Argentina defaults for second time

31 July 2014 Last updated at 08:01

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Argentina's Economy Minister Axel Kicillof said the government would ''respect the parameters of the law''

Argentina has defaulted on its debt - for the second time in 13 years - after last-minute talks in New York with a group of bond-holders ended in failure.

So-called "vulture fund" investors were demanding a full pay-out of $1.3bn (£766m) on bonds they hold.

Argentina has said it cannot afford to do so, and has accused them of using its debt problems to make a big profit.

A US judge had set a deadline of 04:00 GMT on Thursday for a deal. The crisis stems from Argentina's 2001 default.

Late on Wednesday evening, Argentina's Economy Minister Axel Kicillof said the investors had rejected the government's latest offer.

"Unfortunately, no agreement was reached and the Republic of Argentina will imminently be in default," Daniel Pollack, the court-appointed mediator in the case, said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

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When Argentina's Economy Minister flew to New York on Tuesday for the talks, people took that as a positive sign that the two sides were now talking.

But Axel Kicillof's lengthy address on Wednesday evening dashed those hopes - Argentina was not going to agree to anything that would compromise the country.

At the heart of this is a feeling that Argentina has been treated badly by the international financial system. Mr Kicillof made the point that the vultures always win and the people lose.

Just before the announcement was made there was a small rally in Buenos Aires' Plaza de Mayo, people handing out leaflets saying that the country wouldn't negotiate.

No doubt those people will be happy with the stand that Argentina has taken, but a default will make life harder. The country is already in recession and inflation is high.

Most people think the issue is too complicated - what they do know is that they want to just get on with their lives, whether the vultures are circling or not.

The latest default is expected to exacerbate problems in Argentina's recession-hit economy, analysts say.

However, the effect will not compare with the consequences of the country's economic meltdown in 2001-02, when savers' accounts were frozen to stop a run on the banks and violent street protests led to dozens of deaths.

"The full consequences of default are not predictable, but they certainly are not positive," Mr Pollack said.

Speaking at a news conference in New York, Mr Kicillof said Argentina would not do anything illegal.

Bond reaction

The investors, also known as "hold-outs", are US hedge funds that bought debt cheaply after Argentina's economic crisis.

They never agreed to the restructuring accepted by the majority of bond-holders.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has described as vultures the minority bond-holders - including Aurelius Capital Management and NML Capital.

She accuses them of taking advantage of Argentina's debt problems to make large profits.

Ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) downgraded the country to "default" earlier on Wednesday, although the price of the bonds did not react.

S&P noted that it could revise the rating if Argentina were to find some way to make the payments.

The hedge funds are demanding Argentina make interest payments on debt which it defaulted on in 2001, even though it was bought at less than face value.

The US courts have blocked payments to other bondholders who agreed a separate deal with Argentina, until agreement with the "hold-outs" is reached.

Mr Kicillof said he planned to return to Argentina after the news conference, saying the country would do what is needed to deal with what he called an unfair situation.

He reiterated that Argentina could not pay the hedge funds without triggering a clause that would force it to renegotiate with bondholders who accepted new debt agreements.

Are you in Argentina? Are you concerned about the implications of Argentina defaulting? Send us your comments and experiences. You can email us at haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line 'Argentina defaults'.

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S Leone declares Ebola emergency

31 July 2014 Last updated at 11:20

Sierra Leone's president has declared a public health emergency to curb the deadly Ebola outbreak.

Ernest Bai Koroma said the epicentres of the outbreak in the east would be quarantined and asked the security forces to enforce the measures.

The UN says more than 670 people in West Africa have died of Ebola since February - 224 of them in Sierra Leone.

This includes Dr Sheik Umar Khan who led Sierra Leone's fight against the virus. His funeral is on Thursday.

Airport screening

As part of the new measures to contain the viral haemorrhagic fever, travellers at airports will have to wash their hands with disinfectant and have their temperatures checked, President Koroma said in a statement.

His measures follow tough anti-Ebola policies introduced this week in neighbouring Liberia, where schools have been closed and some communities are to be quarantined.

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Ebola explained in 60 seconds

Both President Koroma and his Liberian counterpart Ellen Johnson Sirleaf have cancelled visits to Washington for the US-Africa summit next week because of the crisis.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia and Kenya are to begin screening all passengers arriving from West Africa.

In a statement, Ethiopian Airlines said ground and on-board staff would have also been sensitised on how to handle suspected cases of the virus.

However, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Thursday that it was not recommending any travel restrictions or border closures after consulting the World Health Organization, according to Reuters.

Any risks would be low in the rare event of an Ebola sufferer travelling by air, it adds.

Earlier this week, two airlines - Asky, a regional carrier, and Nigeria's Arik Air - suspended flights to Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone Ebola doctor: "National hero"

Sheik Umar Khan, 39, was a leading doctor specialising in viral haemorrhagic fever who died after contracting Ebola while treating patients. When it was announced that he had been infected, the health minister called him a "national hero" for his tireless work.

"He'd become a real figurehead for the Ebola response so there's a sense of deep sadness in what's a very small community here in Freetown," his colleague Dr Oliver Johnson said.

"When the news first broke that he was sick, I think it added to fears amongst the many doctors and nurses about treating Ebola patients. People thought, if even Dr Khan can get sick, then any of us can get sick."

Profile: Dr Sheik Umar Khan

The outbreak - the world's deadliest to date - was first reported in Guinea in February. It then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone, and a person who travelled from Liberia to Nigeria died of the virus shortly after arriving in Lagos last week.

Initial flu-like symptoms can include a sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and a sore throat, and spreads through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids.

Ebola kills up to 90% of those infected, but patients have a better chance of survival if they receive early treatment.

Ebola virus disease (EVD)

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Fatality rate can reach 90%
• Incubation period is two to 21 days
• There is no vaccine or cure
• Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhoea and vomiting can help recovery
• Fruit bats are considered to be virus' natural host

Profile: Dr Sheik Umar Khan

Are you in West Africa? Do you have family or friends there who are affected by the outbreak? You can send your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line 'Ebola Outbreak'.

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Israel 'to destroy Gaza tunnels'

31 July 2014 Last updated at 11:38

Israel will not stop its operation in Gaza until the tunnels constructed by Hamas have been destroyed, PM Benjamin Netanyahu has said.

Speaking ahead of a cabinet meeting, he said Israel was determined to destroy the tunnels - used to attack troops and towns - "with or without a ceasefire".

Earlier Israel called up 16,000 reservists, bringing the total mobilised so far to 86,000.

Some 425,000 people in Gaza have been displaced by fighting, the UN says.

That is as much as 25% of the population of the territory.

Continue reading the main story

• 225,178 living in UN or public buildings

• 200,000 may be sheltering with families

• 299,000 children need psychosocial help

More detail: Life in the Gaza Strip

Israel began Operation Protective Edge on 8 July. Since then at least 1,360 Palestinians have been killed, mostly civilians.

Some 58 Israelis have been killed, of which 56 were soldiers and two civilians. A Thai worker in Israel has also died.

Tunnel threat

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: ''We are determined to finish this mission''

The operation began with a focus on Hamas' rocket-launching capability, but has since expanded to take in the threat from tunnels.

