Inmate dies in 'botched' execution

30 April 2014 Last updated at 11:53

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Execution of Clayton Lockett (pictured): Journalist and witness Courtney Francisco describes what she saw - some may find this audio distressing.

A US death row inmate in Oklahoma died of a heart attack after his execution was halted because the lethal injection of three drugs failed to work properly.

The execution of Clayton Lockett, 38, was stopped after 20 minutes, when one of his veins ruptured, preventing the drugs from taking full effect.

The execution of a fellow inmate, due two hours later, was postponed.

Both men had unsuccessfully challenged a state law that shields the identities of companies supplying the drugs.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Since it was first used in Texas in 1982, "the triple-drug cocktail" has become the standard execution method in US states that have the death penalty. It was designed by anaesthesiologist Stanley Deutsch as an "extremely humane" way to end life.

The first drug, a barbiturate, "shuts down" the central nervous system, rendering the prisoner unconscious. The second paralyses the muscles and stops the person breathing. The third, potassium chloride, stops the heart.

But critics suggest that the method may well be painful. One suggestion is that people could be too sedated by the first drug to cry out, or that they might be in pain but paralysed by the second drug.

Another complication, as appears to have been the case with Clayton Lockett, is that intravenous drug use is common among death row inmates, meaning many prisoners have damaged veins that are difficult to inject.

Problems sourcing some of the drugs in the official protocol have also led to claims that states are using untested drugs in their executions.

The problems surrounding Lockett's execution come amid a wider debate over the legality of the three-drug method and whether its use violates guarantees in the US constitution "against cruel and unusual punishment".

Lockett was sentenced to death for the 1999 shooting of a 19-year-old woman.

'Botched'

Lockett writhed and shook uncontrollably after the drugs were administered, witnesses said.

"We believe that a vein was blown and the drugs weren't working as they were designed to. The director ordered a halt to the execution," Oklahoma Department of Corrections spokesman Jerry Massie said.

But Lockett's lawyer, David Autry, questioned the remarks, insisting his client "had large arms and very prominent veins," according to the Associated Press.

The prisoner was moving his arms and legs and straining his head, mumbling "as if he was trying to talk", Courtney Francisco, a local journalist present at the execution, told the BBC.

Prison officials pulled a curtain across the view of witnesses when it became apparent that something had gone wrong.

"It was a horrible thing to witness. This was totally botched," Mr Autry said.

Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin said in a statement that she had ordered a full review of the state's execution procedures.

Calls for investigation

Fellow inmate Charles Warner, 46, had been scheduled to be put to death in the same room two hours later in a rare double execution.

Warner's lawyer, Madeline Cohen, who witnessed Lockett's execution, said he had been "tortured to death" and called for an investigation.

"The state must disclose complete information about the drugs, including their purity, efficacy, source and the results of any testing," she said.‏

Warner was convicted of the 1997 murder and rape of an 11-month-old girl.

Continue reading the main story

Lockett's last moments

• 18:23 - Sedative administered
• 18:33 - Doctor declares Lockett unconscious
• 18:36 - Lockett is restless and a doctor discovers a ruptured vein
• Curtain drawn
• Execution halted
• 19:06 - Lockett dies from a heart attack

All times local - Central Time

He and Lockett had unsuccessfully challenged an Oklahoma state law that blocks officials from revealing - even in court - the identities of the companies supplying the drugs.

The state maintains the law is necessary to protect the suppliers from legal action and harassment.

Lockett and Warner argued they needed to know the names of the suppliers in order to ensure the quality of the drugs that would be used to kill them and to be certain that they had been obtained legally.

In March, a trial court ruled in their favour, but the state's highest court reversed that decision last week, ruling that "the plaintiffs have no more right to the information they requested than if they were being executed in the electric chair".

US states have encountered increasing problems in obtaining the drugs for lethal injections, amid an embargo by European pharmaceutical firms.

Some have turned to untried combinations of drugs or have sought to obtain the drugs custom-made from compounding pharmacies.

The triple-drug cocktail, first used in Texas in 1982, has become the standard execution method in the US.

It was presented as a more humane replacement for lethal gas and the electric chair, but critics of the three-drug protocol say it could cause unnecessary suffering.

Several US states that still have the death penalty have since switched to a single-drug method.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Thailand to hold fresh election

30 April 2014 Last updated at 11:17

Thailand has announced that it will hold a fresh election, after the Constitutional Court invalidated its 2 February poll last month.

The new polls will be conducted on 20 July, in an agreement reached between the Election Commission (EC) and the prime minister, officials said.

PM Yingluck Shinawatra called the snap election in February amid major anti-government protests in Bangkok.

Her ruling party was expected to win, but the opposition boycotted the polls.

The protesters disrupted voting, meaning the election was not completed. The court said the vote was unconstitutional because it did not take place on the same day across the country.

Political paralysis

"We agreed that the most suitable election day is 20 July and the EC will draft the royal decree for the prime minister to submit to the king for royal endorsement," Election Commission secretary Puchong Nutrawong said.

It is not clear yet whether the anti-government movement will attempt to sabotage this election or whether the main opposition Democrat Party will take part.

Thailand's political system has been paralysed since anti-government protests began in Bangkok in November 2013.

At the height of the demonstrations, protesters shut down key road junctions and blockaded government ministries. Numbers have fallen since, however.

The protesters, who are mainly urban and middle class, want Ms Yingluck's government replaced by an unelected "people's council".

They allege that her brother, ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra, controls her administration and say money politics have corrupted Thailand's democracy.

Ms Yingluck and Pheu Thai remain very popular in rural areas, however, leaving Thailand deeply polarised.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

IMF: Russia experiencing recession

30 April 2014 Last updated at 11:41

Russia is "experiencing recession now" because of damage caused by the Ukraine crisis, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said.

The fund, which cut its growth forecast for Russia, said $100bn (£59bn) would leave the country this year.

Antonio Spilimbergo, the IMF's mission chief in Moscow, said international sanctions were damaging the economy and threatening investment.

Russia's economy contracted in the first three months of this year.

But Mr Spilimbergo said he expected that to continue.

"If you understand by recession two quarters of negative economic growth, then Russia is experiencing recession now," he added.

"The difficult situation and especially the uncertainty surrounding the geopolitical situation... and escalation of sanctions are weighing very negatively on the investment climate."

The IMF cut its 2014 growth forecast for Russia to 0.2% from 1.3% and said it expected the country's economy to grow by only 1% next year.

Credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's has already cut Russia's rating to one notch above "junk" status.

And last week Russia's central bank raised its key interest rate from 7% to 7.5% in an effort to defend the value of the rouble, which has lost more than 8% against the dollar so far this year.

Investor flight

Mr Spilimbergo said the interest rate rise would reduce the rate of inflation, but that it would not be enough to prevent consumer prices rising more than 6% in 2014.

