Bedouins hold Israel 'day of rage'

30 November 2013 Last updated at 17:58 ET

Bedouin Arabs living in Israel have been protesting in the Negev Desert and towns and cities over government plans to resettle them.

Thousands joined what was termed a "day of rage" in the Negev itself, Haifa, Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.

The Bedouin say the plan will force them out of their ancestral land.

Israeli officials say it aims to provide better services and infrastructure - and settle long-standing land disputes.

Police in the Negev used tear gas and water cannon against demonstrators, some of whom were throwing stones, reportedly injuring 15 officers.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that 28 people were arrested during protests in Haifa and the Negev village of Hura.

The resettlement plan - which envisages Bedouin being re-housed in newly built state-planned towns - still has to pass two more readings in parliament.

'Land grab'

An open letter backing the campaign against the legislation, and signed by celebrities including Peter Gabriel and Julie Christie, was published in a British newspaper on Friday.

Before the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, groups of Bedouin Arabs lived a semi-nomadic life in the Negev but in modern times many have settled in what are known as "unrecognised villages".

Because they have no formal planning status, they have no access to government services including supplies of electricity and running water. Some are no more than collections of flimsy shacks made from corrugated iron.

However, the Bedouin and their supporters see the resettlement move as a smokescreen for a programme to cut the historic links between the Arab communities and their land, and to replace them with new Jewish settlements.

Israeli officials say the plan calls for the vast majority of Bedouin to live where they are, while allowing them to preserve their traditions in a modern state.

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US urges N Korea to free detainee

30 November 2013 Last updated at 18:15 ET

The White House has urged the release of US citizen Merrill Newman, detained in North Korea for more than a month.

On Saturday, state media in North Korea said Mr Newman, 85, had confessed to "indelible crimes" against the state during the 1950-53 Korean War.

It published what it described as a "statement of apology" by Mr Newman.

The US also called on Pyongyang to release another American, Kenneth Bae, held since November 2012 and sentenced in May to 15 years' hard labour.

"We remain deeply concerned about the welfare of the US citizens held in custody in the DPRK [North Korea]" said National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden.

"Given Mr Newman's advanced age and health conditions, we urge the DPRK to release Mr. Newman so he may return home and reunite with his family," she went on.

Regarding Mr Bae, a Korean-American, she said: "We continue to urge the DPRK authorities to grant him amnesty and immediate release."

Pyongyang accused Mr Bae - described as both a tour operator and Christian missionary - of using his tourism business to plot sedition.

'Mistaken identity'

The official Korean Central News Agency said on Saturday that Mr Newman had ordered the deaths of North Korean soldiers and civilians in the Korean War.

Although Mr Newman did serve during the Korean War, his family says he is the victim of mistaken identity.

Pyongyang's state media have routinely publicised alleged apologies from previous US detainees, which cannot be independently verified, says the BBC's Lucy Williamson in Seoul.

Authorities have previously been accused of coercing confessions from detainees.

Some observers say Mr Newman's alleged confession could allow North Korea to release him without formal legal proceedings.

'Forgive me'

Mr Newman - a pensioner from Palo Alto, California - has been held in North Korea since being taken off a plane as he prepared to leave the country on 26 October, following a 10-day tourist visit.

In a video released by North Korean authorities, Mr Newman is shown reading his alleged apology, dated 9 November.

It claims he was an "adviser of the Kuwol Unit of the UN Korea 6th Partisan Regiment part of the Intelligence Bureau of the Far East Command" - an apparent reference to one of the special operations units acting against the North.

Mr Newman apparently confesses to trying to contact surviving soldiers during his trip as a tourist.

The statement adds: "Please forgive me."

But Mr Newman's family has said there must have been "some dreadful misunderstanding" and has appealed for his release, saying he may need medication.

Another veteran, also named Merrill Newman, was awarded a Silver Star medal for his efforts during the Korean War.

He has previously told Reuters news agency he thought it was possible there had been "a case of mistaken identity".

US troops backed South Korea in the 1950-53 Korean War, which killed at least two million people.

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Indian probe begins journey to Mars

30 November 2013 Last updated at 21:32 ET

India's mission to Mars has embarked on its 300-day journey to the Red Planet.

Early on Sunday the spacecraft fired its main engine for more than 20 minutes, giving it the correct velocity to leave Earth's orbit.

