A SIBERIAN city was almost completely wiped off the map after enduring years of brutality when a mine explosion forced its residents to abandon it.
The ruins of Kadykchan now haunt the landscape of Russia’s Far East – and has eerily been frozen in time since the Cold War.
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This Siberian city has been frozen in time since the Cold WarCredit: Koryo Tours
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Residents were forced to flee after a deadly mine explosionCredit: YouTube / BaikalNature
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What looks to be an abandoned sports hall in KadykchanCredit: Alamy
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The roadsign indicating the Kadykchan coal mine on the Kolyma highwayCredit: Alamy
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What looks like the broken remains of a classroomCredit: Koryo Tours
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Everything was left to rot in the cityCredit: Sometimes Interesting
The dystopian coal-mining town has been completely deserted for decades since its last bus load of residents shipped out.
Chilling footage reveals blackened and crumbling Soviet-era concrete apartment blocks, smashed up classrooms and rusting playgrounds overrun by nature.
Old-fashioned road signs are pictured, indicating the Kadykchan coal mine on the Kolyma highway.
Other images show books laying scattered around the desolate buildings, and windows punched out of buildings.
The remote and abandoned city is found deep into Magadan province, an area also known as “Kolyma” – a name that used to strike fear in the hearts of Russians.
It is only reachable along thousands of miles of a highway, referred to as the “Road of Bones” due to the amount of people that were worked to death or executed in labour camps.
The Soviet-era despot opened up the region in the 1930s in order to extract minerals, metals and gold from its uninhabited lands using forced labour.
Opened by communist Stalin, the dictator looked to access its mineral, metal and gold deposits in order to support the ongoing industrialisation of the USSR.
But the quickest way to exploit the land’s materials was to use forced labour – and it came at a cost.
Throughout the 30s and into World War 2, over a million prisoners suffered in the horrible conditions and -50C temperatures of Kolyma.
An unbelievable 200,000 people horrifically died.
After the war, two coal mines were opened in Kadykchan and prisoners were no longer cruelly kept.
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Instead, civilians came under the impression they were to receive a good salary and a flat to live.
As the Cold War started and began to drag on, the city truly flourished in the 1970s, transforming into a place for young people to live and work, with music festivals put on and clubs opening.
But in 1989, the Soviet Union collapsed and the worker’s salary’s were no longer guaranteed.
The coal-mining city fell into depression, one of the mines closed and the future looked bleak.
A past resident, Tatiana Shchepalkin, told the BBC: “Salaries weren’t being paid and people couldn’t even buy basic things like food.
“Imagine your husband comes home from the mine and you’ve got nothing to give him to eat. The children are hungry.”
It didn’t seem like it could get any worse, until tragedy struck on November, 25, 1996.
A methane explosion ripped through the mine during a busy morning shift and six men were killed.
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Books are seen scattered inside ruined buildingsCredit: Alamy
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As the last resident left, the town was set on fireCredit: Koryo Tours
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The spooky remains of a playgroundCredit: Sometimes Interesting
The last mine was closed for good and Kadykchan no longer had a reason to exist. The city was finished.
“Things were terrible…Things were so desperate people were shooting dogs for food,” Tatiana remembered.
Residents quickly began packing up their lives and getting out.
Soon the city had completely emptied. In turn, the local council moved in and torched most of the buildings.
There Kadykchan remains – blackened, crumbling and surrendering to nature.
A man who spent his entire life in the remote, freezing city watched the smoke burn as he left.
“Your soul refuses to believe it,” Vladimir Voskresensky told the BBC.
“But that’s how it is.”
Now the only people to walk amongst the rubble are intrepid explorers gripped by its dark history.
The steel skeletons of dozens of steam locomotives betray a time when the spectre of the mushroom cloud loomed dangerously near.
During the Soviet era it served as a nuclear war base – ready and waiting to whisk Russians to safety if all other transportation failed or was destroyed.
Time progressed, the Iron Curtain lifted, diesel trains took over and the threat of nuclear war waned – leaving a cemetery on rusty tracks.
What was the Cold War?
THE Cold War was a state of geopolitical tension between powers and put the world on the brink of nuclear disaster.
It occurred between the Eastern Bloc (the Soviet Union and its satellite states) and powers in the Western Bloc (the United States, its NATO allies and others) – following on from World War II.
A timeframe of the tense war acknowledged by historians ranges from 1947 and either 1989 or 1991.
Following the surrender of Nazi Germany in May 1945, the uneasy wartime alliance between the United States and Great Britain on the one hand and the Soviet Union on the other began to unravel.
By 1948 the Soviets had installed left-wing governments in the countries of eastern Europe that had been liberated by the Red Army.
The Americans and the British feared the permanent Soviet domination of eastern Europe and the threat of Soviet-influenced communist parties coming to power in the democracies of western Europe.
The Soviets, on the other hand, were determined to maintain control of eastern Europe in order to safeguard against any possible renewed threat from Germany, and they were intent on spreading communism worldwide, largely for ideological reasons.
The Cold War had solidified by 1947, when US aid provided under the Marshall Plan to Western Europe had brought those countries under American influence and the Soviets had installed openly communist regimes in Eastern Europe.
The Cold War reached its peak between 1948 and 1953.
Throughout the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union avoided direct military confrontation in Europe and engaged in actual combat operations only to keep allies from defecting to the other side or to overthrow them after they had done so.
The Cold War began to break down in the late 1980s during the administration of Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
He dismantled the totalitarian aspects of the Soviet system and began efforts to democratise the Soviet political system.
When communist regimes in the Soviet-bloc countries of Eastern Europe collapsed in 1989–90, Gorbachev acquiesced in their fall.
In late 1991 the Soviet Union collapsed and 15 newly independent nations were born from its corpse, including a Russia with a democratically elected, anti-communist leader.
The Cold War had come to an end.
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Snow covering the abandoned cityCredit: Alamy
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The ghost town is on the north east of Siberia, RussiaCredit: Alamy
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Buildings are pictured falling apart with bricks crumblingCredit: Koryo Tours
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The city can be found along the ‘Road of Bones’Credit: Alamy
IN the depths of the Indian Ocean lies an island home to a secretive military base believed to be one of the CIA’s notorious Black Sites.
Diego Garcia, a white-sand paradise isle, also houses dozens of trapped asylum seekers who have been stuck there in a makeshift prison for almost three years.
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Diego Garcia, site of a major United States military base in the middle of the Indian Ocean
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A US B-2 Spirit bomber stops for refueling on Diego Garcia in 2001, following an air strike mission over AfghanistanCredit: Reuters
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Fuel tanks at the edge of a military airstrip on Diego GarciaCredit: Reuters
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US B-1B Lancer bombers on Diego Garcia in 2001Credit: Getty
Owned and leased to the US Navy by Britain, Diego Garcia hosts as many as 5,000 American military personnel along with dozens of ships and aircraft.
After 9/11, US bombers launched attacks on Afghanistan from the island, banned except for authorized military crew.
It was also used as a launching pad for attacks on Iraq during the 2003 invasion.
An investigation by TIME magazine in 2008 revealed how a secret CIA black site on the island was being used for “nefarious activities” between 2002 and 2006 as part of America’s War on Terror.
In 2006 questions were raised about whether Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, a 9/11 mastermind now held at Guantanamo Bay, was on the island, the Associated Press reported.
More recently in 2015 a senior Bush administration official told VICE news how US prisoners were interrogated in a CIA Black Site on the isle.
Human rights group Reprieve has also alleged that US Naval ships docked at the island were used to torture detainees.
In October 2021, some 60 people fleeing conflict in Sri Lanka were sailing across the Indian Ocean in hopes of reaching Canada.
When their boat started to sink, British navy ships rescued them and took them to Diego Garcia.
The asylum seekers were told their boat would be repaired so they could sail out again – but instead they were essentially imprisoned on the island.
They have spent almost three years stuck there, The Guardian reports.
One of the passengers from the shipwreck said: “I’ve been put in a prison on this island although I have committed no crime.
“My mental state is deteriorating. I live in a body that has no life inside it.”
Officials on the island have restricted their movements, keeping them in a fenced off area the size of a football pitch, surrounded by a 7ft high metal fence.
“We cohabit with the rats,” one mum on the island said.
“They taste the food on our plates; climb on top of our children when they are sleeping and bite us.”
The group, which includes 16 children, are only allowed to leave the cordoned area for medical care or occasional beach trips.
Someone in the camp told The Guardian: “One three-year-old child deliberately broke his teeth so he could go out to the dentist and get soft food.
“He wanted to eat a banana, which we don’t usually get.”
Diego Garcia reportedly has a downtown area with bowling alleys, bars and shops where US military can go out drinking and dancing.
There are tennis courts, parks and softball pitches.
Some wild conspiracy theories swirled after the disappearance of MH-370, which disappeared in 2014 with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board, that the jet landed on Diego Garcia.
The White House press secretary rubbished the claim at the time, with officials later dubbing it a “baseless conspiracy theory”.
The UK, working with the US, had forcibly expelled the indigenous population from the island in the years between 1968 and 1973.
By 1977, Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia was officially established in an American naval base on the island.
It is leased to the US by the UK and is now contested territory as Mauritius claims it belongs to them, not Britain.
Diego Garcia is the largest island in the Chagos Archipelago, part of the British Indian Ocean Territory.
Just south of the equator, it lies along a major trade route between Asia and Africa.
The US Navy has dozens of ships positioned around the island and its lagoon.
Bomber aircraft and at least one USS aircraft carrier are also thought to be housed there.
The British government states online that only those with connections to the military base are allowed to visit the island.
A US Navy statement about the island reads: “U.S. Navy Support Facility Diego Garcia provides logistic support to operational forces forward deployed to the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf areas of responsibility in support of national policy objectives.”
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US Air Force ground crew members wave at a B-52H bomber as it takes off in Diego Garcia for a strike mission against Afghanistan, 2001Credit: AFP
HE was courted by the doyennes of Germany’s high society but Adolf Hitler’s own dark obsession and warped sexual fantasies revolved around much younger women.
The Fuhrer, hailed as a rockstar politician by wealthy women who sought to refine him, bedded a series of teens including his own 16-year-old niece – who met a tragic death as consequence.
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Hitler, seen with wife Eva Braun, was known for his sexual relationships with much younger womenCredit: Alamy
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Historians believe Hitler’s depraved love life was sparked by his complex relationship with his mother KlaraCredit: Alamy
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Eva’s devotion to the monster would cost her her lifeCredit: Alamy
Behind closed doors, he also indulged extreme sexual fantasies – getting one naked lover to put on his own boots and savagely kick him.
His deadly affairs also led to at least one other mysterious death and the attempted suicide of a 17-year-old, who was 20 years his junior.
Now, a new Sky History documentary, Hitler’s Handmaidens, details the Fuhrer’s secret sex life and relationships with the women he wanted to keep hidden.
Author and historian Jane Thynne says: “What is interesting about many of the women that had relationships with Hitler is that they either attempted or, or committed suicide, and he patently had a very, very potent traumatising and almost desolating effect on women to cause them to try and kill themselves.”
Experts believe that Hitler’s bizarre relationships with women began with the very first one in his life – his mother.
When Hitler was born in Austria in April 1889, he was his mother Klara’s fourth child – but the only one to live – and she was determined that little Adolf would not only survive but thrive.
While he was doted on and spoiled by his devoted mother, he was brutalised by his alcoholic father. Historians have been left wondering if Klara loved her son too much, and this is what warped his future relationships with women.
Psychologist Anna Motz says: “Hitler’s relationship with women appears to have been extremely complicated. So we know from the records that he had this enmeshed, over-involved relationship with a loving, protective mother.
