‘It was like a zoo:’ Climbers reveal 'Lord of Flies' experience of overcrowded Everest

New Delhi: Ed Dohring, a doctor from Arizona, had dreamed his whole life of reaching the top of Mount Everest. But when he summited a few days ago, he was shocked by what he saw. Climbers were pushing and shoving to take selfies. The flat part of the summit, which he estimated at about the…

Leave, lifestyle and loyalty: Employers offer incentives to retain workers

Loyal staff are being offered an extra five days of paid annual leave to stay put, while others are given the option of taking the school holidays with their children. As the Reserve Bank of Australia grapples with stubbornly slow wage growth and a rise in unemployment, some companies are offering alternatives to a pay…

Race for UK prime ministership centres on 'no deal' Brexit battle

London: The prospect of a "no deal" Brexit was fast becoming the central battle of the race to succeed British Prime Minister Theresa May on Sunday, as Environment Minister Michael Gove became the eighth candidate to declare. May said on Friday she was quitting over her failure to deliver Brexit, potentially opening the way for…

'She never paid': woman accused of Sydney rent gouging cops China ban

The Sydney woman accused of targeting the lucrative international student market for unenforceable fees in the eastern suburbs has been slapped with a travel ban in China amid fresh allegations she ripped off a business partner. In a significant escalation of the business woes of Ashleigh Howe, a 29-year-old alumnus of SCEGGS Darlinghurst, a series…

Baghdad hands three French citizens the death penalty for joining Islamic State

Amman: Three French members of Islamic State were sentenced to death by a Baghdad court Sunday. The three were among 13 French citizens handed over to Iraq in January by the Syrian Democratic Forces, the mainly Kurdish US-ally that led the battle to oust Islamic State from Syria. The sentence sheds some light on the…