It will now cruise for 680m km (422m miles), setting up an encounter with its target on 24 September 2014.

The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), also known as Mangalyaan, is designed to demonstrate the technological capability to reach Mars orbit.

But the $72m (£45m) probe will also carry out experiments, including a search for methane gas in the planet's atmosphere.

MOM tweeted: "Earth orbiting phase of the #Mangalyaan ended and now is on a course to encounter Mars after a journey of about 10 months around the Sun."

The head of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) K Radhakrishnan said the operation to leave orbit had passed off well.

Since launch on 5 November, the craft has progressively raised its orbit around Earth with a series of engine burns.

The manoeuvres were all successful apart from the fourth, carried out on 11 November, during which a problem with the liquid fuel thruster caused the MOM to fall short of the mark.

But Isro has made plans for the eventuality that changes need to be made to the 1,350kg spacecraft's course.

"We have planned right now four mid-course corrections; first one will be around December 11 - plus or minus a couple of days depending on the deviation," the NDTV news channel reported V Koteswara Rao, Isro's scientific secretary, as saying.

On Earth, the majority of atmospheric methane (CH4) is produced by living organisms. The gas has previously been detected in Mars's atmosphere by orbiting spacecraft and by telescopes on Earth.

But Nasa's rover Curiosity recently failed to find the gas in its atmospheric measurements.

If the MOM can detect methane, one possible source could be Martian microbes, perhaps living deep beneath the surface. But CH4 can also be produced by geological processes, including volcanism.

India's PSLV rocket - the second choice for the mission after a beefier launcher failed - was not powerful enough to send the MOM on a direct flight to Mars.

So engineers opted for a method of travel called a Hohmann Transfer Orbit to propel the spacecraft from Earth to Mars with the least amount of fuel possible.

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Croatia votes on same-sex marriage

1 December 2013 Last updated at 01:08 ET

Polls have opened in Croatia for a controversial referendum on proposals to ban same-sex marriages.

Voters are deciding whether to approve changes to Croatia's constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

On Saturday hundreds of gay rights supporters marched through the capital, Zagreb, in protest at the vote.

A petition backing the referendum, drawn up by a Catholic group, received more than 700,000 signatures.

The referendum will ask the question: "Do you agree that marriage is matrimony between a man and a woman?"

If there is a "yes" vote, Croatia's constitution will be amended to ban gay marriages. Croatia became the 28th member of the European Union in July.

An opinion poll for state broadcaster HRT suggested that 59% of Croatians would vote "yes" in Sunday's vote, with 31% against.

Almost 90% of Croatia's population of 4.4 million are Roman Catholics and the Church has strongly urged a "yes" vote.

The vote has also received support from 104 members of Croatia's 151-seat parliament.

The government, human rights groups and prominent public figures have all spoken out against the referendum, urging people to vote no.

Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic argued that the referendum threatened people's right to happiness and choice. But leaders of the opposition HDZ party are behind the referendum.

Gay rights protesters, under a heavy police presence, marched for an hour through the city and unfurled a giant rainbow flag outside parliament.

"We urge voters... to protect minority rights so that no-one in Croatia becomes a second-class citizen," activist Sanja Juras told a crowd in Zagreb on Saturday.

The plan for a referendum was allowed parliamentary scrutiny after a Catholic group called "In the Name of the Family" gathered enough signatures to pass the required threshold of support.

"Marriage is the only union enabling procreation. This is the key difference between a marriage... and other unions," said Croatia's Cardinal Josip Bozanic in a letter read out in churches.

Correspondents say attitudes towards gay rights in Croatia - which joined the European Union in July - are slowly changing.

In Zagreb's first gay pride parade in 2002, dozens of participants were beaten up by extremists.

Parades are now held regularly although under heavy security.

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Suicide bomber hits funeral in Iraq

1 December 2013 Last updated at 03:54 ET

At least 10 people have been killed and 25 injured in a suicide bomb attack in northern Iraq, police say.

The attack in Muqdadiyah, about 80km (50 miles) north-east of Baghdad, targeted the funeral of a Sunni fighter and son of a tribal leader.

Mudher al-Shallal al-Araki was killed in a roadside bombing near his family's home the day before, police told AFP news agency.

Iraq has seen a sharp rise in violence in recent months.

The mourners were attacked in the graveyard where they had gathered for the burial.