After air strikes began, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) discovered an extensive network of tunnels leading from Gaza into Israel.

Hamas militants have launched several attacks from the tunnels, killing a number of Israeli soldiers.

Reports from Israel suggest the discovery of the tunnels - and the reality that infiltrators have used them to kill Israelis inside their own country - has shocked many Israelis and bolstered support for the operation.

It launched a ground operation to destroy the tunnels on the night of 17 July, and insists that any ceasefire deal includes the right to continue that mission.

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The BBC's Orla Guerin was given access by the Israeli military to a tunnel they say was used by Palestinian militants

"I won't agree to any proposal that will not enable the Israeli military to complete this important task for the sake of Israel's security," Mr Netanyahu said.

The tunnels would allow Hamas to "abduct and murder civilians and IDF soldiers while simultaneously attacking from the tunnels penetrating our territory," he added.

Gaza 'desperate'

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The BBC's Martin Patience on the latest situation in Gaza

In Gaza, Israeli shelling continued on Thursday morning, the BBC's Jon Donnison reports.

Meanwhile, a series of rocket alert sirens sounded across southern Israel. Sirens in the town of Sderot sounded several times as Mr Netanyahu spoke.

Civilians in Gaza are braced for more strikes after a deadly day on Wednesday that saw more than 100 people die.

In the most controversial incident at least 16 people were killed when shells hit a UN-run school in the Jabaliya district of Gaza City.

The US and UN condemned the strike, with the UN secretary general saying "all available evidence" suggested Israeli artillery was the cause.

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Families of the victims of the attack on a UN-run school have been grieving at a hospital that received the injured, as Ian Pannell reports

Spokesman Mark Regev told the BBC Israel would apologise if it discovered it was responsible.

"We have a policy - we don't target civilians," he said.

"It's not clear to us that it was our fire but we know for a fact there was hostile fire on our people from the vicinity of the school."

Later on Wednesday at least 17 were killed in a strike on a busy market in Shejaiya - a district already badly damaged by Israel artillery.

Israel occupied Gaza in the 1967 Middle East war and only pulled its troops and settlers out in 2005.

Israel considered this the end of the occupation, but it still exercises control over most of Gaza's borders, water and airspace. Egypt controls Gaza's southern border.

Hamas says it will not stop fighting until a blockade, maintained by both Israel and Egypt, is lifted.

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Russia told to pay Yukos investors

31 July 2014 Last updated at 12:03

Russia has been ordered to pay about $2.5bn (£1.5bn; 1.9bn euros) to former shareholders in defunct oil group Yukos by the European Court of Human Rights.

Russia's Justice Ministry said the ruling was "unfair" and it had three months to appeal against the decision.

Earlier this week, a court in The Hague told Russia to pay $50bn to former Yukos shareholders.

It said Russian officials had manipulated the legal system to bankrupt the company and jail its boss.

Russia has already said it will appeal against the Hague court's ruling.

The latest ruling from the European Court of Human Rights stated: "The respondent state is to pay the applicant company's shareholders as they stood at the time of the company's liquidation and, as the case may be, their legal successors and heirs 1,866,104,634 euros, plus any tax that may be chargeable."

The court also ruled that Russia should pay 300,000 euros in costs and expenses.

It went on to say that Russia had six months to come with a "comprehensive plan" to pay the shareholders.

"The awarded amount is already totally unprecedented in the human rights field," said Jan Kleinheisterkamp, associate professor of law at the London School of Economics.

"The 1.9bn euros is humongous in terms of compensation granted by the European Court of Human Rights."

Yukos was disbanded in 2007 after filing for bankruptcy in 2006. It was controlled by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, once Russia's richest man, who spent ten years in jail after being convicted of fraud and tax evasion.

He was pardoned in December last year.

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Race to find India landslide missing

31 July 2014 Last updated at 07:46

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Rescue teams had difficulty reaching the village due to damaged roads and heavy rain

Rescue workers in western India are working to locate survivors of a landslide that has claimed at least 30 lives and buried up to 200 people.

Eight people have been rescued from the wreckage in Malin village, near the city of Pune in Maharashtra state.

Teams worked through the night but rain was hampering efforts to search for scores of people presumed trapped under the mud and debris.

The landslide hit the village early on Wednesday while people were sleeping.

Landslides are common in some parts of India during the monsoon, which runs from June to September.

A large part of a nearby hill collapsed on Malin, and its population of 150 to 200 tribal people were covered with tonnes of loose earth, mud and rocks.

"Everything on the mountain came down," said Suresh Jadhav, a district official, describing how a cascade of mud, rocks and uprooted trees swamped the area.

Rescue operations were disrupted on Thursday morning after "very heavy rainfall" in the area, Tripti Parule, a spokesperson for India's National Disaster Response Force said.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan told the Press Trust of India news agency that more than 160 people were believed to be trapped in 44 houses buried under the rubble.

It was raining when I reached Malin village. The roads leading to it were clogged with ambulances and earth-moving vehicles.

What was once a thriving village ringed by mountains and hills has now turned into a dump of red mud and soil. The only temple here - 35ft (11m) tall - is buried in the sludge.

Rescue workers were hard at work trying to find survivors. Medics were treating the injured. As earth-movers cleared the debris, I could see the top of many homes buried in the mud.

A local villager said it had taken a lot of time for the rescue workers and their vehicles to reach the village on Wednesday.

Since most of the homes were buried with their occupants inside, there were no people at the site to claim the bodies that were being taken out.

At a local hospital, I heard doctors talking about a mass cremation of the bodies after the autopsies were completed.

The Indian Express newspaper reported that a 25-year-old woman and her six-month-old baby were among the 10 people who had been rescued from the site.

"The woman and her baby were trapped in their house under the thatched roof... The mother was tightly holding the baby in her arms," Baban Kokane, the driver of the rescue vehicle, told the newspaper.

"We found them while removing the mud with the earth mover. Their house was wrapped in a thick layer of mud."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the loss of lives in the landslide as "saddening". Home Minister Rajnath Singh is travelling to Pune on Thursday to assess the situation.

More than 500 people died and several thousand people were listed as missing after floods and landslides hit the northern state of Uttarakhand in June last year.

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Australia 'in child asylum cover-up'

31 July 2014 Last updated at 09:09

A psychiatrist says the Australian government sought to cover up the extent of mental health problems among children held in asylum detention.

The comments came at a national human rights inquiry into the treatment of children in immigration detention.

His claim came a day after church leaders accused Australia of holding children in "inhumane" conditions.

The government rejected that as "offensive". It says it is working to reduce the number of child detainees.

Dr Peter Young worked for International Health and Mental Services, a provider of health services at detention centres contracted by the government.

He told the Australian Human Rights Commission inquiry that he had collected figures showing "significant" mental health problems among child detainees, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

His company provided this data to the Immigration Department which then "reacted with alarm and asked us to withdraw these figures from our reporting", he said.

Australia and asylum

• Asylum-seekers - mainly from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Iraq and Iran - travel to Australia's Christmas Island on rickety boats from Indonesia
• The number of boats rose sharply in 2012 and the beginning of 2013, and scores of people have died making the journey
• Everyone who arrives is detained. They are processed in camps in Christmas Island, Nauru and Papua New Guinea. Those found to be refugees will be resettled in PNG, not Australia
• The government is believed to be towing boats back to Indonesia. It has also returned asylum seekers intercepted at sea to Sri Lanka.
• Rights groups and the UN have voiced serious concerns about the policies.