Russia itself has expressed concerns about investors moving money out of the country amid tensions and sanctions over its intervention in Ukraine.

Its central bank said $64bn had left the country in the first quarter of the year - more than the capital outflows registered for the whole of 2013.

The investor flight has partly been prompted by US and EU sanctions targeting a number of Russian companies and high-profile business figures, including those close to President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian government has retaliated with a warning that the sanctions could be damaging for Western energy firms.

US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has said the sanctions have so far caused "a quite substantial deterioration in Russia's already weak economy".

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Heavy security as Iraq goes to polls

30 April 2014 Last updated at 11:56

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Baghdad: "The capital is in lockdown"

There is heavy security across Iraq as the country votes in its first parliamentary elections since US troops withdrew three years ago.

Polling began at 07:00 local time (04:00 GMT) and closes at 18:00.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is hoping to win a third term in office amid a growing insurgency in the west of the country.

Iraq is experiencing its worst unrest since 2008, with 160 people killed in the past week alone.

Some 22 million Iraqis are registered to vote, with almost 50,000 polling stations open across the country.

The BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Baghdad says the streets of the capital are almost empty because it is in lockdown.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Iraq's government sees its ability to conduct these elections successfully as a test of the credibility of democracy here and of the ability of the security forces to deliver enough safety to get the vote out.

In Baghdad that means a huge security operation, with the airport and main highways in and out of the capital closed. There's so little traffic that birdsong can be heard in the city centre and children are playing football on main roads.

In the capital - so far - it's working. We have no reports of fatalities in Baghdad at 13:00 local time. There have been deaths elsewhere but people are coming out to vote. In what quantities we can't yet judge.

He says that many of the voters will have to go on foot - the authorities have banned cars for the day in an effort to stop suicide attacks and car bombers.

Some voters face multiple searches before being allowed into polling stations.

The first incidence of violence reported on Wednesday was in the town of Dibis, near Kirkuk in the north, where police said a roadside bomb had killed two women walking to a polling station.

Wave of attacks

While it is difficult to predict the outcome of the poll, Mr Maliki is still expected to be a pivotal figure in the coalition-building process which will follow the election.

His State of Law alliance, a Shia coalition, has largely avoided the fragmentation seen by other political blocs since the last election.

Our correspondent says that a result should not be expected any time soon. It took nearly 10 months to assemble a government after the last election, he says, and it is likely to take quite a lot of horse trading this time.

There were some queues reported at Baghdad polling stations early on, although the voting appeared to slow later in the morning.

Continue reading the main story

At the scene

Unlike in the rest of Iraq, the election campaign here has not been badly marred by violence. The Kurdish region has been enjoying an unprecedented degree of self rule, stability and economic prosperity since the fall of Saddam Hussein.

But it is not all rosy. Kurdish parties failed to form a government after last September's regional elections, from which no single party emerged as an outright winner.

For the Kurds these national elections will be another chance to assert their role in the politics of Iraq. As two voters in traditional Kurdish clothing cast their ballots early in the morning, they told me they were voting for a democratic and federal Iraq. For them that means significant representation for the Kurds in the central government and recognition for the distinct Kurdish identity.

Baghdad voter Essam Shukr, whose son died in a suicide bombing last month, told Associated Press: "We want a better life for our sons and grandchildren who cannot even go to playing areas or amusement parks because of the bad security situation. We want a better life for all Iraqis."

Abu Ashraf, who voted in west Baghdad, told Agence France-Presse: "It is necessary to change most of the politicians because they have done nothing, and they spend years on private conflicts."

The campaign has so far been a violent one, with 50 people killed on Monday when soldiers, police and overseas citizens cast their votes.

One bomb struck a Kurdish political rally in the town Khanaqin, killing 30 people and wounding at least 50 others.

On Friday, at least 31 people were killed as a series of blasts targeted a Shia election rally in Baghdad. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - an al-Qaeda offshoot - said it had carried out the attacks.

However, the BBC's Rafid Jaboori says he has travelled to various places in Iraq over the past few days and people have been telling him the violence will not put them off voting, particularly in the Shia heartland of the south and the autonomous Kurdistan region.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

What you need to know about the election - in 60 seconds

More than 9,000 candidates are competing for 328 parliamentary seats.

There will be no voting in parts of Sunni-dominated Anbar province, where security forces still battle Islamist and tribal militants for control of the provincial capital Ramadi and nearby Falluja.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Turkey to seek cleric's extradition

29 April 2014 Last updated at 12:08

Turkey is to start extradition proceedings against US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.

Mr Gulen, a former ally of the prime minister, has been accused by Mr Erdogan of using his supporters to try to topple him.

The cleric denies mounting a campaign against him.

Turkey's government has faced a string of corruption scandals and rights groups accuse it of authoritarianism.

Speaking at parliament after meeting with deputies from his Justice and Development Party (AKP) party on Tuesday, Mr Erdogan confirmed the extradition process "will begin", reports say.

The Turkish PM was speaking hours after an interview with US broadcaster PBS, in which he said he hoped the US would deport Mr Gulen and send him back to Turkey.

It was his first interview with foreign media since his party claimed victory in local elections last month.

Mr Gulen, 74, has lived in self-imposed exile in the US state of Pennsylvania since 1997.

He has many supporters in the police and judiciary, and has denounced moves to shut down an investigation into corruption allegations levelled against several of the prime minister's allies.

His teachings have inspired the Hizmet ("Service") movement, which is believed to have millions of followers spread across over 150 countries.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Olympic preparations 'worst ever'

Preparations for the 2016 Rio Olympics are the "worst" ever seen, according to International Olympic Committee vice-president John Coates.

The Australian said the IOC has taken "unprecedented" action by placing experts in the local organising committee to ensure the Games go ahead.

"The situation is critical on the ground," he said. 

The news comes as Brazil faces a race to be ready in time for the Fifa World Cup, which starts in 44 days.

"No-one is able to give answers at the moment"

John Coates IOC vice-president

Coates, who has been involved in the Olympics for nearly 40 years, has made six trips to Rio as part of the commission responsible for overseeing the preparations.

He added that one of the experts embedded in the local committee was a construction project manager.

"The IOC has adopted a more hands-on role," said Coates. "It is unprecedented for the IOC but there is no Plan B. We are going to Rio."

He said that, in his opinion, this was "a worse situation" than in 2004, when there were concerns about preparations for the Athens Games.

"It's the worst that I've experienced," he added. "We have become very concerned. They are not ready in many, many ways. We have to make it happen and that is the IOC approach. You can't walk away from this."

Organisers of the 2004 Athens Games were warned several times by the IOC about their preparations, with then IOC president Juan Samaranch even threatening to take the Olympics away at one stage

Preparations for the 2004 Athens Games were marred by delays in construction and service delivery, but the venues and infrastructure was ultimately delivered in time.

Coates said that construction has not even started on some venues in Rio, which will host South America's first Olympics, while infrastructure is significantly delayed and the city has "social issues that need to be addressed".

