his name is going to release boring family cars for green soccer moms, they may as well add a touch of space age to the design. So far Tesla has released only one vehicle for mass consumption – the sporty, sleek Roadster: Their second release, the Model S, will be available later this year. For those who hoped Tesla would come out with another semi-futuristic looking car, the Model S is a let-down – a standard, attractive-enough sedan: Tesla wants to be the leading manufacturer of electric cars. But that’s not enough. The company certainly does need to make the best possible electric cars, but I think that just as importantly, Tesla needs to capture the American consumer’s imagination. There’s plenty of space-age vehicles on the road already, after all. Tesla doesn’t need to go too weird or outrageous, but they do need things like the Falcon doors simply so that they can distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack. Maybe that’s the just the science fiction reader in me talking. But don’t you think the name Tesla implies more than a sleek looking four-door sedan? Isn’t this especially true in an electric car market that includes some much bigger players than Tesla?

2 Security Complex Car Bombings Kill Dozens, Syria Says

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Powerful car bombs exploded outside two security headquarters in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Friday, killing 28 people by official count and signaling that emboldened forces seeking the government’s overthrow can strike at the very seat of its power. Multimedia TimesCast | Syrian Government Sites Hit Related The Lede Blog: Crisis in Syria Looks Very Different on Satellite Channels Owned by Russia and Iran (February 10, 2012) The Lede Blog: Tracing the Weapons of Bashar al-Assad (February 10, 2012) 4 Diplomats From Syria Are Expelled by Germany (February 10, 2012) Libya: Syrian Diplomats Ejected (February 10, 2012) Dozens More Die in Syrian Violence, Activists Say (February 10, 2012) World Twitter Logo. Connect With Us on Twitter Follow @nytimesworld for international breaking news and headlines. Twitter List: Reporters and Editors Enlarge This Image Bassem Tellawi/Associated Press On a government tour for reporters after bombings in Aleppo, Syria, debris was strewn under portraits of former President Hafez al-Assad, left, and his son, President Bashar al-Assad. The blasts, about two minutes apart, shattered the calm of a Muslim Sabbath morning and nearly 11 months without significant violence in Aleppo, Syria’s commercial capital. A combination of military and police personnel, as well as civilians, including children, were killed outside a military security headquarters and a police compound, according to a Ministry of Health statement on state television. The attack in Aleppo signaled another escalation in a crisis that began 11 months ago, as the government and the opposition hardened their resolve to use force and diplomatic efforts continued to fail. On Friday, as government forces pressed an unrelenting offensive against the city of Homs, demonstrations edged close to the center of the capital, Damascus, pushing antigovernment action into new territory. In Aleppo, a bastion of government support, the dual explosions wounded about 235 people, state television said, 14 of them critically. State television repeatedly broadcast images of disemboweled victims lying amid jumbled concrete wreckage. One of the buildings appeared flattened and the other was a rose-colored, five-story expanse of shattered windows and cracked masonry. In the absence of a negotiated or diplomatic solution after the latest attempt failed in the United Nations Security Council last Saturday, and with cities and towns across the country besieged by government tanks, the rise of an armed insurgency has gained momentum. Though it was unclear who was responsible for the bombings in Aleppo, or similar attacks in Damascus in December and January, it seemed that Syria was facing the kind of violence it had long been accused of supporting in neighboring Iraq and Lebanon. In Washington, analysts were looking seriously at the possibility that Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Iraq was responsible for Friday’s attack in neighboring Syria. “It comes as no surprise that Al Qaeda’s Iraq affiliate — through its networks in Syria — might attempt to seem relevant by going after the Assad regime,” said an American official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the assessment contained classified information. “It is opportunism, plain and simple.” Andrew Tabler, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and author of a recent book on Syrian-American relations, said, “This is the regime’s foreign policy coming back to bite it.” The bombings in Damascus claimed 70 victims. Like those in Aleppo, they bore the hallmarks of attacks carried out by Sunni extremist groups, experts said. The government has always argued that it was fighting foreign terrorists, a charge dismissed as propaganda by the Syrian activists leading the uprising. But the attacks on Friday suggest that now foreign fighters may indeed be jumping into the conflict in response to the vicious government crackdown, which human rights groups say has left about 6,000 people dead, experts said. “Clearly the gloves are coming off,” Mr. Tabler said. “You cannot have the shelling of Homs for six days without someone hitting back.” Diplomats and analysts are quick to point out that although this attack and the earlier ones in Damascus bear the hallmarks of Al Qaeda, there is no indication of an organized branch of the organization like those in Iraq, Yemen or North Africa. Syria is a patchwork of religious sects and ethnic minorities, with some extremists pushing the Sunni majority toward a sectarian war against the Alawite minority that has ruled the country for 40 years. In the 1970s and 1980s, Aleppo was the scene of running battles between the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and the government of President Hafez al-Assad, father of the current president, Bashar al-Assad. But there was no sign that the attack Friday amounted to a resurrection of that fight, since the Muslim Brotherhood ranks were decimated and have never been rebuilt, the analysts and diplomats said.