AFP reports that Mr Araki was a member of The Awakening, or "Sahwa", which is made up of thousands of Sunni tribesmen and former insurgents who switched sides to fight al-Qaeda with the backing of the US military.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Iraq is suffering from its worst wave of violence in at least five years.

The UN says 979 people - including 158 police and 127 military personnel - were killed in violent attacks in October. More than 6,500 civilians have died since January, the highest annual toll since 2008.

There has also been a spill-over of violence from the conflict in Syria, where jihadist rebels linked to the Islamic State of Iraq, a Sunni militant umbrella group that includes al-Qaeda, have risen to prominence.

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US actor Paul Walker dies in crash

1 December 2013 Last updated at 04:05 ET

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BBC's Catharina Moh on Paul Walker's career

US actor Paul Walker, who starred in the Fast & Furious series of action films, has been killed in a car crash in California.

Walker, 40, was a passenger in a Porsche sports car driven by a friend - who also died - when it crashed north of Los Angeles.

Walker was said to be attending a charity event at the time.

He starred in all but one of the films in the Fast & Furious franchise, the sixth of which opened in May.

Walker also starred in the suspense drama Hours, a movie that is set for release this month.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's department said the crash happened in the community of Valencia.

It said deputies found a car engulfed in flames when they responded to a report of a collision. Two people found in the car were pronounced dead at the scene.

Images showed the burned-out wreckage of a red Porsche by the side of the road.

"It is with a truly heavy heart that we must confirm that Paul Walker passed away today in a tragic car accident while attending a charity event for his organisation Reach Out Worldwide," the statement on the actor's Facebook page said.

Continue reading the main story

Heaven has gained a new Angel. Rest in Peace"

End Quote Vin Diesel Fast & Furious co-star

"He was a passenger in a friend's car, in which both lost their lives. We... are stunned and saddened beyond belief by this news.''

Universal Pictures also issued a statement, saying studio staff were "heartbroken" by Walker's death.

"Paul was truly one of the most beloved and respected members of our studio family for 14 years, and this loss is devastating to us, to everyone involved with the Fast & Furious films, and to countless fans.

"We send our deepest and most sincere condolences to Paul's family."

Walker played undercover agent Brian O'Conner in the Fast & Furious movies.

The first film of the franchise was released in 2001 and the seventh is in development.

Walker was one of the leading protagonists, along with Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez.

Diesel said in a post on Instagram: "Brother I will miss you very much. I am absolutely speechless. Heaven has gained a new Angel. Rest in Peace."

Another Fast & Furious star, the rapper Ludacris, wrote: "Your humble spirit was felt from the start, wherever you blessed your presence you always left a mark, we were like brothers."

Walker began acting as a young boy when his mother, a model, took him to auditions for commercials.

After drifting away from acting, he got his big break when a casting director remembered him from years before, tracked him down and gave him a role in the TV series Touched by an Angel.

Walker later won a recurring part in the soap The Young and the Restless before moving on to supporting roles in teen films in the late 1990s with Varsity Blues, She's All That and The Skulls.

After the success of the first Fast & Furious film, Walker became the leading man for the second instalment when Vin Diesel dropped out.

Diesel later returned, however, and the six-film franchise has earned an estimated $2.4bn (£1.5bn) at global box offices. The series has not lost its appeal, with the latest instalment, the sixth, the most lucrative so far.

The seventh instalment began filming in September but has not been completed. It had been scheduled for release in July.

Walker has also filmed Hurricane Katrina drama Hours, which is due to be released on 13 December.

Another forthcoming film is Brick Mansions, a remake of the French action film District B13, for film studio Relativity.

Relativity President Tucker Tooley said in a statement: "Paul was an incredibly talent artist, devoted philanthropist and friend."

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Thousands march in Ukraine capital

1 December 2013 Last updated at 06:03 ET

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Protesters in Independence Square have climbed a tower

Thousands of pro-Europe demonstrators are marching through the Ukrainian capital in protest at President Viktor Yanukovych's refusal to sign an EU trade deal.

Crowds gathered in a park before moving toward Kiev's Independence Square, in defiance of a court order banning rallies in the city centre.

They are demanding new elections, and the impeachment of the president.

Police violently dispersed activists on Saturday, injuring dozens of people.

The president said he was "outraged" by the violence, but Ukraine's interior minister warned on Sunday that police would respond if there were mass disturbances.

