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The 31-year-old, Fulham's top scorer in 2013-14, will join the Potters on a two-year deal on 1 July.
"Steve was much in demand and we are delighted to have won the race to secure his signature," said Stoke chief executive Tony Scholes.
I'm sure he will prove to be an excellent addition
The former Chelsea player is the club's second signing of the summer following the capture of Phil Bardsley.
They are "hopeful" of landing ex-Manchester United striker Mame Biram Diouf from Hannover 96 as Mark Hughes seeks to strengthen a squad that achieved the club's record Premier League points tally last season.
Hughes signed Sidwell, who has made more than 180 appearances in the Premier League, while working as Fulham manager in 2011.
The former Arsenal trainee played in all 38 of the Cottagers' top-flight fixtures in 2013-14, scoring seven goals.
"Like Phil Bardsley, Steve brings great experience to our squad and I'm sure he will prove to be an excellent addition to our squad," said Scholes.
Sidwell, who has also played for Reading and Aston Villa, wrote on Twitter he was "saddened" his time at Craven Cottage had ended. | Stoke City have signed midfielder Steve Sidwell on a free transfer following his release by relegated Fulham. | 27769534 | [
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The Gills are in the relegation zone following a run of one win in 12 games.
Taylor told BBC Radio Kent: "If the chairman picked up the phone and said 'Peter, that's it, you're not having any longer' I would totally understand.
Media playback is not supported on this device
"The majority of the fans probably want me out. What I would like to have here is a lot more time."
Gillingham have only won three of their 16 league games this season and are currently two points from safety.
Taylor led the club to 17th place in League One last season after taking charge in October, initially as interim manager, and subsequently targeted a mid-table finish this season.
The 61-year-old received the backing of Scally last month but accepts that it is hard for supporters to show patience while they are struggling.
"I understand the fans' frustrations. We were all expecting a better season than we are having," he said. "We are in a bit of a hole and need to dig ourselves out of it.
"I really do feel that there is a good squad here but we are not showing it at the moment. I would love longer.
"One win in 12 league matches is not good enough. I lost my job at Palace when we had one defeat in five.
"If the chairman sacked me I couldn't complain and I wouldn't complain. Me and the chairman wouldn't fall out either. I am not going to walk away. I am desperate to turn it around and I do honestly feel I will do. I am very determined to."
Taylor overhauled Gillingham's squad during the summer, making eight permanent signings.
He says injuries have played a part in their struggles so far this season, with goalkeeper Stuart Nelson (thumb), utility man Aaron Morris (hamstring), midfielder Doug Loft (Achilles) and striker Danny Kedwell (knee) all missing chunks of the campaign.
"If we'd have had no injures whatsoever then I would expect to be gone by now," Taylor, who had a spell as England's caretaker manager in 2000, said. "There are reasons why we have got a lack of form and confidence.
"I don't think I've ever been able to put a consistent team out. It doesn't half mess you about when you are a squad of our size in League One.
"You need your best players available all the time. Too many times, we have had some important players unavailable and that would affect any team.
"I don't want to make excuses but I just want to clear it up with people out there that are unhappy. I am enjoying every second of the job apart from the results. I am determined to improve them." | Gillingham manager Peter Taylor says he would understand if he was sacked by chairman Paul Scally, but has pleaded for more time at the League One club. | 29938759 | [
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South Wales Police officers were called to an address in Pencoed, Bridgend, at 17:30 BST on Saturday.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is being questioned at Queens Road police station, Bridgend.
Police are appealing for anyone with information to call the incident room on 01656 306099 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. | A 43-year-old man has been arrested over the death of a 67-year-old woman in south Wales. | 33217239 | [
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Temperton died in London last week at the age of 66 after "a brief aggressive battle with cancer", Jon Platt of Warner/Chappell music publishing said.
Temperton's other hits included Off The Wall and Baby Be Mine for Jackson and Boogie Nights for his band Heatwave.
Chic guitarist Nile Rodgers was among those paying tribute, tweeting: "Your genius gave us a funkier world!"
Michael Jackson's sister LaToya wrote: "A brilliant prolific #songwriter Rod Temperton may you #RIP one of my favorite #songs Rock With You #Thriller #legend #Music #MichaelJackson"
Producer and DJ Mark Ronson wrote: "So devastated to hear that Rod Temperton has passed away. a wonderful man & one of my favourite songwriters ever. thank you for the magic x"
Temperton, whose private funeral has taken place, was nicknamed The Invisible Man because of his low profile.
Born in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, Temperton traced his songwriting ability back to his father's influence.
"My father wasn't the kind of person who would read you a story before you went off to sleep," he once said.
"He used to put a transistor radio in the crib and I would go to sleep listening to Radio Luxembourg, and I think somehow that had an influence."
In the 1970s, after a spell working in a frozen food factory in Grimsby, he answered an advert in Melody Maker magazine for a keyboardist.
The band he joined was disco group Heatwave, and his songs like Boogie Nights, Always & Forever and Groove Line became big hits for the band in the 1970s.
By the time he left the band in 1978, his tunes had caught the attention of producer Quincy Jones, who was looking for songwriters for a new Michael Jackson LP.
Temperton penned three songs for Off The Wall, which became Jackson's breakthrough solo album - the title track, Rock With You and Burn This Disco Out.
He went on to write three more for follow-up Thriller - the title track, which became one of Jackson's signature smashes, plus Baby Be Mine and The Lady in My Life.
They helped make Thriller the best-selling album of all time in the US, with 32 million copies sold.
His tunes have also been recorded by artists including Anita Baker, Donna Summer, Aretha Franklin and The Brothers Johnson.
Temperton won a Grammy Award in 1990 for his work on Birdland, from Quincy Jones's album Back on the Block.
He was nominated for two Oscars in 1986 for his work with Jones on the soundtrack for The Color Purple.
He once summed up his approach to songwriting: "The first criteria is write something you love first, and once you feel those hairs standing up on the back of your hand, you can go to the world."
In a statement released on Wednesday, Warner/Chappell's Jon Platt said: "His family is devastated and request total privacy at this, the saddest of sad times."
Vocalist Chaka Khan, who recorded Temperton's tracks with the funk band Rufus, paid tribute, writing on Twitter: "Thank u 4 your superlative songwriting @RodTemperton. U will always Live in Me. Rest in power."
BBC radio presenter Gilles Peterson wrote: "Apart from Lennon and McCartney no one from the UK has written more gold plated songs than Sir Rod Temperton... a huge loss. RIP"
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or if you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | Rod Temperton, the British songwriter best known for Michael Jackson's Thriller and Rock With You, has died. | 37565125 | [
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Ciarán Maxwell, 30, has been charged with one offence of terrorism, one of fraud and one of possessing cannabis.
He was arrested in Somerset last week after searches in Larne and Devon.
The serving Marine's arrest was understood to be connected to two arms dumps found in County Antrim this year.
Mr Maxwell was remanded in custody after a three-minute hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court.
He will appear again in court on Monday, 5 September.
He is charged with manufacturing explosives, making devices and storing them in barrels in hides in England and Northern Ireland.
Ciarán Maxwell appeared in Westminster Magistrates' Court flanked in the dock between two plain-clothed police officers.
Wearing a grey sweatshirt, a stubble-type beard and short hair, he stood before the judge and confirmed his name, age and address in Devon.
The hearing lasted just three minutes. The judge remanded him in custody until he is due back in court on Monday.
The charges include obtaining articles for use in terrorism - specifically chemicals and components to make bombs - and having an image of an adapted police pass card.
The charges come as part of long-running investigation involving the Security Service (MI5), the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the South West Counter-Terrorism Unit, as well as Scotland Yard's Counter-Terrorism Unit, says BBC Home Affairs Correspondent Danny Shaw, who was at the court.
Mr Maxwell is accused of carrying out research resulting in "the creation of a library of documents" likely to be of use to terrorists.
The offences are alleged to have taken place between 1 January 2011 and the day of his arrest in Somerset, 24 August 2016.
Ciarán Maxwell: Full list of charges
A separate charge says that on 24 August, Mr Maxwell had a quantity of cannabis in his possession with intent to supply.
He has also been charged with fraud and is accused of having images of bank cards and associated CVC numbers for use in connection with fraud.
Mr Maxwell was arrested on 24 August by officers from the Metropolitan Police Service's counter-terrorism command, supported by Avon and Somerset and Devon and Cornwall Police.
The Marine, originally from Larne in County Antrim, was taken to a West Country police station in Somerset before being transferred to a London police station last Thursday.
He was questioned on suspicion of being involved in the preparation for acts of terrorism under Section Five of the Terrorism Act.
Property searches in Exminster are now complete, while searches at New Powderham Plantation in Devon will continue into next week.
Police Service of Northern Ireland searches in Larne, County Antrim, are ongoing. | A Royal Marine from Northern Ireland has appeared in court charged with offences related to dissident republicanism, including bomb-making and storing weapons. | 37259756 | [
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NHS prescriptions have risen steadily in recent years, despite awareness of the risks.
Nearly 49,000 items were dispensed in England in 2016.