He added that Rio organisers have the same number of staff - 600 - as London did at the same stage in their preparations for 2012, but did not have the necessary experience.

Coates, who was involved in the organisation of the Sydney 2000 Games as head of the Australian Olympic Committee. said it was proving difficult for the IOC to get the answers they needed.

"No-one is able to give answers at the moment," he said.

"Can they use the car parks in the village for recovery centres? What will be the time to take from this venue to this venue?

"All of those things, they're being fobbed off."

Coates also claimed that only two people were working in Rio's test event department with tournaments scheduled to start this year.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Deadly mortar attack in Damascus

29 April 2014 Last updated at 10:29

Twelve people have been killed and dozens more wounded in a mortar attack on a technical institute in central Damascus, Syrian state media say.

Four mortar shells struck the mainly Shia Shaghour neighbourhood of the city, police told the Sana news agency.

Two of the shells hit the Badr al-Din al-Hussein technical institute.

The attack comes a day after President Bashar al-Assad registered to stand for re-election defying calls to step down as a way of ending Syria's civil war.

The president's forces have pushed back rebels from many of their strongholds around the capital, but residents say they have responded by increasing the number of rocket and mortar attacks in the centre of the city.

"Twelve citizens were killed and 50 others wounded by terrorists who targeted the Shaghour neighbourhood," Sana reported.

The word "terrorists" is used by the Syrian authorities to describe all those seeking to depose President Assad's government.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has also reported the mortar attack, saying that the number of fatalities is expected to rise.

It says that the Badr al-Din al-Hussein technical institute is an Islamic law studies centre, with students as young as 14.

More than 150,000 people are believed to have been killed in the three-year civil war.

Millions of people have fled their homes as fighting shows no sign of easing. The UN says that almost 3.5 million civilians are being denied vital aid, including medicine and medical care.

A group of prominent lawyers and academics has urged the UN in an open letter to deliver aid into Syria with or without the government's consent.

The letter, signed by 35 legal experts, says permission for aid is being arbitrarily withheld.

A UN resolution adopted in February called for all sides in the conflict to allow unrestricted humanitarian access.

Since March 2011, Syria has descended into civil war as rebel brigades - including Islamists and jihadists linked to al-Qaeda - battle with government forces and among themselves.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

'Iron Curtain' sanctions rile Russia

29 April 2014 Last updated at 12:09

Russia has condemned new US and EU sanctions that have been imposed over Moscow's actions in Ukraine.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said "Iron Curtain"-style US sanctions could harm its hi-tech sector.

Moscow also said the EU should be ashamed of extending its sanctions and was "under Washington's thumb".

Russia repeated it had no intention of invading east Ukraine, where pro-Russia activists have seized buildings in more than a dozen towns.

'Washington's bidding'

Mr Ryabkov told the online newspaper Gazeta.ru that the US sanctions were "a blow to our hi-tech enterprises and industries".

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Russia's claims of an "unprecedented" Nato military build-up on its borders are part of an ongoing information war.

Nato insists its deployments are simply to reassure worried members. Company-size groups of around 150 US paratroopers are being deployed for exercises in Poland and the three Baltic republics. So that's about 600 men. Around a dozen additional fast jets have been deployed to Poland and to reinforce air patrols in the Baltic air-space.

The three Baltic republics - all Nato members - have no jet fighters of their own. And to cap Nato's "build-up" a small flotilla of mine-hunters - almost as small a vessel as you can get in naval terms - have been sent to the Baltic Sea.

The US has reinforced its naval presence in the Black Sea, but again this is a question of showing presence. By contrast Russia has some 40,000 armoured and mechanised troops on Ukraine's border, which Nato says are ready to advance at short notice.

He added: "This is a revival of a system created in 1949 when Western countries essentially lowered an 'Iron Curtain', cutting off supplies of hi-tech goods to the USSR and other countries."

A Russian foreign ministry statement said the EU was "doing Washington's bidding with new unfriendly gestures towards Russia".

It added: "If that is how someone in Brussels is hoping to stabilise the situation in Ukraine, then it is a clear indication of a complete lack of understanding of the interior political situation in the country... Are you not ashamed?"

On Monday, the US announced new sanctions targeting seven Russian individuals and 17 companies which Washington says are linked to President Vladimir Putin's "inner circle".

On Tuesday, the European Union published a fresh list of 15 individuals facing travel bans and asset freezes.

The European Union's list includes Gen Valery Gerasimov, chief of the Russian General Staff, and Lt Gen Igor Sergun, identified as the head of the Russian military intelligence agency, the GRU.

It also includes Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak and pro-Russian separatist leaders in Crimea and in the eastern Ukrainian cities of Luhansk and Donetsk.

The BBC's Matthew Price in Brussels says this list does not appear to follow the US line in targeting President Putin's associates, but rather those involved in events on the ground in Ukraine.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

The most significant effect of the sanctions so far has been on business confidence"

End Quote

Vyacheslav Ponomarev, the self-styled "mayor" of Sloviansk, which is controlled by pro-Russian activists, said the imposition of the sanctions "does not aid dialogue but only aggravates the situation".

The activists continue to detain some 40 people, including seven military observers linked to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe who were seized last week.

The US and EU first imposed visa bans and asset freezes on a number of senior Russian officials and companies after Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine last month.

In his interview, Mr Ryabkov insisted that Moscow was "not at all inclined to repeat the so-called Crimea scenario in south-eastern Ukraine. There are no grounds to fear this".

On Monday, the US said that Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had also told American counterpart Chuck Hagel in a phone call that "Moscow has no plans to invade Ukraine".

Mr Shoigu announced that Russian troops had returned to their "permanent positions" after conducting military exercises on the border with Ukraine.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Sarah Rainsford saw pro-Russians clash with united Ukraine protesters

However, Nato said on Tuesday it had "no information that indicates a withdrawal of Russian troops from the Ukrainian border".

Moscow has expressed concern over an "unprecedented" increase in US and Nato military activity near Russia's borders.

Name	Position	Sanctioned by
Putin's 'inner circle'
Gennady Timchenko	Founder of Gunvor (oil and energy market trading)	US
Arkady Rotenberg and Boris Rotenberg	Co-owners of SMP Bank and SGM Group	US
Yuri Kovalchuk	Largest single shareholder of Bank Rossiya	US
Igor Sechin	Head of Rosneft (petroleum company)	US
Government officials
Sergei Ivanov	Chief of staff for Presidential Executive Office	US
Oleg Belaventsev	Russian presidential envoy to Crimea	US and EU
Vladimir Yakunin	Chairman of Russian Railways	US
Igor Sergun	Director of GRU	US and EU
Valery Gerasimov	Chief of General Staff of Russian Armed Forces	EU
Vladimir Kozhin	Head of administration	US
Viktor Ivanov	Director of Federal Drug Control Service	US
Sergei Naryshkin	Speaker of the lower house of parliament	US and EU
Vladislav Surkov	Presidential aide and election adviser	US and EU
Dmitry Rogozin	Deputy Prime Minister	US and EU
Sergei Glazyev	Adviser on Ukraine policy	US and EU
Sergei Mironov	Member of Russian Parliament	US
Dmitry Kozak	Deputy Prime Minister	US and EU
Ludmila Shvetsova	Deputy Chair State Duma	EU
Sergei Chemezov	Director of Rostec (state high-technologies division)	US
Others
Bank Rossiya	Russian bank	US
Dmitry Kiselyov	State television news anchor	EU

The US has sent 600 troops to Poland and the Baltic states. Washington says it has deployed the extra troops to reassure Nato allies.

