| | Cyclone debbie wreaks havoc on whitsunday islands | Paul Buckford Read more
"I was just so happy, for a first time, seeing a beautiful white bird, she got up, hopped out, got into a car," he said. "I've been a whizz at that for 30 years. I never had one like that. It was incredible."
When a photo of the white falcon returned to The Argus the bird's owner was in shock and she told her husband he couldn't have seen something like it.
"He said to me, 'No, you can't, it's not happening'," the owner said. "She can't do that and I said it wouldn't happen to me either. You need to make sure your birds come across the road “ they can't turn back."
They said their "tiredness" caused them to lose contact with the falcon before they drove to his house. They didn't have a radio so the falcon flew away, but by about 5pm, when the Argus received several calls from people on the islands, Mr Turner and his wife did get in touch again and found the bird had been shot through the head.
A second falcon was reportedly seen, this time over nearby Lick and was killed too. He also said he had been informed the birds had been injured “ which he said wasn't confirmed at the time.
"It's been raining for three days, which is just a testament to their resilience “ to keep their little wing-nuts alive and feeding on dead leaves," he said. "That should be their first and only hope of recovery."
He said they were able to recover one of the birds and brought it in on Monday, two days after the first falcon was taken from their island, but it was taken on Wednesday by a member of the Argus' support staff who had lost an arm. The staff member is still receiving treatment for severe rheumatism and it is unknown how long he has been able to fly.
"We just want a little bit of comfort from this, the staff on that island have been there a long time, since the first bird came on," he said.
"But they're all volunteers “ some are doing their jobs for free “ we're not a big-time business, there is a lot of money involved."
Truck ploughs into crowded berlin christmas market
Lebanon, February 21 (IANS) - Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Monday condemned the deadly attack at Berlin's Christmas market, accusing Islamist militants of staging the attack.
"We don't know the motivation, but the authorities of Lebanon are asking all the possible parties involved to take responsibility. They are trying to draw the picture," Hariri told journalists in Beirut.
According to Lebanese media, the attacker, an Afghan, has been identified as Afghan-born Najibullah Zazi, who was born in Iraq, came to Germany four years ago and came to Europe four years ago.
He went to work with a car repair service in Rettigle, near the city of Mezieresbach, on February 6, a statement from the police said.
Later on Tuesday, he posted a video from his mobile phone on Facebook about the attack, according to Le Canard Enchan.
According to the report, the video shows Zazi, wearing a beret over his eyes, opening fire on police when they entered the German market, the main entry point for tourists to the city.
He was killed after detonating an explosive device in the market. The motive remains unknown.
Earlier, German police also said they have been assisted in identifying and arresting those suspected in the December 25 attack, which killed 12 people and injured 48.
German police in Hamburg said on Tuesday that in addition to Zazi, two others have also been arrested in connection with the December 25 attack. They are believed to be Afghan-born Abdulaziz Akbar, 25, and a third person, said Hans-Georg Maassen of the German Federal Police, at a news conference.
Meanwhile, German authorities said police have arrested a 20-year-old Afghan man in Hamburg and detained one of his alleged accomplices in connection with the attacks.
Maassen said the three men are believed to have been in the city from their native Afghanistan three to six months ago and joined Islamist militants, saying the two other "underground" individuals were based in the eastern city of Wuppertal.
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