But the real victims of the financial collapse in the US state of Alabama's most populous county are its poorest residents - forced to bathe in bottled water and use portable toilets after being cut off from the mains supply.
All EU states apart from Britain are considering signing up to the agreement, which aims to introduce closer fiscal integration in the eurozone with tougher rules on debts and deficits.
Proceedings are expected to last around five days, after which recommendations will be made to a military general, who will decide whether to proceed to a full trial, according to Mr Coombs.
North and South Korea are still technically at war, and the US has nearly 30,000 troops stationed in South Korea. Last year the North was accused of sinking a South Korean patrol boat and the two countries exchanged fire across the disputed maritime border.
"I think it's part of the big economic change, where not only are we seeing a shift from the west to the east, but we're also seeing that countries that produce vital commodities - food and energy and things like that - are doing very well and they're gradually climbing up the economic league table," he said.
Around 10 million tourists are expected to visit Barcelona in the year 2012. The city has experienced a rapid growth in the tourism sector over the past few decad
