The Queen of Great Britain Elizabeth II, who arrived on Christmas holidays in the English castle Sandringham, decided to celebrate them this year in a narrow family circle - only with relatives. 27-year-old Kate Middleton, a friend of the eldest grandson of the monarch of the 27-year-old William, the third in line in the British throne after the father of Prince Charles, was not invited to the celebration.

Another case of the Russian escape from South Ossetia to the territory of Georgia. Information about him is still contradictory. On Monday, Vitaliy Khripun appeared at the checkpoint of the Georgian police of the village of Revi (according to the initial data - military man Dmitry Khripulin), the television company "Imedi" reports. According to her, Khripun asked for political asylum in Georgia.

In Georgia, the investigation of the Saturday explosion of the "Memorial of Glory" in Kutaisi, as a result of which two people were killed-a woman and her 8-year-old daughter. People were killed by fragments of tens of meters of the monument, erected in honor of imminent from Georgia who fell in the Second World War. As part of the investigation, 10 people have already been detained, including the technical director of Avtantil Darselidze Gruzdryvprom JSC.

Spyker Cars - a manufacturer of sports machines with Russian roots - again applied for the purchase of SAAB, Vedomosti reported with reference to Vladimir Antonov, the owner of the Conversion Group. Spyker acts in a consortium with the “Converse Group”, Antonov owns 29.9% of Spyker shares. On December 18, General Motors announced that the deal with Spyker would not take place, as there were problems that cannot be solved quickly.

The scandal with the dismissal of the head of the investigative department in Moscow Anatoly Bagmet continues. As a source in law enforcement agencies told Interfax on Monday, the chairman of the CCP of the Russian Federation, Alexander Bastrykin, has not yet signed an order to dismiss Bagmet.

In Moscow, in house 22 on Marshal Savitsky Street (South Butovo microdistrict), a hand grenade exploded. This was reported by "Interfax" with reference to a source in law enforcement agencies. "The incident occurred at 0:30 in the elevator lobby of the entrance. As a result of the explosion, heavy fragmentation wounds received a tenant at home, it was hospitalized. The elevator was damaged by the explosion," the agency’s interlocutor said.

The rating of the best signs to the first persons of the state for 2009 was headed by artists - actor Mikhail Boyarsky and poetess Irina Konnova. With difficulty, the President of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov fell into the top three of the leaders. All three winners spoke about Vladimir Putin. Among the leading best flatts of Russia-2009 were also a musician, interrogator, patriarch, coach and deputy.

Russia as an observer in the organization of the Islamic conference is tuned to expand the constructive dialogue with the Islamic world, which will contribute to the creation of a more fair system of international relations. This is stated in the welcoming Epistle of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev to the participants and guests of the fifth meeting of the Russia -Islamic World Strategic vision group, ”ITAR -TASS reports.

The Ministry of Defense of South Korea admitted that hackers were able to steal operational plans for the deployment of American troops in the peninsula in the event of a conflict with the DPRK. Intelligence suspects that the attack was carried out by North Korean special services, Infox.ru reports with reference to AP.

The official lighting ceremony on the main New Year tree in Arkhangelsk ended with a call of emergency services. According to the press service of the regional Ministry of Emergencies on Monday, their assistance was needed to remove the green spaces of the defender of green spaces that had climbed to the top of the tree.

The Duma limited the share of one advertising seller 35% of the market. Previously, concluded contracts are valid within a year from the moment the law enters into force. In the coming months, large television channels will have to decide whether they will sell advertising on their own or will find the replacement of the Video Internet, write Vedomosti . "Internet Video" is the only seller who has a market share of more than the limit specified in the amendments.

AvtoVAZ opened the new website Group.avtovaz.ru, which will post information about the assets for sale or prepared for rent. According to the company, on the new site it will be possible to see and purchase real estate, rent a premises or buy shares in the "daughters" "AvtoVAZ".

In the Indian state of Karnatak, the pastor of the Christian church and his wife were arrested the day before. The police charged them with the "forced" dialogue that they led with the Indians of Christianity. The arrest occurred in Masur, the second largest city of Karnatak. Shortly before this, about 15 armed people of the radical Hindu group Bajrang Dal broke into the house of Pastor T. Manjunakh and his wife Sarasvati, where they brutally beat both Christians.

The Federation of Sports Journalists of Russia (FSGR) summed up the results of the outgoing 2009 and, through traditional voting, determined the ten best athletes of the country, the strongest team and coach. At the end of January, all laureates at the ceremony at the Russian Olympic Committee will receive the traditional prizes of the FSGR - Silver Lan figurines.

Polish police officers are convinced that people who stole a metal plate with an Arbeit Macht Frei slogan last Friday at the former Hitler's concentration camp "Auschwitz-Birkenau" (Auschwitz) are not members of neo-Nazi groups. “According to our data, none of these five people are related to neo -Nazis and does not support neo -Nazi ideas,” said the head of the local police, Andrzej Rokita in Krakow. According to him, thieves acted exclusively from selfish considerations.