Lawsuit over Malaysia missing plane

31 October 2014 Last updated at 08:40

Two Malaysian children whose father was on the Malaysian Airlines flight that disappeared have filed a lawsuit against the airline and the government.

It is believed to be the first legal case filed in Malaysia since the incident on 8 March.

The lawsuit accuses the civil aviation department of negligence for failing to contact the plane within a reasonable amount of time after it disappeared.

Flight MH370, from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, had 239 people on board.

Lawyers representing the two underage sons of passenger Jee Jing Hang filed the suit with the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

They are suing the national carrier for breach of contract, saying it failed to take all measures to ensure a safe flight. They are also suing civil aviation authorities, the immigration department and the air force for negligence.

"We have waited for eight months. After speaking to various experts, we believe we have sufficient evidence for a strong case," said their lawyer Arunan Selveraj.

"A big plane missing in this age of technology is really unacceptable," he said.

The legal team said they would seek damages but did not give a figure.

In March a civil action case was brought in the US by a law firm on behalf of relatives. But a judge dismissed it, calling it an improper filing.

The Malaysian government believes MH370 ended its journey in the southern Indian Ocean, in seas far off the Australian city of Perth.

But there is no explanation yet for what happened to the plane or caused it to stray so far off course.

Despite extensive searches coordinated by Australian authorities, no wreckage of any kind has been found yet.

Some legal experts say this could hamper any lawsuits filed, as it leaves much to speculation.

Search efforts are ongoing.

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Charity warns US on Ebola quarantine

31 October 2014 Last updated at 04:51

The medical charity Doctors Without Borders has warned some mandatory US state Ebola quarantine measures are having a "chilling effect" on its work.

The group has said it may shorten some assignments to West Africa as a result of recent state restrictions.

One of the charity's volunteers has defied orders by the US state of Maine that she remain quarantined in her house after being in Sierra Leone.

There have been nearly 14,000 cases worldwide, but only nine in the US.

Doctors Without Borders - also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) - has 270 international and 3,000 locally hired staff in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.

But the foreign workers now have additional concerns when heading home, said executive director Sophie Delaunay.

"There is rising anxiety and confusion among staff members in the field over what they may face when they return home upon completion of their assignments in West Africa," she told Reuters news agency.

Some health workers are delaying returning to the US and staying in Europe for 21 days, she added, "in order to avoid facing rising stigmatisation at home and possible quarantine".

Some people are being discouraged by their families from returning to the field, she added.

In other developments:

• a UK ship has arrived in Sierra Leone carrying food, medical equipment and 32 pick-up trucks, to help keep hard-pressed Ebola treatment centres in operation
• speaking in Brussels after a trip to West Africa, US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power has said the world must do more to confront "the greatest public health crisis ever"
• North Korea has instituted a 21-day quarantine for any foreign national arriving from any country
• the World Bank said it would immediately provide $100m to fund the deployment of more health workers to West Africa

Lawyers for Kaci Hickox, a nurse recently returned to the US from treating Ebola patients in Africa, have vowed to fight a court order that would enforce a 21-day quarantine.

Maine Governor Paul LePage said the state was willing to agree to arrangements that would have allowed Hickox to go for walks, runs and bicycle rides, but not allow her to go to public places.

The governor said discussions with Ms Hickox, 33, had failed.

She says her freedom should not be limited when she is perfectly healthy.

People are not infectious until they show symptoms, usually a fever.

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Ebola nurse Kaci Hickox: "I'm free to go on a bike ride in my home town"

Another worker, Dr Craig Spencer, travelled around New York City before he fell ill. He is currently in isolation in hospital.

After his case was announced, New York, New Jersey and other states ordered the mandatory quarantine of healthcare workers who had been exposed to Ebola patients.

But President Barack Obama has warned that overly restrictive measures could discourage volunteering in West Africa.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the actions of US states ordering medics to be isolated.

"Returning health workers are exceptional people who are giving of themselves for humanity," he said.

"They should not be subjected to restrictions that are not based on science."

Ebola cases outside West Africa

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Key Jerusalem holy site reopens

31 October 2014 Last updated at 08:56

Israeli police have reopened a key Jerusalem holy site after its closure amid tensions following the shooting of a prominent right-wing Jewish activist.

The Temple Mount/al-Haram al-Sharif was reopened ahead of Muslim Friday prayers, but with restrictions on worshippers as a security measure.

Meanwhile the Palestinian suspected of wounding Rabbi Yehuda Glick has been buried in East Jerusalem.

There has been an escalation of tension in the city in recent weeks.

On Thursday, a spokesman for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas described Israel's temporary closure of the holy site as a "declaration of war".

The compound - known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif - is the holiest site in Judaism, and contains the al-Aqsa Mosque - the third holiest site in Islam.

The site was reopened to Muslim worshippers on Friday morning, with entry to men restricted to those over 50 amid fears of unrest after Friday prayers

'Historic status-quo'

On Thursday night hundreds of people gathered for the funeral of Moataz Hejazi amid a heavy police presence. The burial passed off without incident, police said.

Mr Hejazi, 32, was shot after opening fire when police surrounded his home, officials said.

He was suspected of having attacked Rabbi Glick as he left a conference on Jewish claims to the Jerusalem holy site.

Rabbi Glick is a well-known campaigner for the right of Jews to pray at the site, which is currently prohibited.

He was seriously wounded and is on a life-support machine in a Jerusalem hospital.

On Wednesday night there were clashes in the neighbourhood of Abu Tor between police and Palestinians protesting against the killing of Mr Hejazi.

Police used tear gas and rubber bullets against stone-throwing youths.

Mr Hejazi's cousin alleges that he was shot by police after being detained within his house. Israeli police say Mr Hejazi was killed after he began shooting at police who then opened fire in response.

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"They took him upstairs and then they shot him", Moataz Hejazi's cousin said

US Secretary of State John Kerry said he was "extremely concerned" by the escalation in tensions and had urged Israel to reopen the holy site.

"It is absolutely critical that all sides exercise restraint, refrain from provocative actions and rhetoric, and preserve the historic status quo on the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount in word and in practice", he said.

Analysis: BBC's Kevin Connolly in Jerusalem

On Fridays, the holy day of Islam, prayers are often a time of heightened sensitivity - especially since this latest escalation of tension surrounds the familiar dispute about the rights to worship at a site around the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's Old City sacred in both Islam and Judaism.

A delicate status quo governs rights of access to al-Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount. Israel captured the Old City in 1967 but swiftly handed control of the compound back to the Islamic religious authorities, fearful of triggering a Holy War.

Israel's security forces do impose restrictions - banning men under the age of 50 from worshipping on occasion - but argue that is about maintaining order.

Jews are allowed to visit the site but not to pray there. Now some right-wing religious groups say Jews should be allowed to pray - a demand which causes anger and unease in the Muslim world.

If it all sounds familiar - well, that is because it is. When Britain governed the Holy Land in 1929 a very similar dispute provoked rioting that led to widespread loss of life - a proper resolution of it all still feels hopelessly distant.