Mr Shoigu condemned the US and Nato for "provocative" statements about the need to "contain" Russia.

In other developments on Tuesday:

• The EU announces it will meet Russia and Ukraine on Friday to discuss gas supplies
• The mayor of Kharkiv, Gennady Kernes, is stable in hospital in Israel, where he was flown after being shot in the back on Monday
• Forum begins in London to start process of trying to recover stolen Ukrainian assets
• German government distances itself from ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder after he reportedly partied with Mr Putin in St Petersburg on Monday

Are you in the region? Email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk adding 'Ukraine crisis' in the subject heading and including your contact details.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Deadly tornadoes devastate US states

28 April 2014 Last updated at 10:58

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Whole buildings have been torn apart, as Wendy Urquhart reports

At least 17 people have been killed by tornadoes as a huge storm system swept across the central and southern United States.

Sixteen of the victims were in several suburbs of Little Rock in Arkansas, officials said.

Continue reading the main story

There's just really nothing there anymore. We're probably going to have to start all over again"

End Quote Frank Mitchell Vilonia schools chief

One other person was killed in the town of Quapaw in the north-east of Oklahoma where officials said many buildings were badly damaged.

Tornadoes also struck in Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa and Missouri.

President Barack Obama, on a trip to the Philippines, offered his deepest condolences to those affected and said federal emergency officials would be on the ground to help: "Your country will be there to help you recover and rebuild, as long as it takes."

'Mass casualty situation'

Most of the casualties were in suburbs west and north of Little Rock. The Arkansas Department of Emergency Management said 10 people died in Faulkner County, five in Pulaski County and one in White County.

Mayflower and Vilonia, two small towns in Faulkner County, appear to have borne the brunt of the damage. In Vilonia, the County Sheriff's office spoke of a "mass casualty situation".

The Arkansas tornado touched down about 10 miles (16km) west of the city of Little Rock and left a 40 mile (65km) path of destruction.

It is said to have passed through several northern suburbs - including Mayflower where a witness described a twister half a mile wide crossing Interstate 40 on Sunday evening, the National Weather Service said.

Congressman Tim Griffin told Reuters news agency an "entire neighbourhood of 50 homes or so" in Faulkner County had been destroyed, with many "completely gone except the foundation".

Many homes and businesses, including a new secondary school worth $14m (£8.3m), were left in ruins in Vilonia after the storm.

"There's just really nothing there anymore. We're probably going to have to start all over again," said Vilonia schools chief Frank Mitchell after inspecting the wreckage of the school.

First reports from Oklahoma said two people had died in Quapaw but officials later revised the figure down to one. Another six people were injured.

Quapaw, which has a population of about 900, was badly hit by the tornado, Ottawa County Emergency Management director Joe Dan Morgan said.

"Looks like about half of town got extensive damage as well as the fire department," he said.

The tornado then headed northwards into the state of Kansas where it struck Baxter Springs, injuring several people and causing further damage.

Over the weekend, storms struck the eastern part of the US, killing a child in North Carolina.

Are you in the US? Are you affected by the tornados? Get in touch by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with the subject title 'US tornados'. Or send your photos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Aleppo gripped by barrel bomb fears

28 April 2014 Last updated at 11:08 By Ian Pannell BBC News, Aleppo

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

BBC crew witnesses devastation of air bombardment on Aleppo

A BBC team has witnessed the devastating effects of air bombardment on Syrian civilians after gaining rare access to rebel-held areas of Aleppo.

Emergency rescue teams told the BBC the city was living in "danger and fear".

Thousands of people are reported to have been killed or maimed in a campaign of aerial bombardment in northern Syria this year.

With cameraman Darren Conway, we were the first Western broadcasters in rebel-held Aleppo this year.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

If these... weapons managed to hit a military target, it would be sheer luck"

End Quote Sarah Leah Whitson Human Rights Watch

Um Yahya wept. With two small children at her side, the young mother was standing in what until that morning had been her home. It was now a wreck: a tangle of rubble and cables and dust, with half the ceiling missing and parts of the building completely razed.

"My husband was sitting at breakfast. We heard the first blast: it sounded far away. But I asked him to go and get the kids off the street. And suddenly it hit us."

Consumed by shock and grief, she described the moment the barrel bomb landed on her street. "It was as if someone picked me up and threw me inside".

Her husband, who had gone to find their children, was badly injured and had been whisked off to hospital. Her parents have fled to Turkey and she is now alone with her children. "I have nowhere to go," she said. "I just want my husband and nothing else."

'I am so scared'

Outside, the emergency rescue team of the Civil Defence Force (CDF) scoured through the rubble. With little training and limited equipment from Britain, America and elsewhere, theirs is a task as grim as it is dangerous.

When there is an attack on residential areas, they race in to search for survivors and - as often as not - to recover bodies.

In the last year, eight crew members have been killed as they brave bombs and bullets to rescue others.

Khalid Al Heju, the head of the CDF in Aleppo, says it is their responsibility to help those who have no one else to turn to.

"Our humanity urges us to do this job, to save people from under the rubble and take them to hospital," he says.

But he admits to living with fear, like so many others in this battered city. "Yes, I am scared, I am so scared. The same position is often hit more than one time.

"This is creating the most danger and fear for us."

Like the people they save, they face attacks from the land and air.

'Indiscriminate, dumb weapons'

Since last September Aleppo, Syria's largest city and its former economic capital, has been at the receiving end of what the pressure group Human Rights Watch (HRW) calls "an indiscriminate and unlawful air war against civilians by the Syrian government". Last month HRW produced a study into the scale of the attacks.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Barrel bombs are just what their name implies - large cylindrical metal containers filled with explosive and shrapnel that are typically rolled out of the door of a helicopter. They were initially dropped from a low altitude, which afforded a reasonable degree of accuracy, but the possession of portable surface-to-air missiles by the rebels has forced the helicopters higher and any accuracy has disappeared.

The barrel bombs have become significantly larger over time and on occasion have had additional tanks welded to them with suggestions that these might contain inflammable fuel, additional explosives or even possibly chemicals, such as chlorine.