“And he was brutalised by a man who appears to have been sadistic and violent. So, on the one hand, he’s seeking this maternal comfort. On the other hand, he doesn’t seem able to relate to women who are his equals.”
But Klara’s never-questioning love for her son gave him one thing – huge self-belief. He had an unswerving faith in his opinions and thought of himself as devastatingly handsome and intelligent.
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Disturbing fantasies
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Stefanie Rabatsch was Hitler’s first teenage crush – reports say he was sexually obsessed with her
Hitler was convinced he was meant for greater things, and his steadfast ambition would eventually cast a shadow over Europe.
But his first teenage crush didn’t go how he planned. An awkward Hitler became enthralled with 19-year-old Stefanie Isak, a tall, blonde and wealthy music student a couple of years older than him.
Historian Phil Carradice explains: “He worshipped her. She was the ideal Germanic woman, the Aryan woman. And for two years, two years, Adolf Hitler followed her, stalked her, for want of a better word, but never spoke to her.”
Disturbingly, he told his friend he wanted to kidnap her and marry her, followed by fantasies that they would kill themselves by jumping off a bridge together.
Thankfully, he never carried out his twisted plan, and shortly afterwards, his mother died, leaving him devastated.
Every day for the rest of his life, he carried a picture of her in his pocket. But the young Adolf was rejected by the Austrian army and found himself homeless and destitute.
So, he joined the Germans fighting against the Western allies.
One story claims that in the summer of 1917, Hitler was on leave from the war and met a 16-year-old French girl in the countryside. They had a brief sexual encounter, which resulted in the birth of his illegitimate child.
Later analysis showed that the men who could be father and son shared the same unusual handwriting, but experts say the patronage is impossible to prove.
Cruellest Nazi women
Herta Oberheuser
When American soldiers liberated the Ravensbruck concentration camp for women, they saw evidence of unimaginable atrocities.
But one person in particular haunted the survivors. They told of a “beast masquerading as a human”— female doctor Herta Oberheuser.
Historian Wendy Lower explains: “She’s been assigned to experiments to test the effects of wounds on the human body. If they can see how a wound that’s inflicted by shrapnel is going to affect an ordinary German soldier and all the ways that could be treated.
“She’s putting sawdust in there, putting glass shards, putting various chemicals and rubbing that in.
Pauline Kneissler
In late 1939 Hitler turned his attention to euthanasia in the pursuit of racial purity. His sinister secret T4 programme was an opportunity for him to murder anybody who they thought of as disabled.
Pauline Kneissler was one of the nurses hand-picked to make Grafeneck Castle, near Stuttgart, an efficient killing site.
She would travel to different institutions with a list of names and then bus them back to the castle and murder them – with Lower estimating she killed as many as 70 a day.
Irma Grese
There was one woman whose crimes were so brutal and sadistic that the Nuremberg judges had no choice but to order her execution – Irma Grese.
Known as the Hyena of Auschwitz, she had a reputation for stomping on prisoners or setting her attack dogs on them.
She was the lover and accomplice of the camp’s ‘Angel of Death’ Josef Mengele, helping him with the selections where prisoners were chosen for monstrous medical experiments or sent to the gas chambers.
As well as her affair with Mengele, Grese was also believed to have had flings with male guards, and it was alleged she even raped female prisoners.
Hermine Braunsteiner
Despite Irma Grese’s death penalty, most of the female concentration camp guards escaped justice, and many went on to live long and happy lives.
One of these was Hermine Braunsteiner, the woman known as the “Stomping Mare” – a camp guard at Majdanek who liked to stomp on prisoners and was known for her particular sadistic tendencies.
She married an American in her native Austria after the war and moved to the US. However, she was later discovered living in New York and was extradited.
Whether or not he did father that child, it is a fact that throughout his adult life, Hitler sought out maternal figures, perhaps to replace his own mother.
To these older, rich women – many of whom shared his extremist political and anti-Semitic views – Hitler appeared charming and destined for greater things despite being rough around the edges.
Most of these women were married, which also suited Hitler because his vow to be only married to Germany gained him adoration from the millions of young German women who were sending their sons off to war.
To them, he was the rockstar politician who expects have likened to the Elvis figure of his day.
Women like socialites Helene Bechstein from the piano-making dynasty, real-life princess Elsa Bruckmann, and Winifred Wagner, daughter of composer Richard, took Hitler under their wing and taught him how to kiss a lady’s hand and eat lobster in public.
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Hitler struck up friendships with women from aristocratic families, such as Winifred WagnerCredit: Alamy
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He had the adoration of millions of young women in Nazi GermanyCredit: Time Life Pictures – Getty Images
Historian Phil Carradice explains: “Hitler was a rough and tumble country boy. But suddenly, these women took him over and said, we will show you how to carry on, how to live, how to be successful in society.
“Because if you want to make it big, that’s where you need to put your effort. That’s where the money lies. And you need to, uh, to get people on your side. We will teach you how to eat and drink in public.”
Hitler knew he needed these aristocratic families on his side to be taken seriously politically.
And while he would lay his head on these ladies’ bosoms and let them stroke him, their relationships remained purely platonic. His sexual tastes lay with women much younger.
Twisted sexual demands
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Hitler began a relationship with 16-year-old Mitzi, who tried to kill herself when he ended their relationshipCredit: Getty
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Their relationship would set the tone for his future encounters with young womenCredit: Getty
In 1926, Hitler gave a speech in Bavaria, where he met a 16-year-old blonde girl called Mitzi. He was 37. This age gap would become a theme for his future lovers.
Mitzi was just 17 years old when she began a sexual relationship with Hitler, which he abruptly called off to devote his life to his politics. A distraught Mitzi tried to kill herself.
Author and historian Jane Thynne says: “What is interesting about many of the women that had relationships with Hitler is that they either attempted or, or committed suicide, and he patently had a very, very potent traumatising and almost desolating effect on women to cause them to try and kill themselves.”
While Mitzi survived, some of Hitler’s other young secret lovers would not.
Hitler became infatuated with his 16-year-old niece, Geli Raubal. She wanted the bright lights of Munich, so when it was suggested she could live with him in the city, she quickly agreed.
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Hitler became enthralled with his niece Geli Raubal, who went to live with himCredit: Getty
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Their relationship had a deadly consequence for GeliCredit: Alamy
But her move provided the perfect cover for Hitler’s sinister intentions.
Their relationship became intimate, and Hitler became more controlling, jealous of the attention the teenager got from other men. It got to the point where she could barely do anything without his say-so.
But in September 1931 Geli was found dead in Hitler’s apartment – with a bullet in her chest and his gun by her side.
Phil Carradice says: “During the nights, Geli locked herself into her room. She took Hitler’s Mauser pistol with her, and she shot herself and killed herself. Possibly. The body was found the next day by the housekeeper.
“But I have doubts about that one. If you’re going to kill yourself with a gun you normally would aim there, into the, into the head. That’s guaranteed. Geli shot herself in the heart.”
Police quickly ruled her death as suicide, and Geli was quickly buried, while a distraught Hitler considered giving up politics altogether.
Sinister death
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A year later, Hitler moved on with movie star Renate MullerCredit: Alamy
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Renate spoke about Hitler’s bizarre sexual claims and also met an untimely endCredit: Alamy
But a year later, he met another young lover – 26-year-old movie star Renate Muller.
Again, Hitler’s sexual depravity was to be her downfall. She claimed that one night, when they were both naked, he asked her to put her boots on and kick him, which she did.
But Renate did not keep this salacious information to herself, and that brought her to the attention of the Gestapo.
She was put under surveillance, and when she took a Jewish lover, she was blacklisted, and her career was over.
The young woman developed a morphine addiction and was sent to a sanitorium in Berlin for treatment in late October 1937.
A team of SS officers were seen entering the building, and a few minutes later, she was dead. The cause of death was ruled as suicide, but rumours of foul play persisted.
“Ultimately Renate had a terrible end in that she was being treated as, in a clinic for quotes depression and fell out of a window,” says Jane Thynne.
“But falling out of a window was a way that very many enemies of the regime met their end. It wasn’t an unusual way actually to be murdered in the Third Reich.”
Despite these suspicious deaths, women still idolised Hitler. At his rallies, women would be seen in tears, idolising him and wanting to get near him.
Fuhrer’s wife
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Although Eva first resisted a determined Hitler’s advances, she soon fell for himCredit: Alamy
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Eva Braun was more than two decades younger than Hitler and desperately wanted to become the Fuhre’s wifeCredit: Getty Images – Getty
But there was one woman who fell so completely under his spell that, in the end, she gave her life to join him in death – Eva Braun.
Hitler was entranced by the young photography studio assistant, but at first, she spurned his advances, which only spurned him.
But she soon fell for him – despite him being more than two decades older – and longed for their affair to be made public.
When Hitler ignored her or didn’t call, she fell into depression and even tried to take her own life on two occasions.
But this forced Hitler’s hand. Robert Kaplan explains: “Hitler’s relationship with Eva has been much speculated on.
“But there were two suicide attempts, and in a sense, he was then trapped because after Geli, if he had a partner who killed themselves again, his public image would be shot.”
Eva had always wanted to be the wife of the Fuhrer. And as the war in Europe is in its last throes, they marry in his bunker – just 36 hours before they took their own lives.
Jane Thynne says: “They got married on the last day. So it was a kind of death wish, but in a way, her entire relationship with Hitler had been a death wish, but it was the culmination of that.
“I think what Hitler did in marrying Eva, right at the end, is a way of not seeing her as a person yet again. It’s not a way of saying how can I answer your needs, her needs really would be to get in, to escape by any means possible. It’s a way of saying, ‘You have served me loyally and here is your reward.’
Hitler’s Handmaidens is on Sky HISTORY every Tuesday at 9pm
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Eva joined Hitler’s cause and stayed with the dictator for the rest of his lifeCredit: Getty
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The pair took their own lives 36 hours after they tied the knotCredit: Alamy
GIORGIO Armani has paid tribute to fellow Italian fashion designer and “true artist
Cavalli, whose death was announced by his company on Friday, became renowned in the early 1970s for his animal prints and for a sexy style that remained his trademark throughout his long career.
In a post shared by the Armani account on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Armani said: “I cannot imagine a vision of fashion more distant from mine than that of Roberto Cavalli, yet I have always had enormous respect for him: Roberto was a true artist, wild and wonderful in his use of prints, capable of transforming fantasy into seductive clothes.
“I have learnt with great sadness of his passing: his Tuscan verve will be greatly missed.”
Brazilian model Adriana Lima said alongside a picture of her and Cavalli on X: “Unapologetic in style & spirit. We lost a legend today. Rest in Peace, @Roberto_Cavalli”.
A host of celebrities including Maya Jama attended the Roberto Cavalli Fall 2024 Ready-to-Wear shoot in February.
Last month, Dune actress Zendaya wore Cavalli at the Green Carpet Fashion Awards.
She sported a grey fringed Roberto Cavalli gown from the spring/summer 2011 collection, with a deep-V neckline and an open back.
Her Cavalli outfit at the event tapped into the resurgence of the boho trend – recently seen during Paris Fashion Week.
Sex And The City’s famously fashion-first lead character Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, notably wore a Cavalli top in an episode of the series.
“We had that top for years in our wardrobe; I think we bought it at a sample sale,” Rebecca Weinberg, one of the SATC costume designers told InStyle last month during an interview about the show’s fashionable moments.
The fashion industry legend explained they would be calling the new arrival Giorgio, in tribute to his father who was shot by Nazis during the Second World War.
At the time, he told magazine Novella 2000: “Sandra is doing fine.