Jerusalem's holiest site

• Known as the Temple Mount to Jews and al-Haram al-Sharif to Muslims, it comprises the al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, and is next to the Western Wall
• The Western Wall, from the time of the second Jewish Biblical temple, is the holiest site where Jews can pray; the Dome of the Rock, where according to Jewish tradition the Ark of the Covenant rested in the first temple, is the holiest site in Judaism
• The al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam; the Dome of the Rock is revered by Muslims because of its connections to the Prophet Muhammad
• Christians also venerate the site because of its Biblical links to Jesus
• A Muslim committee has managed the compound since the time of the Crusades, while Israel, which has occupied East Jerusalem since 1967, controls access
• Israel maintains a ban on prayer by non-Muslims at the compound as a security measure
• Rabbi Yehuda Glick campaigns for allowing Jews to pray at the site

Some districts of East Jerusalem have seen nightly clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces since the Gaza conflict last summer.

A Jewish baby and Ecuadorian woman were killed when a Palestinian attacker drove his car into a group of pedestrians in Jerusalem last week.

Are you in the area? Have you been affected by recent events? You can share your experience by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

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Deadly blast at Nigeria bus station

31 October 2014 Last updated at 11:57

At least eight people have died in an explosion at a major bus station in Gombe state in north-eastern Nigeria, witnesses have told the BBC.

Many people were injured in the rush hour blast in Gombe city, a hospital source said. Other witnesses spoke of three bags of explosives going off.

Gombe shares a border with three states placed under emergency rule to fight the Boko Haram Islamist insurgency.

The group has taken full control of Mubi, a commercial centre in Adamawa.

It is the largest town Boko Haram has taken since it stepped up its insurgency when the state of emergency was declared in May 2013 in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe.

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Burkina Faso leader urged to resign

31 October 2014 Last updated at 12:09

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President Compaore: "Only through a consultative dialogue will we be able to restore peace"

Burkina Faso's opposition has renewed its call for the immediate resignation of President Blaise Compaore as hundreds of protesters gather in the capital, Ouagadougou.

A statement by opposition leader Zephirin Diabre urged protesters to occupy public spaces.

Demonstrators are angry Mr Compaore has been seeking to amend the constitution to stay in power beyond next year.

He has now agreed not to seek another term but says he will remain till 2015.

Mr Compaore's decision came after protesters set fire to parliament and government buildings on Thursday.

The creation of a transitional government to serve until 2015 elections was announced by army chief Gen Honore Traore, who said it would "be put in place in consultation with all parties".

He also declared the dissolution of parliament.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon's special envoy for West Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, is expected in Burkina Faso to try to ease the crisis, the UN said.

Analysis: Thomas Fessy, BBC West Africa correspondent

The president said he was ready to open a political dialogue to set the terms of a transitional government that he would lead until the next presidential election. His current term ends in November next year, so staying in power now would be legal.

But would he be legitimate?

Opposition leaders and protesters say no. They want him to step down now.

President Compaore appeared to want to calm things down but he spoke like a man who still wants to decide when he goes.

That could be the recipe for more unrest.

In pictures: Political violence hits Burkino Faso

'Fulfil your responsibilities'

In a statement released on Friday, main opposition leader Zephirin Diabre called on protesters to "maintain the pressure by systematically occupying public spaces".

"The opposition has said and will say again that the precondition for any discussion relating to a political transition is the departure, pure and simple and without condition, of Blaise Compaore," it said.

Opponents of the president were seen gathering in Ouagadougou's main square, Place de la Nation, and outside the army headquarters on Friday.

There were reports of a tense stand-off at the army HQ, with a huge crowd shouting: "Fulfil your responsibilities or we will do so ourselves."

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Anti-government protesters looted the parliament building in the capital, Ouagadougou on Thursday

Another opponent of Mr Compaore, the rap artist Smockey who represents civil society group Le Balai Citoyen, told local radio that the people were "determined once and for all" to remove the president.

The BBC's Laeila Adjovi in Ouagadougou says it is unclear whether the army or Mr Compaore is currently in control.

And with international diplomats backing the president's offer of talks and opposition leaders refusing to join in, there are fears that the confrontation could sink the country into further violence.

The president agreed to hand over to a democratically elected government only once the transitional administration had completed its 12-month term.

He repeated his position on Friday in an interview for Reuters news agency, saying he had heard the protesters and that all problems could be resolved through dialogue.

He had originally planned to seek re-election by pushing a constitutional amendment through parliament that would have lifted the limit on presidential terms.

But the move triggered Thursday's demonstrations, the most serious yet against Mr Compaore's rule.

At least one person was killed in the protests, says BBC Afrique's Yacouba Ouedraogo in the capital.

The city hall, the homes of MPs, and an upmarket hotel in Ouagadougou were also set ablaze.

Similar protests hit the south-western city of Bobo Dioulasso, and other towns in the poor West African state.

State television went off air after protesters ransacked its headquarters.

Blaise Compaore

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BBC News looks back at Blaise Compaore's three decades of power

• Former soldier and served under President Thomas Sankara as minister of state to the presidency
• Took power after Sankara was killed in mysterious circumstances by a group of soldiers in 1987
• First elected president in 1991 and again in 1998
• A new constitution in 2000 limited presidents to two terms in office, and limited terms to five years
• Won two further terms
• Faced outbreaks of violence on several occasions, including a military mutiny in 2011
• Protests at attempts to amend the term limits began a year ago, fuelled by the high cost of living

Correspondents say Mr Compaore has always managed to stay in power by using a combination of conciliation and moderate force.

But the current tensions have been building for several months, and it is not clear whether he can survive this time.

Mr Compaore is a staunch ally of the US and France, which uses Burkina Faso as a base for military operations against militant Islamists in the Sahel region.

But the country is one of West Africa's poorest, and is vulnerable to changes in world prices for cotton, the economic mainstay of many Burkinabes.

Are you in Burkina Faso? Send us your eyewitness accounts and views by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

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Russia-Ukraine deal secures EU gas

31 October 2014 Last updated at 01:08

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The deal will secure gas supplies to EU countries via Ukraine

Russia has agreed to resume gas supplies to Ukraine over the winter in a deal brokered by the European Union.

The deal will also ensure gas supplies to EU countries via Ukraine are secure.

"There is now no reason for people in Europe to stay cold this winter,'' said European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

European Union energy chief Guenther Oettinger said he was confident that Ukraine would be able to afford to pay for the gas it needed.

He added that the agreement might be the "first glimmer" of hope in easing tensions between Russian and Ukraine.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

We can say to the citizens of Europe that we can guarantee security of supply over the winter."

End Quote Guenther Oettinger EU Energy Commissioner

"This is an important step for our shared energy security in the European continent," Mr Barroso said.

The deal follows months of talks between EU officials and the Russian and Ukrainian energy ministers.

The terms include the EU acting as guarantor for Ukraine's gas purchases from Russia and helping to meet outstanding debts.