Later in the inquiry, Immigration Department Secretary Martin Bowles said he was not present when the contractor was allegedly asked to withdraw the figures and said: "If our staff did an inappropriate thing, then I will deal with that."

A spokesman for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison told the BBC that the government would await the inquiry's outcome as well as "any supportive evidence" in the final report.

He stressed that the current government had reduced the number of children in detention by almost 35% since taking power last year.

'State-sanctioned child abuse'

On Wednesday, the Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce released a report condemning the lack of protection for child detainees and recommending that an independent guardian be appointed.

The chairman of the taskforce, Anglican Dean Peter Catt, told reporters that the government had ignored independent evidence about the plight of the children, and that this amounted to "state-sanctioned child abuse".

Mr Morrison's spokesman said such claims were "shocking and offensive and the minister rejects these categorically", adding that the government was committed to ensuring children were protected from exploitation and abuse.

Last week, Australia's top human rights official Gillian Triggs voiced concern over the welfare of children at the Christmas Island detention centre and said there had been a spike in self-harm cases.

Australia detains all those who arrive by boat to seek asylum. Detainees are held on Christmas Island and in camps in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Nauru. The UN and rights groups have strongly condemned conditions in the offshore camps.

The government says its tough asylum policies are intended to save lives by stopping people getting on dangerous boats to make the journey to Australia.

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Euro prices deeper in 'danger zone'

31 July 2014 Last updated at 12:54

Eurozone inflation has fallen to its lowest level since the height of the financial crisis, sliding further into what the European Central Bank (ECB) has described as a "danger zone".

Prices rose in the single currency area by 0.4% in July, from 0.5% in June.

The ECB considers that an inflation rate of below 1% poses a risk of deflation.

Separate figures show that unemployment in the region fell slightly to 11.5% in June compared to 11.6% in May.

The new inflation figures from the European Union's statistical office, Eurostat, show that the rate remains persistently below the ECB's target rate of 2%. Prices have risen at an annualised rate of less than 1% for the last ten months.

Central Bank governor, Mario Draghi, has previously warned that he would deem inflation below 1% to be in a "danger zone", which could lead to prices tipping into a deflationary spiral.

Analysis: BBC economics correspondent, Andrew Walker

Deflation - falling prices or below zero inflation - in the eurozone has come a step closer.

Several individual countries have already had at least a brush with it. Spain's new figures show a fall in prices over the previous twelve months. Greece and Portugal already had inflation below zero.

It can be a serious problem - not inevitably; it depends on the circumstances. But it is clear that the European Central Bank is very keen to avoid deflation.

The new figures increase the chance that the ECB will embark on a full scale programme of quantitative easing (QE), buying financial assets such as government debt with newly created money in an effort to push inflation up (yes really).

It's a sign of how weak the eurozone economy is that this debate is underway just as the US Federal Reserve seems close to ending its own QE programme.

In June the ECB introduced a package of measures to boost growth and tackle the threat of inflation.

It cut interest rates, including reducing the bank deposit rate to below zero, and made available cheap long term loans to banks. It promised to stand ready to take more action if inflation continued to fall.

Lower still

Brian Tora, from the investment managers J.M. Finn and Co said it was hard to see what more the ECB could do if inflation fails to respond to the measures already taken.

"They could instigate a programme of asset purchases. But it's more complicated for the ECB than for a central bank that's just responsible for one nation state."

The ECB has not undertaken large-scale asset purchases in the same way as the UK and US central banks.

"But it's worth remembering that [Mr] Draghi said last autumn it would do whatever it took to keep Europe out of recession," said Mr. Tora.

Analysts also point to a fall in energy prices as contributing to lower inflation.

"There is undeniably a very real risk that eurozone consumer price inflation could go lower still ... barring an appreciable rise in oil and gas prices resulting from geopolitical factors hitting supplies,'' said Howard Archer, economist at analysis group IHS.

Core inflation which excludes food and fuel costs was unchanged for July at 0.8%.

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Experts reach site of MH17 jet crash

31 July 2014 Last updated at 12:26

International experts have reached the site of the flight MH17 crash in eastern Ukraine after the government halted military operations for a day.

A convoy of Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) monitors arrived along with four Australian and Dutch police experts.

Fighting between government and rebel forces had prevented them getting there for nearly a week.

Russian aviation experts are also in Ukraine, hoping to visit the site.

The Malaysia Airlines plane crashed on 17 July in eastern Ukraine, with the deaths of all 298 people on board.

The rebels deny that they shot it down with a missile by mistake.

Officials in Russia, which has been accused by the US and others of supplying the rebels with advanced weaponry, suggest that Ukraine's own armed forces downed the jet - a charge rejected by Kiev.

A team of 68 Malaysian police has arrived in Kiev to help with the investigation, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on a visit to the Netherlands to meet his Dutch counterpart, Mark Rutte. The Netherlands lost 193 of its citizens in the crash while Malaysia lost 43.

Russia has come under increased pressure to end its support for the rebels despite having continually denied claims that it is arming and training them.

In other developments

• A new round of EU sanctions was revealed on Thursday following similar action by the US. Billionaire tycoon Arkady Rotenberg, a former judo sparring partner of President Vladimir Putin, is among those affected by EU travel bans and asset freezes
• Ukraine's parliament rejected the resignation of Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk after the recent collapse of the coalition he led

• Separatist rebels are reportedly due to meet a Ukrainian delegation on Friday in Minsk, as Belarus hosts talks involving Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE

Rebel control

OSCE monitors on the ground said in a tweet that they had reached the crash site after using a new access route.

An AP news agency journalist at the scene said the area appeared to be still under the control of rebel fighters.

The police and forensic investigators from the Netherlands and Australia are expected to initially focus their efforts on retrieving bodies still missing and collecting victims' belongings.

Australia lost 27 of its citizens in the crash.

A Russian delegation led by Oleg Storchevoy, deputy head of Russia's federal air transport agency Rosaviatsia, arrived in Kiev earlier.

"Russian experts intend to meet the head of the investigative commission... and hand over all the materials that the chairman of the commission had previously asked for," Rosaviatsia said in a statement.

"Today, the Russian representatives will also try to reach the crash area of the Boeing 777 and together with specialists from the international investigative commission examine the state of parts of the aircraft at the site."

There was no comment on the Russians' involvement from Ukrainian and Dutch officials approached by AP.

The press service for Ukraine's "anti-terrorist operation" said troops would refrain from combat operations in the Donetsk region, except in self-defence, in order to allow investigators to do their work on Thursday.

Well over 1,000 civilians and combatants have been killed since the new Ukrainian government sent troops into east Ukraine in mid-April to quell the insurgency.

The rebels have been forced back towards their strongholds in the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, which have come under heavy bombardment.

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Ten jailed for India school fire

30 July 2014 Last updated at 10:00

A court in India has sentenced 10 people to jail for a school fire in 2004 in which 94 children were burnt alive in southern Tamil Nadu state.

The owner of the school at Kumbakonam was sentenced to life in prison.

Four others convicted, including the headmistress and the principal, were jailed for 10 years each.