“The baby, who was born a week ago right here in Florence, is beautiful and it was really emotional to see him right after he was born.
“His name is Giorgio, like his grandfather, my father whom the Nazis shot in the Cavriglia massacre when I was four years old.”
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He has kids Robert, Rachele (left) and Daniele from his second marriageCredit: Rex
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The designer with his second wife and son RobinCredit: Rex
THE creepiest bar in the world sits inside a 400-year-old Swiss chateau and looks identical to an alien skeleton inside.
Inspired by the iconic Alien film franchise, the Giger Museum and Bar is truly a sight to behold with babies on the walls, alien bones lining the roofs and giant spinal cord bar chairs.
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The Giger Museum and Bar is one of the creepiest bars in the world with babies on the walls and extraterrestrial bones on the roofCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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Drinkers get transported inside the body of an alien when they step foot into the barCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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The bar has a lot of links to the iconic Alien film franchiseCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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The bar has terrifying chairs for drinkers to sit on as they neck their pintsCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
The wacky drinking spot also acts as a cultural museum for tourists travelling through the medieval area of St Germain, Switzerland.
Jaw dropping pictures of the bar shows the creepiness in full flow.
The entire establishment is littered with extraterrestrial links from posters on the wall to statues of aliens themselves.
One of the weirdest elements is whats on the walls and roof.
read more in creepy places
The whole ceiling is layered with the bones of an alien-like creature meant to resemble the insides of an extraterrestrial beast.
As the walls are just as bizarre with the heads of infants on one side and archaic scriptures on the other.
Even the floor is covered in freaky patterns and shapes to really keep the room spinning regardless of whats in your drink.
As the chairs, tables and fittings are also all created in the style of the an alien’s skeleton.
The bar chairs are far from your traditional dusty stools you’d find at many British boozers as they’re long, tall and once again full of vertebrae.
Even the stands have a striking resemblance to an aliens claw.
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From the outside, the bar could easily be mistaken for just having a futuristic theme.
White walls and huge glass windows keep the bar looking fresh but once you peer inside the entire vibe becomes far from ordinary.
The bar was created by the late Swiss artist Hans Ruedi Giger who has a fascinating obsession with aliens and even won an Academy Award for his role in the Alien films.
Giger, who the bar was named after, was part of the special effects team that won the Academy Award for Best Achievement in Visual Effects for their design work on the 1979 sci-fi thriller.
The unique mind also helped out on all of the films that came out in the following decades including the Predator editions.
But not satisfied with his work being enjoyed on the big screen, Giger decided to create a museum out of his best creations.
Full to the brim of artwork spanning across his illustrious 40 year career Giger made the wise decision to allow any visitors to have a drink when they took in the eerie sights.
Even the building itself is steeped in wild history with it being 400 years old and a former medieval, hillside chateau.
The surrounding streets are also lined with seven feet thick walls creating a labyrinth.
Giger went into the ambitious project wanting to create the feeling of drinkers being literally inside the belly of a fossilised, prehistoric beast.
But due to his alien links he switched it up and made it the insides of an extraterrestrial creature.
Giger bar is just a short train ride from Zurich or Geneva and is usually free for walk-ins.
They also serve alien themed drinks including shots and a limited range of food.
One person left a review on TripAdvisor describing the bar as “a unique place and really unexpected.
The review continued: “Everything about the place is quality.”
As a second happy customer wrote: “I’ve been a number of times to the Giger bar. Contrast is the first word that comes each time to my mind.
“From a medieval village into the insane Alien’s world! Really unique.
“The best chairs are at the bar and don’t forget to pay attention to the details. Unmissable!”
As a third labelled it as “the most incredible interior ever seen”.
They continued: “We passed by this bar as we walked in the town of Gruyère… it looked so intriguing we just had to go in!
“The interior architecture and all the chairs and windows are inspired by skeletal shapes and the effect is stunning.”
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The bar was created by late Swiss artist Hans Ruedi Giger who won an Academy Award for his role in the Alien filmsCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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It also acts as a museum for visitors to see some of Giger’s workCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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One of the main dining tables in the creepy pubCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
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The view of the bar from the outsideCredit: Jam Press/Andy Davies/Museum HR
WITH two bodyguards on patrol permanently outside his office, chief prosecutor Kreshnik Ajazi sums up why the Albanian drug gangs he targets are so ruthless.
In 2018, a shipment of 50 kilos of cocaine went missing in EnglandCredit: Alamy
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The theft triggered a string of revenge attacks back in Albania, including three men being gunned down in their Range Rover with AK-47sCredit: Chris Eades
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This month, Bajram Luli, 27, was stabbed to death in Greenford, West London, after having just moved to the UKCredit: LNP
A trail of tit-for-tat killings between warring gangs battling to control the UK drugs market shows he knows what he is talking about.
The theft of 50 kilos of cocaine in England triggered a string of revenge attacks back in Albania, including three men being gunned down in their Range Rover with AK-47s.
And a dealer convicted of murdering a rival in Southampton has been shot dead inside an Albanian top-security prison in a sophisticated revenge hit that cost a million euros to arrange.
As the Met probes yet another killing of an Albanian man in London, The Sun travelled to the former Communist country to investigate the criminal gangs that have such a foothold in the UK.
Mr Ajazi, a stylish 40-year-old who wears shirts monogrammed with his initials on the cuffs, has devoted his life to dismantling these gangs — but it comes with a heavy price.
Hitting where it hurts
Threats to his life mean the armed guards never leave his side, 28 security cameras are trained on the outside of his office building in the city of Elbasan, and his wife wonders when he will take a job prosecuting “normal criminals”.
But he is too busy to worry, with many of the attacks he deals with stemming from bloody fall-outs that begin in Britain.
The lawyer said: “These disputes between gangs are created in England but the revenge takes place in our city. When I became the chief prosecutor, my aim was to challenge those gangs, which we have done.
“That means I am now escorted every single minute of my life by a special escort from the state police, which tells you what sort of danger I am in.
“But it has been worth it.”
Turkish and Albanian drug gangs are joining forces to wreak havoc on London amid UK migrant crisis
Thanks to his and the state police’s work, the local gang-related murder rate has dropped from 15 a year to zero.
The UK government is just as determined to take on the Albanian organised crime gangs.
The National Crime Agency last month signed an agreement with Albanian police to challenge criminals who control the UK cannabis market as well as enjoying a healthy slice of the £4billion cocaine trade.
Around 1,700 gang members are thought to be at large in the UK and there are more Albanians in our jails than any other foreign nationality, even though Albania has a population of just 2.8million.
As well as trying to lock up gang leaders, the police are hitting them where it hurts — in their pockets.
A British-registered £200,000 Lamborghini — with a number plate that partly reads 14MBO (Lambo) — was recently seized from a suspected criminal, along with a hotel he owned. And the cops now plan to use it as a patrol car.
A spokesman for Albania’s Agency Of Seized And Confiscated Assets said: “We will send a message that what has been earned from criminal activities in the UK and Europe will be confiscated.”
The problem is that in Albania revenge is a tradition so we cannot predict what is going to happen
Mr Ajazi
When the police Lamborghini rolls past, it will raise a smile from law-abiding Albanian migrants. But other cases the police have to deal with are no laughing matter.
Organised crime gangs are similar to the Mafia in that they are structured around families. That means they take disputes personally.
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In 2013, drug dealer Arben Lleshi, 27, who killed a rival in Southampton was extradited to Peqin Prison in Albania and in 2023 his victim’s gang spent a million euros organising a hit to kill him in jailCredit: Handout
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Endrit Alibej, 34, was also killedCredit: YouTube
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Alibej’s family wasted no time in taking revenge and the killings continued for two years, claiming a total of eight livesCredit: Chris Eades
In 2018, a shipment of 50 kilos of cocaine — with a potential market value of tens of millions of pounds — went missing in England.
The gang waiting for its delivery suspected the courier so they beat him up and dumped him in a remote location, reckoning that whoever he had tipped off to steal the drugs would come to his aid.
They kept watch to see who would collect him — and once they knew which family was behind the theft, the killings began.
Soon after, Endrit Alibej, 34, was driving away from a family dinner in Elbasan with his uncle Arben Dylgjeri, 56, and a Turkish associate.
As they slowed to negotiate a roundabout, a gunman armed with an AK-47 struck, spraying the vehicle and killing all three men.
Setting body on fire
Alibej’s family wasted no time in taking revenge and the killings continued for two years, eventually claiming a total of eight lives.
Mr Ajazi said the to-and-fro attacks related to that particular dispute have ended — for now.
He added: “Let’s say they are currently on standby.
“The problem is that in Albania revenge is a tradition so we cannot predict what is going to happen.”
Another case Mr Ajazi is involved in shocked the Albanian justice system because it exposed the full extent of corruption in prisons.
In 2013, Albanian drug dealer Arben Lleshi, 27, was jailed for life at Winchester Crown Court for killing a rival in Southampton and setting his body on fire.
He was extradited to serve his sentence in the top-security Peqin Prison, 40 miles south of capital Tirana.
Late last year, his victim’s gang began plotting their revenge.
They spent an estimated one million euros bribing prison officials to smuggle a 9mm Smith and Wesson into the jail and to pay a hitman.
The gun was passed to the killer in the middle of November and he kept it concealed for three weeks before going to Lleshi’s cell ten days before Christmas.
Mr Ajazi said: “He invited that man to talk. He said, ‘Can we have a conversation?’
“And at this moment, he took out the gun and shot and killed him.”
The jail’s entire command structure has been arrested — 12 officers in total — on suspicion of taking bribes and turning a blind eye.
Back in Britain, an Albanian man was stabbed to death in North London last month, with one of his countrymen being charged with the murder.
And the Met are now investigating yet another killing of an Albanian.
These disputes between gangs are created in England but the revenge takes place in our city
Lawyer
At around 5.30pm on Monday, March 11, a white Kia car was seen reversing down a road in Greenford, West London, before one of the occupants leapt out and fled.
Moments later Bajram Luli, 27, staggered out of the car with a serious stab wound to his stomach.
Cops and paramedics were called but they could not save him.
A man has now been charged in connection with the alleged murder and will stand trial later.
Bajram had only just moved to the UK from Albania. The motive for his killing has not been revealed and there is no suggestion he was involved in any criminality.
But the police back in Albania — and chief prosecutor Mr Ajazi — will be hoping these two recent cases are not the start of yet more blood feuds.
Pictures from Chris Eades, in Albania
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This British-registered £200,000 Lamborghini was seized in Albania by police… who aim to use it as a patrol carCredit: Chris Eades
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Arben Dylgjeri, 56, also diedCredit: YouTube
BRITISH POLICE LINK-UP
A BRITISH bobby’s helmet takes pride of place on a shelf in the grand governmental office of Albania’s Interior Minister, Taulant Balla.
The gift from a visiting UK police delegation shows the commitment of both countries to forging closer links to fight organised crime.
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A British bobby’s helmet takes pride of place on a shelf in the grand governmental office of Albania’s Interior Minister, Taulant BallaCredit: Chris Eades
Mr Balla has had a series of meetings with UK ministers to thrash out ideas on how best to stop trafficking gangs.
One success has been the 90 per cent drop in the number of Albanians crossing the Channel in small boats.
And the no-nonsense politician – popular in Albania for an anti-drugs drive outside schools which has seen more than 800 dealers convicted – is confident of a similar result against the narco gangs.
Mr Balla said: “We have had good results in the fight against organised crime.
“We are working closely with Britain’s National Crime Agency and the Metropolitan Police, and we have some joint operations ongoing.
“I’m very happy that from the British side we are receiving a lot of expertise and are exchanging important data that is needed in bringing people to justice.