Continue reading the main story

Those involved in Ukraine's anti-government rally in Kiev are calling the protest a "decisive moment". Organisers are hoping the crowds will exceed last Sunday's demonstration, which witnessed crowds of up to 100,000 people.

Kiev's Shevchenko Park, the gathering point for the march, began to fill up with protesters from early morning. They chanted slogans and carried EU and Ukrainian flags.

Ukraine's political opposition has called Sunday's action, but in many ways they are being carried along by the wave of public outrage at the police use of violence and a widespread desire to draw closer to Europe. As pressure increases on the government, and the protests continue, many fear that the chance of violence is growing.

Saturday's clearing of protesters from Kiev's Independence Square demonstrated that authorities are not afraid of forcible measures to restore order.

The BBC's David Stern, in Kiev, says the latest action may be bigger than last weekend's demonstration, which attracted 50,000-100,000 supporters.

Jailed opposition leader and ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko urged Ukrainians "not to leave the authorities' actions unanswered".

In a message read by her daughter on Saturday, Tymoshenko urged Ukrainians: "Fly, drive, walk to Kiev from all parts of Ukraine, but gather everyone on 1 December."

"We can and should remove these authorities," an opposition party leader Vitali Klitschko told thousands of demonstrators outside Kiev's St Michael's cathedral.

"We should come out and show that we will not allow them to humiliate us, we will stand up for our rights."

He said that supporters were travelling from the western city of Lviv and other Ukrainian cities to take part in Sunday's rally.

Hundreds of protesters occupied the square outside St Michael's cathedral overnight.

Meanwhile, a court in Kiev has banned protested in Independence Square, European Square and at other locations in the city centre until 7 January 2014.

National strike

The protests started more than a week ago after President Yanukovych suspended preparations for signing an EU association agreement that would have opened borders to goods and set the stage for an easing of travel restrictions.

Mr Yanukovych said pressure from Moscow had led to his decision, arguing that Ukraine could not afford to sacrifice trade with Russia, which opposed the deal.

Early on Saturday riot police stormed Independence Square beating protesters with truncheons. At least 31 people were taken into custody and a number of people were treated for injuries.

The president called for those responsible to be brought to account, but did not explicitly blame police.

Members of Ukraine's political opposition held emergency talks following the violence, and said a "national resistance" HQ would be set up, followed by a nationwide strike.

Independence Square was the scene of the Orange Revolution in 2004, which saw Mr Yanukovych ousted and a Western-leaning government brought to power.

Mr Yanukovych was elected president five years later, narrowly defeating then-Prime Minister Tymoshenko, a leading figure of the Orange Revolution.

In 2011 she was sentenced to seven years in jail for abuse of office - a case widely criticised in the West as political revenge.

Tymoshenko has been on hunger strike since Monday over the failure to sign the EU agreement.

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The BBC's David Stern says Saturday's Kiev protests attracted thousands despite the late hour

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Thai protesters call general strike

1 December 2013 Last updated at 06:52 ET

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The BBC's Jonathan Head: "We've had volleys of tear gas. We've had water cannons coming this way as well"

The leader of anti-government protests in Thailand has called for a general strike for Monday, amid ongoing clashes in Bangkok.

Ex-deputy PM Suthep Thaugsuban was speaking in a broadcast carried by almost all Thailand's TV channels.

Sunday is the eighth day of protests aimed at unseating PM Yingluck Shinawatra. Four people have died.

Water cannon and tear gas were fired on Sunday as security forces clashed with some 30,000 anti-government protesters.

The protesters had declared Sunday the decisive "V-Day" of what they termed a "people's coup".

They say Ms Yingluck's administration is controlled by her brother, exiled ex-leader Thaksin Shinawatra, and they want to replace it with a "People's Council".

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The BBC's Jonah Fisher: "The government is not taking any chances"

The protesters gathered at about eight sites, police said, including Government House, television stations and the police headquarters.

Correspondents say many of the sites are well-defended by security forces.

Protesters did enter several TV stations to ensure Mr Suthep's message was aired.

He said: "To continue the people's operation and to eliminate Thaksin's regime, the People's Democratic Reform Committee would like to announce that Monday 2nd December is a holiday for every government section."

He called on the government to "think of the country, stop blaming and hurting the people, and return the power to the people".

Mr Suthep said protesters had seized a dozen government buildings, but national security chief Paradorn Pattanathabutr told Reuters that none had been taken over.

The BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok says protesters had approached their targets in cheering, colourful columns, but could not get past the clouds of gas and concrete barricades.

He says Mr Suthep had promised a people's revolt to overthrow the entire political system but by the end of the day he had lowered his ambitions, to a one-day general strike called for Monday.

Continue reading the main story

• Sept 2006: Army overthrows government of Thaksin Shinawatra, rewrites constitution
• Dec 2007: Pro-Thaksin People Power Party wins most votes in election
• Aug 2008: Mr Thaksin flees into self-imposed exile before end of corruption trial
• Dec 2008: Mass yellow-shirt protests paralyse Bangkok; Constitutional Court bans People Power Party; Abhisit Vejjajiva comes to power
• Mar-May 2010: Thousands of pro-Thaksin red shirts occupy parts of Bangkok; eventually cleared by army; dozens killed
• July 2011: Yingluck Shinawatra leads Pheu Thai party to general election win
• Nov 2013: Anti-government protesters begin street demonstrations

Ms Yingluck had intended to give media interviews on Sunday at a Bangkok police complex but was forced to evacuate when protesters tried to break in. Her whereabouts are unknown.

In addition to the dead, 54 people have been wounded over the past two days, police and emergency services say.

Election ruled out

The worst violence occurred when students attacked vehicles bringing pro-government activists to a Bangkok stadium on Saturday.

Early on Sunday, pro-government "red shirt" leaders said they were ending their mass rally at the stadium to allow security forces to police rival demonstrations.

Up until Saturday the protests had been largely peaceful, with Ms Yingluck saying the government would only use minimum force.

Soldiers were then called in to help the riot police.

Our correspondent says military commanders have been reluctant to get involved but agreed to deploy the troops on condition they would carry no weapons and would stand behind riot police ringing the main government offices.

There is a high risk of greater violence if more supporters of Ms Yingluck - whose party enjoys strong backing outside Bangkok - try to come to the capital, our correspondent adds.

On Friday Ms Yingluck ruled out early elections, telling the BBC that the country was not calm enough for polls. She repeated her call for negotiations to resolve the crisis.

Thailand is facing its largest protests since 2010, when thousands of red-shirt Thaksin supporters occupied key parts of the capital. More than 90 people, mostly civilian protesters, died over the course of the two-month sit-in.

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EU rejects Russia 'veto' on Ukraine

29 November 2013 Last updated at 07:07 ET

The EU will not accept a "veto" by Russia on the bloc's ties with former Soviet republics, European Commission chief Manuel Barroso has said.

Speaking at a EU meeting in Vilnius, Mr Barroso said the era of "limited sovereignty was over in Europe".

The summit failed to revive an association agreement with Ukraine that was due to be its centrepiece.

Ukraine's president said he could not afford to sacrifice trade with Russia - which opposes the deal - for EU ties.

President Viktor Yanukovych froze plans to sign Ukraine's trade deal last week. In Vilnius, he defended his refusal to sign, saying the EU was not offering adequate financial aid.

After the two-day summit, Mr Barroso said: "We will not give in to external pressure, not the least from Russia.

"What we cannot accept is a condition on a bilateral agreement to have a kind of a possible veto of a third country. This is contrary to all principles of international law."

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Eurozone unemployment rate falls

29 November 2013 Last updated at 05:31 ET

The eurozone's unemployment rate has fallen for the first time since early 2011, according to official data.

The jobless rate across the 17 countries using the euro currency fell to 12.1% in October, the first fall since February 2011, the European Union's statistics office Eurostat said.

About 19 million people are out of work across the region.

Meanwhile, the annual rate of consumer inflation rose from 0.7% to 0.9%.

The European Central Bank (ECB) aims to keep inflation just below 2%. - the level it deems right for growth.

The data indicates that the fragile eurozone economy is gradually improving, although there are big disparities between individual countries.

Unemployment in Spain and Greece is at 27%, for example, while Austria's is at 5%.

In a surprise move earlier this month, the ECB cut its benchmark interest rate from 0.5% to a record low of 0.25%.

ECB president Mario Draghi said the decision reflected its view that low inflation and weak economic growth would be the dominant story in the region.

When inflation amongst the 17 countries using the euro currency fell to 0.7% in October - its lowest level since January 2010 - there were fears eurozone growth could be stalling and that some countries could even be moving into deflation.

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