Despite being rudimentary weapons, their destructive power is considerable - though they are only one part of a Syrian government's arsenal that has been employed against civilian areas - and their use could well constitute a war crime.

HRW says the use of barrel bombs has "terrorised" Aleppo in recent months.

The bombs are crude devices, often made from oil drums or large gas bottles, packed with explosives and bits of metal, that are literally tossed over the side of helicopters.

The devastation they cause and the fear they instil has forced tens of thousands of people to flee the city this year, according to charities and NGOs working with displaced families.

"Satellite photos and witness accounts show the brutality unleashed on parts of Aleppo," according to Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

"If these indiscriminate, dumb weapons managed to hit a military target, it would be sheer luck," she says.

In a rare show of unity over Syria, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution in February that called for an immediate end to "all attacks against civilians, as well as the indiscriminate employment of weapons in populated areas, including shelling and aerial bombardment, such as the use of barrel bombs".

The Violations Documentation Center, an opposition monitoring group, claims nearly 700 civilians have been killed across Aleppo province by warplanes and barrel bombs since the UN resolution was agreed.

The resolution also called for an immediate end to all forms of violence and called on both sides to cease attacking and besieging civilians as a tactic of war. That has also not happened.

President Bashar al-Assad insists his military is fighting to protect civilians, targeting what he calls "terrorists and foreign extremists". The armed opposition has also been accused of human rights violations and there have have been many cases where the rebels have killed civilians through bombardment, but on a very different scale.

World's 'indifference'

We have been coming to Aleppo since the battle began here, nearly two years ago.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Sigrid Kaag, who is overseeing the elimination of Syria's chemical weapons: "The biggest bulk of the chemical weapons material is removed but not yet destroyed"

The report of war is the soundtrack for a city that is a shabby imitation of its former self.

Whole neighbourhoods lie empty; the facades of buildings have been ripped off, piles of rubble lie where homes used to stand, and roads are blocked by the charred remains of buses that protect passers-by from the scopes of snipers.

Even in the still of night, in a city consumed by darkness, the war grinds on.

The battle for Aleppo sharply escalated a few weeks ago as different rebel groups launched a surprise joint attack on government positions.

Abu Bakri is a leader of the Abu Amara Brigades, one of the groups on the frontline, and claims the bombing has galvanised the rebels.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

People here started to hate both sides. We don't want the regime forces or the FSA; [we] just want to live in peace"

End Quote Feras English teacher in Aleppo

"The regime has been threatening citizens with barrel bombs and airstrikes. It made all the armed factions in the city come together and form a joint operations room," he says.

"We are learning from our mistakes and trying to be more organised with weapons we have and use in better way."

As many as 70% of Aleppo's residents are thought to have abandoned the city to the two warring groups. "Life here totally sucks", says Feras, a young English teacher living in one of the neighbourhoods that has been attacked. He was afraid to give his family name.

Continue reading the main story

Aleppo facts

• Major industrial centre
• Population of 2.3 million in 2005
• Mainly Sunni Muslim
• Largest Christian population in Syria
• Aleppo Old City is a Unesco World Heritage site
• Became key battleground in July 2012

"It isn't a life: [we are] afraid of shells falling on our heads day or night. We don't know if we go this way, if it's safe or not."

There are no signs of an end to this war, despite President Assad's reported prediction it will be over by the end of the year.

A trickle of aid makes its way across the border but Syrians feel shunned by what they see as the indifference of the outside world. They are defenceless in the face of incessant attacks, caught between two sides determined to fight to the bitter end and with little hope of either respite or relief.

Feras supported the revolution when it began. People used to talk about freedom and democracy in Syria. Today the talk is only of bombs and bullets, of deprivation and despair.

"Many armed groups here are stealing houses, not doing good to people. That's why people here started to hate both sides. We don't want the regime forces or the FSA; [we] just want to live in peace."

Are you from Aleppo or have you visited the city? Do you have videos of the city before the civil war? You can email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line "Aleppo".

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

East Ukraine mayor shot and wounded

28 April 2014 Last updated at 12:08

The mayor of Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine has been shot and critically wounded amid ongoing unrest in the region.

Hennadiy Kernes was reportedly shot in the back by unknown gunmen while out jogging, and is said to be undergoing emergency surgery in hospital.

Monday also saw pro-Russian separatists seize a local government building in Kostyantynivka in eastern Ukraine.

The US and EU are preparing to impose fresh sanctions against Russian individuals and companies.

Western nations accuse Moscow of supporting separatist gunmen who are occupying official buildings in cities across eastern Ukraine.

Mr Kernes used to be a supporter of the former pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych. He then dropped his support for the ousted president in favour of a united Ukraine.

He has been described as a "mini-oligarch" - a successful businessman wealthy enough to launch a career in politics.

Gunmen wearing uniforms with no insignias moved into the local administrative building in Kostyantynivka on Monday morning and raised the flag of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk Republic".

They were also reported to be in control of the police station in the town, which is located between the town of Sloviansk and the city of Donetsk, both also controlled by separatists.

The separatists continue to hold seven Western military observers who were seized last week in the region.

Are you in Ukraine? How has the unrest affected you? You can email us your experiences at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk, using the subject line 'Ukraine'.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Death sentence for Brotherhood chief

28 April 2014 Last updated at 12:13

A judge at a mass trial in Egypt has recommended the death penalty for 683 people - including Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammed Badie.

The defendants faced charges over an attack on a police station in Minya in 2013 in which a policeman was killed.

However, the judge also commuted to life terms 492 death sentences out of 529 passed in March in a separate case.

Also on Monday, a court banned a youth group that helped ignite the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

The decision passed in Cairo to outlaw the April 6 pro-democracy movement was based on a complaint that accused the group of "tarnishing the image" of Egypt and colluding with foreign parties.

Continue reading the main story

The verdict hit waiting relatives like a body blow. Several women collapsed on the ground, and had to be carried away. A man stood weeping in front of a line of riot police, protesting that his brother was an innocent man.

One women told us she had five family members among the almost 700 men who received a preliminary death sentence. From time to time she slapped her own face, in a gesture of anguish.

Confusion added to the torment for those whose loved ones were among 529 men in a separate mass trial. Thirty-seven life sentences were upheld, and the rest commuted to life imprisonment. In the chaos outside the court relatives could not find out which men had been condemned to hang.

Ahmed Maher, the group's leader, was sentenced to three years in prison in December for violating a law that bans all but police-sanctioned protests.

'Where is the justice?'

The cases and speed of the mass trial hearings have drawn widespread criticism from human rights groups and the UN.

The trials took just hours each and the court prevented defence lawyers from presenting their case, according to Human Right Watch.

The sentences have been referred to the Grand Mufti - Egypt's top Islamic authority - for approval or rejection, a step which correspondents say is usually considered a formality. A final decision will be issued in June.

The BBC's Orla Guerin says relatives collapsed in grief after hearing the verdict. A large crowd chanted: "Where is the justice?"

