Some commentators feel the new constitution will further divide Egyptian society and may lead to more chaos. However, the new constitution had some takers among the press as well, who hailed the referendum's results. And a section of the press showed no interest in the referendum, commenting on the country's worsening economy instead. Hilmi al-Jazzar from the Muslim Brotherhood, which backed the new constitution, questions whether its approval constitutes the end of a phase or the beginning of a new one. In the independently-owned Al-Watan, he writes: "The phase of constitutional vacuum is about to end, and with it the political debate about all constitutional declarations will end." But, Hilmi al-Jazzar goes on, "a new political conflict is about to start", this time involving those members of the opposition who are opposed to the constitution and those who are prepared to live with it. The commentator also urges the opposition groups to acknowledge the choice of the people, but expects the conflict to extend throughout the upcoming parliamentary elections. In the same paper, former Muslim Brotherhood member Muhammad Habib comments on what may follow the referendum results. He says: "He who believes matters will proceed smoothly is mistaken. The reasons for congestion, tension and conflict persist. The breaches and irregularities during the referendum will make the situation worse." Source: Egyptian election commission Constitutions compared Ismail Ibrahim in the state-owned Al-Ahram al-Masai satirises the opposition which is calling for the new constitution to be abolished after the majority of voters approved it. Addressing them, he says: "Those who participated in the referendum did not do so because the Muslim Brotherhood or religious groups gave them the choice, as some claim, between heaven and hell. They voted because they want to end a phase which threatened to make the country collapse over everybody's heads." In the official Al-Ahram newspaper, Muhammad Jamal Hishmat calls on Egyptians to focus on the coming period. He says: "After the constitutional referendum ended with more than two-thirds of voters saying yes, everyone should look forward to what they may do in the coming period; even if it is to amend articles of the constitution. It is time the Egyptian revolution moved forward to achieve its targets." Writing in the Muslim Brotherhood's mouthpiece Al-Hurriyah wal Adalah, Asma Muhammad Ziyadah congratulates the Egyptian people on their "great new constitution". She says: "The only people who would have benefited from the constitution not being approved are the remnants of the former regime who want the political, judicial and media authorities to be a field for their corruption, as the homeland is not in their minds and consciences." Concern is also growing in Egypt's press over the country's failing economic fortunes. A bold red headline on the front page of state-owned Al-Ahram is about the "fear in the street" over economic insecurity. Writing in the paper, Safwat Qabil urges politicians to leave the economy out of their squabbles. "The later we start treating the economic crisis, the more severe the treatment will be," he warns. Independent Al-Watan ridicules Islamists' proclamations that the new

Summary: Egyptian press and commentators are divided over the approval of a disputed new constitution in a referendum.


John Kelly, whose brother Michael was killed in the 1972 atrocity, said the march was a "deliberate insult" to the people of Derry. Veterans for Justice UK expect about 100 former soldiers to take part in a march through the city next month. Organisers said it was to highlight "injustices against soldiers". Mr Kelly said the march by British Army veterans on 4 March "must not be allowed to happen". "Clearly, this is an act of pure provocation and is totally insensitive to the nationalist population. It's a deliberate insult," he said. "Its organisers should think carefully about the effect this could have on bereaved families here, families still reeling from the crimes of the past, not to mention the ordinary citizens of this city." Thirteen people were shot dead on 30 January 1972, and a 14th victim died later, after troops opened fire on a civil rights march. Speaking on behalf of the Bloody Sunday Trust, Minty Thompson said holding the march in Derry was a "deliberately provocative act". "This city has clearly been chosen because it was the scene of one of the most horrific acts of state violence in our history, Bloody Sunday, and because soldiers who were involved in that event, who shot down innocent and unarmed people on our streets, are at long last being investigated for their actions," he said. The Northern Ireland branch of the Veterans for Justice UK group was established in December 2015. Anto Wickham, who is organising the Derry march, said their aims were to protect soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan facing "false prosecutions". "If soldiers break the law then they face the rigours of the law and rightly so, and it's the same as it should be for any other member of the community," he said. "But where's the investigation into my colleagues and friends who were murdered? It just seems to be forgotten about." The former Royal Irish Regiment soldier added the marches were planned in 2016 as part of a larger campaign to put pressure on the government. Mr Wickham said he was "upset" by suggestions the march was planned to raise tensions in the city. "I understand the families and the victims are still really hurt and they want prosecutions. "If that's the case, and there is evidence, then you have to face the rigours of the law but that should also be the same with the IRA." The prosecution of those involved in killings is a major stumbling block in efforts to deal with the legacy of Northern Ireland's Troubles. Last month, the director of public prosecutions for Northern Ireland said critics who accused him of treating former soldiers unfairly had insulted him and his office. Barra McGrory QC said he was mystified by claims he did not act impartially when he brought charges against a small number of ex-soldiers. Meanwhile, lawyers representing former soldiers facing prosecution have said they are being 'unfairly treated'.

Summary: Relatives of Bloody Sunday victims have called a march by military veterans in Londonderry "an act of pure provocation".


Initial signs suggested Andrey Malanin, 55, died of natural causes, but police said they were investigating the death. Greek media said Mr Malanin had failed to report for work on Monday and did not answer his phone. He lived alone on a heavily guarded street. Russian officials confirmed the consul's death. The Proto Tema website said colleagues accompanied by police went round to the apartment to check on Mr Malanin but found the door locked from the inside. He was found lying on his bedroom floor. Police said the body had no visible injuries and there had been no obvious break-in. Moscow's ambassador to neighbouring Turkey, Andrei Karlov, was assassinated in December, apparently in protest at Russian involvement in the bombardment of the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Summary: The head of the consular department at Russia's embassy in Greece has been found dead in his flat in Athens, police say.


Thousands of children have been examined every 10 years since 1973. A third of children in Wales were said to have good oral health overall, which compares to 39% in England. Decay was found in 52% of 12 year olds and 63% of 15 year olds, a slight improvement on the 2003 survey. But around 70% of them reported problems with their teeth. Decay was found in 41% of five-year-old children in their primary teeth and in 55% of eight-year-old pupils, according to the Health and Social Care Information Centre report. Severe dental problems were worse among children from poorer backgrounds. Around a half (47%) of five year olds could be said to have good oral health. But that declined with age, to around a quarter of 15 year old children. Other findings: The last results in 2003 showed that oral health had improved greatly since the 1970s and 1980s. This time, 12 and 15-year-olds were also asked to fill in a questionnaire on how they looked after their teeth. In 2009 the Welsh government launched a national scheme to encourage better dental health amongst young children. Since then it has invested over Â£12m in the programme. It also suggested the programme had led to a recent 6% drop in the proportion of five-year-olds experiencing dental decay. Experts point out there could be several reason the health of children's teeth in Wales was still lagging behind those from other UK nations including socio-economic conditions. That survey 10 years ago also showed a big drop in 15-year-olds with obvious decay from 94% in 1983 to 58%. Scottish children are not included in the 2013 survey but Wales has better results than Northern Ireland, where 31% were judged to be in good oral health. The Welsh Government said its own most recent monitoring survey showed a 6% drop in the proportion of five-year-olds with dental decay. "However, there is more to do to improve the dental health of children in Wales especially since the vast majority of tooth decay is avoidable," said a spokesperson. "Parents can help their children by reducing sugar intake and encouraging them to brush their teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste. " It has also published its own survey of dental health to identify how much decay among five-years-olds is already present at the age of three.

Summary: Only a third of children in Wales have healthy teeth overall and this is lagging behind England, a major survey suggests.


The grimsel car took only 1.513 seconds to reach 100kph (62mph) - slashing about a quarter of a second off the previous record time. So far, no petrol-powered production car has managed to hit the same speed in a comparable time. The grimsel needed only 30m (98ft) of track to reach the landmark speed. The previous record of 0-100kph in 1.779 seconds was set by a team from the University of Stuttgart last year. By comparison, the fastest production vehicle, the Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid, takes 2.2 seconds to reach the same speed. The car has been built and refined over the last year by 30 students studying at ETH Zurich (ETZ) and Lucerne's University of Applied Sciences and Arts. Almost all of car's parts have been custom built apart from its tyres, battery cells and the motor control units. In a statement, ETZ said the four-wheel drive system used by the grimsel was key to its swift acceleration. A powerful motor is mounted on each wheel and the car has a sophisticated traction control system that adjusts the performance of each one to maximise torque. The lightning-fast car weighs only 168kg (370lb) thanks to widespread use of carbon fibre in its construction. The record was set on a race track on the Dubendorf air base near Zurich. The grimsel, named after an Alpine pass. is not just a demonstration vehicle but has also been used extensively in the Formula Student race competition.

Summary: An electric racing car built by Swiss student engineers has broken the world record for acceleration by battery-powered vehicles.


The newspaper has been widely boycotted in the city because of its accusations following the Hillsborough disaster. A motion put forward at a meeting on Wednesday night condemned the paper for its "blatant lies" about the tragedy, in which Liverpool 96 fans were killed. The Society of Editors said the council was "stretching towards censorship". Put forward by Labour councillor Mary Rasmussen at Liverpool Town Hall, the motion said: "Due to crowd control mismanagement those fans, whose ages ranged from 10 to 67 years old, had the life crushed out of them. "Contrary to the facts, The S*n published a front page story with the banner headline 'The Truth' which contained blatant lies. "For this reason we call on all retailers and vendors of newspapers in Liverpool to stop selling The S*n," said the motion, which recognised the efforts of the campaign group Total Eclipse of the S*n to "rid" the city of the newspaper. The Sun said it had no comment on the vote, although the newspaper and the editor at the time of the Hillsborough tragedy have previously apologised for the coverage. Relatives of Hillsborough victims attended the full council meeting, where mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said the newspaper would "never, ever be forgiven", and if he could legally do so he "would ban it from shops across the city". However, Bob Satchwell, from the Society of Editors, which represents about 400 media outlets, said: "In a free society people must be free to choose which newspapers they read or sell. "The comments from Joe Anderson demonstrate the danger when he says that if he has his way he would ban The Sun. That is what happens in dictatorships and banana republics." Everton-based newsagent Ronald Butterfield also said it was "wrong for the council to get involved". "I don't sell it but it is up to people to decide." He added: "When I tell people who aren't from Liverpool I don't sell it they look at me like I've got knickers on my head. "One Liverpool man who always bought it for the horses not the news cancelled it because he was worried about the paperboy being seen delivering it." Explaining why a council-backed campaign was necessary in a city where The Sun is widely boycotted, Emily Heywood of the Total Eclipse of the S*n group said that with new newsagents and changing owners some retailers "had started selling it again and it wasn't being questioned". All 96 fans who died as a result of a crush at Hillsborough were unlawfully killed, their inquests concluded in April.

