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Holocaust , the almost complete destruction of Jews in Europe by Nazi Germany and its collaborators during World War II (1939-1945). The leadership of Germany’s Nazi Party ordered the extermination of 5.6 million to 5.9 million Jews ( see National Socialism). Jews often refer to the Holocaust as Shoah (from the Hebrew word for “catastrophe” or “total destruction”). The word holocaust derives from the Greek holo (whole) and caustos (burned) and originally referred to a burnt offering, or a religious sacrifice that is totally consumed by fire. The Holocaust was the worst genocide in history. Those who carried it out methodically created the means to efficiently round up and kill millions of people. The Holocaust led to the establishment of international laws against human rights violations. Jews were not the only victims of the Nazis during World War II. The Nazis also imprisoned and killed people who opposed their regim...

  A Boeing 737 commercial jet with 136 people on board slid into the St. John's River near Jacksonville, Florida after landing on Friday, a spokesman for Naval Air Station Jacksonville said. The flight arriving from Naval Station Guantanamo Bay went into the river at the end of the runway at about 9:40 p.m. local time, the air station said. The mayor of Jacksonville said on Twitter that everyone on board the flight was "alive and accounted for" but that crews were working to control jet fuel on the water. "The plane was not submerged. Every person is alive and accounted for," the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said on Twitter. The flight was arriving from Cuba, the air station spokesman said. Emergency response personnel were on the scene.   

Actor Peter Mayhew, who originated the role of Chewbacca, and continued to play him in most forms of Star Wars media until 2015’s  Star Wars: The Force Awakens  died on April 30, 2019.     According to a statement released Thursday on the actor's Twitter account, Mayhew passed away in his North Texas Home, surrounded by his loved ones.   London-born Mayhew began acting when he was scouted for the role of the Minotaur in  Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger  due to a producer spotting his unusually large feet in a newspaper article. Later that year Mayhew then went onto audition for his most iconic role, Chewbacca, where he became the body and soul of the bowcaster-wielding Wookie. The then-unknown actor got the role due to his towering 7’3” physique that allowed him to stand tall above even Darth Vader. Although Chewbacca’s voice was engineered by sound designer Ben Burtt, many attribute the character’s expressiveness to Mayhe...

On Holocaust Remembrance Day a siren is sound across the country to honor and remember the 6 million Jews who perished during the Holocaust, to remember and to never forget. Every year on Holocaust Remembrance Day Israel stands still for two minutes at exactly 10:00 am. On Holocaust Remembrance Day a siren is sound all across the country to honor and remember the 6 million Jews who perished during the Holocaust, to remember and to never forget. Lahav Harkov ✔ @LahavHarkov Across Israel, a siren just went off, and for one minute, people stopped what they’re doing, to honor and remember the 6 million Jews who were brutally murdered by the Nazis. # YomHashoa 112 8:03 AM - May 2, 2019 Twitter Ads info and privacy 39 people are talking about this The siren, or Tzfirah as it is called in Israel, was passed into law in 1959 to be sound on the morning of the Holocaust Remembrance Day every year, which is usually fol...

Parrot , common name applied to any of about 340 species of brightly colored birds that make up the parrot family. Groups of parrots that have their own common names include the cockatoos, lories, lovebirds,  macaws, and parakeets.        In length, parrots range from the buff-faced pygmy parrot of New Guinea at 8.4 cm (3.3 in) to the hyacinth macaw of South America at 100 cm (39.4 in). A large part of the macaw's length is attributable to its long tail, and it is probably outweighed by the very large (60 cm/23.6 in) but short-tailed palm cockatoo of New Guinea. Parrots have curved, hooked bills and short legs. Their toes are  zygodactyl, —that is, the first and fourth are turned backward. They walk awkwardly but are excellent climbers, often using their bills to pull themselves up to a higher branch. In most parrots the tongue is thick and muscular, used deftly for manipulating seeds, which, with fruit, are their principal food. In the lories the...

On ”Game of Thrones,” the North has survived The Long Night, but is far from unscathed. In the last moments of Episode 3 all appears lost: Theon (Alfie Allen) has just died protecting Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright), the dragons are either grounded or fighting off wights, and most everyone is buried under the unstoppable undead. Hell, even those in the crypt are surrounded. Fortunately, not-so-little Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) comes into her own as the assassin that Jaqen H’ghar (Tom Wlaschiha) had always known she could be. Not only does she whip around a dragonglass-tipped spear/staff worthy of the legendary Dornish warrior-queen Nymeria herself, but she’s also the one who turns the tide at the 11th hour by sneaking up on the Night King and sticking him with the pointy end of her Valyrian dagger. This not only kills him but all of the undead wight army that he created. It’s poetic justice: The thing that was going to be used against Bran has now been used to save...

Chinese photographer Jianhui Liao has been named as the overall winner of the Food Photographer of the Year 2019 contest.  Noodle feast scoops top prize Image copyright Liao's photo (above), entitled Cauldron Noodles, shows a celebration of the goddess Nuwa in Shexian County in the Hebei Province, China. As part of the annual festivity, villagers wear Qing Dynasty costumes to celebrate Nuwa's birthday and eat pots of noodles at noon. Competition adjudicator Andy Macdonald presented Liao with the £5,000 prize money. Macdonald said of the image: "It stood out from the rest in its category for the way in which [Liao] made the subject matter, a community feast, so beautiful and atmospheric.