In 2014 the figure was about 37,000, and in 2012 it was 27,000, NHS Digital data shows.
Experts say the drug, which can also be given as a gel, is extremely effective and appropriate to use, as long as patients are carefully monitored.
Millie Kieve, founder of the campaign group the Adverse Psychiatric Reactions Information Link, has told The Times newspaper that Roaccutane is being overused.
The British Association of Dermatologists said as long as safety recommendations were being adhered to then the increasing number of prescriptions was not a cause for concern.
The drug carries a warning of side-effects including depression and mood changes.
Medicines watchdog the MHRA issued a warning to doctors about the potential for psychiatric disorders such as depression, anxiety, and in rare cases suicidal thoughts, at the end of 2014.
It followed some high-profile reports of young people who had killed themselves.
The parents of a man who took his own life in 2012 have called for further assessments of its risks.
Heather and David Roberts say their son Olly, 32, suffered from anxiety and depression for 11 years after he took a course of Roaccutane.
Manufacturer Roche said: "Information provided with isotretinoin [Roaccutane] carries a warning that some patients may experience mood changes, including an increase in depression."
Experts advise:
About 80% of adolescents will have acne for some period, and it can occur in adults too.
A spokesman from the British Association of Dermatologists said: "Isotretinoin [Roaccutane] is a very effective treatment for acne and has hugely improved many peoples' quality of life, particularly as the psychological burden of acne can be enormous for some people.
"Because it is a very potent drug it is vital that it is prescribed by experts, that patients are informed about the potential risks and closely monitored, and that the guidelines for its use are carefully followed. As long as these recommendations are adhered to then the increasing number of prescriptions for isotretinoin is not, in itself, a cause for concern." | Campaigners fear too many young people are being put on the powerful anti-acne drug Roaccutane, which has been linked with suicidal feelings. | 39854655 | [
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A bomb hidden inside a motorcycle exploded in front of the offices of a Muslim scholars committee in Arsal, the official National News Agency said.
The Sunni clerics are believed to have been in trying to negotiate the release of Lebanese security personnel held by jihadist militants based in Syria.
Arsal was the scene of fierce fighting between the two sides last year.
The Sunni town, which hosts many Syrian refugees, is sandwiched between Syrian government-held territory and predominantly Shia Lebanese areas sympathetic to it.
The NNA reported that the head of the Qalamoun Clerics Association, Sheikh Othman Mansour, was among those people killed by Thursday's blast in Arsal.
The agency said the bomb was placed on a motorcycle that blew up outside the association's office.
But a security source told the AFP news agency that the bomber had entered the offices during a meeting of the clerics and detonated an explosive belt.
"The explosion definitely targeted this meeting... where usually no less than 15 people are gathered," Arsal resident Abu Ibrahim told AFP.
The scholars were involved in trying to negotiate the release of more than two dozen members of the Lebanese security forces who were seized by al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, al-Nusra Front, and Islamic State militants during a major attack on Arsal in August 2014.
The jihadist groups have demanded that the Lebanese authorities free Islamist prisoners in exchange, and have killed four of the captives in an attempt to force them to act.
The conflict in Syria has heightened sectarian tensions in Lebanon, with violence regularly spilling over its border and more than a million refugees arriving. | At least six people are reported to have been killed in a bomb attack in a town near Lebanon's border with Syria. | 34735117 | [
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Johnston's goal put Kilcoo 1-6 to 0-6 up early in the second half and was always likely to prove decisive in such a low-scoring contest.
Kilcoo's lead was cut to a point but the Down champions moved three ahead again and then held on.
Scotstown duo Francis Caulfield and sub Brian McGinnity were sent off late on.
Caulfield was dismissed after getting a second yellow card while McGinnity saw red after appearing to strike impressive Kilcoo full-back Darragh O'Hanlon.
The Monaghan champions, beaten by Crossmaglen after extra-time in last year's provincial final, only had points from Darren Hughes and Donal Morgan to show for their early domination as several other good chances were missed.
Kilcoo hit back with five unanswered points after Aaron Branigan opened up their account in the ninth minute.
Conor Laverty's typically busy display was crucial to Kilcoo's improvement as Donal Kane, Paul Devlin (two) and Martin Devlin also notched points.
After being held scoreless for almost 20 minutes, Scotstown found their range again late in the first half as the lively Shane Carey pointed a free and keeper Rory Beggan also hit the target from a 45 after missing three earlier long-range efforts.
Aidan Branigan's departure at half-time looked a blow for Kilcoo but instead his replacement Johnston went on to become the central personality in the match.
The sides were level at 0-6 a piece when Johnston held his nerve to produce a great finish past Beggan after Laverty had flicked on a long ball.
After Shane Carey's reply, Johnston looked to have palmed in a second Kilcoo goal but the effort was ruled out - harshly it appeared - for a square ball.
The controversial decision looked as though it could be match-turning as another Carey point cut Kilcoo's lead to the minimum but crucially Beggan and Carey then missed chances to get Scotstown on terms.
Paul Devlin's superb long-range point and an Aaron Morgan score, after more great work by Laverty, left Kilcoo three ahead with three minutes of normal time left and Carey's seventh point was all Scotstown could summon in the remaining eight minutes of action.
In addition to Johnston and Laverty, Niall Branigan and Darragh O'Hanlon were among Kilcoo's stars as they set up a meeting either Kilcar or Glenswilly on 30 October. | Ryan Johnston's half-time introduction help Kilcoo edge out 13-man Scotstown 1-8 to 0-9 in the Ulster Club Football preliminary round game at Clones. | 37672708 | [
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Mr Banks said ex-leader Nigel Farage was UKIP's "biggest asset" and should be "engaged once again".
In a letter to current leader Paul Nuttall, he criticised UKIP's tactics in the Stoke Central by-election where Mr Nuttall failed to unseat Labour.
He said the party had wrongly adopted a "red UKIP" strategy, copying Labour policies on the NHS.
Mr Nuttall, who was elected in November, has vowed to attract disillusioned Labour voters to UKIP, and hoped to capitalise on Stoke voters' leanings towards Brexit in Thursday's by-election.
But he lost to Labour's Gareth Snell by 2,620 votes, securing only a slight increase in UKIP's vote share.
The current UKIP chairman, Paul Oakden, said after the Stoke result that it might be years before his party, which currently has one MP, can pick up another via a by-election.
In his letter to Mr Nuttall, Leave.EU campaign chairman Mr Banks, who also used a Sunday Express article to threaten to walk away from UKIP unless his demands are met, repeated his offer to become chairman in order to make it an "efficient, professional and ultimately electable party".
He said his first move would be to bring in a CEO from industry to oversee a new membership drive, install a new team of "trained professional agents" to focus on target seats and use input from the public to draw up new policies.
Mr Banks also called for a return to the fold for Mr Farage, who quit as UKIP leader after the EU referendum saying he wanted his "life back".
Mr Banks said his strategy would include "engaging Nigel once again in UKIP - he is our biggest asset and needs to become energised with the party once again and work with you to deliver UKIP MPs".
He added: "The party is at a crossroads. We have to be radical to become relevant once again."
In his Sunday Express article, Mr Banks called for senior figures he said were part of a "Tory cabal" to be expelled, saying: "These dullards aren't bringing in Tory votes, Stoke proved that, so what are they for?"
In response, Patrick O'Flynn, an MEP and Mr Nuttall's principal political adviser, told the BBC's Sunday Politics that his advice would be: "Donate and don't seek to dictate."
He said Mr Oakden was an "excellent" chairman and said the Leave.EU campaign had hardly been a "smooth-running brilliant machine".
"I'm always happy if people who want to give money and support to our party want to stay in the party but I think the best donors donate and don't seek to dictate," he said.
"Of course if they are expert in certain fields people should listen to their views, but to have a donor telling the party leader who should be party chairman, that's a non-starter." | UKIP donor Arron Banks has offered to become party chairman in order to bring about a "total rebrand". | 39106527 | [
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Wing Seymour, 28, has agreed a new deal until May 2019 while lock Swinson, 29, is now contracted until May 2020.
Both made their Scotland debuts in 2013 and have 56 senior international caps between them.
Fellow internationals Stuart Hogg and Henry Pyrgos have already signed new deals with Glasgow, as has former Scotland sevens player Adam Ashe.
"This is my second three-year contract with the Warriors and I've signed for that length of time because it's a great club to be at and there is a good buzz around the place," Swinson, who joined from Newcastle Falcons in 2013, told the Warriors' website.
"With other guys signing new contracts it's good to know that the guys you get on well with on and off the pitch are going to be here."
New Zealander Dave Rennie will replace Glasgow head coach Gregor Townsend in the summer, with the latter taking on the Scotland head coach job.
"It's great news that Tommy and Tim want to stay and continue their careers in Glasgow," said Townsend.
"They both work really hard to continually improve and have become important members of the squad over the last few years.
"They care a lot about the club and make big contributions both on and off the pitch."
Seymour started his professional career with Ulster, joining Glasgow in 2011. And, like Swinson, he helped Warriors win the Pro12 in 2015.
"The club has really built a big name for itself since I've been here and it's something I'm keen to remain a part of," he said.