Summary: A campaign calling on retailers in Liverpool to stop selling The Sun has received the unanimous backing of city councillors.


A truck is said to have exploded as it was off-loading butane cooking gas in the town of Nnewi in Anambra State. Reports of casualties vary from 35 to more than 100 people killed, including factory workers and neighbours. Local police have confirmed the incident but have yet to provide further details. A huge fire reportedly followed the blast. The dead and injured are being taken to the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi. A witness told the Vanguard newspaper that the blast was triggered when a truck began discharging cooking gas without waiting for the mandatory cooling time. People who had come to fill up their gas cylinders were caught up in the explosion as well as passersby, the newspaper reported. Witnesses say the explosion caused a huge fire that firefighters and residents took several hours to put out.

Summary: Scores of people are reported killed in an explosion at an industrial gas plant in southern Nigeria.


The cameras will go live on the northbound and southbound carriages of the M74 between Hamilton and the east of Glasgow from Monday. They will remain operational until spring 2017. Similar measures will follow later on the M8, A8 and M73. It is hoped they will help safeguard driver and worker safety. The work will widen key parts of the motorways, upgrade a stretch of the A8 and improve the Raith Interchange. Graeme Reid, project sponsor for Transport Scotland, said: "We know from our experience of major road infrastructure projects that safety cameras are a tried and tested approach that improves safety for both road users and the adjacent construction workforce during what will be an extremely busy period in terms of construction. "Not only do the cameras create a safer environment for all concerned, they can also help improve the flow of traffic through the works." The motorway improvements project began in February 2014 and is scheduled for completion in spring 2017. The work will see upgrading of the M8 between Baillieston and Newhouse to motorway standard. This will require upgrades to the connections to the M73 motorway at Baillieston and a new junction at Shawhead, which will connect to the A725 East Kilbride road. There will also be new junctions at Eurocentral and Chapelhall. Improvements to the Raith Interchange near Hamilton in Lanarkshire include realignment of the A725. There will be an underpass for the A725 and bridges carrying the Raith roundabout. The improvements are expected to cut journey times by up to 18 minutes for the busiest sections of the M8. WWF Scotland director Lang Banks said serious consideration should be given to making the cameras permanent after the road works are completed. He said: "We've already seen the very clear safety benefits that average speed cameras have had by helping to enforce speed limits on the A9. However, alongside other tools, average speed cameras are also a cost effective way to reduce climate emissions as well as fuel costs for motorists. "To reduce health-threatening levels of air pollution and our meet our climate targets, the use of average speed cameras and other approaches to help reduce excessive speeds should be seriously considered on other major roads across Scotland."

Summary: Average speed cameras are due to be activated on one of Scotland's busiest motorways while work continues on a £500m upgrade project.


Lewis, 19, signed a three-year contract with the English Premier League club on Friday, having played three FA Cup games for them last season. Manager Ray McKinnon has also given a contract to Deniz Mehmet following his departure from Port Vale. Hibernian midfielder Sam Stanton has also made the move to United on a one-year loan deal. The arrivals come with Cammy Bell, last season's first-choice goalkeeper, possibly leaving Tannadice to return to Kilmarnock. Bell, 30, is believed to be keen on a move to the Scottish Premiership club. McKinnon said of Lewis: "I expect him to challenge for the starting position. "Harry comes here as one of the top young goalkeeping prospects in English football. "It says so much about his ambition and desire that he has chosen to come up to Scotland to get first-team involvement. "It is a coup for us to bring him to Tannadice and I am positive we will hear much more about him during his career." Lewis, who has represented England at youth level, joined Southampton from hometown club Shrewsbury Town in 2015, hopes to challenge for starts with the Scottish Championship club. "I am excited at the prospect of being involved in first-team football," he told United's website. "I believe I am joining a winning team that will be challenging at the top of the league and want to play my part in helping the club secure the title." Stanton becomes United's ninth summer signing and their fourth of the week. The 24-year-old Mehmet returns to Scottish football after having played with Falkirk before joining Port Vale in January. Dutch midfielder Jordie Briels also signed on a one-year contract after the 25-year-old left Fortuna Sittard in his homeland.

Summary: Dundee United have signed their second goalkeeper in a week by bringing in Harry Lewis on loan from Southampton.


The two men in their 40s went missing on Tuesday as they climbed the 4,248-metre (13,937ft) Mont Blanc du Tacul. The weather is thought to have worsened suddenly. Reports say they had taken the difficult "Devil's Ridge" route. Mont Blanc, with 11 peaks above 4,000m, is Western Europe's highest range, and a challenging area for climbers.

Summary: Two German climbers froze to death while attempting one of the peaks of Mont Blanc in the French Alps and rescuers have recovered their bodies.


Singer Bono said: "We've lost a family member," adding, "He wasn't just a legend in the music business, he was a legend in our band." Sheehan had been on the road with U2 for more than 30 years. The band are in the middle of their latest tour and are currently playing a string of concerts in Los Angeles. They paid tribute to Sheehan on the video screens at Wednesday night's show, said Billboard reporter Shirley Halperin. As he introduced the song Iris, from their latest album Songs of Innocence, Bono said: "U2 is kind of family. We look after each other and it takes a lot to put on a show like tonight. "Last night we lost a member of our family. Dennis Sheehan was his name. He was U2's tour manager for 33 years. He loved, as we all do, the city of Los Angeles and he called the Sunset Marquis his 'home away from home'. "He came to this city as a young man in the 70s, working for Led Zeppelin. He always thought maybe U2 could be the next Led Zeppelin, which of course is impossible." Sheehan, who was in his late 60s, had worked with other rock legends including Iggy Pop, Patti Smith and Lou Reed. Los Angeles County Fire Inspector Chris Reade said a medical response team was sent to the Sunset Marquis hotel at around 0530 (1330 GMT) on Wednesday to reports of a man in cardiac arrest. Sheehan was pronounced dead at the scene. Global Music Live Nation chairman Arthur Fogel confirmed the death calling Sheehan "a dear friend to us all". "Our heartfelt sympathy is with his wonderful family," he added. Sheehan's death is the latest in a series of recent woes for U2. Last year, Bono underwent extensive surgery following a high-speed bicycle crash, leaving him unable to play the guitar. Guitarist The Edge then fell off stage on the opening night of the band's tour in Vancouver, gashing his arm. The band were also derided when Songs of Innocence was automatically uploaded into customers' iTunes libraries. Bono later apologised, saying the stunt was inspired by "a drop of megalomania".

Summary: Irish band U2 have mourned the death of their "irreplaceable" tour manager Dennis Sheehan, who has died of a suspected heart attack.


The accusation comes days after the US and Taiwan said China appeared to have deployed surface-to-air missiles on a contested island in the region. Vietnam has called the reported move a "serious violation". The Philippines and Australia also expressed concern. China dismissed the reports as "hype", but said it had the right under international law to defend itself. Several nations claim territory in the resource-rich South China Sea, which is also an important shipping route. Taiwan and US officials say satellite images taken on 14 February indicate that China has deployed missiles on Woody or Yongxing Island in the Paracels. The island is claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam. US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday: "There is every evidence, every day, that there has been an increase of militarisation from one kind or another. It's a serious concern." However, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei hit back on Friday, telling reporters that US air and naval patrols in the region were what had "escalated tensions" in the region. "That's the real militarisation of the South China Sea," he added. The US says it does not take sides on territorial disputes, but has previously sent B-52 bombers and a naval destroyer near the disputed islands. It says it conducts such "freedom of navigation" operations to ensure access to key shipping and air routes. On Friday, Vietnam said it had issued diplomatic notes to the UN Secretary General and the Chinese embassy to protest against China's apparent deployment of missiles on Woody Island. "These are serious infringements of Vietnam's sovereignty over the Paracels," foreign ministry spokesman Le Hai Binh said. The Philippines also said it was "gravely concerned", and that China's actions would "aggravate the already tense situation". Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said China should avoid "falling into the Thucydides Trap", where "a rising power creates anxiety among other powers such that conflict occurs". Rival countries have wrangled over territory in the South China Sea for centuries, but tension has steadily increased in recent years. Its islets and waters are claimed in part or in whole by Taiwan, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. China has backed its expansive claims with island-building and naval patrols, while the US says it opposes restrictions on freedom of navigation and unlawful sovereignty claims - by all sides, but seen by many as aimed at China. The frictions have sparked concern that the area is becoming a flashpoint with global consequences.

Summary: China has accused the US of militarising the disputed South China Sea through its air and naval patrols.