Chicago Auto Show: Muscle cars still have the power

Big engines leave electric, hybrid cars in the dust on auto show's first day Malcolm Peterson, 6, gets behind the wheel of a 2013 Ford Mustang on Friday, the opening day of the 2012 Chicago Auto Show. Malcolm Peterson, 6, gets behind the wheel of a 2013 Ford Mustang on Friday,… (Keri Wiginton, Chicago Tribune) February 10, 2012|By Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune reporter There was plenty of chatter over the new electric and hybrid offerings at Friday's opening of the Chicago Auto Show at McCormick Place. But off in the wings, the throaty roars of unapologetically powerful V-8 engines more than drowned out the buzz. Throwbacks in the age of high-tech, fuel-efficient engineering, a new wave of muscle cars from the Detroit Three is proving that for many attendees, miles per hour is still a lot sexier than miles per gallon. The Ford display prominently featured new gas-electric and plug-in hybrid versions of its 2013 Fusion, but it was the 650-horsepower, 200 mph 2013 Shelby GT500 that turned more heads. A noisy, floor-rattling demonstration probably didn't hurt. Urged on by an announcer, a large and overwhelmingly male crowd gathered quickly around the slightly less powerful, 550-horsepower 2012 version, which was tethered to a dynamometer — a stationary test track that can put a car through its screaming paces. Tomm Moland, a roofing superintendent from west-suburban Montgomery and longtime Ford enthusiast, correctly answered a Mustang trivia question, earning a shotgun ride in the blue convertible, and the envy of onlookers. With the engine amplified by a microphone, a designated driver revved up through four of six gears, rear wheels burning, the car bucking and jumping like a bronco penned behind a rodeo gate. In a matter of seconds, the car hit a simulated speed of 140 mph, which felt more than real to Moland. "The thing is a beast," Moland said. "Even strapped down, it was still twisting. It was still pulling ... you could feel it." Moland, who brought his 9-year-old son, Matthew, to his first auto show, has owned 20 Ford autos in his life, including his current rides, a 2008 Taurus and a 2010 Ranger XLT pickup. But his heart still races when he talks about his 1970 Boss 302 Mustang, which he bought used in the late '70s. "That was a fun car," he said, still visibly pumped up from his virtual ride. Moland wasn't quite ready, however, to plunk down the $54,000 he would need to get behind the wheel of the new Shelby. He isn't alone. Despite an improving economy, the high-end muscle cars remain a narrow niche, according to Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst with Edmunds.com. "They're always showstoppers," Krebs said. "They're not necessarily what people will buy." In the Chrysler display, a young spokeswoman in a black miniskirt launched into her spiel as she spun on a carousel with the much-anticipated 2013 Dodge Dart, the new subcompact to be built in Belvidere, Ill. The presentation drew its share of attention, but a competing audience gathered to admire an adjacent model — a bright blue, 375-horsepower 2012 Dodge Challenger R/T. Scott Prendergast, 29, an auto mechanic from Villa Park, deftly reached inside to pop the hood, which he opened to the delight of a growing crowd. Prendergast owns a 2009 Challenger R/T but wanted to compare notes, and perhaps drool a little over the subsequent tweaks and innovations. Prendergast, who was attending the show with his fiancee, Evie Kozlowski, unabashedly professed true love for his car. "You can talk numbers all day long, but you get that seat-of the-pants feel when you mash the gas. That's priceless," he said. At the Chevrolet display, Dan Newton, 37, of Montgomery, was no less smitten with his muscle car of choice. Bypassing the electric Chevy Volt and other cutting-edge cars, he swooped in to take photos of a yellow and black 2012 Camaro SS coupe, whose paint scheme reminded him of Bumblebee from the movie "Transformers." Newton, a manager at a Panera restaurant, drives a Dodge Ram pickup, but he misses the '86 Camaro of his youth. "I like a muscle car like this — tough-looking, beefy, louder the better," he said. The 426-horsepower V-8 Camaro, which sells for just under $40,000, gets 16 to 24 mpg, but fuel economy was the feature furthest from Newton's mind. As such, the appeal of electrics and hybrids are lost on him. "I like to be able to step on the gas and it growls at you," Newton said. "I'm not really interested in driving an electric car. I want to feel the power."