"With the change of coaching staff next season it offers an exciting opportunity to carry on that development and really continue growing with the club.
"Dave Rennie is regarded as one of the best coaches in the world and we're all really looking forward to working with him next season." | Scotland players Tommy Seymour and Tim Swinson have signed new deals to stay at Glasgow Warriors. | 38583153 | [
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But that requires a very patient man or woman to select the most important periods of play.
Now scientists in Spain are trying to make that work easier by getting a computer to do it.
The technology is being designed to automatically edit a whole game down to the key moments.
The people behind it at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia have been working on it for a few years and have just published 18 pages of exactly how it works.
Arnau Raventos is the lead professor on the project.
He tells Newsbeat they have "been working with the local television companies in Spain in order to try to make the job easier for the person who manually does the summaries currently."
Without having to read the full report (we did that for you) - in short - it analyses what are known as key-frames.
So, every part of the match is looked over by the computer to spot tell-tale signs of when something interesting is happening.
That might be lots of players grouped together, lots of zoomed-in action, extra noise from the crowd or the sound of the referee's whistle.
Arnau calls them "occasions".
"We want to find specific combinations of moments in a football match. A goal is an occasion."
We thought of an example: if a defender goes down in the penalty box, everyone groups around them, you'll hear a whistle, there's lots of faces in the shot and a penalty happens. In theory, the technology should capture that.
There is a long way to go though.
The technology could frustrate even the most lukewarm of football fans because it hasn't quite nailed exactly the magic moment - when the goal goes in.
In a test on five matches, the technology detected 70 per cent of the total goals.
"We need to be sincere," says Arnau. "We need to say that at the moment it's not possible to perform a complete automatic summary just yet. It's difficult to detect all the goals."
"However, we think it's very easy to discard those moments that are not important. For example, the panoramic views. They are easy to detect and to discard them so that already makes the job of the editor easier."
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube | For years Match of the Day has satisfied impatient football fans by condensing a 90 minute match into a handy chunk of highlights. | 30346384 | [
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The 24-year-old forward, who never made a first-team appearance for the Reds, has been without a club since leaving Scottish side Kilmarnock last year.
Ngoo had loan spells with Hearts, Yeovil Town and Walsall during his time with Liverpool, before leaving Anfield in the summer of 2014.
He is eligible to make his debut for the Ravens against Chester on Saturday. | National League side Bromley have signed former Liverpool youngster Michael Ngoo. | 38039196 | [
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Cosmetic lenses are available to buy on the internet, in novelty stores or at market stalls, close to Hallowe'en.
Trading standards officers said the law stated that lenses should be sold with an optician or medic present.
Youngsters buying the lenses may wish to recreate the look of the Twilight films and Vampire Diaries TV show.
Cosmetic lenses are used to change the colour of the eye, and are also known as plano or zero-powered lenses.
Trading standards officers and health experts say young people are known to share them, leading to an increased risk of corneal ulcers and infections.
Alistair Bridge, director of strategy at the General Optical Council said: "Opticians make sure that contact lenses fit properly and that wearers receive expert advice on how to wear and store them safely.
"They will also offer important advice such as not to sleep in contact lenses and to never share or swap lenses, which can spread eye disease."
Leon Livermore, Chartered Trading Standards Institute chief executive, said: "Cosmetic contact lenses are often made and distributed on a one size fits all basis and not tailored to the wearer's needs which can increase the risk of eye health issues."
"We would advise against buying products like these online or from retailers as without professional supervision there are more likely to be health concerns for the individual." | Fans of the Twilight film series have been warned that they could be putting their sight at risk by sharing cosmetic contact lenses bought online. | 34618896 | [
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PC Gillian Weatherley was dismissed for "gross misconduct", Scotland Yard said.
She was sacked for leaking information about the 2012 argument between police officers and MP Andrew Mitchell.
PCs Keith Wallis and James Glanville have already been sacked for gross misconduct, with two more officers yet to face such hearings.
Mr Mitchell was accused of calling officers plebs during the argument at the gates of Downing Street - an allegation he has denied.
The Conservative MP resigned as chief whip in the wake of the controversy.
A panel chaired by Commander Julian Bennett found PC Weatherley had breached professional standards in relation to "honesty and integrity; orders and instructions; confidentiality; discreditable conduct and challenging and reporting improper conduct".
The Met said it had brought the gross misconduct case after the Crown Prosecution Service decided in November that criminal prosecution was not appropriate.
PC Weatherley was on duty at the Downing Street gates on the night of the dispute, 19 September 2012, and the Met said she had exchanged several messages with PC Glanville over the next three days.
It added that she had subsequently given "inaccurate and misleading statements" to detectives from Operation Alice - the investigation into alleged misconduct by officers.
Scotland Yard said it "would not disclose" how information was leaked to the press by PC Weatherley or to whom. | A police officer has been sacked over press leaks about the "plebgate" affair, becoming the third Met PC to be dismissed over the row. | 27222171 | [
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Hundreds of protesters gathered at the venue at the University of Illinois at Chicago hours before Mr Trump was due.
Inside the auditorium, fighting broke out between supporters and protesters, who waved flags and chanted.
A statement from Mr Trump's campaign said the candidate decided to postpone the event after meeting with police.
In pictures: Chicago rally hit by protests
What Trump says about protesters at his rallies
However, a Chicago Police Department spokesman said the force had not recommended that Mr Trump postpone the rally.
The clashes began more than an hour before the event was due to start, and continued after it was cancelled, minutes after Mr Trump was to have appeared.
There were chants for Mr Trump from his supporters and for Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders from some of the protesters.
There were several violent clashes sparked by Trump supporters attempting to wrestle flags from protesters.
One protester had to be physically removed from the stage by what appeared to be a Secret Service agent.
Violent clashes continued outside the venue, with helicopter footage showing chaotic scenes as police attempted to control the large crowds.
One protester, student Ali Alhechimi told the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper: "This is a victory. This is an absolute victory. I want to thank everyone who showed up."
The full statement from Mr Trump's campaign read: "Mr Trump just arrived in Chicago and after meeting with law enforcement has determined that for the safety of all of the tens of thousands of people that have gathered in and around the arena, tonight's rally will be postponed to another date.
"Thank you very much for your attendance and please go in peace."
Speaking to Fox News after the events, Mr Trump denied using hate speech or playing any part in fostering division.
"I represent a large group of people that have a lot of anger," he said. "There is tremendous anger out there on both sides."
Discussing the decision to cancel the rally, he said: "I think it was a very good thing we did, I think it was an intelligent decision."
It was supposed to be a political rally. Instead, many of the scenes resembled a bar-room brawl. Protesters had spent days planning the disruption, and they succeeded. The scenes inside the venue, where Trump supporters and protesters shoved and shouted at one another, were raw and angry.
The two sides have one thing in common: rage. Many Trump supporters are disillusioned and disenfranchised by a political establishment they feel does not represent them. The protesters in turn perceive the tone and rhetoric of Mr Trump's campaign as racist and divisive.
Will it harm the billionaire's election prospects? He may come across as the candidate who was denied the right to speak at his own political event. Or it may make voters wonder whether his entire campaign would be beset by rage. And if it comes down to a contest of angry Americans - are there more with him or against him?
Why are Americans so angry?
How extreme is Donald Trump?
Could Trump's vulgarity cost him the nomination?
The Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus supporting Trump
Mr Trump's rivals for the Republican nomination, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, both called the incident "sad".
"When you have a campaign that affirmatively encourages violence," Texas Senator Cruz said, "you create an environment that only encourages this sort of nasty discourse."
Staff at the university had earlier petitioned administrators to cancel the rally, citing concerns it would create a "hostile and physically dangerous environment" for students.
A number of Trump rallies have been interrupted by protesters before.
Earlier on Friday, 32 people were arrested after protests at a rally held by Mr Trump rally in St Louis, Missouri.
Mr Trump was repeatedly interrupted by the protesters, whom he called a "disgrace".
These latest clashes come just a day after a Trump supporter was charged with assault after multiple videos showed him punching a protester at a campaign rally in North Carolina.
The billionaire later said that the supporter's actions were "appropriate". | Donald Trump has called off a rally in Chicago after protests against the Republican presidential front-runner led to violent clashes. | 35791008 | [
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They were evicted from the British overseas territory in the 1960s to allow the UK government to lease Diego Garcia to the US to use as an airbase.
Many residents of what is the largest of the Chagos Islands ultimately resettled in Crawley, West Sussex.
The petition demands the islanders' right to return home is respected.
TV presenter Ben Fogle, patron of the UK Chagos Support Organisation, handed in the petition, which had been signed by more than 2,500 people.
"Diego Garcia, which is one of the main prohibiters to the islanders returning, is up for renewal in the next year or so," Mr Fogle said.
"We're asking this government to think about whether these islands should belong to the people who inhabited them for a very long time, or to the US government who have used it for renditions - for effectively torture."
He said he had visited the islands and found "houses still as they were left" and "the graveyard strangled by vegetation having been left untended".