The systems, at Kentucky Methodist Hospital, Chino Valley Medical Center and Desert Valley Hospital, California, are now running normally again. None of the hospitals is believed to have paid the ransom. And the cases are now being investigated by the FBI. The Kentucky Methodist Hospital had to shut down all of its desktop computers and activate a back-up system. A message on its homepage said: "Methodist Hospital is currently working in an internal state of emergency due to a computer virus that has limited our use of electronic web-based services. "We are currently working to resolve this issue, until then we will have limited access to web-based services and electronic communications." It later said no patient data or care had been affected. Fred Ortega, a spokesman for Prime Healthcare Services, which owns Chino Valley Medical Center and Desert Valley Hospital, said: "It did cause significant disruptions of our IT systems. "However, most of the systems and the critical infrastructure has been brought back online." The attack comes weeks after it was revealed Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Centre in Los Angeles had been attacked by ransomware. In that case, it paid $17,000 to get access to files back. Kentucky Methodist Hospital information systems director Jamie Reid named the malware involved as Locky, a new bug that encrypts files, documents and images and renames them with the extension .locky. The most common way Locky gets itself on machines is via a spam email with an attached document that looks like nonsense and advises readers to enable macros "if the data encoding is incorrect". Once the malware is downloaded, it sends a message to desktops with instructions about how users can pay to have files unlocked. In November, a report from Intel's McAfee labs said the number of ransomware attacks was expected to grow in 2016. Security expert Brian Krebs said: "It's a fair bet that as ransomware attacks and attackers mature, these schemes will slowly become more targeted. "I also worry that these more deliberate attackers will take a bit more time to discern how much the data they've encrypted is really worth, and precisely how much the victim might be willing to pay to get it back."

Summary: The IT systems of three US hospitals have been infected with ransomware, which encrypts vital files and demands money to unlock them.


The flight search engine website reported revenues of Â£120m for 2015, up 28% on the previous year. The company saw gross bookings of $11.2bn, up 49% on 2014, with visitors to the website up 48%. On average, 50m people used the website each month. Company founder and chief executive Gareth Williams said the company had seen "excellent growth". He said: "2015 was another strong year for Skyscanner, showing solid progress in our strategy of expansion beyond our home market, into mobile and beyond flights. "Our first-half focus on investing in our product drove momentum for the business in the second half. We also saw excellent growth in travellers planning their trips on Skyscanner all around the world, especially on mobile and in the important regions of Asia Pacific and the Americas." The Edinburgh-based company saw a rise in the number of people using its mobile app, with 40m downloads and an increase of 24% in mobile bookings. Particular growth was recorded in the Asia-Pacific region, while visits in China were up 67% after Skyscanner bought a Chinese search firm in 2014. The company opened new offices in London and Sofia as well as expanding existing operations in Budapest and Miami, increasing its global staff to 770.

Summary: Scottish-based travel firm Skyscanner has reported double-digit growth for the seventh consecutive year.


While ministers claim their Psychoactive Substances Bill reflects the findings of the experts, I am told that the hand-picked committee was divided on whether low-harm substances like amyl nitrate (poppers) and nitrous oxide (laughing gas) should be included. The final report was drafted by Home Office officials but some members of the panel, which included three people who also sit on the ACMD, insisted on writing in what became known as the "safety-valve" clause. The recommendation for "general prohibition" was amended to say that there should be exemptions for substances "where the risks of health and social harms can be adequately assessed". The line was included specifically to ensure that some low risk products could be excluded from the ban. The coalition government response last October went along with the safety-valve clause saying it would "explore how to put in place a schedule of exemptions and make provision to add to these where the risks of health and social harms can be adequately assessed". But when the new Conservative government published the Psychoactive Substances Bill last month, any mention of assessing social harms or health risks had gone. The safety-valve clause insisted upon by the expert panel had been removed. The Home Office has made it clear that "there is no provision in the Bill to enable the licensing of so-called low-harm substances" arguing that there are difficulties in defining low risk and that it might "send out confusing messages about the safety of new psychoactive substances". It is likely that this is going to be a major battleground as the controversial bill reaches committee stage in Parliament. The LibDem Home Affairs spokesman Lord Paddick has made it clear his party will oppose the legislation in its current form. "As drafted, the Bill is far too broad and indiscriminate, further undermining credibility and efficacy in reducing harm," he told the House of Lords. The Bill would ban any substance that affects a consumer's "mental functioning or emotional state", unless specifically exempted by the Home Secretary. This definition goes further than the Irish legislation on which the approach is modelled. In Ireland, a psychoactive substance is defined as one that results in "a significant disturbance in, or significant change to, motor function, thinking, behaviour, perception, awareness or mood". The word "significant" is, of course, significant. It provides the safety valve that excludes low-risk and low-harm products. Whether UK ministers will relent on this issue of a "safety-valve clause" is perhaps the biggest question as the Psychoactive Substances Bill makes its progress through Parliament.

Summary: After my blog on Wednesday on tensions between drugs advisors and the Home Office, more details have emerged of how the expert panel on legal highs was split down the middle on whether to go for a total ban.


If found guilty on the charge of negligence, she could be jailed for up to 10 years. The anti-corruption agency has also called for her to be personally liable for losses to state coffers. Ms Yingluck was removed by a court in May 2014, shortly before the military ousted her elected government. She was later impeached over the rice subsidy scheme and banned from politics for five years. Thailand, meanwhile, remains under martial law in the wake of the coup. Ms Yingluck was not at Bangkok's Supreme Court to hear the indictment. But the BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok says today's court filing will seem to her supporters like yet another attempt by the military to crush her politically for whenever Thailand does return to democratic rule. Under the rice subsidy scheme Ms Yingluck's Pheu Thai-led government bought rice from Thai farmers at above the market rate, costing the government billions of dollars. Critics accused Ms Yingluck of funnelling money to her core supporters. She said the policy was aimed at helping farmers and denied any day-to-day involvement in the running of the scheme. The Supreme Court will decide on 19 March whether to pursue the criminal case. Additionally, Finance Minister Sommai Phasee said on Wednesday that the ministry had received a letter from the national corruption watchdog urging it to pursue civil suit against Ms Yingluck to recover losses of 600bn baht ($18.4bn; Â£11.9bn) related to the scheme. "The finance ministry oversees damages to the state and is ready to take action," he said. The military seized power in May 2014 in what it said was a bid to restore public order after months of occasionally violent street protests against Ms Yingluck's government. But Thailand has been embroiled in a cycle of political instability since the military ousted Ms Yingluck's brother, billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra, as prime minister in 2006. The Shinawatra family are hugely popular among Thailand's rural population but are hated by the urban middle-class and elite who accuse them of corruption. Thaksin-linked parties, under various different names, have won every election since 2001.

Summary: Thailand's attorney-general has filed criminal charges against former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra over a controversial rice subsidy scheme.


Once again, it was only Celtic who were able to pay substantial sums in transfer fees and, even then, manager Neil Lennon's focus in signing Leigh Griffiths and Stefan Johansen was not so much on results in the second half of the season but on preparing for next season's assault on the Champions League qualifying rounds. The motivation for the rest was not on forming any kind of challenge to the runaway reigning champions at the top but on securing a place in the top six by the time the Scottish Premiership splits into two for the final round of fixtures. Indeed, even more importantly, the thought of finishing in the second bottom spot, which this season comes with it the prospect of relegation via a play-off against a side from the Championship, led to a plethora of changes in the squads near the foot of the table. Key arrivals: Adam Rooney could not reproduce his Inverness Caledonian Thistle form with Birmingham City and Oldham Athletic, but the Irish striker has scored two in two games on his return to Scotland's top flight. Rooney's addition comes after Calvin Zola failed to become a regular starter following his arriving from Burton Albion in the summer. Manager Derek McInnes will hope that Shaleum Logan or Alan Tate, who had arrived from Brentford and Swansea City respectively, prove to be as classy in defence as Michael Hector, who has returned to the Reading bench after his loan at Pittodrie. In: Adam Rooney, forward (Oldham Athletic). Loan: Alan Tate, defender (Swansea City); Shaleum Logan, defender (Brentford) Out: Gregg Wylde, midfielder (St Mirren); Scott Ferries, midfielder (Ross County), Chris Clark, midfielder (Cove Rangers); Craig Duguid, defender. Loan ended: Michael Hector, defender (Reading). Loan: Josh Magennis, forward (St Mirren); Lawrence Shankland, forward (Dunfermline Athletic); Stephen O'Neill, midfielder (East Fife); Jamie Masson, midfielder (Elgin City); Danny Rogers, goalkeeper (Airdrieonians) Summer signing report card Pass: Barry Robson, midfielder (Sheffield United); Willo Flood, midfielder (Dundee United); Michael Hector, defender (Reading) Jury's out: Calvin Zola, forward (Burton Albion); Nicky Weaver, goalkeeper (Sheffield Wednesday); Lawrence Shankland, forward (Queen's Park) Fail: Gregg Wylde, midfielder (Bolton Wanderers) Key arrivals: With summer signings Teemu Pukki and Amido Balde having failed to match the strike rate of Norwich City-bound Gary Hooper, manager Neil Lennon can expect Leigh Griffiths to guarantee goals on the domestic front even if he only reproduces the form he showed while on loan with Hibernian. However, the big test will be whether a player who was in and out of the Wolves side in England's League One can make the step up to the Champions League stage next season. Stefan Johansen should prove to be an adequate replacement for Joe Ledley after the Wales international's departure to Crystal Palace once the Norway midfielder settles in Glasgow. In: Leigh Griffiths, forward (Wolves, undisclosed); Stefan Johansen, midfielder (Stromgodset, £2m); Holmbert Aron Fridjonsson (Fram Reykjavic, £150,000) Out: Joe Ledley, midfielder (Crystal Palace, undisclosed); Mo Bangura, forward. Loan ended: Max Oberschmidt, goalkeeper (Fulham). Loan: Tom Rogic, midfielder (Melbourne Victory); Dylan McGeough, midfielder (Coventry City); Bahrudin Atajic, forward

Summary: There weren't as many noughts on the cheques as there were south of the border, but Scotland's top flight enjoyed one of its most lively transfer windows for some time.


The Â£42m MV Loch Seaforth made its first passenger sailing last month but is still in a "test period" and not fully in service. Thursday's fault took five hours to fix and the ferry was cleared again for sailings. Another ferry, the Isle of Lewis, took the passengers involved. Bad weather has led the cancellations of Friday sailings on the Stornoway-Ullapool route and other services on Scotland's west coast. Ferry operator Caledonian MacBrayne said withdrawing the Loch Seaforth had been an operational decision and the fault would not have prevented the ship from sailing. A spokesman said: "Yesterday evening an issue arose with an engine room ventilation fan which required attention and an operational decision was taken to remove her from the route while it was fixed. "While passengers were delayed, and we regret any inconvenience to them, no-one was stranded." A spokesman added: "This was not a major issue but it required around five hours of work as the fan was in a difficult to reach location."