The total package is worth $4.6bn (£2.87bn), with money coming from the International Monetary Fund as well as the EU. The total includes funds from existing accords with the EU and IMF.

"Unprecedented levels of EU aid will be disbursed in a timely manner, and the International Monetary Fund has reassured Ukraine that it can use all financial means at its disposal to pay for gas," the EC said in a statement.

"Further work with the international financial institutions on financial assistance to Ukraine, also in relation to gas supplies, will still continue. But all three sides are reassured that Ukraine will have the necessary financial means."

Winter urgency

Gas supplies were halted over late payments when Russia scrapped subsidies given to Ukraine for importing gas, meaning the price paid by Ukraine rose sharply.

However, the backdrop to the row is Russia's conflict with Ukraine and Western sanctions on Moscow.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

I want to reassure you that Russia has always been a reliable supplier of energy resources to Europe and other consumers."

End Quote Alexander Novak Russia's energy minister

Although the impact of the gas ban has been relatively small, the onset of winter made the need for a deal more urgent.

Alexander Motyl, professor at Rutgers University-Newark, said the deal was "good news for Ukraine because there was a distinct possibility that the population wouldn't have enough heat for the winter."

The agreement was also good news for European consumers, he told the BBC. However, he said it was too early to tell whether the deal might herald a breakthrough in Russian-Ukraine relations.

Ukraine has relied on Russia for around 50% of its gas. Despite storage facilities Ukraine has a winter shortfall of around 3 billion to 4 billion cubic metres of gas, analysts say.

Russia provides around a third of the European Union's gas, about half of which is pumped via Ukraine.

Russia's Energy Minister Alexander Novak told a news conference that the deal secures supplies for Ukraine and Europe.

"I want to reassure you that Russia has always been a reliable supplier of energy resources to Europe and other consumers. It has been, is and will be a reliable supplier.

"The autumn and winter period is safe (for Ukraine) and the supply to European consumers is also stable. We are convinced that our future relations will be constructive and that our agreements will be fulfilled," he said.

Upfront payments

Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said that the EU had agreed to serve as guarantor for the gas price Kiev would pay to Russia.

Ukraine will pay $378 per 1,000 cubic metres to the end of 2014, and $365 in the first quarter of 2015.

Mr Yatseniuk said Kiev was ready to pay off debts for gas immediately after any deal was signed.

A total of $1.45bn would be paid immediately, and another $1.65bn by the end of the year, he said.

Mr Novak insisted that Ukraine would still have to pay in advance for new deliveries.

Mr Oettinger, who steps down as European energy commissioner on Friday, said: "We can say to the citizens of Europe that we can guarantee security of supply over the winter."

Meanwhile, the French and German presidents said that they spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko on Thursday evening.

All four "have welcomed the conclusion of negotiations" the European heads said in a joint statement.

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Myanmar in rare multi-party talks

31 October 2014 Last updated at 07:20

Myanmar's president is holding rare roundtable talks with the opposition, military and ethnic groups, as the US called for "credible" polls next year.

The meeting comes days after officials announced the next general election would be held in late 2015.

Ahead of the meeting, US President Barack Obama held telephone talks with both President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

He urged Thein Sein to ensure the polls were "inclusive".

The gathering, being held in the capital Naypyitaw, will reportedly focus on the peace process, national reconciliation and political reform.

Senior officials attending are said to include the president, both vice-presidents, the two parliamentary speakers, the military chief and representatives from various ethnic political parties.

Ms Suu Kyi, whose party the National League for Democracy (NLD) is the official opposition, has called for such a meeting in the past.

Jonah Fisher, BBC News, Myanmar

Having been wooed by Thein Sein to join parliament and validate his reforms Aung San Suu Kyi has spent the last two years as an increasingly frustrated outsider.

The meetings with the president have dried up and Ms Suu Kyi's repeated requests for talks with the head of the army have gone unanswered.

With just a year to go to the general elections, Myanmar appeared to be sleepwalking towards yet another crisis.

Now the talks are on but many will view them with cynicism.

The Burmese government is well known for making grand gestures just before high-profile diplomatic visits. In the past it was groups of political prisoners being released.

Now most of them are out of jail, there will be those who see these discussions in a similar light.

In two weeks President Obama will be in Naypyitaw to attend the most prestigious summit the country has ever seen.

It seems the threat of a few pointed words forced the Burmese leaders into action.

Political reform

Last week, officials announced that the general election would take place in either late October or early November 2015.

The NLD boycotted the last general election in 2010, because of rules it said were unfair.

That poll, the first in the nation in 20 years, moved Myanmar away from decades of outright military rule. It now has a civilian government dominated by a military-backed party.

Thein Sein, the elected president, initiated a series of reforms after the election that led to the Suu Kyi-led pro-democracy opposition rejoining the political process.

A by-election in 2012 saw Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi - who spent years under house arrest as she called for democracy in the nation - elected to parliament in a landslide win for the NLD.

Despite her personal popularity, she is banned from running for president in next year's election for constitutional reasons.

Thein Sein's government, meanwhile, is facing criticism that the reform process has stalled.

Earlier this week UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee told the general assembly that while progress had been achieved, there were also signs of backtracking, citing unresolved ethnic conflicts, the incarceration of political prisoners and violence in Rakhine state.

Mr Obama is expected to make his second presidential visit to Myanmar, also known as Burma, in November.

The White House said Mr Obama had asked Thein Sein to take "additional steps" towards resolving the conflict in Rakhine.

In 2012 violence broke out between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, killing about 200 people. Since then tens of thousands of people have been displaced, mostly from the minority Rohingya community.

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Hungary scraps controversial web tax

31 October 2014 Last updated at 09:58

Hungary has decided to shelve a proposed tax on internet data traffic after mass protests against the plan.

"This tax in its current form cannot be introduced," Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.

Large-scale protests began on Sunday, when demonstrators hurled old computer parts at the headquarters of Mr Orban's ruling Fidesz party.

The draft law - condemned by the EU - would levy a fee on each gigabyte of internet data transferred.

The protesters objected to the financial burden but also feared the move would restrict free expression and access to information.

The levy was set at 150 forints (£0.40; 0.50 euros; $0.60) per gigabyte of data traffic.

After thousands protested the government decided to cap the tax at 700 forints per month for individuals and 5,000 forints for companies. But that did not placate the crowds.

'It should not be done'

Fidesz had said the special tax was needed to balance Hungary's budget in 2015.

Speaking on Kossuth public radio, Mr Orban said that "if the people not only dislike something but also consider it unreasonable then it should not be done...

"The tax code should be modified. This must be withdrawn, and we do not have to deal with this now."

He said a measure seen by the government as a technical issue had become "a fear-inducing vision".

There will be a national consultation on it in January, he said.

A European Commission spokesman, Ryan Heath, said the tax was "bad in principle" because it was a unilateral measure applied to a global phenomenon.

He said it was "part of a pattern... of actions that have limited freedoms or sought to take rents without achieving wider economic or social interest" in Hungary.