"For me, being a Brit, it was probably one of the things I'm most ashamed about, that I'm part of a country that forcibly evicted these people and is now refusing their right to return," he said.
Mr Fogle added: "How wrong is that, that I've been able to be there and they can't?"
Henry Smith, the Conservative MP for Crawley, said: "I think we can't turn back time but what we can do is rectify the problem as soon as possible."
A Foreign Office spokesman said: "The government is committed to its ongoing review of resettlement policy towards the British Indian Ocean Territory." | A petition calling for residents of the Chagos Islands to be allowed to return to their Indian Ocean homeland has been handed in to Downing Street. | 32842849 | [
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Media playback is not supported on this device
Jean-Marc Bosman did not trademark any moments of skill, score famous late winners or carry his teams to success but he was good enough to win 20 youth caps for Belgium and break into the first team of one of his country's best clubs at 18.
That, however, is not what earns him a place alongside Charlemagne, Audrey Hepburn and Hercule Poirot in a list of famous Belgians.
Twenty years ago on Tuesday, Bosman emerged from the European Court of Justice with a win that turned Europe's top divisions into glorious expressions of multiculturalism and added a new noun to sport's lexicon: the Bosman.
From that moment, players at the end of their contracts - David Beckham, Sol Campbell, Steve McManaman and many more - could move without a transfer fee.
No longer would a player from the European Union have their opportunities in the single market curtailed by rules limiting the number of foreigners clubs could field.
But for this softly spoken 51 year old, it was a case that almost ruined him.
"There have been real problems but I am feeling much better now," said Bosman when I asked him how he was after a spell in prison, bankruptcy and a long battle with alcoholism.
"I've had medical and psychological care and I also have blood samples taken on a regular basis.
"There have been difficulties and my financial situation is not easy but life has started over. I have regained strength and feel motivated.
"It has not been easy to find work after the ruling but I am not complaining. The tunnel is nearing its end."
He entered that tunnel in 1990 when his contract with RFC Liege expired. With the club in financial trouble they wanted the midfielder to sign a new deal on a quarter of his former salary.
Yet when Dunkerque, across the border in France, wanted to buy him, Liege demanded four times what they'd paid for him in the first place.
"It was illogical," said Bosman, explaining the moment he decided to become a "freedom fighter".
His lawyer thought it would take two weeks. It took five years; a period that should have been the best years of a decent career.
Banned in Belgium, Bosman moved to a second division club in France, only for them to go bust. Other clubs told him they would like to sign him but could not because they already had three foreigners.
He had a brief spell on the island of La Reunion and another go in the Belgian leagues, but it is an understatement to say his decision to take football's business model to court made him less attractive to club chairmen.
Broke, tired and out of shape, he accepted 350,000 Swiss francs in damages for his legal victory and began a life after football that he is still trying to work out.
There was a disastrous investment in a t-shirt business (he had hoped grateful footballers would buy one, only his lawyer's son did so) and problems with the taxman.
In 2011, he was convicted of assault following claims he had been involved in an argument with his girlfriend after he asked her daughter to get him some booze. Initially, the courts were lenient but when he failed to pay his fine they were left with little choice. He was sentenced to a year in prison in 2013.
It was then that Fifpro, the international trade union for footballers, stepped in. The stars he had helped become multi-millionaires may have forgotten him but his union did not.
"I was young and handsome then and I now have become old," he explained.
"Most of the players won't be able to recognise me but my case is still being talked about - I think that is positive.
"I may not be here in 20 years' time but they will still be talking about it and if someone remembers me I will give him my bank details. Everyone benefited from the Bosman ruling except me!"
I am speaking to him at Fifpro's swish headquarters in a suburb of Amsterdam. Bosman has become a spokesman for the organisation's campaign to finish what he started: scrap transfer fees entirely.
The best way to understand this is to view Bosman as a battle in a 125-year war between clubs and players.
The players won Bosman but were "ambushed", in the words of Fifpro's general secretary Theo van Seggelen, six years later. The European Commission made a deal with the game's governing bodies, Uefa and Fifa, to stem what the clubs claimed was rampant "player power".
This deal was enshrined in Fifa's Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players in 2001.
These rules set out today's transfer system - windows - the concept of a protected period when a contract cannot be broken, maximum and minimum contract lengths and so on - and for Fifpro they amount to the pendulum swinging towards the clubs.
Five years later, a row about Scottish defender Andy Webster's move from Hearts to Wigan Athletic saw that pendulum swing back.
The details of the case are convoluted but the final ruling seemed to fix what compensation a player/new employer should pay the old employer for breaking a contract outside of the protected period. This sum would be the wages the player would earn if he stayed.
This really could have been revolutionary but two years later the Court of Arbitration for Sport changed the compensation equation by adding pro rata slices of the initial transfer fee and an estimate of the player's replacement cost.
Players such Andrea Pirlo or Robert Lewandowski could still let their contracts expire to get Bosman moves to new teams and bigger wages. But clubs wanting to sign players still under contract, even outside the protected period, would have to cough up some compensation, as Manchester City did with Raheem Sterling last summer.
Quite right too, is the usual response to this compromise between a player's right to ply his trade on the one hand, and a club's right to stability and a league's competitive integrity on the other.
Everton manager Roberto Martinez, the first Spanish player to get a Bosman to England, has criticised the transfer window, but does not want to scrap compensation.
"The Bosman ruling was a huge shock at the time but I used it and it now seems a normal way to move freely," said Martinez last week.
"Football has benefited from the multicultural input of players and it seems normal now.
"But it wouldn't be right to scrap transfer fees. The value of a footballer is important and the value of developing players is important."
But Fifpro's Van Seggelen says this view is based on a misunderstanding of the players' position, as well as being unfounded in truth.
Dr Stefan Szymanski, author of the best-selling Soccernomics and professor of sports management at the University of Michigan, did some research for Fifpro earlier this year which outlined how the system was failing to do any of the things it promised in 2001.
According to Szymanski, the settlement has led to the rich clubs getting richer as more than half of all transfer spending circulates among them, with little trickling down the pyramid, far less than is syphoned off by agents.
He also outlined how the same clubs and leagues keep winning, while the same types of clubs and leagues keep failing, leaving themselves, he says, vulnerable to match-fixing, third-party ownership and the trafficking of minors.
"We thought the transfer system was finished on 15 December, 1995, but of course it isn't," explained Van Seggelen.
"In fact, the situation is even worse than before. I often say to people 'how would you feel if you had to wait three months for your salary?'
"You also have players waiting years for justice through the tribunal system, and even when he has a positive decision there is no enforcement system. We cannot accept that."
That might win over a few more voters on the terraces but there will still be many in the "Bosman ruined football" camp who think this is simply a union fighting for more money for its members, and in this case the members are loaded.
"Only 1% of our members are financially independent, so not every player is making that kind of money," said Van Seggelen.
"We're not trying to make them richer. In an ideal world, every player would play at the level they belong.
"I don't know why the clubs are so nervous. We are not trying to kill the top clubs or leagues.
"Sport is unusual but it must be reasonable. It's an economic activity, a business, so it must respect the law."
By this point, Bosman is outside smoking.
Despite arriving late and looking like he could not wait for the interview to end, he was good company.
He does not watch much football these days, he cannot afford the television subscriptions, but what he sees he enjoys.
His main focus is looking after his two young boys and being a better dad to the grown-up daughter he has from an earlier relationship.
"Martin and Samuel are too young to know about my case, I don't want to complicate their lives with it, they've just left kindergarten," he said.
"But I think later, when they grow up, they could find out about what their dad has done for professional players on the internet and they will see their dad has done something good.
"Back then clubs were selling hens, horses, mules and pigs, but not humans.
"Players should be considered as workers, full stop, that's it! This is the Bosman ruling, and we ought to get back to it." | A Cruyff turn, Fergie time, the Matthews final: football's icons have often entered the language of the sport but can any of those greats claim to have changed the game as much as the nervous, middle-aged Belgian sitting in front of me? | 35097223 | [
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Rees says they felt there was "no drama" trailing 14-7 at half-time.
But defeat left Ospreys - and Welsh regional rugby - without a top-tier knockout place since 2010.
And as they trail in the Pro12, captain Alun Wyn Jones admitted Ospreys face a tough task to make the 2016-17 tournament.
They are currently seventh in the Pro12 table, four points behind Ulster, who occupy the sixth and final Champions Cup qualification place.
Wales lock Jones said: "We have to focus now on a tough Six Nations period because we are currently not in a position to play in this competition this year."
Hanno Dirksen crossed in the opening period against Exeter and Ospreys were awarded a penalty try that gave them late hope.
But two tries apiece for Thomas Waldrom and James Short in addition to Kai Horstmann's opener saw off the visitors.
Rees said Ospreys felt "pure disappointment" at failing to to take their opportunity to progress against the second-placed team in the Aviva Premiership.
"We spoke at half-time that there was no drama, we could build our way into the game and create some pressure without overdoing it against Exeter," said Rees.
"And I think we did that at the start of the second half, even at the end when we were 26-17 down. If we can negate their work in the 22 you'll get another shot and that potentially takes you through.