Summary: A new ferry built for the Stornoway to Ullapool route was temporarily withdrawn from passenger duties because of a faulty ventilation fan.


Bendtner required oxygen as he was carried off the field on a stretcher, having landed awkwardly in a collision with Blues defender Michael Morrison. The Dane had set up Eric Lichaj to open the scoring and Apostolos Vellios made it 2-0 from Henri Lansbury's cross. Lukas Jutkiewicz headed a goal back for Blues but Hildeberto Pereira finished Ben Osborn's low pass to seal victory. A Birmingham win could have taken Gary Rowett's side as high as second in the table, but their first away loss of the league campaign means they may be outside the top six by the time they host Rotherham on Tuesday. Lichaj's powerful angled shot, the defender's first goal for almost a year, lit up a flat first half at the City Ground. The only other talking point before the interval was Lansbury's disallowed free-kick, with referee Jeremy Simpson initially awarding a goal and then reversing his decision following consultation with his assistant. Forest's win came hours after owner Fawaz Al Hasawi announced he is close to agreeing a deal to sell the club. Al Hasawi, who took control of Forest in 2012, would not reveal the identity of the buyers but BBC Sport understands that a United States consortium, led by millionaire John Jay Moores, is on the verge of securing a £50m deal. Head coach Philippe Montanier told BBC Radio Nottingham: "I enjoyed the victory. We've worked hard during the international break and we applied what we worked on during that period. "Bendtner's injury is a bad point of this evening. We don't know how serious it is. I hope it is not very serious. "When you go off on a stretcher, you always worry. We hope to have more news on Saturday." Birmingham manager Gary Rowett told BBC WM: "We weren't anywhere near the standards we've set so far this season, certainly in the first half. We were a little bit too predictable. "We wanted to do much better in the second half and there was a real determination to do that. We ended up at 2-1 and we looked as though we had put them under some real pressure. "I wasn't overly happy with one or two decisions, but I thought Forest deserved it. They showed more energy and desire." Match ends, Nottingham Forest 3, Birmingham City 1. Second Half ends, Nottingham Forest 3, Birmingham City 1. Henri Lansbury (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Stephen Gleeson (Birmingham City). Foul by Ryan Shotton (Birmingham City). Eric Lichaj (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Lukas Jutkiewicz (Birmingham City). Thomas Lam (Nottingham Forest) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Attempt saved. David Cotterill (Birmingham City) right footed shot from a difficult angle and long range on the left is saved in the top centre of the goal. Hildeberto Pereira (Nottingham Forest) is shown the yellow card. Diego Fabbrini (Birmingham City) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Hildeberto Pereira (Nottingham Forest). Diego Fabbrini (Birmingham City) wins a free kick

Summary: Nottingham Forest beat Birmingham but their 3-1 win was marred by an injury suffered by striker Nicklas Bendtner.


The two music stars have been arguing ever since falling out over some backing singers three years ago. Their feud remains unresolved, with Taylor finally putting her music on Spotify on Friday - the very same day that Katy released her new album. But this week, Katy said: "There are bigger fish to fry, and there are real problems in the world. You know what I'm saying? I love her, and I want the best for her." The pair are hardly the first musicians to publicly lock horns, and in an age of Twitter there are more platforms than ever for the stars to trade barbs. Here are just a few other high-profile musical battles. Katy Perry isn't the only person to have found herself caught in a Swift storm. Taylor's beef with Kanye West dates back to 2009 - specifically, that year's MTV Video Music Awards. Kanye wasn't too impressed with Taylor winning video of the year for You Belong With Me. And, let's be honest, Kanye is not the type of chap to suffer in silence. The rapper took to the stage during Taylor's acceptance speech, grabbed the microphone, and said: "Taylor, I'm really happy for you, and I'ma let you finish, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time!" He was talking about Bey's Single Ladies, which to be fair really was a masterpiece of filmmaking. But this perhaps wasn't quite the time or the place to start that debate. The pair later made up, but a few years down the line West claimed in his single Famous that the run-in had helped Swift's career. Taylor claimed she had never given West's lyrics her blessing, but then the rapper's wife Kim Kardashian got involved, posting a Snapchat which appeared to show Taylor doing just that. At the 2016 Grammys, Swift responded: "I want to say to all the young women out there - there are going to be people along the way who are going to try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame." But, she advised her fans: "Just focus on the work and you don't let those people sidetrack you." If a new female rapper arrives on the music scene and Lil' Kim (above left) doesn't start a fight with her - did she ever even exist? Kim has history with Eve, Foxy Brown, Remy Ma and many more... but those were small fry compared to when Nicki Minaj appeared in the late noughties. Nicki's debut album Pink Friday was a massive success when it was released in 2010, but Lil' Kim opted not to send flowers. In a diss track she put out online called Black Friday, Kim described Nicki as a "Lil' Kim wannabe" who was "trying to clone my style". Minaj, naturally, responded with a diss track of her own, called Stupid Hoe. Which drew attention to the fact that her records were "shipping platinum" while Kim remained "busted" and "crusty". As a band, Oasis were no strangers to scrapes. The infamous chart battle of

Summary: Katy Perry has said she's ready to put an end to the bad blood which has existed between her and Taylor Swift for the past few years.


Matt Shepherd scored 15 points for the Duchy to end a run of two successive final defeats by the Red Rose county. Shepherd's converted try and penalty saw Cornwall to a 10-6 half-time lead. Shepherd crossed again in the second half before Evan Stewart's late try for Lancashire ensured a nervy finish, but could not prevent only their second Twickenham final defeat in six years. Since 2009, Lancashire had only previously once lost the Bill Beaumont Cup, in 2012, when they were beaten by Hertfordshire. Shepherd missed a penalty in the opening minutes, but he made amends two minutes later, the Launceston scrum-half going in under the posts from 30 metres out. Steve Collins pulled a penalty back and Shepherd missed a three-point attempt of his own before Cornwall were reduced to 14 men on 27 minutes. Ben Hilton was sin-binned and Chris Johnson brought Lancashire back to within a point of their opponents from the resulting penalty. But Shepherd's penalty with five minutes left in the half, coming after Chris Briers' yellow card, ensured that the Duchy went in at the break with a 10-6 lead. Shepherd took his points tally for the County Championship to 66 when he went over shortly after the break following a line out from five metres out. That made it 15-6 and, although he failed to convert his own score, his Launceston teammate Searle pushed the gap into double figures with a 63rd minute penalty. Lancashire did not threaten Cornwall until the final 10 minutes when they put the Duchy under immense pressure. Searle was sin-binned for an infringement at the breakdown and Lancashire skipper Stewart crashed over with six minutes left, Johnson adding the extras. But Cornwall's 14 men stood firm to clinch a fourth county title. Cornwall: Searle (Launceston); Dawe (Launceston), Murphy (Launceston), Webber (Redruth), Wedlake (Redruth); Webb (Taunton), Shepherd (Launceston); Freestone (Clifton), Salter (Launceston), Williams (Redruth), Whittle (Camborne), Hilton (Launceston), Fuca (Redruth), Jones (Penryn), Marriott (Redruth, capt). Replacements: Judge (Launceston), Cook (Redruth), Phillips (Redruth), Goldsworthy (Camborne), Mankee (Camborne), Parsons (Redruth), Chapman (Launceston). Lancashire: Spragg (Fylde); Dorrington (Fylde), Briers (Fylde), Rawlings (Fylde), Bingham (Rossendale); Collins (Sedgley Park), De La Harpe (Fylde); Black (Sedgley Park), Loney (Fylde), Lewis (Fylde), Nugent (Bergerac), Rawlings (Fylde), Stewart (Fylde, capt), McGinnis (Loughborough Students), Lamprey (Sedgley Park). Replacements: McGowan (Caldy), Altham (Preston Grasshoppers), Mills (Preston Grasshoppers), Arnold (Fylde), Johnson (Fylde), Brennand (Fylde), Crosley (Hartpury College).

Summary: Cornwall won the County Championship for the first time since 1999 as they beat Lancashire 18-13 at Twickenham.


Manchester City climb from fifth to third after a 2-1 win over Swansea City, with Liverpool dropping one place to fifth after a 2-0 defeat at lowly Hull City and Manchester United remain sixth after a 3-0 win at Leicester City. Elsewhere, there were wins for Sunderland away to Crystal Palace, Everton against Bournemouth, West Ham at Southampton, Watford against Burnley and West Brom at home to Stoke City. Pick your XI from our list and share with your friends. Do you agree with my team of the week or would you go for a different team? Why not pick your very own team of the week from the shortlist selected by BBC Sport journalists and share it with your friends? All that nonsense about Chelsea handing Arsenal the title when they sold Petr Cech to their rivals couldn't have been further from the truth. The Gunners were mauled at Stamford Bridge. There were two moments of inspiration from Arsenal which resulted in two world-class saves by Thibaut Courtois. A wonderful tip over the bar from a Gabriel header in the first half and a brilliant save from a Danny Welbeck effort in the second made it absolutely clear that the Blues, and Courtois in particular, were determined to slam the Premier League door on Arsenal's fingers. Courtois has only conceded seven league goals at home all season while Arsenal appear to be giving goals away like they are going out of fashion. Chelsea have bolstered their challenge by taking a point at Liverpool and all in the space of four days. Petr Cech eventually lost his place at Chelsea to Courtois and now we see why. Chelsea have invested in youth and look like winning titles again. There are a number of reasons for West Ham's resurgence, not least because they have the good fortune to play away from that dreadful ground they call home. The departure of Dimitri Payet has served to galvanise the dressing room, Andy Carroll has been immense since his return to the side, but doesn't make my Team of the Week because of better performances elsewhere, and the ever-present Michail Antonio. This young man has had a very impressive season acknowledged by an international call-up. Manager Slaven Bilic has also had to rely on players like Mark Noble, Winston Reid and Cheikhou Kouyate to haul them free from what was a perilous time for the Hammers. Their victory against Southampton was as good as it gets, bearing in mind they went 1-0 down early in the game. A manager simply cannot put a value on a player who is available week in, week out and Antonio is one of them. His link-up play with Carroll was a feature of West Ham's game at St Mary's and Southampton's downfall. This lad wasn't even supposed to be on the pitch. However, one of the benefits of being a foreign manager is Marco Silva will probably have a healthy network of international scouts who can plunder the January transfer window. Enter Andrea Ranocchia - a last-minute replacement for the

Summary: Chelsea beat Arsenal 3-1 to stay nine points clear at the top of the Premier League, while Tottenham remain second after a 1-0 win at home to Middlesbrough.