Authorities have cracked down harshly on Islamists since President Mohammed Morsi, who belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood, was removed by the military in July.

Hundreds have been killed and thousands arrested.

The verdict was the first against Mr Badie in the several trials he faces on various charges along with Mr Morsi himself and other Brotherhood leaders.

'Farcical'

Of the 683 sentenced on Monday, only about 50 are in detention but the others have a right to a retrial if they hand themselves in.

The group were accused of involvement in the murder and attempted murder of policemen in Minya province on 14 August, the day police killed hundreds of Muslim Brotherhood supporters in clashes in Cairo.

Defence lawyers boycotted the last session, branding it "farcical."

The final judgement on the sentencing of the 529 Muslim Brotherhood supporters accused of attacking another police station in the same province on the same day means 37 will now face the death penalty.

Defence lawyer Khaled Elkomy said 60% of those defendants, including teachers and doctors, have evidence that "proves they were not present" when that station was attacked, a statement released by human rights group Avaaz said.

Last month, the UN human rights commissioner condemned the two trials and said they had breached international human rights law.

A spokesman for Navi Pillay said the "cursory mass trial" was "rife with procedural irregularities."

The government had defended the court's handling of the first mass case, insisting that the sentences were passed only "after careful study" and were subject to appeal.

At least 1,000 opponents of the military-installed regime have been sentenced since December. As well as the death sentences, the jail terms passed range from six months to life.

The authorities have designated the Brotherhood a terrorist group, blaming it for a series of bombings and attacks. The group has strongly denied the accusations.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Egypt court jails Morsi supporters

27 April 2014 Last updated at 00:54

A court in Egypt has sentenced 11 supporters of deposed President Mohammed Morsi to prison terms ranging from five to 88 years for rioting.

The defendants were arrested during a wave of protests that followed the ousting of Mr Morsi last year.

In March more than 500 Morsi supporters were sentenced to death in the same court in Minya, south of Cairo.

The case comes amid a continuing crackdown against Islamists by Egypt's military-backed government.

Five of the 11 people sentenced on Saturday were tried in absentia.

The charges against all of the defendants were linked to demonstrations in the town of Samallout triggered by the violent crackdown on pro-Morsi sit-ins in Cairo.

Hundreds of people died and thousands were wounded in the operation by security forces.

All those convicted on Saturday are able to appeal against the verdicts.

Mr Morsi was ousted by the military last July following mass street protests against his government. He is facing four separate trials.

There has since been a severe crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood group, as well as on other activists seen as hostile to the military-backed government.

The Brotherhood has been declared a terrorist organisation and authorities have punished any public show of support for it.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

South Korean PM resigns over ferry

27 April 2014 Last updated at 06:01

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Chung Hong-won said resignation was "the right thing to do"

South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won has resigned amid criticism of the government's handling of the sinking of a passenger ferry.

He said the "cries of the families of those missing still keep me up at night". Mr Chung will stay in his post until the disaster is under control.

The Sewol ferry with 476 people aboard - most of them students and teachers - sank off South Korea on 16 April.

Officials have confirmed 187 died, but scores are missing presumed drowned.

Continue reading the main story

On behalf of the government, I apologise for many problems from the prevention of the accident to the early handling of the disaster"

End Quote South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won

Furious relatives have repeatedly criticised what they see as the slowness of the recovery operation.

"The right thing for me to do is to take responsibility and resign as a person who is in charge of the cabinet," Mr Chung said in a brief televised statement.

"On behalf of the government, I apologise for many problems from the prevention of the accident to the early handling of the disaster."

He added: "There have been so many varieties of irregularities that have continued in every corner of our society and practices that have gone wrong. I hope these deep-rooted evils get corrected this time and this kind of accident never happens again."

President Park Geun-hye accepted her prime minister's resignation but did not set a last day in office. The PM would leave his post once the ferry disaster was under control, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

An opposition party spokesman described it as "thoroughly irresponsible" and a "cowardly evasion" of responsibility.

The day after the disaster, Mr Chung was booed and someone threw a water bottle at him when he visited grieving parents.

Divers were battling atrocious weather conditions on Sunday as they tried to retrieve more bodies trapped in the sunken ferry.

A coastguard spokesman said heavy seas whipped up by strong winds were badly complicating recovery efforts.

"The situation is very difficult due to the weather, but we are continuing search efforts, using the occasional calmer periods," the spokesman said, adding that 93 divers would take part in Sunday's operation.

All 15 crew members involved in the navigation of the ferry are now in custody, facing criminal negligence charges.

Reasons unclear

On Friday, divers found 48 bodies of students wearing lifejackets in a single room on the vessel meant to accommodate just over 30 people.

The group was crammed into a dormitory and all were wearing lifejackets, a South Korean Navy officer said.

The presence of so many victims in the cabin suggested many had run into the room when the ship tilted, correspondents said.

The reason for the disaster is still unclear.

But prosecutors are said to be investigating whether modifications made to the ferry made it more unstable.

Factors under consideration include a turn made at about the time the ship began to list, as well as wind, ocean currents and the freight it was carrying.

Reports have emerged indicating that the ship's sleeping cabins were refitted some time between 2012 and 2013, which experts say may have inadvertently affected the balance of the vessel.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Vatican declares two popes saints

27 April 2014 Last updated at 11:34

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Pope Francis declares John Paul II and John XXIII as new saints

Huge crowds gathered in Vatican City to see a historic ceremony where two popes - John Paul II and John XXIII - were declared saints.

A Mass co-celebrated by Pope Francis and his predecessor Benedict was watched by roughly one million pilgrims and a vast TV and radio audience.

Nearly 100 foreign delegations attended, including royal dignitaries and heads of state and government.

It is the first time two popes have been canonised at the same time.

Correspondents say the move is being seen as an attempt to unite conservative and reformist camps within the Roman Catholic Church.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

The ancient rite of canonisation unfolded under grey skies in a packed St Peter's Square. In keeping with tradition Pope Francis, was approached and requested to add his two predecessors to the long list of Catholic saints. And at the third time of asking, he granted that request.

Then ornate, silver containers holding holy relics of new saints were shown. A trace of blood from John Paul II, and sliver of skin taken from the body of John XXlll. Both men were hugely influential figures in the story of modern Catholicism.

The Italian Pontiff, John XXlll, is seen very much as a liberal, reforming figure. The Polish Pope, John Paul on the other hand was much more conservative. And their elevation to the sainthood on the same day is being seen as an attempt to draw together the liberal and the more traditional wings of the Church.

In his sermon, Pope Francis paid tribute to the two new saints as "men of courage".

"They were priests, bishops and popes of the 20th Century," he said.

"They lived through the tragic events of that century, but they were not overwhelmed by them. For them, God was more powerful."

Special bus, train and boat services ferried many thousands of pilgrims to Rome for the two-hour ceremony, which started at 10:00 local time (08:00 GMT).