"We knew all that. Al [Jones] was getting messages - he was pretty clear, but it's redundant anyway."
Jones said: "It wasn't the ideal start. Two quick tries put us on the back foot, but in the same breath it was probably the best time to have them because we've got another 70 minutes to go.
"Unfortunately we probably chased a bit too much.
"We brought ourselves back into contention, but the game got away from us and and we had too much to do."
Ospreys went into the final round top of Pool Two after earning two bonus points in defeats at Clermont Auvergne and Bordeaux-Begles and beating both French Top 14 teams and Exeter at their Liberty Stadium home.
Jones said: "There's a lot of emotion involved in those performances we've had. We've probably lived off emotion and performed off emotion, but you can't really afford to do that in this competition.
"I remember being away in London Irish in the same competition. We went out there with a team that was probably on paper far superior and had the same result, so I think Gruff has nailed it on the head with the word 'devastated'.
"I said to the guys at the end that none of you in here [the media] said we would be in contention to get out of the pool and it's true. I remember doing the interview at the start of the season and somebody laughed, which is fine.
"And it's not about defying the odds or proving other people wrong, it's about working for each other and trying to do something different.
"We've made a point about all the big names that have gone through this jersey and not got ourselves in the position that we have.
"Ultimately we've faltered again and we haven't done that [gone through], but I can say credit to the team and we're proud to have come so close." | Ospreys backs coach Gruff Rees says they were "emotionally devastated" at missing out on a European Champions Cup quarter-final by losing to Exeter. | 35396263 | [
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Ming Jiang, 43, was in debt and being chased by creditors but his friend and fellow Chinese national Yang Liu, 36, could afford to gamble, the jury heard.
It is alleged Mr Jiang, of Beswick, dumped the suitcase in a remote Derbyshire lay-by and set it alight.
Mr Jiang denies murder. His trial at Minshull Street Crown Court continues.
Peter Wright QC, prosecuting, told the jury that Mr Jiang murdered Yang Lui as "a solution to his financial problems".
"He was a heavy gambler and, like many gamblers, lost more than he won," Mr Wright said.
"He dismembered the body - in all likelihood in his own flat - and then disposed of the body parts.
"He then set about assuming the dead man's identity, gaining access to his bank accounts and his personal effects and his apartment."
A total of £800 was taken from the dead man's bank account, the jury was told.
Mr Wright told the court Mr Liu's body was badly burned and had been extensively dismembered.
His head, both lower arms and both lower legs had been severed by "some bladed form of weapon" and removed, he said, adding: "They have never been found."
The jury heard the victim was last seen alive "in the vicinity" of the defendant's flat on 5 October 2016.
Using CCTV footage, detectives identified a silver Mercedes approaching and leaving the lay-by where the suitcase was dumped, just off the A628 at Tintwistle.
They discovered it was registered to Mr Jiang.
Distinctive tyre tracks also fitted the car, while traces of blood in the boot matched DNA from Mr Liu's body, the court was told.
The trial continues. | A prolific gambler murdered his wealthy friend to solve debt problems then dismembered his body and stuffed it into a suitcase, a court has been told. | 39485019 | [
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Molinari stormed into contention with two eagles in the last seven holes to set a clubhouse target of nine under par, which Dunne was able to match thanks to a birdie on the last.
The players then returned to the 18th hole for a sudden death play-off.
A scrappy par proved to be enough for Molinari to secure the title.
Dunne, who had enjoyed a two-shot lead going into the final round, found trouble off the tee and failed to get up and down from a greenside bunker.
The 24-year-old's second place finish was his best ever on the European Tour however.
"I felt like there were just so many shots that slipped away from me. It's just one of those days," said Dunne.
"I felt like I was really close to shooting four or five under and stuck with one under in the end. I'm happy with my form and looking forward to next week.
"I'm just a bit disappointed not to come out with the result we wanted but it's a step in the right direction."
For the Italian, it was his first European Tour success since 2010. | Ireland's Paul Dunne lost to Italian Edoardo Molinari in a play-off at the Trophee Hassan II at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Morocco on Sunday. | 39619711 | [
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Dutch number three seed Noppert, 26, will play England's number 10 seed Darryl Fitton in the last four.
England's Waites, a two-time winner, was seeded sixth for this year's tournament at the Lakeside.
Number one seed Glen Durrant takes on fellow Englishman Jamie Hughes, seeded fourth, in the other semi-final.
England's Lisa Ashton, a two-time winner, will face Australia's Corrine Hammond in the women's final. | Defending champion Scott Waites was knocked out of the BDO World Darts Championships as Danny Noppert beat him 5-3 in a dramatic quarter-final. | 38618826 | [
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This edition in Lillehammer is only the second of its kind, with the first coming in Innsbruck in 2012.
Over 10 days about 1100 athletes from 70 countries, aged between 15 and 18, will compete in 15 sports disciplines.
Lillehammer 2016 will use many venues refurbished from the 1994 Winter Olympics, while Oslo, which is more than 100 miles away, will host the halfpipe events.
The ethos of the Youth Olympics is cultural education and personal development, as well as an early introduction to the multi-sport environment,
At Lillehammer 2016 the Sjoggfest [culture festival] offers athletes about 150 cultural and adventure experiences, such as ice climbing, parkour and live music acts.
There are 70 gold medals at stake within the 15 disciplines at Lillehammer.
Events familiar to Winter Olympic schedules, such as alpine skiing or speed skating, are part of the Games.
But there are also some new formats on display in Norway.
Alongside the regular ice hockey team format, there is an ice hockey skills challenge event where the individual must demonstrate their prowess with the skates, stick and puck in six different skill areas.
In bobsleigh, rather than standard two-man or four-man bobs, the Olympians will compete in the monobob - where a single athlete rides by his or herself.
And curling in Lillehammer will have not only mixed team curling - comprising a foursome of two boys and two girls from the same nation - but also a mixed doubles event, where boys and girls from different countries will pair up and compete together.
The British Olympic Association has sent a team of 16 athletes to take part in alpine skiing, bobsleigh, curling, freestyle skiing, ice hockey skills challenge, luge and skeleton. This team size is down from the 23 who took part in Innsbruck in 2012.
The youngest member of the team is Verity Lewis, who will be a month past her 15th birthday on Friday. She is Team GB's ice hockey skills challenge competitor.
Leading team GB is chef de mission, Adam Pengilly, a former GB skeleton athlete who competed at the Winter Olympics in 2006 and 2010.
Winter Olympics bronze medallist curler Claire Hamilton is with the team in the role of youth ambassador.
GB's best medal hopes appear to lie in the sliding sports.
In monobob, 17-year-olds George Johnston and Kelsea Purchall are both ranked number one in the world.
Another monobob athlete, 17-year-old Annabel Chaffey, was also ranked top in the world at the end of the 2014-2015 season.
Also in medal form at the sliding centre is Ashleigh Pittaway in the skeleton. The Munich-born 15-year-old won four qualifying races for Lillehammer 2016 and took her first senior bronze medal at the European Cup in Konigssee, Germany, in January.
Developing young people is one part of the Winter Youth Olympics, but nurturing the next batch of senior level Olympians is also an objective.
From Innsbruck 2012, Team GB included the freestyle skier, Katie Summerhayes, who went on to compete at the Sochi Winter Games two years later.
She then became the first British woman to win a freestyle skiing World Championship medal when she took silver in the 2015 slopestyle event.
As well as Summerhayes, Jazmin Sawyers was part of the silver-winning bobsleigh team in Innsbruck. However, she subsequently returned to her track and field roots, where she won another silver - this time in the long jump at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. | The Winter Youth Olympic Games are a relatively new event. | 35558833 | [
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Jason Rezaian, a dual US-Iranian citizen, has been accused of passing information to "hostile governments".
He defended himself in court, saying he had carried out his activities as a journalist, Iranian media reported.
Mr Rezaian could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
He is being tried in one of Tehran's revolutionary courts, usually reserved for political cases or those related to national security.
Mr Rezaian appeared in court alongside his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, and a third detainee, reported to be a female photojournalist.
The judge, Abolghassem Salavati, outlined the charges against Mr Rezaian as "espionage through collecting classified information and providing it to hostile governments" and "spreading propaganda against the regime", Iran's Mehr news agency reported.
Mr Rezaian rejected some of the charges, Mehr reported, saying: "I am a journalist and I carried out all my activities legally and as a journalist."
The presiding judge, Abolghassem Salavati, is known for handing down harsh sentences and is accused by human rights groups of cracking down on journalists and activists.
He has been dubbed the "judge of death" for imposing several death sentences after the 2009 post-election opposition protests.
He first came to public attention in 2006 when he sentenced two defendants to death for the murder of Hassan Moghadas, the Revolutionary Court judge who sentenced a prominent journalist - Akbar Ganji - to 15 years in jail.
Since then, Mr Salavati has presided over or sat in the trials of several prominent political figures, including a daughter of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
In January 2009, he found four people guilty of conspiring with the US government against Iran in their work on an HIV prevention programme.
In September 2014, Mr Salavati sentenced Mohsen Amir-Aslani to death for heresy for his interpretation of the Jonah and the Whale story as a symbolic tale.