SKN Heritage Museum is showing the type of belongings brought by African-Caribbean immigrants in the 1940s and 50s. The Windrush generation responded to adverts to work in Britain but were only allowed to bring one suitcase. Organisers said the display gives a unique insight into important part of Nottingham's history. The Windrush was named after the first boat which brought people from the Caribbean to Britain in 1948. The exhibition, called 'From Caribbean Isles to the British Isles -Home to Home', aims to give an insight into people who travelled across the Atlantic to seek a better life in what was still the Empire's "mother country". Item include photographs, clothes, records and games - as well as beauty products designed for black skin and hair when none were commercially available. Catherine Ross, the museum's founder, cameto Nottingham from St Kitts when she was just seven years old. She said: "Our aim is to let everyone know about the contributions that Caribbeans have made to British society and Nottingham and commemorate these achievements. "There'sno better place tostart than Nottingham Carnival, as it's such awell known and celebratory event in Nottingham's calendar." The carnival is taking place for the first time take in two sites - the Forest Recreation Ground on Saturday and the Victoria Embankment on Sunday.

Summary: A unique perspective on a landmark social event is to be unveiled as part of Nottingham's Caribbean Carnival.


Captcha checks typically ask people to complete a puzzle that a computer would struggle to complete correctly. They are designed to stop automated bots accessing and using websites. Google's new system tracks how a person interacts with a website to prove they are real, so the puzzles are no longer necessary for most people. Captcha checks are often deployed by concert ticket websites to stop people setting up automated bots to buy all the best tickets. They also appear when somebody is trying to log in to a website with the wrong password, to spot automated attempts. The puzzles present challenges that people find simple but computers can find more difficult, such as: The puzzles also benefit companies such as Google by helping train artificial intelligence algorithms. For example, if Google's AI can not recognise a house number in a photograph taken by a Streetview car, it may add the photo to its Captcha system to get human input. However, genuine users can find the interruption by puzzles a nuisance. Google's reCaptcha system has already simplified the process by asking users to tick a check box on the website they are using. The box monitors how each person has interacted with it, to separate natural human clicks from bots. For example, an automated script might take just a second to fill in a form on a website, and may not move the mouse at all during the process. Google's latest development removes the check box as well, and instead analyses how people have interacted with other elements on a website such as the "submit form" button. However, in some cases "suspicious" activity will still trigger a puzzle.

Summary: Website security checks that challenge people to prove they are human are likely to "disappear" in favour of a new system developed by Google.


18 March 2014 Last updated at 09:22 GMT Richard Blake-Smith and his partner Anna beat Vytautas Kirkliauskas of Lithuania, carrying his wife, Neringa Kirliauskiene. Rich said: "We put in a whole week's work, running around the athletics track near where we live - and it's paid off" "We were pushed hard, especially by the Lithuanians there." Competitors must tackle a 380-metre course, hurdling over haystacks, scrabbling up a steep slope, and dodging water pistols. You don't need to be married to take part. The race saw all combinations of competitors - men carrying women, men carrying men and one woman carrying a woman. Rich and Anna will now compete at the World Championships in Finland in July.

Summary: The UK Wife Carrying Championships have a winner!


Joyce Watson, Labour AM for Mid and West Wales, backs a fingerprint ID system of cashless payments to help poorer children. She is due to launch a debate on the issue in the Senedd on Tuesday and says some pupils are going hungry to avoid being seen to claim free meals. She says there is a mixed picture on the use of cashless payment systems. Her office's research indicates that in Denbighshire, for example, all secondary schools use some sort of cashless system, whereas in Anglesey none do. Most commonly, in schools where children still pay with cash for their dinners, pupils eligible for free meals are given tickets. The AM believes this makes it easy for such children to be identified and put at risk of bullying. She recommends rolling out a system by which children have accounts to pay for school dinners which can be topped up either by their parents or by the local authority if they qualify for school meals. All pupils would then pay for their meals by a biometric reading of their fingerprint at the till without anyone knowing how their account was funded. Ms Watson said: "68% is the average take up of free school meals where we have a system that identifies against a near 100% where we have a system that doesn't identify those who have free school meals and those who don't. She claimed that in schools without a cashless system there were "an awful lot of children simply going hungry" to avoid being seen to have free meals. "[They] can't concentrate. Their sugar levels fall and their behaviour is also adversely affected by what's happening," she said. Ms Watson intends to use her short debate during the assembly plenary to remind fellow AMs of a government commitment to roll out such cashless systems. She said: "[Education Minister Leighton Andrews] did commit to rolling this out by September 2012. "I want to know that that is happening. And I really think that this archaic practice of identifying children has to stop." Addressing security concerns, Ms Watson said pupils' fingerprints were stored securely by the company that installed the biometric technology away from the school and could not be accessed by authorities. One disincentive to move to a biometric system may be the cost, which the AM estimates at up to Â£30,000 for installation and Â£2,000 a year for maintenance. However, Stephen Jones, head teacher of Ysgol Glan-y-Mor in Burry Port, Carmarthenshire, said its piloting of a biometric payment system over the last four years had delivered results. He said it had cut the time pupils queued for lunches as well as removing any stigma attached to free school meals. "The children like it," he said. "It's almost a fun element to having their lunch, the fingerprints. "It's much quicker so they're happy about that. "The offshoot, I suppose, would be that parents can actually have computerised printouts of all the food and drink that their children consume and they can keep an eye on whether they're having a healthy diet or not."

Summary: Wales should put an end to the "stigma" children face for claiming free school meals, an assembly member claims.


That compares with just 300 people in the largest trust area, Belfast. It is thought that the problem in the South Eastern Trust is down to staffing issues in that area. The trust - which covers Newtownards, County Down and Lisburn, said it has been unable to fill two consultant cardiologist posts. There is also the added problem of staff sickness and increase in the number of referrals. The South Eastern Trust serves a population of approximately 345,000 people with a budget of almost Â£500m. The figures also show that 364 people are waiting up to a year for their first urgent consultant-led appointment at the Ulster Hospital, while in every other trust the waiting list for this type of appointment is zero. In a statement, South Eastern Trust said: "We have recently lost two consultant cardiologists who both required to relocate. "Despite strenuous efforts, we have, so far, been unable to fill these vital posts and, combined with the constant increase in the number of cardiology referrals, this has led to an unfortunate increase in waiting times for appointments. "We are taking every possible measure to address this."

Summary: Almost 1,000 people in the South Eastern Health Trust are waiting for an urgent appointment to see a cardiologist, according to a report.


Cassells, 22, and Scrimgeour clocked six minutes and 29.63 seconds to finish ahead of Denmark and China. The British duo won the title in the non-Olympic class in France last year. Meanwhile Ireland's Olympic silver medallist Paul O'Donovan, 22, won his lightweight single sculls semi-final. The Skibbereen man, who clinched Olympic silver in the lightweight double sculls in Rio with his brother Gary, produced a strong late burst to come from fourth at the halfway stage to win his semi-final in 6:51.71. Slovenian Rajko Hrvat finished second in 6:52.31 with Germany's Konstantin Steinhuebel clinching the third qualifying spot for Saturday's final. The Rotterdam championships features non-Olympic classes. Irish duo Mark O'Donovan and Shane O'Driscoll will compete against Cassells and Scrimgeour in Saturday's lightweight pairs final after finishing second in their semi-final behind the French boat. The British pair were the fastest qualifiers for final, ahead of the Danes (6:30.12) and France (6:30.56), while the Irish duo next quickest in 6:32.18. After winning gold in their class at last year's World Championships in France, Cassells and Scrimgeour retained the European title in Brandenburg in May.

Summary: Coleraine rower Joel Cassells and Great Britain team-mate Sam Scrimgeour remain on course to defend their lightweight pairs world title after winning their semi-final in Rotterdam on Thursday.


The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said Jacqueline Oakes, of Birmingham, was let down by a raft of procedural errors and failings to identify the risk she faced. She was battered to death in 2014. The West Midlands force said it agreed with the findings on its employees. See more stories from across Birmingham and the Black Country here In all, the actions of 40 staff were examined by the IPCC - "one of the biggest investigations" it has carried out, it said. The inquiry looked into 19 reported incidents involving Ms Oakes, 51, and her killer Marcus Musgrove in the run-up to her death at her home on 14 January 2014. Musgrove was jailed for life that year. Errors were made by officers and control room staff, the IPCC said. Among the failures, the investigation found, were those of five detectives who did not ensure they were adequately informed before determining that Musgrove should be bailed. On 10 January 2014, four days before she died, Ms Oakes gave a police statement about an incident in which Musgrove breached his bail conditions. There was an outstanding warrant for Musgrove for the breach when she died. The IPCC said it found there were at the time "significant organisational failings" in the way the force managed outstanding arrests of this type, which meant "arrest attempts" were not made until 12 January 2014. Ms Oakes's daughter, Jenny, 36, said: "I will never be able to understand how such a slack attitude to a situation of potential escalating domestic abuse can be taken by so many people at a police force. It is shocking." In addition to the 19 employees said to have a case to answer for misconduct, a now retired officer was found to have a case to answer for gross misconduct. No misconduct was identified for a further 20 employees whose actions were investigated. The IPCC said two officers would attend misconduct meetings, with others subjected to "management action to address the failings". No action is to be taken against the retired officer. Deputy Chief Constable Louisa Rolfe, of West Midlands Police, said: "We acknowledge that some of our officers and staff failed in their duty to complete certain checks, risk assessments and, on occasion, follow the force's domestic abuse policy and for this we sincerely apologise to the family of Jacqueline Oakes."