Some had bagged places to sleep overnight as close as possible to St Peter's Square, hoping to be among the first in when it opened to the public.

Giant screens were set up in nearby streets and elsewhere in the city for those unable to get into the square.

"We've been counting down the days. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said one pilgrim from Poland, John Paul II's home country.

"We're already hoarse from singing," he told AFP.

The Vatican confirmed on Saturday that 87-year-old Benedict XVI - now officially titled Pope Emeritus - would make a rare public appearance alongside his successor.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

"We've been counting down the days. This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience"

End Quote Polish pilgrim in Rome

Benedict XVI became the first pope to resign for 600 years when he quit for health reasons a year ago.

Papal politics

The process of saint-making is usually long and very costly.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Cormac Murphy-O'Connor talks about Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II

But John Paul II, whose 26-year reign ended in 2005, has been fast-tracked to sainthood in just nine years.

Many among the huge crowds that gathered as he lay dying cried out "santo subito", which means "sainthood now".

By contrast Italian-born John XXIII, known as the Good Pope after his 1958-63 papacy, had his promotion to full sainthood decided suddenly and very recently by Pope Francis.

The BBC's David Willey in Rome says there was a political dimension to this.

By canonising both John XXIII - the pope who set off the reform movement - and John Paul II - the pope who applied the brakes - Francis has skilfully deflected any possible criticism that he could be taking sides.

Are you in Rome? Are you attending the ceremony? Tell us what is happening by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with the subject heading 'Rome'. Or send your photos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fresh bid to free Ukraine observers

27 April 2014 Last updated at 11:52

A delegation from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe is heading to Sloviansk in Ukraine to try to secure the release of military observers seized by pro-Russian gunmen.

The eight monitors and five others were captured in the eastern city on Friday.

The militia continues to occupy official buildings in a dozen eastern cities, defying the government in Kiev.

This comes as the US and EU are preparing new sanctions against Russia, accusing it of destabilising Ukraine.

US President Barack Obama said the Kremlin had "not lifted a finger" to implement last week's deal in Geneva aimed at easing the crisis.

He stressed it was important to take further steps to send "a message" to Moscow that its destabilising actions Ukraine must stop.

EU diplomats are expected to meet on Monday to discuss fresh sanctions against Russia. The G7 group of economic powers has also agreed to intensify sanctions.

The Kremlin denies supporting the militia in eastern Ukraine.

'Fundamental option'

The OSCE team was sent to Sloviansk after receiving the organisation's mandate to start the negotiation, an OSCE source told the BBC.

The source declined to say how many negotiators were heading to the flashpoint eastern town and whether they would be engaged in direct talks with militia leaders.

Meanwhile, Sloviansk's self-declared mayor Vyacheslav Ponomaryov told Reuters: "When the representatives of the OSCE come, we will talk to them about it (the detained observers)."

Asked about the possibility of exchanging the monitors for militia members held by the Kiev government, he replied: "It's the fundamental option."

Russia, an OSCE member, earlier pledged that it would "take all possible steps" to secure the release of the observers from Germany, Denmark, Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic.

Meanwhile, Kiev accused the militia of using the Europeans as a "human shield".

In a separate development on Sunday, pro-Russian gunmen said they had captured three Ukrainian security services members overnight in eastern Ukraine.

Kiev later confirmed that an unspecified number of its officers had been seized.

Troop movement fears

The West is accusing Moscow of leading a secessionist revolt in eastern Ukraine after it annexed Crimea last month. Russia strongly denies the claim.

On Saturday, US Secretary of State John Kerry "expressed continued concern that Russia's provocative troop movements on Ukraine's border, its support for separatists and its inflammatory rhetoric are undermining stability, security and unity in Ukraine", his office said.

Mr Kerry also "urged Russian support without preconditions for the efforts of the OSCE and the government of Ukraine to liberate the... inspectors and their Ukrainian guides," the statement added.

For his part, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Ukraine must end military operations in the east of the country as part of urgent measures to defuse the crisis.

Ukrainian troops have carried out a number of raids to try to regain control of official buildings.

The crisis began when protesters toppled pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in February and has since plunged East-West relations to their lowest point since the Cold War.

Russia has tens of thousands of troops deployed along its side of the border with Ukraine and has said it will act if its interests are threatened.

On Saturday, the G7 praised Ukraine for acting with restraint in dealing with the "armed bands" that had occupied government buildings.

But the group, which comprises the US, UK, Germany, Japan, France, Canada and Italy, condemned Russia's "increasingly concerning rhetoric and ongoing threatening military manoeuvres."

The G7 said it was committed to intensifying sanctions on Russia, ahead of Ukrainian presidential elections next month.

The US and EU already have asset freezes and travel bans in place targeting a number of Russian individuals and firms accused of playing a part in the annexation of Crimea.

18.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

All S Korea ferry crew 'in custody'

26 April 2014 Last updated at 08:15

All 15 crew members involved in the navigation of the ill-fated South Korean passenger ferry Sewol are now reportedly in custody, facing criminal negligence charges.

The prosecution requested arrest warrants for four additional crew members. Eleven others, including the captain, had been detained earlier.

The ferry with 476 people on board sank off South Korea on 16 April.

Divers have recovered 183 bodies, but scores are missing presumed drowned.

Many of the victims were students and teachers from Danwon high school, south of Seoul.

The ferry sank on a trip from the port of Incheon to the island of Jeju.

'Incredible loss'

In the latest move on Saturday, the arrests warrants were issued for two helmsmen and two members of the steering crew.

Prosecutor Yang Jung-jin, of the joint investigation team, said the four crew members were taken into custody late on Friday, the Associated Press reported.

The 15 crew members are facing charges of criminal negligence and of failing to help passengers, the prosecution says.

On Friday, divers found 48 bodies of students wearing lifejackets in a single room on the vessel meant to accommodate just over 30 people.

The group was crammed into a dormitory and all were wearing lifejackets, a South Korean Navy officer said.

The presence of so many victims in the cabin suggested many had run into the room when the ship tilted, correspondents said.

The head of the operation to retrieve bodies said he had "no idea" how long the ship search would take.

Furious relatives have repeatedly criticised the speed of the recovery operation.

On a visit to Seoul on Friday, US President Barack Obama expressed his condolences for South Korea's "incredible loss" and offered America's solidarity.

"So many were young students with their entire lives ahead of them," Mr Obama said. "I can only imagine what the parents are going through at the moment - the incredible heartache."

The South Korean government has said it is "mobilising all available resources" towards the rescue effort.

The prosecutors are also said to be investigating whether modifications made to the ferry made it more unstable.

Factors under consideration include a turn made around the time the ship began to list, as well as wind, ocean currents and the freight it was carrying.

Reports have emerged indicating that the ship's sleeping cabins were refitted some time between 2012 and 2013, which experts say may have inadvertently affected the balance of the boat.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nato troops die in helicopter crash

26 April 2014 Last updated at 11:15

Five Nato troops have been killed in a helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan, the Nato-led security mission Isaf has said.