The Commission has previously criticised Mr Orban's government for constitutional proposals seen to be cementing the Fidesz party's political dominance.

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Abbas warning over holy site closure

30 October 2014 Last updated at 11:46

A spokesman for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has described the closure of a disputed Jerusalem holy site as a "declaration of war".

Nabil Abu Rudeina said the Palestinian Authority would take legal action over the move, which came amid tension after the shooting of a Jewish activist.

Yehuda Glick, a campaigner for greater Jewish prayer rights at the Temple Mount/al-Haram al-Sharif, was wounded.

Israeli police later killed a Palestinian suspected of shooting him.

The man, named as 32-year-old Moataz Hejazi, was shot after opening fire when police surrounded his home.

Rabbi Glick is a well-known US-born campaigner for the right of Jews to pray at the site, which they are currently prohibited from doing. The compound is known to Jews as the Temple Mount, and to Muslims as Haram al-Sharif.

It is the holiest site in Judaism, and also contains the al-Aqsa Mosque - the third holiest site in Islam.

In other developments

• Sweden became the first major Western European country to officially recognise Palestine as a state. Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom said she hoped more countries would follow Sweden's lead - Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was quoted as saying it was a "deplorable" decision
• There was strong criticism of Israel at the UN Security Council over plans to build new homes for Jewish settlers in occupied East Jerusalem. The US said it was "deeply concerned" by the plans

'Dangerous escalation'

Palestinians hold the Israeli government responsible for a "dangerous act", Mr Abbas was quoted as saying by Mr Rudeina, in remarks carried by AFP news agency.

"This dangerous Israeli escalation is a declaration of war on the Palestinian people and its sacred places and on the Arab and Islamic nation," Mr Rudeina added.

"The state of Palestine will take all legal measures to hold Israel accountable and to stop these ongoing attacks."

The shooting of Mr Glick is the latest in a series of incidents which have led to an escalation of tensions in Jerusalem.

Some districts of East Jerusalem have seen nightly clashes between Palestinians and Israeli security forces since the conflict in Gaza.

Last week a Jewish baby and Ecuadorian woman were killed when a Palestinian attacker drove his car into a group of pedestrians at a tram stop in Jerusalem.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Mr Abbas of providing encouragement for such attacks.

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Micky Rosenfeld, Israeli police spokesman: ''There was an attempted assassination on a known right-wing activist''

Police said Rabbi Glick's suspected attacker, Moataz Hejazi, had served time in jail in Israel and was released in 2012, adding that he belonged to the Islamic Jihad militant group.

The police anti-terrorist unit along with the Israeli internal security service Shin Bet had received information that Mr Glick's attacker was located in the Abu Tor neighbourhood, Israeli officials said.

Police say they were fired at after surrounding the house and shot back, hitting the suspect.

Rabbi Glick has had surgery for gunshot wounds to his chest and abdomen.

He had just attended a conference where delegates discussed Jewish claims to the compound, one of the most contentious areas of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Israel argues that it protects freedom of worship at the site, but Palestinians claim it is unilaterally taking steps to allow larger numbers of Jewish visitors.

The site is administered by an Islamic body called the Waqf, while Israeli police are in charge of security.

Jews are allowed on to the compound but are forbidden from praying or performing religious rites there under Israeli law as a security measure.

East Jerusalem has experienced months of unrest since a Palestinian teenager was abducted and burned to death in early July.

That incident came two days after the discovery of the bodies of three Israeli teenagers who were abducted and killed in the occupied West Bank in mid-June.

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Sri Lanka rescue effort intensified

30 October 2014 Last updated at 01:51

Rescue workers in Sri Lanka have intensified their search for survivors of a landslide at a tea plantation in the centre of the country in which more than 100 people are feared buried.

Five excavators normally used to dig trenches joined the search effort at first light on Thursday, military sources told the AFP news agency.

Officials have already warned there is little chance of finding survivors.

It is not certain how many people are trapped in the debris.

The deadly mudslide hit the Meeriyabedda tea plantation near the town of Haldummulla, about 200km (120 miles) east of the capital Colombo, on Wednesday morning.

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Hundreds of people are still thought to be trapped, as Jill McGivering reports

Ministers told the Daily Mirror newspaper in Colombo that 150 people were trapped in the debris. The Island newspaper reported that as many as 250 people were buried alive.

However Disaster Management Minister Mahinda Amaraweera told AFP after visiting the site on Wednesday that the total was closer to about 100 people.

He said that most of those who were originally classified as missing were subsequently discovered to be at work or in school.

Correspondents say that compiling a definitive figure has been made harder because an office where village records were maintained was destroyed in the landslide.

Mr Amaraweera said that the area surrounding the tea plantation had also been made unstable by the recent heavy monsoon rains and that the recovery operation would have to proceed "cautiously".

One witness told AFP that there was a noise like thunder when part of a mountainside crashed into the tea estate, burying some of the workers' homes in nine metres (30ft) of mud and debris.

Mud covered many homes, leaving only their roofs visible.

More than 300 survivors spent Wednesday night at two schools near the tea plantation. About 500 military personnel are said to be involved in the rescue operation.

Local MP Udith Lokubandara told the BBC that many parents had returned home after leaving their children at school when the landslip happened.

"It is a very sorry situation because there are many children who have become orphans," he said.

Sections of several national highways have been washed away by the rains, reports say.

The Disaster Management Centre had issued warnings of more mudslides and falling rocks later this week.

In June, monsoon rains triggered landslides in Sri Lanka that killed at least 22 people and forced thousands from their homes.

Monsoon rains are caused by winds in the Indian Ocean and south Asia. They bring about wet and dry seasons in much of the region, and have a large impact on local ecosystems.

Are you, or do you know anyone, in the area? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your stories.

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Mexico head meets students' families

30 October 2014 Last updated at 05:20

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto has met the families of 43 students who went missing last month.

They travelled to Mexico City from the state of Guerrero, where the students disappeared after clashing with police.

During several hours of talks, the families, angry at the official response, made 10 key demands.

The president promised "a renewed search plan" to ensure the perpetrators were brought to justice. So far, 56 people have been arrested.

Among them are police officers, local officials and alleged members of drugs gangs.

After the meeting, President Pena Nieto said that among the points agreed were that a panel of officials and parents be set up to provide information about the investigation and that better support would be provided to the relatives of the missing.

But the families said they were losing faith in the authorities' ability to tackle the case.

"We told the president we don't trust your government," said one who attended the meeting.

"The promises aren't enough", said Meliton Ortega, father of one of the students.

"The results will be significant when they return our children to us alive."

Before seeing the president, the parents also met Mexico's Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong and Attorney General Jesus Murillo Karam.

The disappearances have shocked Mexico and sparked nationwide demonstrations, with thousands of people on the streets to demand they be found.

The state governor of Guerrero has been replaced after he resigned over the case.

Arrest warrants

Federal police are using boats and divers to scour the beds of several rivers near Iguala, where the abductions took place.