Summary: Nineteen police officers and staff have a case to answer for misconduct in their dealings with a domestic violence victim before her murder, a major investigation has found.


Aguirre was best known for his role in the long-running children's TV series El Chavo del Ocho, where he played the teacher, Professor Jirafales. Episodes of the programme were repeated for years across Latin America, dubbed into Portuguese in Brazil. He had been very ill for some time and died in his home in Puerto Vallarta. In his role as Professor Jirafales, a play on the word "giraffe" because Ruben Aguirre was very tall and skinny, he enchanted his audience with his gentle slapstick humour, his catchphrases and his character's courtship of a local woman who had a cheeky son in his class. He had started early in show business, first in radio, then television, and played various comedy roles. In the nineties when his television contracts had finished he bought a circus and travelled with it across the Americas. At one time he had earned a living as a bull-fighting commentator and he presented the first bullfight broadcast live via satellite from Madrid to Mexico.

Summary: Mexican comic actor Ruben Aguirre, loved by millions of children and adults across Latin America, has died, aged 82.


Bafana Bafana are without a win in four games in Group M and drew their latest games against Cameroon 2-2 and 0-0. They are five points off leaders Cameroon with two games left, giving them a slim chance of playing in Gabon. "It's most unfortunate that when the team doesn't win, the blame comes to the team," said Mashaba. "The problem of not scoring goals doesn't start here. All the coaches in the PSL (South Africa's Premier Soccer League), when they don't win, you hear them talking about the problem of not scoring goals. "Those are the things you can't address in the national team. You have only got three days at the most (to prepare). It must be fixed at grassroots. That where people are taught to play." The 65-year-old believes South Africa still have a chance to make it to next year's finals, despite the odds being stacked heavily against them. "If we win then next games we can sit on nine points and hope we can get one of the two slots for the second best teams. We are not going to throw in the towel," he said. "Anything is possible in football. When we went to Cameron, nobody gave us a chance. Everybody said 'you are going to be hammered'. "We fluffed it in our first two games (against Gambia and Mauritania). Possibly it was because of poor preparation or something. Those games let us down. These two games we played against Cameroon, had we won one and drawn another, we'd be talking a different story."

Summary: South Africa coach Ephraim Mashaba has insisted the team is not responsible for the poor results in their 2017 Africa Cup of Nations group qualifiers.


Matthew Todd Miller, a 24-year-old US citizen, was sentenced to six years of hard labour on 14 September 2014 for what state media described as "hostile acts" against North Korea. He had been in custody since 10 April when, according to North Korean sources, he destroyed his tourist visa and demanded asylum. The youngest of four sons, he grew up in Bakersfield, California, and both his parents were oil engineers. Described by former classmates as "quiet but extremely intelligent", he learnt Korean on his first trip to South Korea four years ago while visiting a brother stationed there with the US air force. A California neighbour said he liked it so much he stayed. Notes produced in court, apparently in Mr Miller's handwriting, suggested he had become a fugitive because he was involved with Wikileaks, the organisation that leaked US state secrets. However, the BBC's Stephen Evans in Seoul says it is unclear if they were written under duress or not, and if any of the allegations were true. In an interview this month with CNN, attended by North Korean officials, Mr Miller said: "I will say that I prepared to violate the law of the DPRK before coming here." He also said he deliberately committed his "crime", without specifying what he had done wrong. The charges he faced in trial were non-specified. Mr Bae, a Korean-American known in North Korea as Pae Jun-ho, was arrested in November 2012 as he entered the north-eastern port city of Rason, a special economic zone near North Korea's border with China. He has been described as both a tour operator and Christian missionary. North Korea said he used his tourism business to form groups to overthrow the government. He was sentenced to 15 years' hard labour in May 2013. Mr Bae's trial and conviction came at a time of high tension between the US and North Korea, in the wake of the communist state's third nuclear test. So far efforts to secure his release have been unsuccessful. His family say he has several health complaints including diabetes and liver problems. Jeffrey Edward Fowle: June 2014 - October 2014 Jeffrey Fowle entered North Korea on 29 April and was detained as he was leaving the country some time between mid-May and early June, according to reports. He is a 56-year-old US citizen from Miamisburg, Ohio, who works for the city. The father of three came into the country as a tourist but, according to reports, left a Bible in his hotel room - something the North considers incendiary. He was facing a trial for non-specified charges but was released following negotiations and returned to the US in October 2014. Mr Jun, a businessman, was arrested in November 2010 for an unspecified "grave crime", and detained in North Korea for six months. It was reported that he may have been involved in missionary work during business trips to North Korea. The communist state views organised religious activity as a potential challenge to its leadership. North Korean state media said that he had confessed to wrongdoing, and that

Summary: North Korea has detained several US citizens - sometimes holding them for years, the BBC explains.


Sophie Fearns said son Charlie, of Merseyside, needs to fly back to Seattle, America for experimental treatment unavailable in the UK. She said he urgently needs more T-Cell Therapy at Seattle Children's Hospital after the last transplant failed. His mother said she was "ecstatic" and "overwhelmed" by the "selfless amazing person" who paid for his treatment. Charlie has been ill since the age of three, she said. After a third relapse in April she said there was "no option" left for treatment for him in the UK. Mrs Fearns said the family, of Litherland, were left "heartbroken" when the first T-Cell transplant did not work. She said the news the treatment has been paid for was "completely overwhelming". "We don't know who this donor is but from the bottom of our hearts it means an incredible amount - not just from the foundation but everybody that supports Charlie." Charlie's father Rob Fearns said they were "extremely grateful" for the generosity of the anonymous donation. "He or she specifically asked to pay for Charlie. "We thought we were going to have to fight tooth and nail like last time to get the funds together." His parents said they received the confirmation via an email from the hospital on Wednesday saying someone had offered to foot the bill for them. Now Charlie has had financial clearance from the hospital, the treatment will start as soon as possible. Mr Fearns said he is expecting to find out the date next week. Information from Seattle Children's Hospital

Summary: A mystery donor has paid Â£150,000 to fund a "last chance cure" for a boy of 11 with leukaemia, his mother has said.


The 122-year-old Victorian structure spanning the River Thames last underwent refurbishment in 1970. The City of London Corporation, said work will take place on the timber decking, lifting mechanism and water proofing its brick arches. The bridge will close for road traffic until 30 December but pedestrians can walk across on all but three weekends. A free cross river ferry service will run when it is closed to pedestrians. Tower Bridge will also continue to be open for river traffic and the viewing gallery along the walkways of the bridge will also remain open. More than 21,000 vehicles and 40,000 people use the bridge everyday, owner the City of London Corporation said. "This heavy use has had an effect on timber decking of the bridge, which was last refurbished in 1970. "To ensure that the Bridge continues to serve as a vital river crossing we need to undertake the essential maintenance works," the corporation said. Nearby Tooley Street is also closed eastbound until 2018 to allow Network Rail's rebuilding of London Bridge railway station. Northbound traffic will be diverted via London Bridge and southbound via Southwark Bridge, and the works will be "disruptive", Transport for London (TfL) has said. TfL said the diversions take people into the congestion charging zones but motorists will not be charged as long as they keep to the routes marked specifically as diversions. Source: Tower Bridge Exhibition

Summary: London's landmark Tower Bridge has closed to traffic on Saturday until the end of December for maintenance work.


The problems emerge because the six-digit codes booking systems use to identify travellers are easy to guess. Two researchers demonstrated the weaknesses by changing a flight booking and seat assignment for a reporter. The security investigators presented their findings at the Chaos Communications Congress in Germany. In a blog detailing their work Karsten Nohl and Nemanja Nikodijevic of Security Research Labs (SRL) said the computer systems behind the airlines' travel bookings system dated from the 1970s and 1980s. Though these have been updated with web services they lack security systems that would prevent abuse, they said. In particular, they added, the systems have no way to check, or authenticate, who is querying the system for flight details. Few of the reservation checking systems limit how many attempts can be made to query details. These flaws can be exploited, said the pair, because the codes used to identify travellers and their itineraries use a restricted character set. This makes it possible to bombard servers with queries to find out a person's details. "Given only passengers' last names, their bookings codes can be found over the internet with little effort," they wrote. This access would let attackers steal personal information, divert frequent flyer benefits or use the data to lend credibility to phishing attacks. In some cases, said Mr Nohl, getting at a booking would let an attacker completely change flight details potentially letting them travel for free. SRL showed how the flaws could be exploited by working with German TV station ARD to change the flight of a reporter and putting him in a seat next to a German politician. Airlines and travel agents should move quickly to protect traveller data, urged the two researchers. The first step should be to limit the number of queries that can be made for a particular booking, they said. The vast majority of flight bookings are handled by three firms: Amadeus, Sabre and Travelport. Booking firm Amadeus said it was "assessing" the researchers' findings. It added that it planned to "address" the problems that had been exposed and would work with its partners to close the loopholes. It added that it had already limited the number of queries that could be made about a booking. Sabre said it had "numerous layers" of security surrounding flight itinerary systems. "Discussing how we maintain security and the privacy of travellers undermines those safeguards and the security of our systems," it told the Reuters news agency. Travelport has not yet responded to the release of the information by SRL.

Summary: Airline booking systems lack basic security checks that would stop attackers changing flight details or stealing rewards, warn experts.