Isaf gave no further details, saying in a statement that it was still reviewing the circumstances of the crash.

Such crashes are relatively frequent in Afghanistan, where coalition forces depend heavily on air transport.

Foreign forces are due to hand over responsibility for security to their Afghan counterparts at the end of 2014.

The last major helicopter crash took place in December last year, when seven Americans and four Afghans died.

In August 2011, the Taliban shot down an American Chinook near Kabul, killing 30 Americans and eight Afghans in the deadliest single incident for US troops since the war began.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

G7 'to intensify Russia sanctions'

26 April 2014 Last updated at 10:25

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Natalia Antelava in Donetsk says she saw evidence that some armed men in Sloviansk were from Russia

The G7 group of economic powers has agreed to intensify sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine.

A G7 statement gave no detail of the sanctions, but US officials said they could announce measures by Monday.

The West accuses Russia of leading a secession rebellion in Ukraine's east, months after it annexed Crimea. Moscow denies the allegations.

Meanwhile, negotiators are trying to secure the release of international observers seized by pro-Russia gunmen.

Forces in the city of Sloviansk are still holding the eight European military observers and several Ukrainian army personnel who they seized on Friday and accuse of espionage.

The observers were taking part in a mission linked to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

Jets 'violated air space'

Rebel militia continue to occupy official buildings in a dozen eastern cities, defying the government in Kiev.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

It's all reminiscent of a game of poker, with Moscow intent on raising the stakes and G7 leaders forced to match the Russians step-for-step.

The G7 statement is unequivocal - it blames Russia for failing to implement the Geneva accord that offered a diplomatic path out of this crisis. Accordingly, Moscow has now been hit with more Western economic sanctions, the details to be revealed in a matter of days. The G7 is still holding in reserve broader sanctions against the Russian banking or financial sectors. That would be a last-ditch threat to try to avert further military action against Ukraine.

But with Russian aircraft flying into Ukrainian air-space and Russian ground exercises under way there is an ever present danger of this crisis escalating out of control. Moscow will now be weighing up the likely cost of sanctions, set against the central importance of its strategic interests in Ukraine.

Russia has tens of thousands of troops deployed along its side of the border with Ukraine and has said it would act if its interests were threatened.

The US accused Russian jets of violating Ukraine's airspace on Friday in a further sign of escalation.

Pentagon spokesman Col Steven Warren said Russian aircraft had entered Ukrainian airspace several times in the past 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the G7 praised Ukraine for acting with restraint in dealing with the "armed bands" that had occupied government buildings.

But the group, which includes the US, UK, Germany, Japan, France, Canada and Italy, condemned Russia's "increasingly concerning rhetoric and ongoing threatening military manoeuvres".

"Given the urgency of securing the opportunity for a successful and peaceful democratic vote next month in Ukraine's presidential elections, we have committed to act urgently to intensify targeted sanctions and measures to increase the costs of Russia's actions," said the statement.

The US and EU already has assets freezes and travel bans in place target a number of Russian individuals and firms accused of playing a part in the annexation of Crimea.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Russia has denied involvement in the seizures of official buildings by pro-Russians in eastern Ukraine

Maps 'showed checkpoints'

On Friday, Ukraine's interior ministry said armed separatists had seized OSCE representatives, who were believed to be military observers from Germany, Denmark, Poland, Sweden and the Czech Republic.

Continue reading the main story

Crisis timeline

• Nov 2013: President Viktor Yanukovych abandons an EU deal, sparking protests
• 20-21 Feb 2014: Dozens killed in Kiev clashes
• 22 Feb: Mr Yanukovych flees
• 27-28 Feb: Pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings in Crimea
• 16 Mar: Crimea voters choose to secede in disputed referendum; Russia later absorbs region
• Apr: Pro-Russia activists take over official buildings and police stations in eastern Ukraine

Pro-Russian leaders in Sloviansk confirmed the bus had been stopped near the town of Sloviansk and said they were checking the identities of those on board.

The self-proclaimed mayor of Sloviansk, Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, said at least one passenger had been carrying maps showing separatist checkpoints in the area, which suggested "their involvement in espionage".

Last weekend, Mr Ponomaryov broadcast an appeal to President Putin asking for Russian troops to protect the city from "fascists" after three of his men died in a gunfight.

Russia's OSCE envoy Andrei Kelin promised to take "all possible steps" to free the representatives, according to Russian media reports .

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More

Obama in landmark Malaysia visit

26 April 2014 Last updated at 11:27

US President Barack Obama has arrived in Malaysia - the first serving American leader to visit the predominantly-Muslim nation since 1966.

The visit signals closer bilateral relations after decades of uneasy ties.

Mr Obama is expected to seek closer trade relations with Malaysia to dilute China's influence in the region.

The US has already provided Kuala Lumpur with military assistance, most recently in the search for the missing Malaysian airline.

'Pivotal state'

Mr Obama landed at Malaysia's Air Force base in Subang on Saturday evening local time.

The US president has already visited Japan and South Korea as part of a four-nation tour of Asia.

Ahead of the visit, Malaysia's government controlled newspapers printed the American flag on their front pages, along with the words "Welcome, Mr President," the BBC's Jennifer Pak in Kuala Lumpur reports.

Continue reading the main story

• 23 Apr: Arrives Tokyo (evening) for dinner with Japanese PM Shinzo Abe
• 24 Apr: In Tokyo; talks and joint press conference with Abe, state dinner
• 25 Apr: Flies Tokyo-Seoul; talks and press conference with South Korean President Park Geun-hye
• 26 Apr: Visit to military base; flies to Kuala Lumpur and state dinner
• 27 Apr: Talks with Malaysian PM Najib Razak, press conference
• 28 Apr: Flies to Manila, talks with Philippine President Benigno Aquino
• 29 Apr: Ends visit to Philippines, returns to US

But some analysts say it has taken Mr Obama too long to visit the country, especially since he lived in the region as a child.

American presidents had stayed away because of years of anti-Western rhetoric under former Malaysian leader Mahathir Mohamad, but current Prime Minister Najib Razak wants Washington to recognise Malaysia as a global player, our correspondent adds.

In his turn, Mr Obama wants Kuala Lumpur to sign a free trade deal with 10 other nations - the so-called Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Ben Rhodes, Mr Obama's deputy national security adviser, said relations between the US and Malaysia had blossomed in recent years.

Malaysia has become a "pivotal state"' in the Obama administration's push to strengthen ties throughout the fast-growing and strategically important region, the Associated Press quoted Mr Rhodes as saying.

However, some Malay Muslims claim that the US-led trade deal will reduce their economic privileges over other ethnic groups in the country.

Mr Obama arrived in Malaysia from South Korea and will finish his Asian tour in the Philippines on 29 April.

18.19 | 0 komentar | Read More