The fire started in the kitchen where food was being cooked to be distributed among the children as part of the free Mid-Day Meal scheme.

It soon spread and the school's thatched roof caught fire.

Some 200 children, between eight and 10 years, were trapped in a classroom and eyewitnesses said that before they could leave, the roof fell on them like a ball of fire, blocking their escape down the one narrow staircase.

Besides the 94 who were charred to death, dozens of others were injured, some of them seriously.

Many parents were unable to recognise their children as many of the bodies were burned beyond recognition.

The crowded 900-student private school was sandwiched between two residential houses on a congested street. It had a single entrance and a narrow stairway.

Fire-fighters had to use heavy equipment to smash the walls of the building to get to the bodies.

Twenty-one people were charged and tried in the case.

On Wednesday, 11 of them were acquitted by the court in the southern town of Thanjavur. Four others of the 10 convicted were jailed for five years while a fifth was sentenced to two years.

The tragedy highlighted poor fire regulations in India, where correspondents say repeated promises to improve safety measures have not been fulfilled.

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Guinea concert stampede kills 24

30 July 2014 Last updated at 05:12

At least 24 people have died in a stampede at a beach concert in Conakry, the capital of Guinea, to mark the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The president's office has declared a week of national mourning after what it called a "tragic drama" at a concert by the Guinean rap group Instinct Killers.

Dozens of people were injured, said police sources quoted by AFP.

The concert took place on Tuesday evening on a beach in Ratoma, a northern suburb of Conakry.

The authorities were "shocked by the tragic drama caused by mass movements at a cultural event," said a statement from the president's office.

Hospital sources said there were 13 girls among the dead.

Did you attend the concert? You can send us your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject line "Guinea concert".

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Apology over Turtles '9/11 poster'

30 July 2014 Last updated at 10:03

Paramount Pictures has apologised over a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles poster that accidentally referenced the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The image shows the characters jumping from an exploding New York skyscraper, above its Australian release date of 11 September.

After receiving criticism online, the film studio deleted the poster from its Twitter and Facebook accounts.

"Combining that image and date was a mistake," Paramount Australia said.

"We are deeply sorry to have used that artwork for the marketing materials promoting the September 11 opening in Australia.

"We intended no offence and have taken immediate action to discontinue its use."

The combination of imagery and release date prompted anger and surprise online for its similarity to the terrorist attacks, during which desperate victims were seen jumping from the World Trade Center.

Stephen Scott tweeted: "Bad move. Poor taste."

Suzanne Carbone added: "Really? Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles jump out of fiery NY tower in poster for film released Sep 11."

Ross O'Donovan said: "How did this slip by the marketing team?"

However others were more forgiving - Alex Shuba wrote: "Target demographic is either too young to remember or born after 9/11, and this is a foreign market - I forgive them."

William added: "Not being from Australia, I'm not certain how much of an impact the date has on them. They probably didn't even think of it."

The film, which stars Megan Fox and features the voice of Johnny Knoxville as turtle character Leonardo, is due in US cinemas on 8 August.

It is not due for release in the UK until 17 October.

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Ukraine seizes key town near Donetsk

30 July 2014 Last updated at 12:14

Ukraine says it has seized a key town near the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, as fighting intensifies in the east.

Pro-Russia separatists were driven out of Avdiivka on Wednesday, the army says. The strategic town is near the airport and train station in Donetsk.

Heavy fighting around Donetsk has again prevented international experts from reaching the crash site of flight MH17.

Details of fresh EU sanctions against Russia for its support to the Ukrainian rebels will be revealed on Wednesday.

Shelling

Almost two weeks after the Malaysia Airlines jet came down, international monitors from the Organization for the Security and Co-operation of Europe were prevented from reaching the crash site again on Wednesday.

They were turned back to Donetsk after being stopped at a separatist checkpoint, with evidence of fighting ahead smoke rising in the distance from fighting, says the BBC's Jonathan Beale.

There is one theory that it is not in the interest of the Ukrainian army for them to let international observers into the crash site because their presence in the area would restrict the army's offensive, says the BBC's Tom Burridge in Kharkiv.

Of course neither side would want international observers or police to be caught in the crossfire and the Ukrainian army may want to keep its momentum going, he adds.

Regional officials in Donetsk said on Wednesday that 19 people had been killed in fighting in the past 24 hours. Several apartment buildings have been hit by shelling in the government forces' bid to retake the city, they added.

Ukraine says its troops have also entered the towns of Shakhtarsk and Torez in Donetsk region, and Lutuhyne in Luhansk region.

Amid the fighting, a group of hackers sympathetic to the rebels says it has disabled the website of the Ukrainian president.

Meanwhile, the US has announced new economic sanctions against Russia which has widened to include key sectors of the economy - energy, arms and finance.

US nationals and people living in America will no longer be able to bank with three Russian banks - the VTB, the Bank of Moscow, and the Russian Agriculture Bank (Rosselkhozbank).

Peace 'more important'

The EU earlier expanded its sanctions, targeting the oil sector, defence equipment and sensitive technologies, details of which will be revealed later on Wednesday.

Sanctions are starting to bite in Russia, with the share prices of VTB bank and the rouble down, as borrowers are squeezed by rising interest rates, says the BBC's Daniel Sandford in Moscow.

Germany's Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel signalled on Wednesday that the sanctions may hurt the German economy, which has strong trade links with Russia.

"Nonetheless at a time of war and peace, economic policy is not the main consideration," he told journalists.

The list of 87 targets of EU sanctions now includes the heads of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and foreign intelligence, the president of Chechnya, as well as two Crimean energy firms.

However, UK company BP, which owns nearly 20% of Russian state oil giant Rosneft, has warned that further sanctions against Russia could "adversely impact" its performance.

Sanctions are having significant costs on Russia, with its central bank spending tens of billions of dollars in order to defend the rouble, a senior state department official has told the BBC.

Russian press reacts to sanctions

• "The Russian authorities have been responding chaotically to emerging threats by taking instant ad hoc measures, but failing to calculate their systemic consequences" - Nezavisimaya Gazeta
• "Sources in Russian diplomatic circles say the Russian leadership hopes that the sectoral sanctions will be considerably less stringent when approved at the top level" - Kommersant
• "It is possible to say now that the Russian authorities mistakenly believed that Europeans would not risk introducing sectoral sanctions for fear that they might backfire" - Novyye Izvestiya
• "Russia is different not only because its economy is much more integrated into the world one. Russia is a nuclear power and a member of the World Trade Organization, which limits the possibility of pressure" - Vedomosti

Appeal for access

Russia has come under increased pressure to end its support for the rebels, who Western governments believe were behind the downing of the Malaysia Airlines jet that killed 298 people in eastern Ukraine.

Moscow has also been accused by the EU and US of supplying heavy weapons to the rebels - a charge it denies.

"If Russia continues on this current path, the costs on Russia will continue to grow," said US President Barack Obama, announcing the new round of sanctions.

But Australia's Tony Abbott said on Wednesday his government was focusing on retrieving Australian victims from the MH17 wreckage: "At the moment our focus is not on sanctions, our focus is on bringing home our dead as quickly as we humanly can."