Fr John Sullivan (1861 - 1933) was one of 39 to be named in a decree signed by Pope Francis to be beatified - officially recognised as 'Blessed'. He was declared a 'Servant of God' in 1960 and in 2014 he was made a 'Venerable' by Pope Francis. In certain circumstances beatification can later lead to sainthood. Fr Sullivan was brought up by a wealthy protestant family and was a later teacher at Clongowes Wood College in County Kildare. Since the 1940s Fr Sullivan's supporters have been campaigning for him to be made a saint. The attribution of a miracle is given to those who have died for the faith, while receiving a sainthood requires a miracle. Those named on the decree include Albanian Bishop, Vincens Prenushi, who died in prison in 1949 after being tortured for demanding the formation of a breakaway Albanian church under the country's former communist regime. Albania was declared as the world's first atheist state in 1967. Pope Francis also recognised a further 37 Albanian clerics and aspiring clerics, who were killed between 1945 and 1974, as martyrs. During a visit to Albania in 2014, Pope Francis paid tribute to all those who died.

Summary: Pope Francis has approved the beatification of a Jesuit priest from Dublin for his work with the sick and dying in the early 20th century.


A spokesman for the zoo said it was hard to predict a specific date for any cub being born, and that the breeding season can last until late September. Tian Tian, who arrived at the zoo as part of a breeding pair with Yang Guang in 2011, was artificially inseminated earlier this year. The zoo said she was being closely monitored. This is the fifth time Tian Tian has been artificially inseminated. She had previously given birth to twins in China but all attempts to produce a cub at Edinburgh Zoo have failed. A spokesman for RZSS Edinburgh Zoo said: "Giant panda breeding is a very complicated process but we believe that Tian Tian is pregnant. "Although a specific date was suggested, like all babies it's hard to predict precisely and the panda breeding season can last until late September. "Tian Tian is being closely monitored by our expert team and we will be the first to share any news as soon as we can." A spokesman for animal rights campaigners OneKind said: "This poor panda cub will never be introduced to the wild and will only ever know a life in captivity. "To make matters worse, to produce a cub, Tian Tian has been subjected to repeated invasive procedures since coming to Edinburgh. "This has not been in the interest of pandas or conservation, and appears instead to be driven by the pursuit of PR and gate fees. "If you want to help pandas, you don't need to go and see one at a zoo. Just make a donation to conservation charities conserving pandas in their natural habit instead." News of the pregnancy came to light after documents were released to the Edinburgh Evening News under the Freedom of Information Act. If a cub was born, it would be returned to China at the age of two - mimicking natural dispersal age in the wild. Panda reproduction is a notoriously difficult process, with females only ovulating once a year. Tian Tian (Sweetie) and Yang Guang (Sunshine) are the only giant pandas living in the UK. They arrived on loan from China in December 2011 and are due to remain at Edinburgh Zoo for a decade. The zoo first announced it was in negotiations to bring a pair of giant pandas to Scotland in 2008. The pair were brought to the UK under a historic agreement between the UK and Chinese governments. Described as a gift from China, they were the first giant pandas to live in the UK for 17 years.

Summary: The UK's only female panda, Tian Tian, is believed to be pregnant, according to Edinburgh Zoo.


Europe's largest 10km run had more than 35,000 runners last year and there will also be a half-marathon this time. "Manchester is a truly resilient city and we look forward to successfully hosting these great sporting events," said city councillor Luthfur Rahman. Earlier, Chelsea cancelled their Premier League victory parade, which was due to take place on Sunday. The club say it would be "inappropriate" with the UK terror threat at its highest level after Monday's bombing killed 22 people and injured 64. Greater Manchester Police and the city council had already said athletics' Great CityGames could take place in Manchester on Friday evening. Now they have given the go-ahead for the Great Run, with additional security measures expected to be in force. Rahman, the council's executive member for culture and leisure, said: "The Great CityGames and Great Manchester Run are two of the real highlights of Manchester's sporting calendar. "We know that thousands of Mancunians have been looking forward to taking part, or cheering the athletes on, so I am pleased and proud to confirm that these fantastic events will be held as planned this weekend." Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford is among those lined up to take part on Friday, with Sunday's field including Ethiopia's triple Olympic champions Kenenisa Bekele and Tirunesh Dibaba. Chelsea had planned an open-top bus tour with the trophy and hoped to add the FA Cup in Saturday's final with Arsenal. The Gunners have also said they will not stage a parade should they win. A screening of the match at the club's Emirates Stadium has been cancelled and fans will be given refunds. Chelsea said players will make a donation to a fund supporting victims of the attack and they will wear black armbands for the final at Wembley, with a minute's silence beforehand. "Everyone associated with Chelsea Football Club offers our heartfelt condolences to those affected by Monday's terror attack in Manchester," said a club statement. "Our thoughts go out to all the victims and their families and friends." Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis said the safety of supporters and staff was paramount and the club had been in close contact with the security services. "After taking their advice we have reluctantly taken the decision to cancel the screening and potential parade," he said. Spectators at all major events can expect to see more armed police and face longer security checks. Media playback is not supported on this device A rough sleeper who helped victims of the bomb attack is to be given six months' free accommodation by David Sullivan, West Ham United's co-chairman. Sullivan and his eldest son Dave were moved by reports of a man named Steve who tended to children when the bomb went off at a concert being given by American singer Ariana Grande. West Ham's joint owner tracked down the homeless man after putting out an appeal on BBC Radio 5 live while his son took to social media. They are now working out a plan to pay his rent for the next six months, while also providing

Summary: The Great Manchester Run will go ahead on Sunday following talks over security after the Manchester Arena attack.


The call was made by Scottish Conservative Mary Scanlon and backed by SNP MSP Mike MacKenzie. The state of Holyrood's coffee was raised during questions about staff and services at the Edinburgh building. Linda Fabiani suggested the complainers could use "very good coffee bags" and "some really hot water". She was answering on behalf of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body which runs the parliament. After taking a question about food waste disposal, Ms Fabiani was informed by Ms Scanlon that she would like to "increase the amount of food disposal" in some areas, namely the coffee for committee meetings. Ms Scanlon, the MSP for the Highlands and Islands, told the chamber: "On behalf of my colleague on the audit and education committee, Colin Beattie, and colleagues across this parliament from all parties can I ask if the corporate body will ensure that new and existing MSPs get a decent cup of coffee in committee in session five [after the next Holyrood election]." Ms Scanlon was backed by Mr MacKenzie who said he "shared the concerns". He had also observed that the quality of the coffee diminished the longer it sat in their flasks. Ms Fabiani responded by saying: "I guess it is all a matter of taste I quite like the coffee that we get in committee." However, she added that it was a complaint she had heard "over the last couple of years". Ms Fabiani said the fact the coffee urns were being emptied each day suggested that most people were "quite happy" with what was being offered.

Summary: Pleas have been made by members of the Scottish Parliament for better quality coffee to be served to them during committee meetings.


Media playback is not supported on this device Perry made two centuries against Bingham, who became a father for the third time on Saturday. Earlier, Mark Allen beat John Higgins 6-5 in a dramatic first-round match at Alexandra Palace. Scot Higgins missed a black off the spot when on course to win the deciding frame, allowing Northern Irishman Allen in to make a 44 and take the match. Media playback is not supported on this device "If you don't pot balls at key moments, you don't win snooker matches," four-time world champion Higgins said. Allen, ranked 10 in the world, goes on to face Marco Fu or Judd Trump in the quarter-finals on Thursday. Higgins, 41, started strongly, a 111 break helping him into a 2-0 lead before Allen hit back to level at 2-2. A run of 54 saw the Scot nudge ahead again before breaks of 81 and 104 gave Allen, 30, a 4-3 advantage. The seesaw nature of the match continued as Higgins levelled before a superb 67 break in the ninth frame forced a respotted black, only for Allen to take it with a stunning pot. Higgins, the world number three, took it to a decider with a run of 77, but Allen held his nerve to repeat his 2015 first-round win over the Scot. In the evening session, Perry took the first frame with a break of 116, before snatching the next after forcing a respotted black. Bingham pulled one back with a century, but Perry made breaks of 77, 76 and 107 and after Bingham fouled the white, his opponent took all the colours to progress. Perry faces China's Ding Junhui in the last eight on Friday. Sign up to My Sport to follow snooker news and reports on the BBC app.

Summary: Joe Perry thrashed former world champion Stuart Bingham 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals of the Masters.


The drone targeted his vehicle in a remote area of south-west Pakistan, near the Afghan border, on Saturday. US Secretary of State John Kerry said Mansour had posed "a continuing, imminent threat to US personnel". Mansour assumed the leadership in July 2015, replacing Taliban founder and spiritual head Mullah Mohammad Omar. The Afghan National Security Directorate (NDS) said on Sunday that Mansour had been killed in the Dalbandi area of Balochistan province - the first official confirmation of the killing of the Taliban leader. Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah and defence ministry spokesman Daulat Waziri also said that Mansour had been killed. Pakistan's government said on Sunday the drone strike was a violation of its sovereignty. The passenger thought to be Mansour had a passport under the name Wali Muhammad and was returning from Iran, it said. He had yet to be formally identified, Pakistan said. Profile: Mullah Akhtar Mansour Why the Taliban face a leadership crisis The Pentagon announced on Saturday that an operation had taken place near the town of Ahmad Wal at around 15:00 (10:00 GMT) and had been authorised by President Barack Obama. It said the strike had "probably" killed Mansour and an armed male combatant travelling with him. There have been conflicting reports from the Taliban. Senior commander Mullah Abdul Rauf told Associated Press that Mansour had been killed, but that the strike happened late on Friday. Other reports denied his death. One unnamed Taliban commander told Reuters: "We heard about these baseless reports, but this not first time. Just wanted to share with you my own information that Mullah Mansour has not been killed." False rumours have often surrounded Taliban leaders. The death of Mullah Mansour would be a big blow for the Taliban. He was gradually tightening his grip on the movement by bringing into his fold other leading Taliban members, including a son and a brother of his predecessor Mullah Mohammed Omar, and by launching large scale attacks on Afghan security forces. Under his leadership, the Taliban managed to capture an important city last year for the first time in 15 years. Mansour also managed to silence the splinter Taliban group under Mullah Muhammad Rasool, which challenged his leadership, and is credited by his followers for containing so-called Islamic State in Taliban areas. A vacuum created by his death would once again trigger a leadership struggle. Mr Kerry, on a visit to Myanmar, said: "This action sends a clear message to the world that we will continue to stand with our Afghan partners as they work to build a more stable, united, secure and prosperous Afghanistan. "Peace is what we want. Mansour was a threat to that effort." A spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said: "Our hope in the wake of the strike is for the Afghan-led peace process to bring lasting peace and stability." Mr Abdullah said Mansour had been "the main figure preventing the Taliban joining the peace process".