Source: BBC Monitoring's Armen Shahbazian
What are Iran's revolutionary courts?
The US State Department repeated its call for the "absurd charges" to be dropped.
Iran has not recently commented on the case, but the Washington Post has spoken out forcefully.
"The shameful acts of injustice continue without end in the treatment of [Mr] Rezaian," a statement by the newspaper's Executive Editor Martin Baron said on Monday.
"Now we learn his trial will be closed to the world. And so it will be closed to the scrutiny it fully deserves.
"There is no justice in this system, not an ounce of it, and yet the fate of a good, innocent man hangs in the balance."
The paper points out that Mr Rezaian was arrested without charge and jailed in Iran's notorious Evin prison - placed in isolation for many months and denied medical care he needed.
His brother, Ali, meanwhile told the BBC there was no evidence to support the charges: "They've cherry-picked information to come up with whatever they could to charge him with to make it seem like there was a reason that they've held him."
The BBC's US state department correspondent, Barbara Plett Usher, says US officials have repeatedly raised his case during months of nuclear negotiations with Iran, but have declined to link the two.
The imprisoned journalist's family have taken heart from recent comments by President Barack Obama, who said that the White House would not rest until Mr Rezaian was brought home safely, our correspondent adds.
The case is all the more sensitive because it has unfolded during negotiations between Iran and the West over the country's nuclear programme.
Some analysts have suggested the arrest was related to internal power struggles in Iran over the outcome of the talks.
Iran and six major world powers, including the US, have set a 30 June deadline for a conclusive nuclear deal to end a 10-year impasse.
Mr Rezaian had been the Washington Post's Tehran bureau chief since 2012.
His wife, Yeganeh Salehi, was arrested alongside him in July but later bailed after spending two and a half months in custody.
It is not clear when the next trial session will be held. | The trial of a Washington Post journalist detained in Iran for almost 10 months on charges that include "espionage" has opened in the capital Tehran behind closed doors. | 32879675 | [
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Yet while such a prospect would make most of us run a mile, this is in fact a traditional massage method in Russia.
Called a "venik" massage, the oak bunches are first softened in warm water. And rather than being whacked on your back in anger, they are gently and rhythmically applied.
It is a popular treatment in the thousands of steam bathhouses, or "banyas", across Russia.
The massage, which takes place in a sauna room set at a temperature of 70C, is said to boost circulation and prevent premature ageing of the skin.
And after the treatment has finished you are supposed to immediately jump into a plunge pool of cold water.
You might think that such an unusual massage would struggle to be successfully exported from Russia, but the co-founder of the first banya in London says that two years after opening, almost half of its customers are non-Russians.
Launching the banya, called Banya No.1, was the dream of entrepreneurial Russian ex-pat Ksenia Bobkova.
The 37-year-old has lived in the UK for more than 20 years after moving from St Petersburg to study law at Edinburgh University in 1994.
After graduating from Edinburgh she has had a successful career in finance in London, first working at a large commercial law firm, and then co-founding a new investment company.
Yet as much as Ms Bobkova says she has always enjoyed living in the UK, the one thing she really missed was regular trips to a banya.
After dreaming of opening London's first banya for more than a decade, Ms Bobkova says that in 2012 "the circumstances came together" to enable her to finally start work on it.
Firstly, she realised that more and more Russians were now living in London, which she hoped would make a banya commercially viable, and she had built up enough savings to launch the business.
Then she found the right building, and two other UK-based Russian investors came on board.
After a year of construction work, including importing a traditional banya stove from Russia, the bathhouse opened its doors in 2013.
"When we wrote the business plan, we certainly focused on the fact that the Russian-speaking community in London had grown substantially over the past 15 years," she says.
"But after we opened we soon discovered that London is so international, and that people who live here are so open to new experiences, that almost half our customers are non-Russian."
Customers - both male and female - who don't want to strip naked can instead wear their swimming costume, or a strategically placed towel. And for people who wish to avoid the oak leaves, Scandinavian-style, hands-based back massages are also available.
After the massages, people are encouraged to stay and relax in a lounge or rest area, where they can order traditional Russian food.
While Ms Bobkova is reluctant to discuss how financially successful the banya is, it is often full, and typical visits cost £100 per person. And she now plans to open more branches.
Running the banya is a world apart from Ms Bobkova's main job of helping to lead investment firm Fusion Asset Management, of which she was a founding partner in 2004.
The business invests millions of pounds globally on behalf of large institutions, and has a sister office in Moscow.
While the original six founders included one Englishman, an American and a Frenchman, it is now owned and run by three London-based Russian ex-pats.
Ms Bobkova says that she likes working in the UK, because she values what she describes as "British fair play" in business.
"Without comparing specifically to Russia, what is very fundamental in British business ethics is this concept of fair play," she says.
"[Doing business in the UK means] you can trust people, and people will generally not try to squeeze you too much. In the UK both sides get a fairly allocated share of the profit, rather than one gets all, and the other gets nothing."
In terms of her day-to-day style as a boss she says that while she has high expectations of staff, it is a point of principle that the 20 people at the finance firm don't have to work late nights or at weekends.
"Nothing in the world is so important that it needs to be done at the weekend," she says.
In addition to the two businesses, Ms Bobkova is also a co-founder of a networking organisation for Russians living and working in London.
Called Russians in the City, and with 2,300 members, it holds quarterly events, such as drinks parties, or polo matches and skiing trips.
The world is getting wealthier - but with the gap between rich and poor feeling bigger than ever, who are the winners and losers of this richer world in 2015?
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The organisation has since opened a sister branch in Switzerland, with other ones due to open in New York and Dubai.
A UK passport holder, and previously married to a British husband, Ms Bobkova says that Russians in the City allow her to maintain the Russian side of her identity.
"I'm British in that I have lived here for 20 years, but I'm also obviously Russian," she says.
"There are different categories of immigrants. Some are so integrated that they almost deny where they came from, while at the other end, some people don't integrate at all.
"I'm somewhere in the middle, I'm fully integrated, I went to a British university... I speak English.... but I also like my Russian heritage, which I nurture through the bathhouse and through the network." | As leisure activities go, you would imagine that lying naked on a wooden table while two topless Russian men hit your back with bunches of oak leaves would only appeal to a very specialist group of enthusiasts. | 31921778 | [
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Media playback is not supported on this device
Coe, 59, became boss of the body that governs world athletics last August after eight years as a vice-president.
Since then, the IAAF has come in for heavy criticism, accused of helping cover up systematic doping in Russia.
But Dick Pound, whose report damns IAAF governance, insists he "can't think of anyone better" than Coe to lead it.
"I think it's a fabulous responsibility for the IAAF to seize this opportunity and, under strong leadership, to move forward," said Pound, chairman of the independent World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) panel which wrote the report.
"There's an enormous amount of reputational recovery that needs to occur here and I can't think of anyone better than Lord Coe to lead that."
Media playback is not supported on this device
Pound's 89-page report concluded that corruption within the IAAF "cannot be blamed on a small number of miscreants".
It was also particularly scathing of former IAAF president Lamine Diack, who stood down and was replaced by Coe after 16 years in charge.
It concluded the Senegalese was "responsible for organising and enabling the conspiracy and corruption that took place in the IAAF".
The report also claimed the IAAF Council, which included Coe, "could not have been unaware of the extent of doping in athletics".
Coe, a former British MP, was present at Pound's news conference, having insisted on Wednesday there had been no cover-up.
He also said he had no intention of standing down.
Following the report's publication, Coe admitted: "I know how serious this is. We are a failed organisation.
"I'm sorry if my language has in any way demonstrated a sort of a lack of understanding about the depth of this."
He told BBC Sport that the IAAF - the International Association of Athletics Federations - would "redouble our efforts, to be clear to people we are not in denial".
And Coe re-emphasised: "My responsibility is to absorb the lessons of the past and to shape the future. The changes I am making will do that. The road back to trust is going to be a long one."
Diack is firmly in the line of fire. The report also concluded he:
This section of the report is particularly scathing:
"The corruption that occurred within the IAAF was not at the level of some foreign currency trader in a bank carrying out unauthorised transactions, without the knowledge or permission of the responsible bank officers.
"Here it started with the president of the organisation. It involved the treasurer of the organisation. It involved the personal counsel of the president, acting on instructions of the president. It involved two of the sons of the president. It involved the director of the medical and anti-doping department of the IAAF.
"The corruption was embedded in the organisation. It cannot be ignored or dismissed as attributable to the odd renegade acting on his own.
"The IAAF allowed the conduct to occur and must accept its responsibility. Continued denial will simply make it more difficult to make genuine progress."
BBC sports editor Dan Roan quizzed the former boss of Wada.
Media playback is not supported on this device
It was already reeling from a number of damaging revelations and was strongly criticised for its failure to tackle doping.
In fact, it was only after Pound accused Russia of systematic doping practises in the first part of his report last November that the IAAF stepped in and banned Russian athletes from competition.