Car blast wife Victoria Fabian forgives husband

A woman who was seriously injured when her then husband tried to kill her by blowing up her car outside their Kent home says she has forgiven him. Victoria Fabian, who was heavily pregnant and had her young son in the car, suffered serious leg injuries in the attack in Vigo in March 2010. Nicholas Fabian was found guilty of attempted murder and jailed for life with a minimum term of 16 years. Ms Fabian said "too much hatred and anger" would only bring her down. She remarried her first love - whom she met at the age of 14 - in December after he got back in touch while she was recovering from her injuries. Ms Fabian and Charlie, her eight-year-old son from a previous marriage, were in the car at the time of the blast. They were in a borrowed car which was being returned. Her soldier husband, who had been having an affair, had got into the family's Vauxhall Zafira with their own son Harry, then aged three. After the explosion, which was caused by a grenade planted in the car, Charlie managed to escape but his mother was too badly hurt to move. Her unborn son Freddie was delivered safely three months later.

Single-car crashes leave at least 3 people hurt

oronto police responded to two single-vehicle accidents on Sunday that left cars wrapped around poles. Around 3 p.m., police responded to a crash that occurred on Eglinton Avenue East, near Mount Pleasant Road. A woman’s car hit a light pole, and police say a medical issue may have caused the collision. The driver was taken to the trauma centre at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Downtown crash injures 2 Earlier in the day, a downtown single-car crash left another woman with serious injuries. Police say a car crashed into a light post near Dundas and Jarvis Streets at about 4 a.m. It was not immediately clear how many people were in the car at the time of the collision, but two of the occupants went to the hospital in a taxi. A woman suffered serious injuries in the crash that occurred downtown early Sunday morning.A woman suffered serious injuries in the crash that occurred downtown early Sunday morning. (CBC) A woman who was inside the car suffered serious injuries in the crash, and remains in hospital. The Canadian Press later reported that a second woman was also seriously hurt in the same crash. Police have arrested a man, but no charges have been laid so far.

Boy towed away in mum's illegally parked car

A small boy was towed away in his mother's illegally parked car after the tow truck driver failed to notice a seven-year-old boy in the backseat. Now the driver and the boy’s mother are facing charges over the incident, which happened in the mid-western US city of Indianapolis. Robyn Hardy had left her son sitting in the back of a car parked in a fire lane while she ran into a discount variety store around on Thursday night, FOX59 reports. When she returned to her car a few moments later she was shocked to find the vehicle and her son missing. "Oh god. I'm in Eagledale Plaza off of Lafayette Road and my car is gone and my son is in the car," Ms Hardy told an emergency services operator. Moments later Indiana police phoned emergency services to inform them they had just impounded a vehicle from Eagledale Plaza and the driver had noticed there was a small boy "lying ... I guess on the floor in the back." The boy later said he was sitting at the front of his mother's car when the truck had towed him away. Have you had a similar experience? Send an email to news.feedback@ninemsn.com.au "He didn't know I was in the car until we stopped and I opened the door," the boy said. The tow truck driver later said he did not check to see if anyone was in the car. The driver now faces charges after police found the vehicle was incorrectly towed "with no safety straps or lights". "You're not supposed to be in the back of a car when it's being towed anyway, but then couple that with the fact that it wasn't hooked up correctly," said a spokeswoman with Indianapolis Metro Police Department. Jason Gosset, the tow truck driver, faces a charge of criminal recklessness while Ms Hardy is charged with neglect after leaving her son alone in the car in minus-one degree weather. The boy is currently living with his grandmother.