A manhunt also continues for Jose Luis Abarca, the mayor of the town of Iguala who is on the run.

Arrest warrants have also been issued for his wife and the police chief. They are also fugitives.

The mayor allegedly ordered the police to intercept the students, who were protesting, to prevent them from interrupting a speech his wife was giving in Iguala on 26 September.

Eyewitnesses say they saw the students being bundled into police cars after the police shot at buses carrying the students, killing three of them and three other people in nearby vehicles.

The prosecutor said gang members then loaded them onto a lorry and took them to Pueblo Viejo.

Mass graves have been found there, laying bare the extent of the rampant killings in the region, which law enforcement officials blame on ongoing drug-related violence.

Forensic tests initially suggested 30 bodies found there were not those of the students, but Argentine forensic experts flown in to help with the investigation have been carrying out further tests on all the bodies.

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Groups condemn Singapore gay ruling

30 October 2014 Last updated at 08:23

Human rights groups have condemned a Singapore court's decision that a law banning gay sex is constitutional.

The Court of Appeal on Wednesday rejected two legal challenges arguing that the law, Section 377A, infringes on gay citizens' rights.

Under Section 377A, men who engage in "gross indecency" privately or publicly can be jailed for up to two years.

Singapore, which largely remains conservative, has seen intense debate in recent years over gay rights.

Human Rights Watch called the decision "a major setback for equal rights", adding that it "tramples upon basic rights to privacy, equality and non-discrimination".

On Thursday, 14 local rights groups released a statement saying the court had missed an opportunity to show that Singapore was "a truly accepting, open and inclusive society".

The groups said Section 377A "gives carte blanche for discrimination and reinforces prejudice".

"To be viewed as equal in the eyes of the law... is a right to which every Singaporean should be entitled, and not denied on the basis of whom they love," they added.

Jean Chong, spokesman for lesbian group Sayoni, told the BBC that the ruling effectively made homosexual, bisexual and transgender Singaporeans "second-class citizens".

Government leaders have pledged not to enforce Section 377A, first introduced in 1938 by British colonial rulers. But they have also refused to remove it, saying it reflects the conservative mores of Singapore society.

Lawyers involved in the legal challenges, mounted separately by a gay couple and a gay man, argued that the law went against the constitution guaranteeing "life and liberty" and equal protection.

But the court rejected these claims, and said it was up to legislators to decide on the law.

Though surveys have shown most Singaporeans do not accept homosexuality, there is widespread tolerance. Since 2009 rights groups have held an annual rally known as Pink Dot, which this year drew its largest-ever crowd of 26,000.

But conservatives have pushed back against gay activism and campaigned vigorously for Section 377A to remain.

In July, library authorities withdrew copies of two children's books featuring same-sex couples including gay penguins, prompting a national debate. The books, slated for pulping, were eventually placed in the adult section.

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Tunisia secularists win elections

30 October 2014 Last updated at 11:03

Tunisia's secularist party Nidaa Tounes has won 85 seats in the country's parliament following Sunday's elections, official results show.

The governing Islamist Ennahda party won 69 seats in the 217-seat chamber.

The official results confirm earlier predictions and Ennahda officials have already urged Nidaa Tounes to form an inclusive government.

Tunisia's transition to democratic rule after a 2011 revolt has been hailed as a regional success story.

The revolt was the first and least violent of the Arab Spring uprisings against autocratic governments across the region.

Analysis: Naveena Kottoor, Tunis

"In with the old" is what some Tunisians have been saying about Nidaa Tounes, which has a comfortable lead of 85 seats in the new parliament, in reference to the fact that supporters of the regime of deposed President Ben Ali were allowed to join the party and run for office.

But their inclusion has not been without controversy and the party will still need to find coalition partners to be able to govern.

Meanwhile, the political Islamist Ennahda party and their secular coalition partners have been punished by voters for their three years in government.

Despite the political progress and the international praise, many Tunisians - especially those who are younger and from poorer parts of the country - have been feeling neglected and forgotten by those in the capital - and simply did not vote on Sunday.

The parliamentary poll was the second such election since the uprising.

Tunisia's secularists and Islamists have managed the transition to democracy with less acrimony and bloodshed than their neighbours, correspondents say.

The country nevertheless faces a persistent low-level threat from militants.

Around five million Tunisians were registered to cast their ballot.

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Prison for S Korea bullying soldiers

30 October 2014 Last updated at 11:07

A military court in South Korea has given prison sentences ranging from 25 to 45 years to four soldiers involved in the death of a junior soldier.

Private Yoon Seung-joo, 23, died in April after being beaten and denied food and sleep.

Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for a sergeant accused of being the main offender.

The case caused anger over the treatment of conscripts and led to the resignation of the army chief of staff.

The army said Private Yoon died after being hit in the chest by six men while eating a snack. The attack caused a piece of food to obstruct his airway leading to asphyxiation, it said.

He was also repeatedly beaten in the month before his death.

The judge, quoted by Yonhap news agency, said "no signs of remorse" had been found, as the behaviour of the group became "brutal as time went by, and they even tried to conceal their wrongdoing".

Two others were charged with assault.

After the verdict, the victim's relatives reacted angrily to the fact that the most serious verdict of murder was not given to any of those involved.

A panel of three military judges sentenced the sergeant, thought to have led the attack, surnamed Lee, to 45 years in prison.

Another sergeant, surnamed Ha, was given 30 years in prison; two corporals received 25 years; a staff sergeant 15 years, and a private was given three months.

"It is inevitable to hand them down severe punishments as what they had done constitutes an act similar to homicide," the judge said when delivering the verdict.

The case is among a series of incidents that have highlighted problems of bullying in the military in South Korea, which has conscription under which all young men must serve about two years.

In June, a sergeant who said he had been bullied, turned his weapon on his fellow soldiers at a border outpost near North Korea, killing five of them.

There have also been a series of suicides in recent months involving young conscripts.

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Burkina Faso parliament set ablaze

30 October 2014 Last updated at 11:46

Protesters angry at plans to allow Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaore to extend his 27-year-rule have set fire to parliament.

The BBC's Laeila Adjovi in the capital, Ouagadougou, say the city hall and ruling party headquarters are also in flames.

Earlier, the military reportedly fired at protesters who stormed parliament.

Tear gas was also fired from a helicopter, as a crowd surged towards the presidency, reports say.

Parliament was due to consider changing the constitution so that Mr Compaore, 63, could run for office again in elections next year.

A government minister could not confirm reports that the constitutional amendment has been withdrawn, Reuters news agency reports.

Mr Compaore first took power in a coup in 1987, and has won four disputed elections since then.

The opposition has called for a campaign of civil disobedience to demand that he steps down.

"October 30 is Burkina Faso's Black Spring, like the Arab Spring," opposition activist Emile Pargui Pare told AFP news agency.

State television has gone off air after protesters stormed the building housing it and ransacked it, Reuters quotes a witness as saying.

Smoke could be seen billowing from parliament.