His comments follow that of US Secretary of State John Kerry, who urged Russia and the rebels to allow Western investigators full access to the crash site.

"They still can't even ensure that all of the victims' remains have been removed, and that is an unsupportable burden for any family to have to bear, and it is an unacceptable standard for behaviour, period," he said.

Russia's foreign ministry issued a statement on Wednesday saying that it was puzzled by President Obama's comments that Russia was not co-operating with an international investigation into the crash, Reuters reports.

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France evacuates expats from Libya

30 July 2014 Last updated at 12:16

The French government says it has evacuated French and British nationals from Libya, as battles rage between government forces and militias.

A French diplomatic source said 40 French nationals, including the ambassador, had been evacuated by ship along with seven British nationals.

France's embassy in Tripoli has been closed temporarily, the French foreign ministry said on its website.

Libya has been gripped by instability since the 2011 uprising.

The French government spokesman in Paris, Stephane Le Foll, announced that French and British nationals had been evacuated, without giving numbers.

An unnamed diplomatic source gave the numbers to France's AFP news agency, saying the expats had been evacuated by the French army.

They are aboard a warship bound for the southern French port of Toulon, the French foreign ministry said.

On Sunday, the US evacuated its embassy in Tripoli, citing a "real risk" because of the fighting.

Together with France, Germany and the UK, it advised its nationals in Libya to leave immediately.

The UN announced this week it was pulling its staff out.

France and the UK played an important role in enforcing a no-fly zone in Libya in 2011, when rebels toppled long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was captured and killed.

Dozens of people have been killed in the fighting in recent weeks, which has centred on the city of Benghazi, where the main military base fell to Islamist-led militants on Wednesday.

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Dozens trapped by Indian landslide

30 July 2014 Last updated at 12:31

At least 10 people have died after a landslide buried more than 40 houses and left 160 people trapped under debris in a village in western India.

The first teams of emergency workers have arrived in Malin village near the city of Pune in Maharashtra state where the disaster happened.

Rescuers trying to reach survivors caught under the debris are being hampered by bad weather.

Reports said that heavy rains had triggered the landslide.

Landslides are common in some parts of India during the monsoon rains, which run from June to September.

An official of India's National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) said difficult terrain in the hilly area was making rescue work difficult.

Senior local official Prabhakar Deshmukh told the Associated Press news agency that rescue workers were being hampered by rains and poor roads leading to the Ambegaon area where Malin is located, some 60km (37 miles) from the city of Pune, south-east of Mumbai, India's commercial capital.

Reports said debris from a hill near the village collapsed on homes early on Wednesday when people were sleeping.

Television pictures showed the side of a hill shaved off, with mud and water flowing below.

Local official Saurav Rao told the Press Trust of India that heavy machinery and 30 ambulances were being sent to the village.

"The exact number of casualties is not known as we are moving slowly to ensure that those trapped are removed safely," Mr Rao said.

More than 500 people died and several thousand people remain missing after floods and landslides hit the northern state of Uttarakhand in June last year.

Are you in the area? You can email your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk, using the subject line 'Malin landslide'. Or email your photos and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, with the same subject line.

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

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Somali 'killed for not wearing veil'

30 July 2014 Last updated at 12:44

Militant Islamists in Somalia have shot dead a Muslim woman for refusing to wear a veil, her relatives say.

The nomadic woman was killed outside her hut near the southern Somali town of Hosingow by gunmen belonging to the al-Shabab group, they added.

The militants had ordered her to put on a veil, and then killed her after returning and finding she was still not wearing one, the relatives said.

An al-Shabab spokesman denied the group had killed the woman.

Al-Shabab does not fully control the area where she was living, he added.

The woman's relatives, who asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals, told the BBC she was killed at about 07:30 (04:30 GMT).

Al-Shabab, which controls much of southern and central Somalia, imposes strict rules of behaviour, including dress codes for men and women.

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UN accuses Israel over Gaza shelter

30 July 2014 Last updated at 13:06

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Chris Morris reports from the damaged school in Gaza: ''This is a terrible scene''

Israel attacked a UN-run school housing refugees in Gaza despite warnings that civilians were there, the UN has said.

UN spokesman Chris Gunness said "the world stands disgraced" by the attack, in which 15 died and dozens were hurt.

The Israeli military said an initial inquiry suggested soldiers responded to mortar fire. The military later said it would hold a four-hour humanitarian ceasefire on Wednesday afternoon.

Some 1,200 Palestinians and 55 Israelis have been killed in the conflict.

Most of the Palestinian deaths have been civilians.

Fifty-three Israeli soldiers have been killed along with two civilians. A Thai worker in Israel has also died.

Israel launched its offensive in Gaza after a surge in rocket fire from the territory.

Hamas, which controls Gaza, says it will not stop fighting until the blockade, maintained by both Israel and Egypt, is lifted.

The current conflict is now the longest between Israel and militants from Gaza.

A 2012 offensive lasted for eight days, and the 2008 conflict went on for 22 days.

Mr Gunness from the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) told the BBC that Israel had been told 17 times that the school in the Jabaliya refugee camp was housing the displaced.

"The last time was hours before the fatal attack," he said.

"Our initial assessment is that it was Israeli artillery that hit our school."

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Chris Gunness: "Children were killed as they slept next to their parents"

He said there were "multiple deaths" including women and children, adding that the attack caused "universal shame".

Images from the school showed large holes in the walls and roof.

Bob Turner, UNRWA's Gaza director, said the UN was "confident" Israel was responsible.

He said UN workers had collected fragments of projectiles that suggested they were artillery shells fired from Israeli positions to the north-east of the school.

The Israeli military said the incident was under review.

The military said in a statement that its "initial inquiry suggests that militants fired mortars earlier this morning from the vicinity of UNRWA school in Jebalia".

It said soldiers "responded by firing towards the origin of fire".

The military later said it would hold a ceasefire between 15:00 (12:00) and 19:00.

But the ceasefire would only apply to areas where Israeli soldiers were not currently operating.

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The BBC's Orla Guerin was given access by the Israeli military to a tunnel they say was used by Palestinian militants

Israel has repeatedly accused Hamas of using schools and civilian areas as bases to launch attacks.

Last week, another UN-run school was hit, with Palestinians saying at least 15 people were killed.

But the Israeli military denied the killings, saying a single "errant" shell had landed in an empty courtyard.

In other developments:

• The UN on Tuesday revealed that a cache of rockets had been found at one of its schools in Gaza - the third case of its kind - and condemned it as a "yet another flagrant violation of the neutrality of our premises"
• A monthly opinion poll of about 600 Israeli Jews by Tel Aviv University suggests 97% support the current military operation
• A baby who was born after her mother was killed in Gaza, making headlines around the world, has died.

Israel stepped up the intensity of its strikes on Tuesday and overnight into Wednesday, saying it had hit a number of tunnels dug by militants to attack Israel.

But the Israeli military said rockets continued to land in Israel from Gaza.

Palestinian officials said Gaza's port had been destroyed on Tuesday and its only power plant had been put out of action.

Meanwhile, Palestinian factions Hamas, Fatah and Islamic Jihad are expected to meet in Cairo later to discuss a ceasefire.

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Bomber kills Hamid Karzai's cousin

29 July 2014 Last updated at 09:34

A suicide bomber has killed a cousin of President Hamid Karzai in the southern city of Kandahar, officials say.