Summary: Afghanistan's spy agency has confirmed that Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour has been killed, after the US targeted him in a drone strike.


"I'm OK with myself, I sleep pretty good at night," Casey Anthony told the Associated Press, adding that she does not care "what anyone thinks about me". The 30-year-old complained about her portrayal in the media as a partying child-killer. Anthony was convicted of lying to police but acquitted of murder. Casey Anthony: The case that gripped the US If found guilty she could have faced the death penalty under Florida law. "My sentence was doled out long before there was a verdict. Sentence first, verdict afterward," she said. "People found me guilty long before I had my day in court." The 2011 case drew millions of viewers across the US, with every twist covered on live television. Anthony was dubbed "America's most hated mom" amid reports she went to nightclubs and got a tattoo in the month her daughter was missing. Last week the former judge that presided over the case spoke out to say that Anthony "more than likely" accidently killed her daughter by using too much chloroform to calm her before suffocating her with duct tape. During the trial, her defence argued that the girl drowned in the pool, and that Anthony and her father covered it up. The government failed to secure a conviction due to the lack of physical evidence tying her to Caylee's death. When asked about the drowning defence, Anthony hesitated. "Everyone has their theories, I don't know. As I stand here today I can't tell you one way or another. "The last time I saw my daughter I believed she was alive and was going to be OK, and that's what was told to me." She added: "Caylee would be 12 right now. And would be a total badass."

Summary: An Orlando mother who was found not guilty of murdering her two-year old daughter Caylee has broken her silence six years later.


The wicketkeeper-batter, 26, has been a key part of the England set-up since making her international debut in 2006. She is England's third highest one-day international run-scorer and second only to Charlotte Edwards in T20 games. In October last year, Sussex's Taylor, who took a four-month sabbatical in 2010, became the first woman to play in Australian first-grade cricket. The England and Wales Cricket Board said Taylor could still feature in the one-day and Twenty20 series against Pakistan beginning on 20 June. An ECB spokesperson said they were continuing to monitor the situation and that the board would "support her, keep in touch and talk with her prior to selection for the Pakistan series and the start of the Super League". Taylor has scored 5,581 international runs in 190 appearances, claiming 114 catches and 88 stumpings, and is one of only seven women to play in 100 ODIs for England. Last November, her Sussex team-mate Holly Colvin retired from international cricket to take up a role with the ICC in Dubai. And last week, England captain and record run-scorer Charlotte Edwards announced her international retirement after being told coach Mark Robinson wanted to build a new team.

Summary: England's Sarah Taylor is taking an indefinite break from cricket for personal reasons.


Media playback is unsupported on your device 13 September 2015 Last updated at 09:11 BST While they sing artist William Mackrell draws the bumps and swerves. His installation Gaps, Glitches and Speed Bumps on the No. 9 bus is part of his residency for the Royal British Society of Sculptors.

Summary: Four professional singers interpret their journey on a London bus guerrilla-style to the surprise of passengers.


Reading Borough Council had said it would need to spend Â£700,000 to bring the Arthur Hill Memorial Baths up to standard. The authority said it would sell the building to help pay for a new facility in the area in about four years. However, campaigners have now set up a community interest group in a bid to reopen the pool. Phil Vaughan, who has been a regular at the baths for 15 years, said he hoped the group would attract grants to fund a reopening. He said the council had agreed not to drain the pool for a few months. "We pay taxes, we are entitled to some community benefits," he added. Alan Hardie, secretary of Reading Dolphin Swimming Club, which used the baths, said: "It's very sad we will all be separating and won't be meeting here on Sunday mornings as we have done for many, many years. Dolphin member Margery Taylor, who has rheumatoid arthritis and has been using the baths for 20 years, said: "It's quite a social life for people who can't get about so easily - we don't want fancy wave machines, we just want a pool we can swim up and down." The original 90ft (27m) pool - which six individual hot baths for people who did not have them at home - was opened on 29 November 1911. During World War One the council agreed to let soldiers quartered in Reading use the baths free of charge. The building was donated to the town by the Hill family, in memory of Arthur Hill JP who was mayor of Reading four times between 1883 and 1887.

Summary: A 104-year-old swimming pool has closed after a council said it could no longer afford to repair the building.


Another 30 on the bus were hurt and two of them were fighting for their lives. The bus was carrying a group of German pensioners at the time of the fire near Stammbach in northern Bavaria. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said rescuers were delayed by "gawpers" driving slowly and by the intensity of the blaze. The cause of the fire is unknown. Traffic was reportedly moving slowly at the time and the collision between the two vehicles was not described as a major crash. The lorry's trailer was also incinerated and the burnt-out wreck ended up a short distance ahead of the bus. The German news website Frankenpost reports that it was carrying mattresses and pillows. The lorry driver was unharmed and told police the bus had gone into the back of his vehicle and burst into flames, it said. There were 46 passengers and two drivers on the bus. The bus driver was among those killed. The passengers were men and women aged 66 to 81, heading to Lake Garda in Italy for a holiday. Some of the passengers had got on the bus at Dresden station in the eastern state of Saxony. According to local media in Saxony, the bus had earlier picked up passengers elsewhere in Saxony and also in Brandenburg in the early hours of Monday before going to Dresden and then south-west towards Nuremberg. By mid-afternoon forensic teams had recovered the charred remains of 15 people and police confirmed that 18 had died. Firefighters reached the scene within 10 minutes of the accident but were driven back by the intensity of the fire. "Only steel parts are recognisable so you can understand what that meant for the people in this bus," said German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt. Motoring safety expert Hans-Ulrich Sander suggested that the fuel line that ran under the bus may have ruptured, prompting the fire to spread fast. Five rescue helicopters joined emergency workers at the scene. Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was distressed by the accident and expressed sympathy for the injured and bereaved relatives. She thanked the rescuers for looking after people "in an appalling situation".

Summary: Eighteen people died when their tour bus collided with a lorry and burst into flames on the A9 motorway in southern Germany, police say.


Media playback is not supported on this device The Olympic silver medallist accused the organisation of "ageism" and having "zero regard" for her welfare. She is the latest high-profile cyclist to come forward after Jess Varnish, Nicole Cooke and Emma Pooley criticised the World Class programme. Houvenaghel told the BBC she felt "vindicated" by a leaked draft report detailing British Cycling's failures. The report said British Cycling "sanitised" its own investigation into claims former technical director Shane Sutton used sexist language towards Varnish, who went public last April about her treatment. British Cycling subsequently admitted it did not pay "sufficient care and attention" to the wellbeing of staff and athletes at the expense of winning medals, an approach Houvenaghel attested to in her BBC interview. Both Sutton and predecessor Sir Dave Brailsford have now left British Cycling. Houvenaghel, 42, spoke to BBC Sport during its State of Sport week, which on Thursday examines the issue of athlete welfare versus a win-at-all-costs culture. A government-commissioned review, headed by 11-time Paralympic champion Baroness Grey-Thompson, into safety and wellbeing in British sport, is due to be published imminently. It is expected to recommend significant reforms designed to improve the way athletes are treated by governing bodies. Houvenaghel claimed: British Cycling said it "has acknowledged and takes very seriously previous cultural and governance failings in the World Class Programme". It said it has accepted the draft report's findings and already put into a place a 39-point action plan to "systematically address the cultural and behavioural shortcomings". The statement added: "Our new chair Jonathan Browning has apologised for instances where we have fallen short in our commitment to athlete welfare and has offered to meet with anyone who can help improve British Cycling." Who else has spoken out? Houvenaghel won silver in the individual pursuit at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, and gold in the World Championship team pursuit in 2008, 2009 and 2011. She retired in 2014, aged 39, after withdrawing from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with a back injury. Houvenaghel was critical of both Sutton and her team-mates in the aftermath of the London 2012 Olympics, where she was left out of all three team pursuit races as Dani King, Laura Trott and Joanna Rowsell-Shand won gold in a world record time. Speaking to BBC Sport this week, the Northern Irish rider said that experience was "very traumatic" and she felt "torment" at having "no explanation" for her last-minute omission. At the time, Brailsford, then performance director, defended the selection saying they had to "take the personal element out of it, and look at the data and be professional". He added: "I think when a team steps up and makes six world records on the trot and a gold medal, then I don't think you can argue with that." British Cycling reiterated that point on Thursday, adding it was "proud to support Wendy in what was a wonderfully successful cycling career" and she was "part of a pioneering generation of riders who set new standards of excellence", but was dropped in London 2012 "based

Summary: A "medal at any cost" approach created a "culture of fear" at British Cycling, says former rider Wendy Houvenaghel.


The sentencing of David Gilroy, who killed Edinburgh woman Suzanne Pilley, is due to take place next Wednesday. Earlier this week permission was also granted to film the proceedings. Twitter use has been allowed before in a Scottish court but it will be the first time a sentencing at the High Court in Scotland has been filmed. Gilroy was found guilty by a jury last month of murdering 38-year-old bookkeeper Ms Pilley. She disappeared in May 2010 but her body has never been found. Prosecutors believed that Gilroy, 49, buried his former lover in a "lonely grave" in a remote part of Argyll. Gilroy will be sentenced on Wednesday 18 April. During the filming, the camera will focus on the judge - no one else will feature in the footage except the macer and the clerk. Gilroy himself will not be filmed. Live updating on Twitter from a Scottish court was allowed for the first time for the sentencing of former MSP Tommy Sheridan in January 2011. However, guidance issued at the end of last year confirmed journalists in Scotland would not be allowed to use live text-based communication without specific clearance. Journalists south of the border have been told by the Lord Chief Justice to "twitter as much as you like".

Summary: Scottish legal authorities have granted permission for Twitter to be used to report the conclusion of a murder trial at the High Court.