“Also, the work in seizing criminal assets is going very well.
“Houses and hotels we seize are being used for good purposes. And the Lamborghini that was seized will be used by our traffic police.
“My message to the organised crime gangs is – impunity time is finished. We are having a campaign against the fugitives.”
As he spoke, his mobile phone pinged with more good news – a message revealing the date that a wanted killer who had been on the run abroad would finally arrive home to face justice.
Albania’s fight against crime is a long, difficult one. But with the help of British police, they are finally reaping rewards.
ABANDONED, torn apart by weather and left to rot – one of New Zealand’s largest and most adored water parks is now an apocalyptic wasteland.
The iconic Waiwera Hot Pools in Auckland was central to the local community before it became a haunting reminder of better times.
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The iconic Waiwera Hot Pools became a haunting reminder of better timesCredit: Facebook
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The water park’s pools have been left in disarrayCredit: Facebook
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The whole site is littered with weeds, broken plaster, the remains of chairs, pool covers and dead palm treesCredit: Facebook/Derelict NZ
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Rubbish floats in green swamp-like pools surrounded by roofless, graffiti-covered buildingsCredit: Facebook/Derelict NZ
After decades as a destination spot, the resort closed its doors in 2018 with the promise of a major renovation.
But its gates have stayed firmly shut, hiding what former visitors have described as a “horror movie”.
Rubbish floats in green swamp-like pools surrounded by roofless, graffiti-covered buildings.
The whole site is littered with weeds, broken plaster, the remains of chairs, pool covers and dead palm trees.
But decay had long sunk in since its former Russian billionaire owner abandoned ship a few years ago.
Waiwera, known for the healing qualities of its water, was the site of the country’s first tourist spa in the 1880s.
From the 60s onwards, the thermal resort was being constantly developed and upgraded as it catered to an increasing influx of tourists in summer months.
And by the 90s, it had been turned into a thrilling water park and in the early 2000s, truly hit its glory days.
Up to 350,000 splashed about in its warm waters every year.
And by 2005, it boasted some major waterslides – the names of which are still well known by former visitors, including The Black Hole, Twister and Speedslide.
Inside bizarre abandoned theme park with eerie giant statue modelled after classic tale near infamous ‘suicide forest’
In total, it now had 25 pools, including a movie pool and an adults-only pool.
The park also made money from bottling up the famous local water to be sold to restaurants, bars and shops.
Local news outlet, The Spinoff, described the Waiwera Hot Pools as “a place of hopes and dreams” for all the kids that grew up nearby.
A site that “put us on the map” until it was “mismanaged into oblivion,” the outlet said last year.
It was referring to Russian Billionaire Mikhail Khimich who became obsessed with Waiwera after trying its water for the first time in 2008.
In 2019, he leased all the land and businesses associated with it, including the water park and hotel.
However, critics accused the businessman of only being interested in the water bottling plant as he ploughed his energy into taking the brand global.
Under his helm, Waiwera Artisan Water began to be shipped internationally and even once scooped an award for “world’s best water”.
However, the water park was neglected, underfunded and quickly losing its spark.
It began racking up one star ratings online as visitors despaired over “terrible” conditions.
Decay was creeping in, there was algae in the swimming pools, exposed nails near pool areas and children were getting hurt on the rusting waterslides.
A few upgrades were made in 2012 but its patrons said it was far too little, too late.
The resort continued to suffer as visitor numbers tanked and businesses shut.
In 2017, plans emerged for major and costly renovations to restore the park to its former glory and also add an entire new section that would include pirate-themed water slides and a cafe.
It was closed in December – and the public was told renovations could take up to two years.
But it never reopened.
Khimich reportedly laid off all the employers and construction workers were spotted at the site, but they appeared to be taking it down, The Spinoff reports.
All the slides were removed except the much-loved Twister and the rest of the park was left to rot.
It turned out that Khimich had gone bankrupt and had two years worth of unpaid bills on the resort.
He fled the country, abandoned the property and allegedly left behind hundreds of thousands in debt.
“It looks like something out of the Syrian war,” one local man told the YouTube channel, The Department of Information.
“It should be bulldozed,” another said.
“The place looks like a bomb site,” a third said.
Now, it’s back in the hands of its long-term owners who hope to carry out an entire renovation that is set to cost a staggering £120million.
Last year, The Sun told the pitiful story of L’aquatic Paradis water park, which has been dubbed the “world’s creepiest”.
The spooky Spanish theme park has sat abandoned for almost 30 years – rotting, decaying and terrifying the locals due to the grim urban legend behind its closure.
And thousands of miles away, another eerie deserted water park has been terrifying those that live near to it.
End of an era: Waiwera Thermal Resort is to be demolished after years of sitting in disrepairCredit: Facebook/Derelict NZ
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After decades as a destination spot, the resort closed its doors in 2018Credit: Facebook/Derelict NZ
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Waiwera, known for the healing qualities of its water, was the site of the country’s first tourist spa in the 1880s. It has now been left to rotCredit: Facebook
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After decades as a destination spot, the resort closed its doors in 2018Credit: Facebook
PUTIN has resorted to recruiting Neo-Nazis and football hooligans to form his own private army – the ruthless Española group.
By gathering die-hard football fans across Russia, the group’s leader Orlov Stanislav – dubbed “The Spaniard” – has created a military unit that has fought in some of the most intense battles of the Ukraine war.
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The Española group was formed after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022Credit: AFP
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The group consists of football fans from different teams across RussiaCredit: ESPAÑOLA’S TELEGRAM CHANNEL
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The Spaniard, a well-known CSKA fan claimed he fought in the second Chechen WarCredit: East2West
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The group has fought in the most intense battles of the warCredit: AFP
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It is estimated to have around 1,000 members todayCredit: East2West
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The Española group are recruited through Telegram and then trained in sites near MoscowCredit: AFP
Ukraine‘s Defence Intelligence confirmed last month that Putin’s United Russia had officially granted the group the status of private military company (PMC).
The unit recruits football thugs, particularly those closer to the Nazi ideology, as well as civilians from poor parts of Russia and occupied territories.
As it gained popularity following the invasion of Ukraine, the battalion ended up fighting in major battles, including in Mariupol, Bakhmut, Soledar, and Vuhledar, according to Lucas Webber, co-founder of the Militant Wire research network.
With “hundreds” of fighters, the volunteer brigade “operates with some degree of independence” from the Russian Armed Forces, he said.
He told The Sun: “Española plays an important role in its outreach to Russia’s ultra/hooligan communities and in drawing recruits and support from these population segments for the war in Ukraine.
“Española appeals to a unique subset of Russia’s far-right militarist ecosystem and is distinct from the neo-Nazi Rusich organisation and the hard-line Orthodox Russian Imperialist Movement.
“Española is a volunteer brigade that operates with some degree of independence from the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
“The group has historical ties to the Donetsk People’s Republic forces and has hundreds of fighters.
“Its propaganda describes how it is multifaceted and has artillery, anti-aircraft weapons, sniper teams, drone operators, and more.”
While various rogue mercenary groups have emerged since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Española has gradually started to form since the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
The group – previously associated with the militant group Vostok Battalion – was operating mainly in the Russian-held region of Donetsk.
The group’s leader is Stanislav Orlov, 43, is a prominent figure among CSKA fans.
A radical member of the team’s ultras Red-Blue Warriors, Orlov claims to have joined the Russian army in 1999 and fought in the Second Chechen War.
He is said to have fought Donbas in 2014 alongside other ultras and earned his nickname “The Spaniard” thanks to his language skills as he was able to recruit foreign mercenaries.
Following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Orlov created the Española group as Putin was desperately trying to boost ranks in the frontline – with even ex-international footballer Andrey Solomatin, 47, signing up.
Webber said one of the most visible members of the group is former MMA fighter and Zenit hooligan Mikhail “Pitbull” Turkanov.
Turkanov – who has tattoos of the swastika – has been wounded in combat and has received awards from the Russian military.
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Orlov was a hardcore member of the CSKA ultras Red-Blue WarriorsCredit: East2West
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The recruits come from Dynamo, Lokomotiv, Spartak, Zenit and other hooligansCredit: AFP
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Stanislav Orlov also known as the Spaniard has been fighting in Donbas since 2014Credit: East2West
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Mikhail “Pitbull” Turkanov is also a member of the private army unitCredit: You Tube/FIGHT NIGHTS GLOBAL TV
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Other members are hooligans from Moscow-based football teamsCredit: AFP
Dr Stephen Hall Lecturer in Russian and Post-Soviet Politics at the University of Bath estimates the elite army unit has roughly 1,000 members and has been actively supported by Russia throughout the war.
He told The Sun: “Orlov probably has close links to someone in the Ministry of Defence.
“He’s been fighting since 2014 in the Donbas and he’s been there for a long time.
“He certainly has a past of being a football thug and he created the Española mercenary group in February 2022 just after the war began – so clearly someone had been preparing.
“They’ve relied heavily on football thugs across the Moscow-based football teams such as Dynamo, Lokomotiv and Spartak.
“They seem to be well prepared, well trained and well equipped by the Russian army.
“The Russian Army has given them a lot of support as they are the ones fighting against Azov the group that Russian state propaganda has stated they’re Nazis and the ones behind the Ukrainian regime.”
Dr Hall notes the “shady” group does not have a strong social media presence – unlike Wagner- but explains how they use Telegram to target recruits.
He added: “It’s quite a shady group whereas in Wagner they very ran their social media campaign Espanola doesn’t have a social media footprint.
“That always leads to the question of who is behind them, and who is protecting them and I say the Ministry of Defence.”
They seem to be well prepared, well trained and well equipped by the Russian army
Dr Stephen Hall
Telegram is widely used across Russia and is “a more effective way of getting the people you want to join,” he adds.
The potential candidates are interviewed through the platform and if successful they are taken for training in Moscow and St Petersburg.
Volunteers are offered a salary of £1,900 a month for at least six months at the frontline, according to Ukrainian intelligence.
Russia is also using “insurance payments” to lure civilians into battle – that can vary from £8,700 to £43,500 depending on the severity of the injury.
But Ukraine’s intelligence notes that for most civilians the first battle is a “one-way ticket” as they are used as cannon fodder.
The dead and those seriously injured are registered as “missing” so Russia avoids paying the families.
Russian ultras: The ‘Battle of Marseille’
The notorious Battle of Marseille happened during England’s opening match for Euro 2016.
The massive brawl erupted when Russian football fans attacked England supporters leaving many of them with serious injuries following a 1-1 draw.
14 England fans were left in hospital – including two with life-threatening injuries.
Dad-of-three Stewart Gray was left fighting for his life after being ambushed by hooligans.
His brother Duncan described the scenes as “like a war zone, the worst violence I have ever seen.”
Dr Hall told The Sun: “This is the “beauty” of East European football.
“As we know from 2016 when Russian and English football fans met one another in Marseille – it was definitely eye-opening what Russian fans were doing
“They had these football wars and battles so they were versed in that.”
Lucas Webber added: “Española both leverages its online propaganda apparatus and real-world domestic networks.
“It runs several channels on Telegram and VK. Its propaganda campaign also involves community initiatives and humanitarian work inside occupied regions in Ukraine to boost its profile and grow its ranks.
“One example is the founding of a youth football team in occupied Ukraine.
“This was apparent during the Wagner Group’s mutiny, for instance.”
“In its propaganda, Española presents a patriotic message of soccer ultras overcoming previous divisions to unite over a nationalistic cause.
“The group has sometimes voiced criticisms of the Russian government and military establishment.”
The Española group is one of a long list of units operating in Ukraine.
