This Week in Pictures: April 12 – April 18, 2016

Numerous big news stories broke around the world over the last seven days so we take a moment to look back at some of the most important from the last week.

Both Japan and Ecuador were struck by large earthquakes last week. The south-western island of Kyushu in Japan reeled from a pair of quakes, the first of 6.4 magnitude, the second 7.3, that left 300,000 homes without utilitys and forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. Ecuador was struck by its most powerful earthquake in decades, at 7.8 on the Richter Scale, causing widespread damage, injuring thousands and causing the deaths of over 200 people. Rescue and recovery efforts continue in both countries.

In Germany the much-loved and celebrated comedian Jan Bohmermann may face prosecution after Chancellor Angela Merkel acceded to a request from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who was dismayed by a poem read on television by Jan Bohmermann which satirized, criticized and made jokes at the expense of Mr. Erdogan. Seen as a pandering to the despotic Turkish president due to the need for Turkey’s cooperation during the immigration crisis, Merkel’s decision has proved very unpopular.

The Czech Republic moved to change its name last week, or at least provide a shorter snappier alternative in the same way France does for The French Republic. Their choice? Czechia, chosen to make it easier for branding use on clothing and products, and for sports teams. Czech itself is an adjective and can’t be used, but the new name has been criticized by some for its similarity to Chechnya, the autonomous Russian republic, and by others for simply sounding rather silly.

In sports Nico Rosberg took his third win in a row following an action packed Chinese Grand Prix that saw the World Champion Lewis Hamilton fight from a hugely unfavorable grid position back to seventh place, but the question is can he overhaul his German team mate at Mercedes before the end of the Formula One season? You’ll have to read our daily news pages to find out, but in the meantime here’s a look at some of the major news stories from around the world we covered over the last week.

1. GamingZion presented some basic ice hockey rules including offside and icing.

2. Borussia Dortmund couldn’t win the home leg, so Liverpool had a good chance to reach the Europa League semi-final.

3. Daily fantasy operators DraftKings and FanDuel were challenged legally in Nevada and in Maryland.

4. A lucky player from the United Kingdom won the £51.8 million EuroMillions jackpot.

5. The progressive jackpot at Microgaming’s Mega Moolah slot has been hit again, rewarding almost €7 million to the lucky player.

6. Karim Benzema announced on Twitter that he was going to be left out of the French squad for EURO 2016.

7. According to a poll, two out of three Americans support the idea of legalized sports betting in the US.

Meanwhile a homeowner in Wiltshire in the UK found themselves uncovering the ruins of a Roman Villa in their garden when laying new cables in their garden. Including exceptionally well preserved mosaic flooring and is thought to be one of the biggest in Britain and experts believe it untouched since its collapse some 1,400 years ago, with high-status artifacts and coins found on site. Dr Roberts of Historic England is quoted as saying “It’s one of the best sites I have ever had the chance to work on.”