Pound said: "The commission has been troubled by the apparent unwillingness of the IAAF to acknowledge that the conduct does indeed reflect on the IAAF and that it must assume its responsibilities for what went wrong."
Worse could follow for the IAAF, too. French police have issued a 'wanted' notice via Interpol for Papa Massata Diack, the son of the former IAAF president Lamine, on charges of corruption and money-laundering.
On the day of his election in August, Coe said suggestions his organisation was complicit in a doping scandal were "just inaccurate".
Thursday's allegations call into question that argument.
They also add to the pressure on a man who has been a key figure within the IAAF since 2007, when he was made a vice-president.
The report says Coe's right-hand man Nick Davies, who stepped aside from his position as the association's chief of staff last month, was "well aware of Russian 'skeletons' in the cupboard".
Coe, who led London's successful staging of the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, became IAAF president last year.
In an IAAF statement hours after the report was published, it said it "fully acknowledges and accepts the extreme gravity of the commission's findings".
In the statement, Coe said he "cannot change the past", but would "not repeat its mistakes".
Coe has again come out out fighting, as he did following part one of the Wada report - and he still has his backers. There's Pound, for a start, as well as Brendan Foster - the British former long-distance runner - who said his close friend was still the right man to lead the IAAF.
"He's hurting with all this," said the former British middle-distance runner, prior to Thursday's announcement. "But Seb Coe is determined like no-one else can be determined. He's going to change this thing."
Michele Verroken, the former head of anti-doping at UK Sport, is also backing Coe to lead the IAAF out of trouble.
"If not Seb, who?" she asked. "Quite honestly, he is very capable of doing this. It's a matter of whether he gets the support to do it."
IAAF ambassador Kajsa Bergqvist, Sweden's world and European champion and an Olympic bronze medallist, said she met Diack 15 to 20 times and that he "was always a person probably more interested in the power his office gave him than he was in the sport itself".
Wada president Craig Reedie called the actions "criminal" and "hugely disturbing", while sports minister Tracey Crouch said the findings of the report were "extremely alarming".
Former Great Britain athletes Roger Black and Kriss Akabusi both said there were no major surprises in the report, and backed Coe, as did marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe.
She said: "To single out Seb that he had an inclination of what was going on - I don't believe he did. I believe he had heard rumours, knew things needed to change, which is why put he put himself on the line and ran for presidency.
"If we attack and attack, then he might say 'it is not worth it'. It is then athletics' loss."
However, Akabusi described the IAAF president as "naive" for not being aware of the scale of Russian doping.
"He was a world-class athlete and he's going to need to be a world-class administrator and politician now," said Akabusi.
Meanwhile, Russia sports minister Vitaly Mutko called the report "absurd", claiming it was "almost accusing" the nation's president Vladimir Putin "of doping".
BBC Radio 5 live athletics correspondent Mike Costello:
"Lord Coe's reputation is on the line, especially with what he's been saying about Lamine Diack being the 'spiritual leader' of the sport.
"Time after time he said there was no cover-up, but of course there was a cover-up, Wada chairman Dick Pound said today.
"There has to be some guilt by association for Coe. Yet within athletics there is a feeling that if not Seb Coe then who else?"
BBC Radio 5 live sports news correspondent Richard Conway:
"Athletics is still in a grip of a huge crisis and the report shows deep-rooted corruption within the IAAF.
"Lord Coe says he is the right man to lead the organisation but given the report said the ruling council, which Coe was a member of, could not have been unaware of doping problems, that is going to be a significant issue for him.
"Yet that backing from Wada chairman Dick Pound is crucial because without it Coe would be facing a tougher task to keep his role as IAAF president.
"Now he has a bit of political capital to take forward." | Lord Coe is the right man to lead the crisis-hit IAAF, according to the author of a report claiming "corruption was embedded" within the organisation. | 35309759 | [
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They say it could help predict when a person will die, identify those at high-risk of dementia and could affect medicine, pensions and insurance.
The team at King's College London say looking at "biological age" is more useful than using a date of birth.
However, the work, published in Genome Biology, provides no clues as to how to slow the ageing process.
The test looks for an "ageing signature" in your body's cells by comparing the behaviour of 150 genes.
It was developed by initially comparing 54,000 markers of gene activity in healthy, but largely sedentary, 25 and 65-year-olds and then whittling them down to a final 150.
Prof Jamie Timmons, from King's College London, told the BBC News website: "There's a healthy ageing signature that's common to all our tissues, and it appears to be prognostic for a number of things including longevity and cognitive decline.
"It looks like from the age of 40 onwards you can use this to give guidance on how well an individual is ageing."
The team said "health" and "age" were two separate entities.
And while some lifestyle decisions, like spending all day on the sofa, could be bad for your health they do not appear to affect the speed your body ages.
The team believe combining lifestyle factors and your biological age would give a more accurate picture of your health.
The researchers tried the test out on samples from a group of 70-year-old men in Sweden.
They worked out who was ageing well and who was ageing very rapidly and were able to predict who would die in the next few years.
"You could actually pick out people who had almost no chance of being dead, and you have people who had an almost 45% chance of being dead," said Prof Timmons told the BBC.
There are plans to pilot the test in organ transplants in the UK to see if people who are technically old, but have a young "biological age", can still donate organs safely.
The researchers say it could also alter cancer screening, with people who are ageing rapidly needing to be screened at a younger age.
Prof Timmons said the test would also form a "useful tool" in predicting the onset of dementia.
He said that it could be used in conjunction with other checks to identify those at highest risk of developing the neurodegenerative disease and to enrol them in clinical trials.
"What we really need now are tools to identify those most at risk in 10, 20 years time and I think that's where this research will really have an impact," he added.
The research group at King's are aware that being able to check your biological age could have wide-ranging consequences from pensions to insurance premiums.
Prof Timmons told the BBC: "It raises a number questions, no doubt, and strenuous debate, but we are judged by our age already so this might be a smarter way of doing it.
"You might decide not to pay so much into your pension and enjoy your life as it is now."
Dr Neha Issar-Brown, from the UK's Medical Research Council, said: "This new test holds great potential as with further research, it may help improve the development and evaluation of treatments that prolong good health in older age."
Dr Eric Karran, from the charity Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "One of the biggest questions in human biology is how we age, and how this process impacts our wider health and risk for conditions like Alzheimer's.
"There is much interest in developing a blood test for diseases like Alzheimer's but such a test would need rigorously validating to show it was accurate and sensitive before it could be used in the clinic." | Scientists say they have developed a way of testing how well, or badly, your body is ageing. | 34153135 | [
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Mr Trump said they did not discuss his plan to make Mexico pay for the wall - a central plank of his campaign.
But Mr Pena Nieto later tweeted: "I made it clear Mexico would not pay for the wall."
After the meeting, Mr Trump flew to Phoenix, Arizona, to deliver a key speech on tackling illegal immigration.
At their joint press conference in Mexico City, Mr Pena Nieto said Mexicans had been hurt by some of Mr Trump's previous comments but he believed he now genuinely wanted to build relations.
The New York businessman called Mexicans "amazing" and "spectacular" people, in contrast to earlier comments branding Mexican migrants "rapists" and "murderers".
Forcing Mexico to pay for a wall has become a rallying cry among his supporters.
His Democratic rival Hillary Clinton said not bringing it up was a sign of cowardice.
"It turns out Trump didn't just choke, he got beat in the room and lied about it," she tweeted.
Mexicans tell Trump: 'You're not welcome!'
Donald Trump's Hispanic voter 'doomsday'
'Me gustan los tacos!': A Spanish phrasebook for Trump's visit
The Republican has seen his poll ratings slip since the party conventions last month.
Both nationally and in key states, he trails Hillary Clinton, who enjoys particularly strong support among minorities.
Donald Trump has called Mexico an enemy of the US, but on Wednesday he said Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto was his friend.
That contrast illustrates how different Diplomatic Donald was from the firebrand candidate who tore through the Republican primaries by flogging his opponents for being soft on illegal immigration and border security.
If the goal of Mr Trump's visit to Mexico City was to represent his nation on the world stage without the kind of embarrassment or controversy that Hillary Clinton warns would be certain if he is elected, then his last-minute trip was a success.
But his surprise appearance south of the border may come with a price. It is likely to make it more difficult for him to back away from hard-line immigration positions that are unpopular among moderate voters.
Perhaps more grating for Mr Trump's diehard supporters is that he had the chance to confront the Mexican leader and instead spoke of protecting "hemispheric manufacturing" and avoided the subject of who would pay for the border wall.
Diplomatic Donald may not be the candidate they thought they were getting.
Mr Trump said his words to Mr Pena Nieto had been strong and straightforward.
He tried to put behind him his previous comments on Mexicans by saying those in the US had made a "great contribution".
"I have a great feeling for Mexicans. They are amazing people," he said.
Mr Trump said he had employed many Mexicans and that they were "spectacular people with strong values of faith and community".
He went on to list five points he had set out in his talks:
Mr Trump said: "We recognise and respect the right of either country to build a physical barrier or wall on any of its borders." But he said there was no discussion on who would pay for the wall.
He had earlier threatened to stop cash earned by Mexicans based in the US being sent home until the country paid for it to be built.