Apart from Wagner which was hit by the death of its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin last summer, other smaller paramilitary forces include Ptok, by energy giant Gazprom, Redut, the Patriot, the Orthodox Brotherhood, ENOT.
They all operate around the world and recruit all types of soldiers – seemingly with Russia’s support.
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Volunteers earn a salary of £1,900 – pictured volunteer Chernika (Blueberry)Credit: AFP
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Lucas Webber says the unit is equipped with weapons, sniper teams and drone operatorsCredit: Hudson.org
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The group also offers insurance payments for those injured on the battlefieldCredit: AFP
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Ukrainian intelligence suggests that volunteers are used as cannon fodder in battleCredit: AFP
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Dr Stephen Hall estimates the group has about 1,000 membersCredit: Linkedin
A TERRIFYING village thought to be haunted by ghosts has been left frozen in time after locals fled from an “all seeing” leader and his mysterious demands.
Kuldhara is a creepy, abandoned village in India and has been left untouched in the desert since the early 19th century.
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The abandoned ghost village of Kuldhara, India has been left crumbling apart for centuriesCredit: Alamy
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The homes have been destroyed overtime as no one has lived in the village for hundreds of years after a chilling curse was placed on the areaCredit: Alamy
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The village has been frozen in time after the ‘monster of Jaisalmer’ drove away the localsCredit: Alamy
Once home to the rich and powerful Paliwal Brahmins migrants, the seemingly “haunted” village was a thriving community in the 13th century.
But according to Indian folklore, the original residents of Kuldhara put a chilling curse on the village meaning no one was ever allowed to stay there again.
Around 1,500 people are thought to have lived in the village during its peak but by 1890 just 37 remained.
Most of the Paliwal Brahmins in the ghost village were farmers, traders or bankers.
read more in abandoned spots
These useful and clever jobs allowed the locals to turn the desolate land into a beautiful and prospering oasis of life.
But now the village is just a shell of its former glory as the old, crumbling homes and temples have been left to rot in the burning sun surrounded by an eerie silence of the wicked curse.
THE CURSE OF KULDHARA
The village soon met a grisly end if the legends are to be believed.
In the 18th century, a tyrant leader named Salim Singh came to Kuldhara and wrecked havoc.
Dubbed the “monster of Jaisalmer” Singh is thought to have committed a number of heinous atrocities that drove residents to disappear overnight.
According to the legend, the evil Singh – who was the all-powerful prime minister of the area – decided he wanted to marry a young girl from the village.
However the feeling wasn’t mutual and an annoyed Singh had decided that no wasn’t an answer he was going to accept.
He threatened the village with severe and grave consequences if they didn’t give him what he wanted.
But the brave people of Kuldhara stuck by their morals and repelled the thuggish ruler and refused to give in.
The Paliwals are then thought to have got together a council of 85 villages and made the group choice to leave their ancestral homes and vanish forever.
Leaving the village empty and their whereabouts completely unknown.
But this wasn’t the end of the chilling saga, as moments before they left, the villagers put a curse on Kuldhara that would ensure no one will ever be allowed to live in the village ever again.
To this date, the village has remained barren and untouched with the only memories of life being the battered homes and fallen temples from centuries ago.
The rumour of this terrifying curse has only been fuelled further by reports of people trying to stay in the village overnight but being chased away by strange paranormal phenomena.
OTHER EXPLANATIONS
However, for those who don’t believe the supernatural curse, a more plausible explanation is that Salim Singh raised the taxes in the area.
The taxes were thought to have risen so sharply that the locals decided they couldn’t continue to live a happy life anymore and felt forced to move out.
Others believe that the village was simply abandoned because the living conditions were simply too bad to continue growing a population.
Nowadays, the eerie and empty spot is laid bare with just 410 crumbling buildings left – something some think could have been anticipated by the locals hence the swift evacuation.
Kuldhara is now an archaeological site and it is a beloved tourist spot for thousands during the daytime to take in the creepy atmosphere.
The village next door is now in charge of Kuldhara and to avoid any freaky nighttime curses coming to life they close the entrance gates at 6pm and ban anyone from staying overnight without permission.
Despite there being plenty of ruins littered across the village a few houses have been renovated to give visitors an idea of the homes.
The place is a protected monument these days and is maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
Alongside the government of Rajasthan, the ASI has started to heavily invest in the notorious ghost village since 2015.
A cafe, lounge, a folk-dance performance area, cottages, and shops have all been added alongside the refurnishing of several temples, staircases, walkways, and guard posts.
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The walls of ruined house in the ‘haunted’ villageCredit: Alamy
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Some of the homes in the village have been restored as the spot has become a popular tourist destinationCredit: Alamy
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A temple in cursed KuldharaCredit: Alamy
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The view of the entire village that was once a bustling area before the locals fled overnightCredit: Alamy
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Kuldhara is thought to have had around 1,500 residents at one pointCredit: Alamy
LIGHTS flashing and horns blaring, 3,000 tractors trundled through Hanover in Germany bringing its streets to a gridlocked standstill.
Stepping down from his cab, arable farmer Axel Friehe told me his beleaguered nation’s economy is “breaking down”.
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Tractors of protesting farmers line the streets in front of the Brandenburg Gate in BerlinCredit: Getty
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Major German cities have been paralysed by demonstrating agricultural workers, truckers and small business peopleCredit: EPA
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Turnip farmer Christoph Berndt said ‘The AfD use the demonstrations to draw attention to themselves’Credit: Louis Wood
“We hope our protests are the start of something big,” he said of the tractor cavalcade being cheered by locals.
Farmer Friehe, 51, may soon have his wish.
Troubled Germany’s major cities have been paralysed by demonstrating agricultural workers, truckers and small business people.
Some 500 tractors gathered at Berlin’s landmark Brandenburg Gate and 5,000 paraded through Munich’s streets.
While French farmers have made protesting something of a national pastime — infamously torching a lorry full of British sheep in 1990 — their German counterparts are traditionally less militant.
Yet a heavy-handed bid by its government to slash a tax break on diesel used in agricultural machinery — worth around £2,500 a year to each farmer — has made zealots of German country folk.
I watched on Wednesday as locals in Hanover gave farmers hearty cheers and the thumbs up despite the traffic tailbacks in the north German city of 536,000 citizens.
For the tractor strike is a symptom of a wider malaise gripping Germany.
The country’s once booming export market made it the industrial powerhouse at the heart of Europe.
Yet since the pandemic its sluggish economy has grown by just 0.3 per cent — compared to 1.4 per cent in the UK — making it by far the worst performer in the G7 group of nations.
Stringent green initiatives, including the rolling out of heat pumps, have been unpopular with many.
‘Hungry, naked and sober’
And mass migration — last year Germany had more than 350,000 asylum applications — has become a major political flashpoint.
Its ruling coalition of the left-of- centre Social Democratic Party, the Greens and liberal Free Democrats have been trying to plug a near £15billion budget black hole.
Into this economic and social maelstrom has stepped the far-right Alternative for Deutschland, who critics say are “infiltrating” the farmers’ demonstrations.
Last week it was reported that high-ranking AfD officials were caught at a secret conference where a “masterplan” for the forced deportation of millions of migrants to Africa was discussed.
The meeting, at a luxury hotel last November, featured a talk by far-right Identitarian Movement activist Martin Sellner, who is permanently banned from the UK for extremism.
It was claimed that the “remigration” proposals discussed at the event, infiltrated by news network Collectiv, included deporting immigrants with German passports.
Those in attendance — reportedly alongside neo-Nazis — included Roland Hartwig, a personal aide to AfD leader Alice Weidel, and AfD MP Gerrit Huy.
The AfD denied it had a “secret plan” but added: “We need passport withdrawal for criminals and remigration!”
At last week’s Hanover protest, turnip farmer Christoph Berndt, 31, insisted: “The AfD use the demonstrations to draw attention to themselves.
“They say the farmers are on their side, which isn’t true.”
Driving nearly 40 miles on his green John Deere tractor to be at the good-natured demonstration, he added: “The politicians in Berlin make it more difficult for us to work and make money.
“So we go on to the street and try to animate people to understand us and what we do in the fields.”
German flags fluttered from tractor cabs with signs on their front loaders reading: “No food without us.”
Another read: “Without agriculture you’d be hungry, naked and sober.”
Air horns sounded in the sub-zero chill as farmers gathered outside Lower Saxony’s regional parliament building in Hanover.
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Locals cheered the tractor cavalcadeCredit: @UNCOFILM
Expressing the fury felt by many, Volker Hahn, who helped to organise the demo, said: “The Government needs money and they will take it from the farmers. It’s a horrible situation.”
Volker, 55, who tends pigs, chickens and potatoes at his 600-acre farm, added: “We don’t welcome the support of AfD.
“They’re extreme.”
To add to the air of despondency felt by many, Hanover and other German cities have also been crippled by train driver strikes this week.
At the parliament building I met Sonja Markgraf, from the Rural People of Lower Saxony group, which also helped to organise the tractor protest.
She said: “The French people were always on the barricades but in Germany everyone felt comfortable.”
Now, she says, times have changed, with farmers seething at being asked to help plug the Government’s budget gap.
She added: “We are very happy that the protests are peaceful — but loud. The population stands behind us.”
Sonja, 53, says people from all backgrounds are facing unrealistic demands on environmental issues.
She added: “Heat pumps are a good example. It’s not wrong to do it, it’s the way they do it.
“It was too quick, wasn’t well explained and people are worried about the price.
“Reforms are necessary but you have to take the people with you.
“This feeling is in every part of the population, whether you’re poor, rich or middle-class. It’s not great for the general mood.”
She blames people’s fears over illegal immigration for AfD’s rise, saying: “Even three or four years ago it wasn’t an issue.
“Now the municipalities say they have no rooms, no flats or apartments so it’s more visible now.
“So the AfD tries to profit from it.”
Germany has long been renowned in British minds as a land of efficiency, where everything works.
It was praised for how it faced up to its Nazi past and built a vibrant, liberal democracy with a turbo-charged economy.
That booming post-war Germany was summed up in Audi’s 1980s advertising slogan “vorsprung durch technik”, meaning “progress through technology”.
Now its famed export trade of cars and machinery is in deep trouble.
German car makers produced almost 40 per cent fewer vehicles in 2022 than they did a decade previously.
And politicians have failed to tackle creaking infrastructure, a housing shortage and high-speed internet rollout.
Labelled the Sick Man of Europe — an historic term that was used to describe Britain in the 1970s — its economy is predicted to perform worse than Britain’s in the next decade.
Though expected to return to growth this year, Germany — the world’s third biggest economy — is forecast to be overtaken by Japan in 2026 and India in 2027.
At Hanover’s regional parliament building I met the AfD’s Frank Rinck, who denies his far-right party has “infiltrated” the farmers’ demos.
The MP and chairman of the Lower Saxony AfD said the group were “simply engaging with these demonstrations like any other political party”.
Frank, an agricultural contractor, says the Government’s subsidy cut will lead to a “further death” of the farming sector.
He added: “At some point our domestic agricultural sector will not be able to feed indigenous people.”
He said it was news to him that AfD politicians had attended a “remigration” conference, describing reports as “a storm in a teacup”.
He added: “In Germany things like this tend to come up when problems arise and people demonstrate.”
Watching the AfD’s rise warily are the centre-right Christian Democratic Union party, currently Germany’s leading party in opinion polls.
Its agriculture spokesman in Lower Saxony’s parliament, Dr Marco Mohrmann, ruled out working with the AfD in a coalition.
The dad of three told me: “A big part of the AfD is extreme right — and that’s not our way.”