Hashmat Karzai was greeting a well-wisher to his house when the man blew himself up. One report said explosives were hidden in the bomber's turban.

Mr Karzai had been receiving guests on the festival of Eid marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

He was a campaign manager for Ashraf Ghani, one of two presidential hopefuls vying to replace Hamid Karzai.

There was no immediate claim for the assassination.

It follows a series of attacks carried out by the Taliban and their allies as votes are rechecked in the bitterly disputed election.

Hashmat Karzai was influential and a key backer of Ashraf Ghani.

The BBC's David Loyn in Kabul says he had emerged as a significant power-broker in the politics of Kandahar, the most important city in the south of Afghanistan.

The Karzai family had been split by a long running feud, our correspondent reports.

Hashmat, who had a pet lion, was the head of a security company with major US contracts, and had been implicated by some family members in the killing of a cousin - a charge he denied.

His own father was murdered by another family member 25 years ago.

In 2011 Hamid Karzai's brother, Ahmad Wali Karzai, was murdered in his home in Kandahar in an attack claimed by the Taliban.

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UN blacklists N Korea arms ship firm

29 July 2014 Last updated at 04:53

The UN Security Council has blacklisted the operator of a North Korean ship seized in July 2013 near the Panama Canal with Cuban weapons on board.

The move means Pyongyang-based Ocean Maritime Management is now subject to an international asset freeze and travel ban.

The company operated the Chong Chon Gang, found with Soviet-era weapons and fighter jets hidden under sugar sacks.

United Nations sanctions ban most arms shipments to North Korea.

Under resolutions adopted after Pyongyang's nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, the export of all arms and related parts, with the exception of small arms and light weapons, to the communist country is prohibited.

'Cynical attempt'

The UN's North Korea sanctions committee said that the company had "played a key role in arranging the shipment of the concealed cargo of arms".

Continue reading the main story

1. Departs from Nakhodka in Russian far east (200km east of North Korean border)
2. Arrives at Pacific side of Panama Canal
3. Leaves the Panama Canal on the Caribbean side heading for Havana, but disappears from satellite tracking
4. Arrives back at Panamanian port of Manzanillo; later searched for contraband. Weapons uncovered

The move showed "intent to evade UN sanctions, and is consistent with previous attempts by the DPRK (North Korea) to transfer arms and related materiel through similar tactics in contravention of Security Council prohibitions", the committee said.

The Chong Chon Gang was stopped near Manzanillo, on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal, on 15 July 2013 under suspicion that it was carrying drugs.

It had disappeared from satellite tracking for a few days as it approached the Cuban capital, Havana, having departed from Russia's eastern coast three months earlier.

On searching the vessel, officials found military hardware including two Soviet-era MiG-21 fighter aircraft, air defence systems, missiles and command and control vehicles.

Cuban authorities said that the ship was carrying 240 tonnes of "obsolete" defensive weapons.

The North Korean government insisted the ageing weapons were simply being transferred to North Korea to be repaired, before returning them.

The US envoy to the UN, Samantha Power, described the episode as a "cynical, outrageous and illegal attempt" by Cuba and North Korea to circumvent UN sanctions.

In February the ship and most of the crew were allowed to leave Panama and a court later ordered the release of the remaining three officers.

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US: Russia 'violated missile treaty'

29 July 2014 Last updated at 07:46

Russia has violated a key arms control treaty by testing a nuclear cruise missile, the US government says.

Russia tested a ground-launched cruise missile, breaking the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty signed in 1987 during the Cold War, the US said.

A senior US official did not provide further details on the alleged breach, but described it as "very serious".

The bilateral agreement banned medium-range missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 km (300 to 3,400 miles).

Analysis: BBC world affairs correspondent Nick Childs

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was a landmark Cold War agreement. It essentially eliminated an entire, and highly controversial, class of nuclear weapons. For that reason, it still has resonance.

There have been questions dating back at least to 2008 over whether Russia was developing a weapon that might breach the treaty. So one issue is why Washington has decided to make its declaration now. Is it a reflection of the general deterioration in US-Russian relations, and in particular the fallout from the Ukraine crisis?

Russia has said little. It might argue the Americans are simply wrong, that the missile falls below the range limit. But the widespread suspicion is that it does breach the limits of the treaty. Moscow might also argue the treaty has been overtaken by world events, that other countries are developing similar missiles, and - after all - the Americans pulled out of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty when it suited them.

But there is also the argument that such an iconic treaty should actually be expanded beyond the US and Russia, rather than falling into disuse.

The US claims come at a time of heightened tensions between the two sides, with the US criticising Russia for its alleged involvement in the conflict in Ukraine.

'Prohibited items'

A senior US official, who was not named, said in a statement that the testing of the missile was "a very serious matter which we have attempted to address with Russia for some time now".

"We encourage Russia to return to compliance with its obligations under the treaty and to eliminate any prohibited items in a verifiable matter," the official added.

US President Barack Obama has written to Russian leader Vladimir Putin over the matter, officials say.

This is the first time the US government has made its accusations public, though the issue has simmered for years, the BBC's Paul Blake in Washington reports.

In January, the New York Times reported that US officials believed Russia had begun testing ground-launched cruise missiles as early as 2008.

The US State Department had said at the time that the issue was under review.

The 1987 treaty is at the heart of American-Russian arms control efforts, and was signed by then-Presidents Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev in the final years of the Cold War, our correspondent says.

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Italy to 'help douse' Libya fire

29 July 2014 Last updated at 10:53

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Footage shows rescuers attempting to quell the huge flames at the fuel depot - Rana Jawad reports

Italy has offered to help extinguish a huge blaze that has engulfed the biggest fuel depot in the Libyan capital, Libya's government says.

It would send aircraft and a team of experts to contain the blaze which has hit two tanks, the government added.

Libyan officials blame clashes between rival militias for starting the fire, described as "out of control".

Many residents of Tripoli are staying indoors, amid fears that the violence is spiralling out of control.

At least 97 people have been killed in fighting between rival militias battling for control of Tripoli's main airport in the past week.

The depot is about 10km (six miles) from Tripoli on the road to the international airport.

The BBC's Rana Jawad in Tripoli says that the mood among residents is grim, and it feels as though the city is being strangled because of the violence.

People are angry, scared and mostly in disbelief at the recklessness of the militias and disregard for the potential wide-scale damage, she says.

'Ignited by shrapnel'

A lot of families who live on the road to the airport or other areas affected by stray rockets have fled their homes, our correspondent adds.

In a statement, the Libyan prime minister's office appealed to "all sides to stop fighting and allow the experts and planes to successfully put out the blaze as soon as possible".

Both the Italian government and Italian oil company ENI would assist in extinguishing the fire, the statement said.

Fire-fighters almost managed to put out the blaze when it took hold of the first tank but had to withdraw after fighting resumed in the area, Libya's National Oil Company (NOC) spokesman Mohamed Al-Harrai told the BBC on Monday.

He said shrapnel hit the second fuel tank, igniting it.

The fuel storage site, which belongs to the Brega oil and gas company, is the main hub for distribution of petrol in the city.