Police had earlier fired tear gas to prevent protesters from moving in on the parliamentary building.

But about 1,500 people managed to breach the security cordon and were ransacking parliament, AFP reports.

Protesters were setting fire to documents and stealing computer equipment; cars outside the building are also on fire, it reports.

Mr Compaore is a staunch ally of the US and France, which uses Burkina Faso as a base for military operations against militant Islamists in the Sahel region.

Both France and the European Union (EU) have called on him to scrap the proposed constitutional amendment.

The EU said it could jeopardise Burkina Faso's stability. The US has also raised concern about the proposed amendment.

Are you in Ouagadougou? You can email your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

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US faces Ebola quarantine test case

30 October 2014 Last updated at 12:13

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Ebola nurse Kaci Hickox : "I don't think this is an acceptable line to be drawn"

A nurse who cared for Ebola patients in Sierra Leone is fighting the US state of Maine over its right to quarantine her against her will.

In a test case for returning US health workers, Kaci Hickox has vowed to leave her home on Thursday if the state does not lift the restrictions.

President Barack Obama has been sharply critical of isolation being forced on people he says are "American heroes".

Almost 5,000 people have died from the Ebola virus, mostly in West Africa.

The US envoy to the UN, Samantha Power, is expected to call for a stronger international response when she meets EU officials in Brussels.

She has been visiting the countries most affected - Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia - to show US support, as well as Ghana, where the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response is based.

In other developments

• The World Health Organization (WHO) reported a decline in the spread of Ebola in Liberia
• South Africa's first black billionaire, Patrice Motsepe, donated $1m (£620,000) to Guinea
• The US joined 30 other nations from the Americas at an Ebola conference in Cuba
• In UK, an umbrella of charities - the Disasters Emergency Committee - is to launch an Ebola appeal

Deaths from Ebola

The infection last week of a doctor in New York who had returned from Guinea has sparked a debate in the US over isolation policies for people coming back from West Africa.

Dr Craig Spencer had travelled on the subway and been bowling the night before he developed a fever, which is the point when people become contagious.

The governors of New York and New Jersey introduced mandatory quarantines as a result, and Ms Hickox was outraged to be put in a tent in Newark on returning from Sierra Leone on Friday.

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Sierra Leone has one of the world's highest infant mortality rates, and the Ebola outbreak is likely to push it even higher.

Officials said she had a temperature - which she denies - but she was released from Newark on Monday and flown back to Maine to be monitored at her boyfriend's house in Fort Kent.

"I am not going to sit around and be bullied around by politicians and be forced to stay in my home when I am not a risk to the American public," said Ms Hickox, who has tested negative for Ebola twice and has no symptoms.

She appeared briefly outside the house on Wednesday night to speak to reporters and express her continued frustration.

"I'm not willing to stand here and let my civil rights be violated when it's not science-based," she said.

But Maine Governor Paul LePage has said he will seek legal authority to keep her isolated at home until 10 November.

"While we certainly respect the rights of one individual, we must be vigilant in protecting 1.3 million Mainers, as well as anyone who visits our great state," he said in a statement.

California became the latest US state to announce tough rules for people returning from the Ebola-hit region.

These states are defying updated federal guidelines issued on Monday that call for active monitoring but not quarantine.

Twice this week, President Obama has condemned quarantine as a policy based on fear, not science, while praising the work of US aid workers.

"We need to call them what they are, which is American heroes," he said. "They deserve our gratitude, and they deserve to be treated with dignity and with respect.''

But he has faced questions about why the Pentagon is imposing a 21-day isolation on returning military personnel, despite them not coming into contact with Ebola patients while working to build clinics in West Africa.

Ebola virus disease (EVD)

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
• Fatality rate can reach 90% - but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 70%
• No proven vaccine or cure
• Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus's natural host

Ebola special report

Have you been affected by the issues raised in this article? You can share your experience by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

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Rebels 'reinforce' besieged Kobane

29 October 2014 Last updated at 11:48

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Some 80 vehicles carrying heavy weapons and Iraqi Kurdish fighters crossed into Turkey after dawn, as Jim Muir reports

Up to 200 Syrian rebels have arrived in Kobane to help defend the northern border town against Islamic State (IS) militants, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) commander there has told the BBC.

All were fighting under the flag of the Western-backed FSA, he said.

The news came as about 150 Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters arrived in Turkey on their way to the town.

Syrian Kurds have been under siege in Kobane for six weeks, aided by US-led coalition air strikes.

The battle has emerged as a major test of whether the air campaign can push back IS, but the defenders - thought to number between 1,000 and 2,000 - say they also need heavy weapons to defeat the militants.

Separately, IS militants took control of parts of an oil and gas field in Shaer in central Syria's Homs province, killing 30 members of pro-government forces, activists from the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) and government sources reported.

Analysis: Jim Muir, BBC News, Beirut, Lebanon

The arrival of Kurdish Peshmerga forces from Iraq, and of Arab rebels from the Free Syrian Army (FSA), reflects a determination by the US-led anti-IS coalition not to let Kobane fall.

Turkey, America's Nato ally which controls access to Kobani, won't let Syrian or other Kurdish volunteers cross to join the struggle with the Kurdish defenders of Kobane. It regards the latter - the YPG or People's Defence Units - as terrorists, being an offshoot of the Turkish Kurdish PKK movement.

But Ankara has been under big pressure to allow some kind of reinforcements, to avoid a symbolic defeat of the coalition effort at Kobane.

Turkey has a close relationship with the Iraqi Kurdish KDP, the predominant faction in Iraqi Kurdistan, and with the FSA groups it is allowing to cross.

Their impact may take some time to be felt, but the arrival of the heavier weaponry brought by the Iraqi Kurds may have an effect greater than the numbers of fighters involved, who will play a support role rather than front-line combat.

An FSA commander in Kobane, Col Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi, told BBC Arabic that "around 200 fighters" had entered the besieged town to provide support to the defenders.

He implied that more were ready to go, saying this was the first group and "we can't let all fighters in one go".

SOHR activists estimated that about 50 FSA fighters had arrived in Kobane.

However, a spokesman for the Kurdish People's Defence Units (YPG), denied any new arrivals of FSA forces in the town, saying that there were already about 200 FSA fighters there.

Relations between the Syrian rebel groups and the main Syrian Kurdish parties have long been strained, after the Kurds avoided taking sides after the start of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011.

Meanwhile a group of Peshmerga fighters landed in the early hours of Wednesday at Sanliurfa airport in south-eastern Turkey and are now reportedly at an army base in Suruc, some 16km (10 miles) from Kobane.

Just after dawn, a convoy of lorries carrying weapons and more fighters crossed by land through the Habur border crossing further east and are now driving towards Suruc.

The two groups are expected to meet later on Wednesday before crossing the border into Syria.

Weeks of air strikes in and around Kobane have allowed YPG fighters to prevent it from falling. But clashes continued on Tuesday and a local Kurdish commander said IS still controlled 40% of the town.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has rejected claims that not enough was being done to end the jihadist assault.