While accepting Germany should take in asylum seekers and skilled migrants, he admitted Britain’s stuttering Rwanda policy may also be a way forward for his country.
Conservative-leaning Marco, 59, said: “I think the model the UK is doing with Rwanda is interesting.
“It’s a third-country solution where you can look at someone and decide if they can get asylum or not.
“A year ago we couldn’t discuss something like this but now we can, and we have to.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has tried to contain farmers’ rage by phasing out the diesel tax break over time and scrapping plans to abolish tax exemption on agricultural vehicles.
Yet the scale of the protests — and their support across German society — suggests he has not done enough.
Yesterday 5,000 tractors and 10,000 protesters blockaded Berlin in a climax to a week of protest. Fresh talks with Government representatives are set.
Rural People of Lower Saxony’s Sonja Markgraf insisted: “If it’s not good for the farmers then we say, ‘We go on’.”
Germany’s Great Tractor Revolution may still only be in first gear.
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Volker Hahn helped to organise the demonstration in HanoverCredit: Louis Wood
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has tried to contain farmers’ rage by phasing out the diesel tax break over time and scrapping plans to abolish tax exemption on agricultural vehiclesCredit: Getty
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Sonja Markgraf, from the Rural People of Lower Saxony group, also helped to organise the tractor protestCredit: Louis Wood
AN AIRPORT touted as the world’s most unique is sinking into the sea at an alarming rate.
The Kansai International Airport serves Japan‘s second largest metropolitan area, Osaka, and has sunk more than 38ft since it opened 30 years ago.
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Kansai is sinking into the sea at an alarming rate[/caption]
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The busy airport continues to be used every day[/caption]
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The Sayonara bridge which leads out to the airport cost £786,000[/caption]
The enormous £15billion airport occupies two artificial islands in Osaka Bay and serves as a hub for Asian airlines including All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines, and Nippon Cargo Airlines.
It is also sinking – quickly – and moving further and further away from the city.
Engineers predicted Kansai’s islands would evenly settle over a 50-year period before stabilising at 13ft above sea level – the minimum elevation needed to prevent flooding in case of a breach in the encircling seawall.
The threshold was reached within just six years and £117million was spent raising the seawall, which some would say was a futile attempt to prevent the inevitable.
A number of engineers have predicted that sections of the two artificial islands may sink another 13ft – to sea level – by 2056.
Yukako Handa, a representative of Kansai Airports was quoted by Smithsonian Mag in 2018 as saying: “When the Kansai airport was constructed, the amount of soil to reclaim the land was determined based on necessary ground level and subsidence estimation over 50 years after the construction.”
The reclaimed land was like a wet sponge and needed to be transformed into a dry and dense foundation before it could support the weight of airport buildings.
Construction crews laid sand five feet deep atop the clay seabed then installed 2.2 million vertical pipes, each nearly 16 inches in diameter.
The pipes were then pounded into the clay and filled with sand, with soil used to create a stiffer floor.
Workers excavated below the passenger terminal, inserted plates beneath the hydraulic jacks, and raised the columns to try and save the airport from the sea.
And yet it continues to sink – at different rates, too, because the airport isn’t actually even.
Kansai is the world’s first airport to be built on water and attracts an average of 20 million jetsetters every year.
Isolated and without shelter or protection, it has been repeatedly struck by extreme weather conditions.
The worst came in 2018, when the deadly typhoon Typhoon Jebi struck, wreaking havoc across Japan and causing the airport to close temporarily.
Thousands of terrified passengers became stranded as the storm flooded the building and shook the infrastructure.
The typhoon then grabbed hold of a tanker and repeatedly slammed it against a bridge, leaving millions of pounds worth of damage.
Kansai recently announced it will be carrying out an earthquake and tsunami drill so its staff are prepared for weather-related emergency situations.
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Engineers expect Kansai will sink to sea level by 2056[/caption]
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It was initially thought the airport would settle over a 50-year period[/caption]
TERROR group ISIS could be plotting a blood-soaked comeback by exploiting the chaos in the Middle East.
Experts have been left fearing that the terror group could be “coming back to life” after they claimed to have been behind a deadly bombing in Iran that killed 103 people.
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ISIS could be planning a bloody comeback by exploiting the current chaos in the Middle EastCredit: Alamy
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ISIS claimed two of their terrorists were behind the Iran bombing that killed over 100 peopleCredit: Reuters
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Experts are fearing ISIS could be ‘coming back to life’ years after they were seemingly defeated in a huge world effort to eliminate the terror groupCredit: Alamy
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ISIS could be looking to gain back their reputation and gain more followers after Hamas have made headlines lately for their war with IsraelCredit: AP
Across the Middle East, tensions are running high as Lebanon‘s feared terrorist group Hezbollah and powerful Iran have made it clear they will support Hamas at all costs against Israel.
With threats between the three powerful groups continue – plus Hamas and Israel still battling in the battered Gaza strip – it could be the ideal time for ISIS to strike again.
At the height of its wicked ways, the Islamic State militant group held a terrifying reputation after causing terror for millions of people.
From recorded bloody beheadings to twisted planned attacks on innocent civilians, ISIS had created a near unthinkable empire of destruction.
read more in terror groups
They had control over parts of Iraq and Syria and were in fierce fights with countries across the world.
But after multiple deaths to the group’s leaders and setbacks in Middle Eastern territories their power dwindled as almost the whole world came together to push them back.
For years they have remained quiet and been seen as a neutralised threat by world leaders only for the latest attacks in the Middle East to spark up big concerns yet again.
Aymenn Jawad al-Tamimi, from Middle East Forum, told Reuters that they are now looking to get back to a period of dominance and install fear back into people’s lives.
“The group’s goals remain ever the same: waging jihad against all the group’s enemies in order to establish the territorial Caliphate that should eventually rule the whole world,” he said.
Iran bomb attack
ISIS said two of their suicide bombers were responsible for the blasts at a memorial parade for infamous Iranian general Qasem Soleimani on Wednesday.
In a statement on Telegram, the group said terrorists Omar al-Muwahid and Sayfullah al-Mujahid, “activated their explosives vests” in the southern city of Kerman.
ISIS, known for the unprecedented attacks on civilians, launched their latest heinous strike during a tense few days in the Middle East that was left many worried about the potential escalation of war.
Colonel Richard Kemp spoke to The Sun about why he thinks ISIS claimed the horrific bombings.
He said: “I would imagine it’s to rally support for themselves, if they can appear to seem more active than they are at the moment it’s a way of gaining global support and any type of terror success works that way.”
“It may be that they sense the opportunity with conflicts going on elsewhere to jump in themselves.”
The retired British Army officer – who served for almost 30 years – feels that ISIS is looking to get back in the spotlight after the brutal war in Gaza continues to dominate conversations across the globe.
He continued: “With the attention of the world on Hamas they may want attention to turn to them to rally support and show people they’re still around.”
“Rather than a warning it’s more of them gaining support around world and recruiting to their cause, getting financial assistance and that sort of thing as they’ve been somewhat marginalised recently.
“It may be an indication that they’re coming back to life.”
In a recent post on X, Executive Director of The Henry Jackson Society, Alan Mendoza, described ISIS as “rearing its ugly head once more,” and voiced his concerns over what the terror group might do next.
He also told The Sun: “ISIS claiming responsibility for this bombing reminds us that ideological terrorist groups like this never truly disappear.
“With the Middle East at a very volatile point, ISIS’ remaining extremists will be looking at ways to exploit tensions and carve out space for themselves to operate once more.”
Iran and Israel have been battling against each other ever since Iran declared their loyalty to Hamas.
The pair have long been working together including Iran funding operations and providing intelligence to the terrorist group for decades, according to reports.
Iran was also very vocal of their anger over the brutal airstrike condemning the killing of Arouri by “the aggressive Zionist regime”.
Iran, which sponsors Hamas and Hezbollah, also made their stance clear saying the assassination would only make Hamas stronger.
Hezbollah also declared those responsible would be met with a “severe reaction”.
IN the heart of the Arizona desert lies a town called Santa Claus, left abandoned for almost 30 years.
A Californian real estate agent bought the town in 1937 with her husband in the hopes of creating a place where Christmas would fall on every day of the year.
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Santa Claus, Arizona, was a once popular Christmas-themed town in the 1940s
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Guests visiting the town could stay in the Christmas Tree Inn, visit Santa in his grotto and children could even use a special post office to send him letters
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One of the few remaining early buildings still in the town in the early 2000s after it was left abandonedCredit: Alamy
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A vandalised gas station in Santa Claus, 2003Credit: Getty
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The eerie remains of the one fun-filled town stood in the desert for decades after it was left behindCredit: wikimedia
Under its new owner Nina Talbot, the storybook town had become an incredibly popular tourist spot by 1942.
And despite the blistering heat of the Arizona sun, not far from Las Vegas – the Christmas-themed resort town did flourish for many years.
For those visiting overnight, a guest house in the town was renamed the Santa Claus Inn.
It served dishes like Chicken à la North Pole and Rum Pie à la Kris Kringle and a photo of Santa hung above the fireplace.
Talbot also added a North Pole, constructing the Santa-themed buildings around it.
The local post office was used by children who wanted to send letters to Santa ahead of the big day.
And parents could even return their children’s letters from there with a postmark from the man himself.
There was also a Santa’s workshop and a Christmas Tree Inn.
And of course, it wouldn’t be Santa Claus land without the grotto where children could visit Father Christmas all year round.
While Santa Claus did well for several years, Talbot sold her shares in the town in 1949.
She had wanted to expand it into a full blown resort town, but the only people living there were those with jobs in its festive attractions.
Eventually in the mid 1970s the festive town attraction closed down.
It was removed from the official Arizona state map and in 1983 it’s remaining owner listed the entire town for sale.
Tony Wilcox received an offer which he turned down, and appeared to stay in the town for years later waiting to sell it.
By 1995, all remaining businesses in the town had closed.
An American writer, Mark Winegardner, visited the town in 1988 and painted a sad picture of it’s almost abandoned state.
He described “burned-out Christmas lights and faded plastic likenesses of Old Saint Nick” scattered in the abandoned village.
“Two of the three buildings were padlocked; through their windows, encrusted with layers of sand and decade-old aerosol snow… I saw dusty, overturned fiberglass statuettes of elves and reindeer.
“The gift shop stocked no seasonal items. Its shelves were littered with flea-market knickknacks at antique-shop prices. Battered paperbacks cost a buck.
“On a stool behind the counter top cash register, a haggard, fiftyish man looked up from his circle-the-word puzzle and asked if we needed anything.”
By 2003, only ten people lived in Santa Claus.
And in 2004, people were struggling to even find it in the desert.
Over the following years the town became more and more sparse until 2022 when most of the buildings were removed entirely.
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It was up for sale for years – but no one snapped it upCredit: wikimedia
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By 2003 – only ten people were left living full-time in the townCredit: wikimedia
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A vandalised building left behind in Santa ClausCredit: Ben Churchill/Flickr
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The town used to have attractions like Santa’s workshop and a Christmas-themed restaurantCredit: wikimedia
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The festive town was oddly located in Arizona – off Route 66Credit: Getty
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The restaurant served dishes like Chicken à la North Pole and Rum Pie à la Kris KringleCredit: ABC15
WHEN Mark Chapman fired four shots into John Lennon four decades ago there seemed little doubt who was responsible for the cold-blooded murder.
Immediately after the shooting outside the former Beatle’s New York home on December 8, 1980, the killer dropped his gun and waited for the police to arrive.