The government has been unable to disarm the numerous armed groups controlling large parts of the country, which are behind Libya's worst violence since the 2011 uprising that toppled Col Muammar Gaddafi.

It has led some Western governments to urge their nationals to leave and withdraw foreign staff from their embassies in Tripoli.

Libyan government officials have warned of the possibility of a break-up of the country if clashes over Tripoli airport continue.

Members of the Islamist Libya Revolutionaries Operations Room (LROR) are trying to seize control of the airport, which has been in the hands of the Zintan militia since the overthrow of Col Gaddafi.

In Benghazi, at least 38 people were killed in clashes between between troops loyal to the Libyan government and Islamist fighters on Sunday.

Are you in Libya? Are you in Tripoli or Benghazi? Do you have friends and family in the country? Please share your experiences, photos and videos by contacting haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject 'Libya fighting'. Please include contact details if you feel it is safe to do so.

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

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Microsoft in China anti-trust probe

29 July 2014 Last updated at 11:55

An anti-monopoly investigation into US technology giant Microsoft has been launched by Chinese authorities.

China's State Administration for Industry and Commerce - the body responsible for enforcing business laws - said it was looking into "alleged monopoly actions" by the company.

The announcement came after officials from the regulator visited some of Microsoft's local offices.

The company said it "will address any concerns the government may have".

It has not yet been accused of any specific wrongdoing.

Any potential investigation in China would be a fresh setback for Microsoft in the country, a key growth market for global technology firms.

Earlier this year, China said it would ban government use of Windows 8, Microsoft's latest operating system.

Increased scrutiny?

The visits to Microsoft offices come just days after the China's anti-trust regulator said that Qualcomm, one of the world's biggest mobile chipmakers, had used monopoly power in setting its licensing fees.

The anti-trust case has already seen some local handset makers hold back on signing licences for Qualcomm products, hitting its revenues.

Another technology firm, Interdigital - which specialises in wireless technology - has also faced a similar investigation.

Chinese regulators suspended that investigation earlier this year after Interdigital agreed to change its pricing structure.

However, some have alleged that China is using anti-trust probes to protect domestic firms.

"It has become increasingly clear that the Chinese government has seized on using the [anti-monopoly] law to promote Chinese producer welfare, and to advance industrial policies that nurture domestic enterprises," the US Chamber of Commerce said earlier this year.

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EU set to widen Russia sanctions

29 July 2014 Last updated at 12:53

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Tom Burridge on the fighting near the MH17 crash site

The European Union is set to agree new sanctions against Russia, targeting its finance, energy and defence sectors over the conflict in Ukraine.

Top Russian individuals and entities are already subject to EU sanctions for their alleged role in Ukraine's crisis.

Calls for the EU to act have been fuelled by the downing of flight MH17.

An international team has again failed to access the crash site in eastern Ukraine, amid heavy fighting between government forces and rebels there.

This is the third time in as many days that the team, which includes Dutch and Australian police officers, has had to abandon attempts to reach the site. Many of the 298 people travelling aboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 were Dutch or Australian.

Earlier on Tuesday, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte asked Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to "halt hostilities" around the crash site, according to a spokesman for Mr Rutte, quoted by AFP news agency.

Ukraine's military has been on the offensive, seeking to encircle the pro-Russian separatist rebels in Donetsk region. In the latest developments:

• Several shells are said to have struck buildings in the separatist stronghold of Donetsk city
• Ukraine says its troops have entered the towns of Shakhtarsk and Torez in Donetsk region, and Lutuhyne in Luhansk region
• Ten Ukrainian soldiers and at least 22 civilians have reportedly been killed in the last 24 hours
• The dead civilians are said to include three children and five people at a home for the elderly
• A group of hackers sympathetic to the rebels says it has disabled the website of the Ukrainian president.

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Families of MH17 victims are waiting to hear which bodies have been identified, as Anna Holligan reports

Analysis by the BBC's Gavin Hewitt

Europe's leaders did not want to move to economic sanctions but they were moved by two considerations: the outrage at the way investigators have been blocked from access to the crash site of the downed plane and, secondly, the fact that Russia, since the incident, has been allowing heavy weapons across the border into Ukraine.

The calculation in Europe is that it had to act for its own credibility and that it may have to go further to ensure that President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle understand that their actions carry consequences.

How will Russia respond? Hard to say, although Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia would not retaliate or "fall into hysterics".

But - if all goes as expected - the EU will today take a significant step; that it has to risk some damage to its own economic interests in order to put pressure on President Putin and Russia.

Ukraine conflict: EU squeezes Russia

'Further costs'

EU ambassadors in Brussels are taking part in a meeting that is expected to lead to fresh sanctions. The meeting ends on Tuesday afternoon.

The fresh measures under discussion include restrictions on Russian banks accessing European markets, an arms embargo and curbs on dealings with the energy sector.

The leaders of France, Germany, Britain and the US already discussed possible sanctions in a conference call on Monday.

A spokeswoman for UK Prime Minister David Cameron later said that he and fellow European leaders had agreed to "impose further costs on Russia" for supporting the rebels in Ukraine.

Western nations have accused Russia of equipping the uprising in Ukraine with heavy weapons - including the missile that brought down flight MH17.

Russia has denied the charge. Russia and the rebels blame Ukrainian government forces for the attack on the airliner.

Any new EU sanctions could come into force within 24 hours of a deal being reached between the bloc's 28 member states.

Sanctions warning

Last weekend, the EU subjected a further 15 Russian individuals and 18 entities to asset freezes and visa bans for their alleged involvement in the Ukraine conflict.

The list of 87 targets of EU sanctions now includes the heads of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and foreign intelligence, the president of Chechnya, as well as two Crimean energy firms.

However, UK company British Petroleum, which owns nearly 20% of Russian state oil giant Rosneft, has warned that further sanctions against Russia could "adversely impact" its performance.

Meanwhile, Russia's foreign ministry has dismissed the latest UN human rights report on the Ukraine conflict as "unobjective and even hypocritical".

The UN's human rights chief warned on Monday that the downing of MH17 may be a "war crime".

According to the UN, at least 1,129 people have been killed and 3,442 wounded in the fighting in Ukraine since mid-April. The violence has displaced more than 200,000 people, many of them fleeing east to neighbouring Russia.

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China investigates ex-security chief

29 July 2014 Last updated at 12:55

China's former security chief Zhou Yongkang is being investigated for suspected "serious disciplinary violation", state media say.

The news confirms rumours about the hugely powerful former minister, who has not been seen in public for months.

Mr Zhou headed China's Ministry of Public Security and was a member of the top decision-making body, the Politburo Standing Committee.

The move to target him will send shockwaves through the political elite.

He is the most senior Chinese official to be investigated since the Gang of Four - which included the wife of late leader Mao Zedong - in the early 1980s.

Zhou Yongkang retired in late 2012, as Xi Jinping took over from Hu Jintao as the Communist Party leader and China's president.

Since the transition, Mr Xi has introduced a wide-ranging crackdown on corruption within the party, warning graft could threaten the organisation's very survival.

Bo Xilai ally

In a brief statement, state-run Xinhua news agency said the investigation would be conducted by the Communist Party's corruption watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

No timescale was given for the probe, which has been widely expected.

Several individuals believed to have had close ties to Mr Zhou have also been targeted in corruption investigations in recent months.