He told the BBC that Turkey would only take part once the US-led coalition against IS had an "integrated strategy" that included action against Mr Assad's forces.

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Turkey PM Ahmet Davutoglu: 'We will help coalition forces'

He also noted that Western states were not prepared to send troops.

"The only way to help Kobane, since other countries don't want to use ground troops, is sending some peace-oriented or moderate troops to Kobane. What are they? Peshmerga... and Free Syrian Army," he added.

US state department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that America would "certainly encourage'' the deployment of Peshmerga forces to Kobane.

Activists say the battle for Kobane has so far left 800 people dead and forced more than 200,000 people to flee across the Turkish border.

IS has declared the formation of a caliphate in the large swathes of Syria and Iraq it has seized since 2013.

The UN says that millions of Syrian refugees fleeing the conflict have had an "enormous" impact on neighbouring countries in terms of "economics, public services, the social fabric of communities and the welfare of families".

More than three million Syrians have fled their country since the uprising against President Assad began in March 2011, with most of them now sheltering in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq.

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US hails West Africa Ebola progress

29 October 2014 Last updated at 02:09

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US envoy to the UN Samantha Power: "We are beginning to see results''

The US has praised Ebola-hit West African nations and foreign donors for their efforts in tackling the outbreak.

America's UN envoy Samantha Power, on a visit to the region, said Liberia and Sierra Leone had hugely increased the number of safe burials - one of the main ways the virus is transmitted.

Ms Power said international aid was helping to combat the disease, and urged donors to continue to help.

The disease has killed roughly 5,000 people in the region.

The US government has continued to stress that the best way to stop the virus from spreading is to tackle it at source, and has rejected calls for restrictions on travel from the region.

Australia, however, has approved a visa ban on the main affected countries, and its government has not sent medical staff to West Africa.

At a joint news conference in Monrovia with Ms Power, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said "restriction is not the appropriate response" to a "global crisis".

She warned against stigmatising those suffering from Ebola.

Almost all of the victims of the latest outbreak - the worst ever - have been in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.

Ms Power said the American government's message to Liberians was that the virus would be beaten.

As well as the rise in safe burials, she said mobile laboratories had helped to massively cut the time taken to test samples, enabling more beds to be freed up.

Earlier, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said at least 5,000 medics and support staff were needed to beat the disease.

Many potential recruits were too scared to travel to West Africa, he said while on a visit to Ethiopia.

"Right now, I'm very much worried about where we will find those healthcare workers," he said.

Ebola virus disease (EVD)

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How Ebola survivors' blood is saving lives

• Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
• Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
• Fatality rate can reach 90% - but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 70%
• No proven vaccine or cure
• Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus's natural host

Ebola special report

Have you been affected by the issues raised in this article? You can share your experience by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

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Joan Rivers family hires legal firm

29 October 2014 Last updated at 10:09

Joan Rivers' daughter, Melissa, has hired a legal firm to investigate the circumstances around her mother's death.

The comedian died on 4 September aged 81 following a cardiac arrest during a medical procedure on her throat.

The New York medical examiner's office said the death was due to brain damage from low blood oxygen.

The investigation could pave the way for a civil claim against the clinic where the comic was treated.

"In order to fully determine the facts and circumstances surrounding the death of Joan Rivers, we confirm that our firm has been engaged by Melissa Rivers and her family," Ben Rubinowitz, a partner at Gair, Gair, Conason, Steigman, Mackauf, Bloom and Rubinowitz, said.

However, he declined to comment on whether Rivers' family intended to file a legal claim.

Rivers died after spending a week on life support at Mount Sinai Hospital following the cardiac arrest.

The official cause of death was listed as anoxic encephalopathy - a condition caused when brain tissue is deprived of oxygen leading to brain damage.

It was also classified as a "therapeutic complication", meaning it was a known risk of the procedure.

Negligence is not suspected and was not listed as a contributing cause.

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Many missing after S Lanka landslip

29 October 2014 Last updated at 12:09

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Officials say more than 300 people are missing

At least 10 people are dead and hundreds are missing following a landslide in central Sri Lanka, officials tell the BBC.

The landslide, which came after heavy monsoon rains, engulfed about 140 houses in Badulla district, officials said.

Security forces have been mobilised in search and rescue operations.

Mudslide warnings were issued after much of Sri Lanka was lashed by heavy rain in the past few weeks.

The mudslide hit the Meeriyabedda tea plantation near the town of Haldummulla, about 200 km (120 miles) east of the capital Colombo, on Wednesday at 07:30 local time (02:30 GMT).

Ten people have been confirmed dead and more than 300 are missing, Disaster Management Centre spokesman Sarath Kumara told the BBC.

'Thirty feet of mud'

The weather has now cleared and army, air force and police personnel are searching for survivors, the BBC's South Asia correspondent Sanjoy Majumder reports.

About 500 military personnel are said to be involved in the search.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa tweeted that heavy machinery had been deployed to speed up rescue efforts.

Local MP Udith Lokubandara told the BBC that bad weather conditions were affecting the operations.

"The tragedy is that most of the parents left their children at school and went back to their homes to see if they can salvage any of their belongings when this happened," he said.

"It is a very sorry situation because there are many children who have become orphans."

Major General Mano Perera, the top military official in the area, said in quotes carried by AFP news agency that "some houses have been buried in 30 ft (9m) of mud".

Officials say an area of about two kilometres (one mile) has been affected by the landslide, Sri Lankan newspaper Daily Mirror reports.

Sections of several national highways have been washed away by the rains, reports say.

One woman who survived told local media: "I was under the rubble and some people took me out... my mother and aunt have died."

In June, monsoon rains triggered landslides in Sri Lanka that killed at least 22 people and forced thousands from their homes.

Monsoon rains are caused by winds in the Indian Ocean and south Asia. They bring about wet and dry seasons in much of the region, and have a large impact on local ecosystems.

Are you, or do you know anyone, in the area? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co with your stories.

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Death for Bangladesh Islamist leader

29 October 2014 Last updated at 09:26

The head of Bangladesh's largest Islamist party has been sentenced to death for war crimes committed during the independence war against Pakistan in 1971.

Motiur Rahman Nizami, 71, faced 16 charges including genocide, murder, torture and rape.

A state prosecutor said the sentence reflected the "gravity of the crimes".

There are different estimates for the number of people killed in the nine-month Bangladeshi war of secession.

Government figures suggest as many as three million people died, while some say that figure is too high and unverifiable.

A war crimes tribunal in Bangladesh with a three-judge panel announced the verdict to a packed courtroom in Dhaka.

Nizami, who was head of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, was accused of acting as supreme commander of a militia, al-Badr, an auxiliary force which helped the Pakistani army identify and kill pro-independence activists in Bangladesh.

The prosecution said the group carried out systematic torture and executions during the war, including of teachers, engineers and journalists.

"Considering the gravity of the crimes, the tribunal punished him with the death sentence," state prosecutor Mohammad Ali told Reuters news agency. Defence lawyers said they would appeal against the verdict.