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Was the former Beatle a target of the FBI? John Lennon with wife Yoko Ono in New York in 1980 – the year he was killedCredit: Rex
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A police lieutenant who questioned Chapman reportedly told British barrister and writer Fenton Bresler: ‘He looked as if he could have been programmed’Credit: PA:Press Association
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Confidential documents reveal that the FBI considered John and Yoko ‘dangerous’ and that President Richard Nixon wanted their activities – such as ‘bed-ins for peace’ stoppedCredit: Hulton Archive – Getty
But a new documentary series raises questions about whether Chap-man could have been hypnotised or controlled by shadowy forces.
In the three-part Apple TV+ series a pal of John’s reveals for the first time that the singer’s widow Yoko Ono asked him to look into a possible conspiracy.
And he discovered that the US secret services had followed and bugged the peace-campaigning couple because of their radical ideas.
Confidential documents reveal that the FBI considered them “dangerous” and that President Richard Nixon wanted their activities stopped.
If jobless oddball Chapman seems an unlikely assassin, the fact that the CIA had carried out experiments to see if mind control was possible only adds to the murder’s mystique.
Elliot Mintz, who used to be a spokesman for John and Yoko, says: “I’ve never expressed this before.
“One of the things Yoko asked me was to look into the various conspiracy theories after John’s murder.
“The two of them were convinced that the Dakota building, their apartment area, was being bugged.”
Phone tapped
John and Yoko were arguably the world’s best-known peace campaigners during the Vietnam War.
In 1969 they held “bed-ins for peace” and John released the anti-war anthem Give Peace A Chance.
That year Republican Nixon became US President and approved the secret carpet-bombing of Vietnam’s neighbour Cambodia.
John believed his phone was being tapped and saw men loitering outside his door.
He once said: “I realised this was serious. They were coming for me, one way or another.”
While that might sound paranoid, the FBI really were on his tail. Confidential files revealed that agents had been ordered to follow and wire-tap the couple.
At the end of one document, a note in capital letters says: “All extremists should be considered dangerous.”
Elliot, 78, who was also a DJ on underground radio, says: “There were hundreds and hundreds of pages written to the director of the FBI from Richard Nixon, where it was determined that John and Yoko were to be followed, monitored and steps were taken on the highest level of government to do something about the Lennon problem.”
But John remained a thorn in the side of the US government.
He expressed a distrust for the police, took illegal substances and his 1971 single Imagine asked people to think of a world with no possessions or national borders.
In his final interview, recorded just hours before his death aged 40 and aired in the documentary, John said: “People have the power to make the society they want.”
Repeated attempts by British-born John to obtain US citizenship had failed. But he had largely kept a low profile for five years before his murder and didn’t appear to be a critic of President Jimmy Carter.
However, Chapman did not have an obvious motive either. Various bizarre explanations have been given, with the killer once saying he did it to promote the reading of JD Salinger’s 1951 novel The Catcher In The Rye.
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John signing a copy of his album for Mark Chapman – who, just a few hours later, would shoot dead the ex-BeatleCredit: New York News
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Elliot Mintz says: ‘There were hundreds and hundreds of pages written to the director of the FBI from Richard Nixon, where it was determined that John and Yoko were to be followed’Credit: Getty
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Fenton Bresler believed Chapman was a victim of a mind control programme and put the blame on the CIA in his 1989 book The Murder Of John LennonCredit: Apple TV
He had modelled himself on its main character Holden Caulfield, a symbol of teenage rebellion.
But the prosecution claimed Chap-man simply wished to be famous.
In one confession, he said: “I thought I would turn into somebody if I killed somebody.”
Witnesses to the murder certainly found his behaviour odd for a killer.
Taxi driver Richard Peterson says in the show: “After he shot him, Chapman was still standing there with the gun, took off his overcoat and pulled out that book and held it up — Catcher In The Rye.”
The police officers were equally puzzled by Chapman. One, Tony Palma, asked him: “Do you realise what you’ve done?” and the accused replied: “Yes, I just killed myself, I’m John Lennon.”
A police lieutenant who questioned Chapman reportedly told British barrister and writer Fenton Bresler: “He looked as if he could have been programmed.”
Chapman, a married man who lived in Hawaii, admitted to the killing, but Detective Ron Hoffman, who was in charge of the investigation, speculated that there could be more to the case.
He says: “We had the killer, we were positive about that, we wanted to close every possibility that he had no help.
“Was he alone, was there somebody behind the lines, was it a conspiracy — all these questions started running through my mind.” In Chapman’s room Hoffman found his personal effects carefully laid out on a desk, including his passport and a Bible open at the Gospel of John.
This pointed to a premeditated act and there was no evidence he corresponded with a co-conspirator, though that still leaves the hypnosis theory.
From the 1950s, the CIA ran a 20-year top-secret project, codenamed MKUltra, that used drug addicts and mental health patients in mind-control experiments.
Chapman fits that profile because he had both a history of suicidal feelings and drug abuse.
His former girlfriend Jessica Blank-enship, who met him at a church retreat aged 16, remembered him having a nervous breakdown and trying to kill himself.
She adds: “He particularly liked The Beatles until John Lennon said they were more popular than Jesus Christ.”
Childhood friend Vance Hunter recalled Chapman taking “eight hits of LSD 25, which was very powerful” over one weekend, and trying opium.
After the killing Chapman was repeatedly interviewed by the police and his own legal team.
On one tape he described the seconds before firing the gun, saying: “All I remember is I had a voice in my head saying, ‘Do it, do it, do it, do it’.”
Over the years since the killing, conspiracy theorists have been out in force.
Fenton Bresler believed Chapman was a victim of a mind control programme and put the blame on the CIA in his 1989 book The Murder Of John Lennon.
In 2018 documentary Drugs As Weapons Against Us, John Potash suggested the same agency played some part in John’s death.
But Potash has also claimed the CIA had a hand in the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur and the suicide of rocker Kurt Cobain.
Reagan survived being shot at close range by Hinckley in 1981, just three months after John’s murder.
But the idea that the former Beatle was killed by the State has gathered few supporters. Even Chapman’s own lawyers did not put forward that defence.
Instead his legal team maintains that the miscarriage of justice in this case was allowing a psychologically disturbed man to enter a guilty plea.
But the court decided Chapman was of sound mind and in August 1981 he was sentenced to 20 years to life. He remains in prison today, after 12 parole hearings.
David Suggs, who helped to put Chapman’s defence together, says: “This isn’t a whodunnit. Our intention was to prove this man was insane.”
Indeed, insanity remains a credible reason for the murder, and Suggs adds: “He thought he was going to turn literally into Holden Caulfield in The Catcher In The Rye.”
John Lennon: Murder Without A Trial is streaming on Apple TV+ now.
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Elliot Mintz in ‘John Lennon: Murder Without A Trial,’ now streaming on Apple TV+Credit: Apple TV
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A vigil attended by 50,000 of Lennon’s fans in New York’s Central Park after his killing
BENIDORM’s legendary Sticky Vicky has had a wildly unique career that spread from exotic dancing to X-rated performances making various objects ‘disappear.’
The iconic performer, who died at the age of 80 after a long health battle, was an integral part of Benidorm’s entertainment scene, having performed tirelessly for over 30 years.
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Sticky Vicky retired after performing for over 30 yearsCredit: Rex
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The dancer became a part of Benidorm’s entertainment sceneCredit: Facebook
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Before starting her career, Vicky first trained as a ballet dancerCredit: Facebook
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She also made an appearance on ITV’s series BenidormCredit: ITV
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Her daughter Maria announced the news of her death today
The star whose real name is Victoria María Aragüés Gadea, was known for her raunchy magic tricks on stage.
Born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, she first trained as a ballet dancer for 15 years before inventing a nude magic show that premiered in Barcelona.
The mum-of-two moved to Benidorm in the 1980s, where she would become a part of the hotspot’s history.
Her shows included her pulling a variety of items from her private parts, including ping pong balls, eggs, handkerchiefs, sausages, and razor blades
read more on sticky vicky
She performed at the Costa Blanca resort which was nicknamed Little England because of the amount of British tourists who visited.
In her heyday, she performed six shows a night, six times a week.
Vicky, the daughter of a soldier dad and an opera singer mum, marked the start of the third series of long-running TV sitcom Benidorm starring Johnny Vegas.
She carried on performing her X-rated show well past the usual retirement age after postponing plans to hang up her props so she could fight rival performers she denounced as imposters.
In 2011, she went to court against an adult entertainer in Benidorm traditionally known as Sticky Barbara after discovering she had registered the name Sticky Vicky as hers.
Judges sided with the real Sticky Vicky in 2009 after ruling Spaniard Maria Rosa Pereira had acted in “bad faith” and telling Vicky Leyton she was the legal owner of the trademark.
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Vicky performed six shows a night, six times a weekCredit: Solarpix
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Vicky retired after decades of performing in 2016Credit: Facebook
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Sticky Vicky’s daughter followed her mum’s footsteps after copycats emergedCredit: Solarpix
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The Benidorm legend died aged 80 after a long health battleCredit: Solarpix
Asked what she would change about her life if she could before her retirement, she told an interviewer: “Nothing. I have a fantastic life, with wonderful family and friends. What more could anyone want?”
Vicky took to the stage for a final time in 2016, days before she underwent a hip operation.
She was diagnosed with uterine cancer the following year.
Last summer, the dancer was rushed to hospital after suffering a horror fall while trying to get into a car.
After spending five days in hospital and having staples inserted into her knees, the dancer shared a photo of herself in recovery as she thanked her fans for their well-wishes.
Vicky has left behind her son, Eduardo, and her daughter Maria who has carried on her late mother’s legacy.
Maria uses the same stage name as Sticky Vicky, saying that she was inspired to do so after copycats were trying to make money by performing similar acts.
In 2021 she said she wanted to revive the Sticky Vicky spectacle for die-hard fans and new generations of tourists as she revealed her mum was suffering from early onset dementia and using a walker while awaiting a second hip replacement.
Vicky said at the time: “Hopefully I’ll be back on my feet again soon.
“It’s very nice that my daughter wants to carry on with what I’ve been doing these years and keep the spectacle alive.
“My stage days are over but I’m hoping I can accompany her.”
Today her devastated daughter shared the news of her death stating: “I regret these words, my mother Sticky Vicky passed away.
Her daughter, Maria, shared a touching tribute on Facebook, writing: “She has gone, surrounded by her family, with all of our love.
“I thank God for being able to always be by her side, I am left with a broken heart.”
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Her daughter Maria has decided to carry on her mum’s actCredit: Facebook
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The iconic performer shared a photo with her fans after her accidentCredit: Not known, clear with picture desk
A COUPLE who live “debt-free” while on the road have revealed their plans this Christmas – including free decorations and a beach party.
Christopher and Lindsay Harvey quit their busy nine-to-five lives five years ago to take up living full-time in a glam home on wheels.
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Christopher Harvey and his wife Lindsay took up van life five years agoCredit: Jam Press/@calledtowander
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They have foraged their own Christmas decoration which is placed on a sandy beachCredit: Jam Press/@calledtowander
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The motorhome has a cozy interiorCredit: Jam Press/@calledtowander
The pair, aged 42 and 37, began their adventure to live freely half a decade ago and since then, they’ve travelled across the US and even Mexico.
Now, the business owners are gearing up to spend the festive season in their new traditional way – with their “travelling family” and using nature’s finest for decoration.
“In early December, we take our standup paddle boards and try to find a piece of driftwood that can serve as our tree, which we dress with basic lights and decorations,” Christopher, from Florida, US, told Need To Know.
Photos of the clever invention show a thick log plunged into a sandy beach, adorned in red tinsel and baubles.
“Each year, we see travellers from all parts of the world come together to celebrate the holidays,” Christopher added.