Carrie Gracie, BBC China editor

Since taking power in 2012, it's been clear that President Xi Jinping was determined to consolidate his own power and remove opponents to economic reform.

But he also wanted to clean up the image of a ruling party which conceded that rampant corruption was the greatest threat to survival.

An anti-corruption drive has served all three objectives and conveniently boosted Mr Xi's public popularity.

But he always said he was targeting the tigers as well as the flies and it was important to demonstrate that he could defeat resistance at the very top.

Which makes today's long-awaited announcement about the disgrace and downfall of Zhou Yongkang an important signal of Mr Xi's supremacy but a blow to the reputation of the party he leads.

Mr Zhou's career saw him head both the ministry charged with overseeing domestic security and China's largest energy company, the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

He was also the party's top official in Sichuan province.

Allies of his from all three areas are now the subject of various investigations.

Only a handful of people serve on the Politburo Standing Committee (in Mr Zhou's time nine, currently the number is seven) and they are seen as the most powerful individuals in China.

Zhou Yongkang was also an ally of Bo Xilai, the one-time high-flying former Chongqing party chief who was jailed last year.

In initial reactions observed on Weibo, China's Twitter-like micro-blogging platform, netizens appeared to praise the announcement.

Thumbs-up emoticons, "Got him!" and "Good job!" were just some of the more popular responses.

Many also made reference to "tigers", a reference to Mr Xi's promise to include high-ranking officials in his anti-corruption campaign.

"Now that is what I call an old tiger. Good job Mr Xi," said one user. "This is just one tiger out of many, to catch tigers one must have determination, don't stop now!" said another.

It was not clear to what extent officials were censoring negative comments, as has been done in the past.

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Israel steps up bombardment of Gaza

29 July 2014 Last updated at 12:58

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A fuel depot supplying Gaza's only power station has been hit, as Martin Patience and Chris Morris report

More than 100 Palestinians are said to have been killed after Israel intensified its bombardment of Gaza and warned of a long conflict ahead.

Gaza's only power plant caught fire as Israel carried out 60 air strikes, targeting sites associated with Hamas, the Islamist group which controls Gaza.

UN staff members are said to be among those killed.

An Israeli military spokesman said the strikes signalled a "gradual increase in the pressure" on Hamas.

In a televised address on Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed the need to destroy tunnels dug under the Gaza-Israel border, to prevent militants infiltrating Israel.

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Israeli soldiers evacuate a "brother in arms" from Operation Protective Edge, as Orla Guerin reports

Palestinian officials say 1,115 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in the fighting since 8 July while Israel has lost 53 soldiers and three civilians - two Israelis and a Thai worker.

UN Relief and Works Agency spokesman Chris Gunness said in a tweet that a number of staff members had reportedly been killed. The UN is currently caring for 182,604 Palestinians in its 82 shelters in Gaza, he said.

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An Israeli airstrike hit the house of former Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh overnight, as Nick Childs reports

In another development, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accused Israel of acting like a "rabid dog" and called on Muslims to arm Palestinians to enable them to fight back against "genocide".

'Humanitarian plant'

A huge plume of smoke rose over the strip's only power plant after one of its fuel tanks was reportedly set alight by Israeli tank shells, and the plant was forced to shut down.

For the past three weeks, most Gazans have been living with just a few hours of electrical supplies and now the situation will almost certainly get worse, the BBC's Martin Patience reports from Gaza.

Gaza also receives some power supplies from Israel and Egypt.

Fifty-five houses were destroyed in the bombing, with people buried under rubble in at least three of them, Palestinian security sources told the BBC.

The unoccupied house of former Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh was destroyed.

"The destruction of stones will not break our will and we will continue our resistance until we gain freedom." he was quoted as saying on a Hamas website afterwards.

A neighbour, Um Hani Abu Ryalah, told AP news agency the experience had terrified her family: "Our children were so scared and they were screaming. Now they can't hear because of the loud explosions and they are shaking."

Israeli fire is also said to have damaged the Hamas TV and radio stations, three mosques, four factories and government buildings which included the finance ministry and a compound belonging to the interior ministry.

Gaza's port was also destroyed, Palestinian security sources told the BBC, and two schools and a kindergarten were on fire after being hit.

Among the 100 people killed on Tuesday were seven families, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Targeting tunnels

Rockets fired from Gaza continued to hit Israel on Tuesday.

Lt-Col Peter Lerner, an Israeli military spokesman, told AP pressure was being increased on Hamas.

"Israel is determined to strike this organisation and relieve us of this threat," he said.

On Monday, five Israeli soldiers were killed when militants infiltrated the border, while a mortar bomb killed four earlier and a tenth died in a clash in southern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

In his address on Monday night, Mr Netanyahu said Gaza had to be demilitarised in order to protect Israel.

"We will not finish the operation without neutralising the tunnels, which have the sole purpose of destroying our citizens, killing our children," he said.

Israel's Operation Protective Edge began on 8 July after a surge in militant rocket attacks.

A rally in support of the operation is planned for Tuesday evening in Tel Aviv.

Are you in Israel or Gaza? How are you affected by the situation? Email your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk using the subject 'Israel Gaza'.

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Ferry students 'floated from cabins'

28 July 2014 Last updated at 08:50

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Students who survived the Sewol disaster described being "swept off their feet" as the ship began to sink, reports Lucy Williamson

Students who survived South Korea's ferry disaster have described escaping from flooded cabins as the ship sank.

The students had obeyed the crew's orders to stay put, even as water started coming in as the Sewol listed.

Students floated up to cabin doors - by now overhead - and were pulled out by their classmates.

The Sewol ferry sank on 16 April off Jeju island, killing 304 people. The students were testifying at the trial of the ship's crew.

"We were waiting and, when the water started coming in, the class rep told everyone to put on the life vests," Reuters news agency quoted one student as saying.

"The door was above our heads, so she said, 'We'll float and go through the door' and that's how we came out.

"Other kids who got out before us pulled us out."

Most of those who died on the Sewol were teenagers from the same high school who were on a school trip.

The crew are charged with negligence and abandoning ship. The captain and three officers are also charged with "homicide through wilful negligence".

Investigators say the ferry had been illegally modified to carry more passengers and cargo, and was overloaded.

But prosecutors say the actions of the captain and crew - including instructing passengers to stay in their cabins as the ship listed - led to more deaths.

Swept back

Monday marked the first time students had given evidence at the trial.

They are testifying at a district court near their homes near Seoul, rather than at the actual trial in the southern city of Gwangju.

One witness told the court passengers received multiple instructions to stay put.

"They kept saying the same thing over and over," AFP quoted the student as saying.

Another student described escaping through a stairwell to a hatch and jumping into the sea, as a swell hit.

"There were many classmates in the corridor and most of them were swept back into the ship," she said.

The disaster caused shock and outrage in South Korea, including harsh criticism of both bureaucrats and business officials whose alleged failings or corruption led to the tragedy.

Officials from ferry operator Chonghaejin Marine are also the subject of separate legal proceedings.

Earlier this month, police identified a body found on 12 June as company owner Yoo Byung-eun, who had been the subject of a man-hunt since the disaster.

His son, Yoo Dae-kyun, was arrested on Friday.

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