Nizami served as a minister in the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government from 2001-2006. The Jamaat-e-Islaami party called for a three-day nationwide strike to protest the decision.

Controversial tribunal

Higher security measures were in place across Dhaka ahead of the verdict as previous decisions by the tribunal have sparked street clashes.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina set up the war crimes tribunal in 2010 to look into abuses during the independence war.

Correspondents say Nizami is one of the most important figures to be found guilty by this controversial court.

Critics have said the government is using the tribunal to target political opponents. Human Rights Watch has previously said the court's procedures are not up to international standards.

The Awami League, which leads the current government, says it's necessary to help the country come to terms with its past.

Bangladesh independence war, 1971

• Civil war erupts in Pakistan, pitting the West Pakistan army against East Pakistanis demanding autonomy and later independence

• Fighting forces an estimated 10 million East Pakistani civilians to flee to India

• In December, India invades East Pakistan in support of the East Pakistani people

• Pakistani army surrenders at Dhaka and its army of more than 90,000 become Indian prisoners of war

• East Pakistan becomes the independent country of Bangladesh on 16 December 1971

• Exact number of people killed is unclear - Bangladesh says it is three million but independent researchers say it is up to 500,000 fatalities

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US rocket explodes during launch

29 October 2014 Last updated at 10:06

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The rocket explosion in Virginia was caught live on BBC World News

An unmanned supply rocket bound for the International Space Station has exploded shortly after its launch from the US state of Virginia.

Antares, built by Orbital Sciences Corp, combusted seconds after leaving the seaside launch pad at Wallops Flight Facility.

The cause of the cargo ship malfunction has yet to be determined.

The initial planned launch of the spacecraft on Monday was delayed due to a yacht in the surrounding danger zone.

The flight was expected to be the third contracted mission with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

The rocket was due to carry nearly 5,000lb (2,200kgs) of supplies to six astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

It included experiment kits for the astronauts to conduct tests on blood flow to the human brain and the analysis of meteors.

Officials said there were also some pre-packaged meals and freeze-dried crab cakes on board.

"We will understand what happened, hopefully soon, and we'll get things back on track," said Frank Culbertson, executive vice-president of Orbital Sciences.

"We've all seen this happen in our business before, and we've all seen the teams recover from this, and we will do the same."

No-one was injured, said Mr Culbertson, and an investigation team was going through the data to try to establish the cause.

He added it was possible his company's staff had triggered the rocket's destruct mechanism after the launch went wrong, but that he was not certain.

On Wednesday morning, he said, the examination of debris around the site would begin.

Russia's space agency conducted its own launch to the ISS on Wednesday.

The operation, which by chance was on the same day as the Antares launch, was planned long before Wednesday's accident, officials said.

Investigators will not jump to conclusions but one line of inquiry will surely focus on the AJ-26 engines used to lift the rocket away from the pad, says BBC science correspondent Jonathan Amos.

"These are actually modified Russian-built power units that were originally developed for the ill-fated Soviet Moon rocket, the N-1.

"They have been refurbished to modern standards, but one blew up in ground testing earlier this year."

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Frank Culbertson, Orbital Sciences, warned against keeping wreckage 'souvenirs'

Analysis: Jonathan Amos, BBC science correspondent

This new rocket was part of Nasa's effort to contract out "routine" cargo resupply to the International Space Station. But if we needed reminding that nothing in space is routine then this explosion has brought that message home in spectacular fashion.

The US space agency "seeded" development of Antares - and the supply ship it launches, Cygnus - by giving incentive payments to manufacturer Orbital Sciences Corporation, to help them develop a low-cost, commercial follow-on to fill the cargo gap left by the retired space shuttles.

The blast is likely to have seriously damaged the launch pad and support infrastructure, meaning that even if the fault is quickly identified and corrected, restarting Antares flights again may take a long time.

However, there should be no immediate threat to supplies for astronauts on the space station. The Cygnus cargo ship that was on top of the Antares is one of a fleet of vehicles that are used in this role. These other robotic vessels, launched atop other rockets, will now have to pick up the slack.

There is no doubting the explosion is a major setback for Orbital Sciences Corporation, and its plans to market Antares as a multi-purpose, commercial launcher. Confidence always takes a hit in the wake of a failure. But Orbital has the expertise to come back - as it has done after previous launch failures.

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Zambian President Sata dies in UK

29 October 2014 Last updated at 11:28

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Zambian President Michael Sata has died while in office, Chakuchanya Harawa reports

Zambian President Michael Sata has died at the age of 77 after receiving treatment for an undisclosed illness, the government says.

President Sata, who was being treated in the UK, died in London's King Edward VII hospital on Tuesday night.

Media said that he died after "a sudden onset [of] heightened heart rate".

It is not immediately clear who will succeed the president. The issue may be decided by the Zambian cabinet which meets on Wednesday morning.

"It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing on of our beloved president," cabinet secretary Roland Msiska said on national TV.

He said that Mr Sata's wife and son were at his bedside.

"I urge all of you to remain calm, united and peaceful during this very difficult period," Mr Msiska added.

Obituary: Penny Dale, BBC's former Zambia correspondent

Gravelly-voiced as a result of years of chain-smoking, Michael Sata rose to political prominence in the 1980s. He quickly earned a reputation as the hardest-working governor while in charge of Lusaka and as a populist man of action. But he was also known for his authoritarian tendencies, an abrasive manner and a sharp tongue - and his critics say his nickname of "King Cobra" was well-deserved.

A devout Catholic, Mr Sata had worked as a police officer, railway man and trade unionist during colonial rule. After independence, he also spent time in London, working as a railway porter, and, back in Zambia, with a taxidermist company.

On the fourth attempt, Mr Sata won presidential elections in 2011. At first he looked as if he would keep promises to tackle corruption and create jobs and prosperity. But his term in office was marred by a crackdown on political opposition and a decline in the economy.

'King Cobra'

The president's death comes just days after Zambia celebrated the 50th anniversary of independence from the UK.

He is the second Zambian leader to die in office after Levy Mwanawasa in 2008.

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Zambia's five leaders in five decades

Earlier this month reports in Zambia said that President Sata had gone abroad for a medical check-up amid persistent speculation that he was seriously ill.

After he left the country, Defence Minister Edgar Lungu was named as acting president.

Vice-President Guy Scott has regularly stood in for the president at official events, but has never been appointed acting president in Mr Sata's absence.

Mr Scott is of Scottish descent and his parents were not born in Zambia, so he may fall foul of a constitutional clause on parentage which would nullify his candidacy.

Known as "King Cobra" for his venomous tongue, Mr Sata was elected Zambia's president in 2011, defeating the then incumbent Rupiah Banda whose party had been in power for 20 years.

He has rarely been seen in public since returning from the UN General Assembly last month, where he failed to make a scheduled speech.

What is your reaction to the death of President Sata? Are you from Zambia? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your thoughts and memories.

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