“It’s pretty eventful, as we spend Christmas on our favourite beach in Baja, and have done this for the past three years”.
The motorhome enthusiast added that he holds a potluck lunch with other travellers which often leads to many more friendships being made.
“There is an annual resident who retired as Santa a few years back and he now winters on the beach too, giving out treats and gifts to kids,” the van-lifer said.
“It’s such a special time of year, where we really get to cherish and embrace the feeling of being free.”
The couple, who used to live “chaotic” lives as foster parents for two years, always had a “hunger” to discover the world.
Using their savings, which they had amassed after living “frugally” in a bid to live without commitments, they purchased a Ford F-250 for £6,000, before moving onto a 1999 Shasta Cheyenne, costing £9,600.
In a bid to make the home-on-wheels their own, they spent a further £6,400 revamping the space including a built-in shower, power system, and living area.
Photos of the stunning vehicle show a fresh white exterior, but it’s the cozy interior that has left viewers shocked.
The inside space is packed full of homely wooden features, plump colourful pillows, and embroidered quilts and rugs.
But van life has not all been smooth sailing.
Christopher said: “Despite one setback after another, including times where we’ve had to stop and work to pay for breakdowns, we’re committed to doing whatever is needed to remain on the road.
“One of the breakdowns was severe enough that several mechanics said our truck engine was dead – but luckily a friend of ours was able to repair this”.
He added that because van life has become increasingly popular, their way of life on the road has drastically changed.
“Public lands are being closed to campers, and many don’t take proper care over the etiquette needed, so there’s become a lot of selfishness which didn’t used to exist,” he said.
“Costs have gone up due to the increase of the movement and it’s becoming harder to make ends meet, but we’re putting more effort in.”
Currently, the savvy couple work with a strict £2,000 budget per month but continue to make the most of their lives of freedom.
On New Year’s Eve, they’ll be celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary – but for now, the pair are focusing on encouraging others to pursue “their best lives” and not to feel “trapped”.
Christopher added: “It’s nice to have 100% control over the decisions we make and how we want to live our lives thanks to being debt-free.
“If we want to stop working, or continue on the road with no commitments, then it’s our choice.
“It’s allowed us to experience a fuller life than we would have expected.
“Start with the right intention – if it’s to escape, then that’s not the right reason to start.
“Enjoy the ride and wherever the wander takes you.”
But Christopher and Lindsay aren’t the only people to have traded a life in a house with a life on the road.
PETER Phillips was the eldest grandchild of the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip and is often seen a milestone royal events.
Princess Anne‘s son Peter and her daughter, Zara, did not inherit royal titles and are not being working members of the Royal Family.
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The Queen’s eldest grandson, Peter Phillips, with ex-wife AutumnCredit: AP
Who is Peter Phillips?
Peter Phillips was born to Princess Anne and her first husband Captain Mark Phillips on November 15, 1977, at St Mary’s Hospital.
As hereditary titles are passed down through the male line, and Captain Phillips does not have a royal title, Peter did not inherit a royal title at birth.
Peter’s parents rejected an offer from the Queen of titles, which would have enabled their children to be born into peerage.
It’s thought that they wanted their child to have the chance to lead a normal life.
Royal insiders have previously said that Peter was the Queen’s “favourite” grandson.
While they are related to the British Royal Family, Peter and Zara have never carried out royal duties.
A statement issued on their behalf said: “After informing HM The Queen and members of both families last year, Peter and Autumn jointly agreed to separate.
Royal Family roles explained
“They had reached the conclusion that this was the best course of action for their two children and ongoing friendship.
“The decision to divorce and share custody came about after many months of discussions and although sad, is an amicable one.
“The couple’s first priority will remain the continued well being and upbringing of their wonderful daughters Savannah (nine) and Isla (seven).
“Both families were naturally sad at the announcement, but fully supportive of Peter and Autumn in the joint decision to co-parent their children.”
“Both Peter and Autumn have remained in Gloucestershire to bring up their two children where they have been settled for a number of years.”
THE heartbroken parents of a boy who was shot dead almost 30 years ago hope a $1 million reward will finally bring them closure.
Michael “Billy” Hegedus, 17, was gunned down in cold blood at his mum and dad’s service station in Inverell, Australia, in October 1996.
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Michael Hegedus – known as Billy – was shot dead 27 years agoCredit: nsw police
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His devastated family are still fighting for closure as his killer has never been unmaskedCredit: nsw police
A gunman burst into the shop at around 9pm and murdered Billy in a botched robbery.
Billy took a bullet to the chest and stomach, with the thug stealing around $36,000 AUD (£18,500) out of the family’s safe.
He was rushed to hospital, but died from his injuries – sparking 27 years of heartache for his family as his killer has never been hunted down.
Billy’s mum Patricia Page said: “Billy was taken from us a week before his 18th birthday.
“I remember waking him up that day, hassling him to get on with studying for his HSC, but he just fluttered his big, beautiful eyes at me and told me not to worry.
“We buried him before he turned 18, the day before. He didn’t deserve it. He was only 17. He hadn’t lived.
“He had the most beautiful smile, lovely blue eyes. He was everybody’s friend.”
Cops revealed aspiring teacher Billy had been shot with a pump-action .22 calibre rifle, but have never been able to unmask the gunman.
Desperate for answers and justice, New South Wales police offered up a $100,000 (£52,000) reward in 1997.
It led to one of Billy’s friends Justin McInerney being charged and hauled before the courts the following year.
But in a further blow to Billy’s devastated mum Patricia Page and stepdad Phil, McInerney was acquitted after two aborted trials and a hung jury in the third.
A fourth trial only caused more heartache for Billy’s family, as police closed the case and said it would not be reopened unless compelling evidence came to light.
As a result, McInerney walked free in 2001.
Patricia added: “While I’m thankful I know where Billy is and we got to lay him to rest, in our hearts there’s not a day that goes by we don’t ask, ‘what if?’ or ‘what happened?’.
“As a parent, you just never stop looking for answers.”
More than two decades on, cops are now offering a $1 million (£520,000) reward for fresh information that leads to a conviction.
Commander of State Crime Command’s Homicide Squad, Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty, said: “Billy’s murder was a reckless and callous robbery-gone-wrong that has robbed Billy’s family of a lifetime with their loved one.
“Billy was just a kid who loved his sport and had dreams of becoming a teacher.
“While he didn’t deserve what happened to him, his family deserve answers, and that’s why we’re appealing for help.”
Detectives are convinced someone who knows a crucial piece of information had so far failed to come forward.
Minister for Police and Counter Terrorism, Yasmin Catley, said: “The NSW Government pledges our ongoing support for this investigation and the detectives working tirelessly to find answers for Billy’s family.
“We are asking people to cast their mind back to Inverell in the year 1996, and to reconsider anything you may have seen or heard that might help detectives.
“No piece of information is too small, and something you might have previously disregarded may just be the missing piece in this puzzle.”
Patricia has implored people to come forward to save her family suffering even more years of
The grieving mum added: “Inverell is such a small town that I truly believe someone must know something about that night.
“And if you know something, please say something to help find justice for our Billy.
“With the family, we keep in alive. All the new grandchildren I have, they all know Billy, they call him Uncle Billy.
“And when we have Christmas together he’s always there.”
Anyone with information that may assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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Cops are offering a $1m reward for information that leads to the conviction of Billy’s murdererCredit: nsw police
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Billy was aspiring to become a teacher when he was killedCredit: nsw police
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A gunman stole cash from his family’s safe before shooting him in a botched robberyCredit: nsw police
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Billy’s mum Patricia Page and stepdad Phil are desperate for answersCredit: nsw police
AN IRAN-BACKED militant group more formidable than Hamas is also the unlikely owner-operator of a multi-million pound theme park.
The tourist attraction, built in 2010 by Lebanese terror organisation Hezbollah, was intended to indoctrinate children and western tourists with hatred for Israel.
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Visitors look at tanks left in Lebanon by Israeli forces at the Hezbollah-run war museumCredit: AFP
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Tourists can wander through a commander’s bunker at the theme parkCredit: Phil Hannaford – The Sun
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Replica war scenes feature destroyed Israeli tanks and toppled grave stonesCredit: Getty
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A mannequin dressed in military fatigue lies on a stretcher at the parkCredit: AFP
The Iran-backed militia leader Hassan Nasrallah will break his silence on the conflict this afternoon.
Where most theme parks would have rides and games, the Tourist Landmark of the Resistance has tanks, rockets, barbed wire, and guns.
Those who visit will be find replica war scenes complete with destroyed Israeli tanks and toppled grave stones.
Large Hebrew letters spell out “The Abyss” and “The Swamp” in stone, meant as taunts directed at Israel.
Archive video footage shows a timeline of Hezbollah’s rise to prominence, as well as its grievances with and victories against Israel.
Children and other tourists can play at aiming anti-aircraft guns, climb overturned armoured personnel carriers, and wander through a Hezbollah bunker and 200-metre-long tunnel used during the 2006 Lebanon War.
A walk through the forest where Hezbollah guerrillas waged their war just four years before the tourist park opened features real weaponry and artefacts, from strewn soldiers’ helmets containing real human hair to burnt clothing with Hebrew inscriptions.
The £3.2million theme park was built on the remains of a former Israeli settlement near the Lebanese village of Mleeta to promote its ideology, or what it calls “resistance tourism”.
It was also once an important base for Hezbollah fighters.
The terrorist group reportedly has plans to expand the park’s visitor facilities with swimming pools, spas, playgrounds, a five-star hotel, and camp site so people “can come here and spend their vacations”.
More than half a million people visited the tourist attraction in the month after it opened.
Hezbollah was founded in the 1980s to oppose Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon, triumphing when Israelis quit the south in 2000.
Some expect the Israeli air force will flatten the tourist park in the next war, as it did in 2006 when it destroyed a museum in the village of Khiam.
A pal of the couple told MailOnline Sukhjit “worshipped the ground” his wife walked on.
They added: “[He] waited on her hand and foot. I got the impression she always got what she wanted.”
The pair met in 2002 when Ramandeep was just 17 and Sukhjit, over from India, was 20.
They fell in love and married in 2005 and after running a pizza restaurant in Carshalton, Surrey, moved to Derby to raise their two boys.
THE AFFAIR
Years went by and in November 2015 the couple took their sons on holiday to Dubai to visit Sukhjit’s best pal Gurpreet.
It was here that Ramandeep began an affair and eventually, after flying home, hatched a plan to murder Sukhjit.
One year later, the dad, who spoiled his wife with “nice clothes and jewellery”, was discovered dead in bed, lying in a pool of blood.
It was only in October 2023 that Ramandeep and Gurpreet were finally convicted of Sukhjit’s murder.
Ramandeep has now been sentenced to death by hanging, her lawyers have appealed and could change the sentence to life in prison.
Gurpreet was jailed for life and fined £3,000 but spared the death sentence.
Ramandeep’s family claim she was set up by Sukhjit’s family in an elaborate conspiracy, claiming they wanted him dead for plans to sell family land.
The Manns even paid to get their eldest daughter out of prison, serving remand at family friends in rural India.
After the sentencing in India, Sukhjit’s mother told reporters her “prayers were answered”.
It is unclear when Ramandeep will meet the hangman’s noose.
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A pal of the couple told MailOnline Sukhjit ‘worshipped the ground’ his wife walked onCredit: Caters News Agency
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Sukhjit, who spoiled his wife with ‘nice clothes and jewellery’, was discovered dead in bed in northern IndiaCredit: Caters News Agency
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The horrors that unfolded that night in September 2016 were a world away from Littleover, the middle-class suburb the family hailed from in DerbyCredit: Caters News Agency