Mr Trump concluded by saying he was honoured by Mr Pena Nieto's invitation to visit, adding: "I call you a friend."
Mr Pena Nieto accepted there were border challenges but pointed out the massive contribution Mexicans have made to the US, and that "six million jobs rely on exports to Mexico".
He said: "My priority is to protect Mexicans wherever they may be. Mexicans in the US are honest people, hard-working people who respect their families, their community and the law. They deserve everybody's respect."
Mr Pena Nieto has invited both US candidates to visit, but has faced criticism at home over Mr Trump.
Ex-President Vicente Fox earlier told CNN: "We don't like him. We don't want him. We reject his visit."
Former First Lady Margarita Zavala tweeted: "We Mexicans have dignity, and we reject your hate speech."
At least two demonstrations have been planned in Mexico City.
Mexicans tell Donald Trump: 'You are not welcome'
What Trump has said about Mexico
"They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime, they're rapists" - May 2015
Mexico is "ripping off the US more than almost any other nation" - February 2015
"Mexico continues to make billions on not only our bad trade deals but also relies heavily on the billions of dollars in remittances sent from illegal immigrants in the United States" - from his immigration plan
...and what Mexico has said about Trump
President Pena Nieto spoke out against Mr Trump's "strident rhetoric" in March, adding: "That's how Mussolini got in, that's how Hitler got in, they took advantage of a situation, a problem perhaps, which humanity was going through at the time, after an economic crisis."
His predecessor, Felipe Calderon, insisted: "Mexican people, we are not going to pay any single cent for such a stupid wall."
After Mr Trump vowed to reclaim all remittances derived from illegal wages, Mr Calderon's predecessor Vicente Fox, told the BBC: "Is Trump going to steal the money? How can any human being think like that? It's incredible." | US Republican candidate Donald Trump has defended his call for a wall on the Mexican border, during his visit to meet President Enrique Pena Nieto. | 37227545 | [
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The US economy added 215,000 jobs in July, while the unemployment rate held at a seven-year-low of 5.3%.
The Dow Jones closed down 46.37 points at 17,373.38, while the S&P 500 dropped 5.99 points to 2,077.57.
The tech-focused Nasdaq index fell 12.90 points to 5,043.54.
Although the number of jobs added in July was slightly below expectations, the figures for May and June were revised upwards by 14,000.
Among individual stocks, Groupon fell 5.34% after the daily deals website reported disappointing revenue growth.
Second quarter revenues rose 3.1% to $738.4m, which was below expectations. The firm also said revenues for the current quarter were set to fall to $700m-$750m, from $757.1m a year earlier. | (Close): US stocks fell and the dollar fell against the yen and euro, after the latest jobs figures were seen as leaving the door open to a rate rise in September. | 33822876 | [
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Larger firms - defined as those with over 100 staff - were more likely to be attacked than smaller counterparts, said the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), which surveyed 1,200 companies.
Its report found 42% of larger firms had been the victim of a cyber attack, compared with 18% of smaller ones.
The business group has urged companies to do more to protect themselves.
Just a quarter of the firms the BCC surveyed said they had put in place security measures to protect themselves against hacking.
"Cyber attacks risk companies' finances, confidence and reputation, with victims reporting not only monetary losses, but costs from disruption to their business and productivity.
"Firms need to be proactive about protecting themselves from cyber attacks," said BCC director-general Adam Marshall.
Household names including Yahoo, eBay and TalkTalk have all fallen victim to major cyber attacks.
Last year, Tesco Bank reported losing £2.5m in an unprecedented breach at a British bank.
The law requires organisations to have appropriate measures in place to keep people's personal data secure.
Next year data protection regulation will be extended, increasing businesses' responsibilities to protect personal data.
"Firms that don't adopt the appropriate protections leave themselves open to tough penalties," warned Mr Marshall. | One in five British firms was hit by a cyber attack last year, research suggests. | 39625468 | [
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Ms Churcher, who was director of the National Gallery of Australia (NGA) from 1990 to 1997, was the first and so far only female director of the NGA.
She was known as Betty Blockbuster as a result of the large-scale exhibitions of famous European artworks she organised during her time at the NGA.
Before that, she was director of the Art Gallery of Western Australia.
She continued to promote Australian and international art to the public in later years, with a series of popular television programmes.
NGA director Gerard Vaughan described Ms Churcher as a "towering figure in the Australian art community".
"She will always be remembered here with deep affection for her tireless promotion of our visual culture, including her role as a popular presenter on TV, and I am reminded daily of her contribution to the nation," he said in a statement released by the gallery.
Ms Churcher was born in the Queensland city of Brisbane in 1931 and discovered art when her father took her to the Queensland Art Gallery as a child.
"It was like stepping on a magic carpet because off I went!" she once said in an interview.
In recent years, declining eyesight made it increasingly difficult for her to look at the paintings she loved.
In an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation several years ago she said that when she realised she could no longer remember the paintings in the Prado and the National Gallery that she adored, she decided to tour the great galleries of Europe, sketch the masterpieces and commit their details to memory.
"The paintings that I most like are the ones that demand a second, and a third and a fourth look," she said.
"And each time you look, they've got something more to give you.
"I know that I could look at Velazquez's Maid of Honour until I died and I still couldn't get to the bottom of it, to find out how it was that he did it."
Ms Churcher was married to artist Roy Churcher, who died last year. She died on Monday night surrounded by her four sons. | Betty Churcher, one of Australia's most popular and innovative arts administrators, has died aged 84. | 32126590 | [
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The Premier League got under way this weekend, with many teams showing off their new signings, but who impressed and who had a debut to forget?
From scoring a wonder goal to being booked after barely a minute on the pitch, BBC Sport takes a look at how some of those making their top-flight bow got on.
Dimitri Payet, signed by West Ham from Marseille in the summer, created more chances than any other player in Europe's top five leagues last season and he certainly added a creative edge to the Hammers' attack in Sunday's shock 2-0 win at Arsenal.
The 28-year-old took the free-kick that caught out Petr Cech and allowed Cheikhou Kouyate to head home the opener, and was a lively presence throughout.
Newcastle's signing of Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum from PSV was certainly one of the more impressive captures of the summer, and the 24-year-old made a strong impression on his Premier League debut.
Wijnaldum headed Newcastle ahead against Southampton on Sunday, but the hosts could not hold on as the Saints fought back to earn a 2-2 draw.
There were plenty of reasons to be impressed with Swansea's performance as they held defending champions Chelsea to a 2-2 draw, and Andre Ayew was one of them.
The Ghana forward showed cat-like instincts to pull a rebound from a Thibaut Courtois save to catch out John Terry, before calmly steering the ball home for one the opening weekend's best goals.
The same could not be said for Andre's younger brother, however.
Jordan Ayew started for Aston Villa at Premier League new boys Bournemouth, but the former Lorient striker failed to make an impression and was substituted on the hour.
His replacement, Rudy Gestede, instead caught the eye as he grabbed the Villa winner.
With fellow debutant Wijnaldum impressing, Aleksander Mitrovic was evidently keen to make an impression when he climbed off the bench in the 75th minute.
Sadly, it was not the kind of impression he would have liked as, less than a minute after coming on, he was booked for a foul on Matt Targett. Youthful naivety from the 20-year-old.
Exciting, fast and skilful. Memphis Depay certainly looked like a signing that will get Manchester United fans on their feet, but what his Premier League debut performance lacked was a goal threat.
The 21-year-old Netherlands winger had a couple of half chances, but never really looked like troubling Michel Vorm in the Tottenham goal during Saturday's 1-0 win for Louis van Gaal's side. | New season, new faces. | 33843240 | [
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The NI Composite Economic Index (NICEI) showed growth of 0.3% when compared to the first quarter of the year.
Compared to the same period in 2013 the economy has grown by 1.2%
The growth is being driven by the services and manufacturing industries while construction output is still falling.
Meanwhile, the labour market is continuing to improve with the number of people claiming jobseekers allowance down again in September.
The number of claimants was down by 300 to 52,000 - over the last year the number has fallen by 9,400.
The quarterly unemployment rate also showed a fall - it was down by 0.5 percentage points for the period June to August 2014 bringing it to 6.1%.
That is the lowest quarterly rate since December to February 2009.
Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster described the economic data as "encouraging".
She said the number of unemployment claimants had now been falling for 21 months, the most sustained decrease since June 1995.
She said the NICEI "also shows evidence of growth in real terms over both the quarter and the year up to quarter two". | Northern Ireland's economy grew slightly in the second quarter of this year, according to the latest official figures. | 29625448 | [
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Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov said Turkey was the biggest buyer of "stolen" oil from Syria and Iraq.
Mr Erdogan said Russia had no right to "slander" Turkey with such claims.
Russia and Turkey have been locked in an angry dispute since Turkey shot down a Russian jet last month.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has already accused Ankara of downing the plane on its Syrian border to protect oil supply lines.
"According to available information, the highest level of the political leadership of the country, President Erdogan and his family, are involved in this criminal business," Mr Antonov told journalists in Moscow.
"The Turkish leadership has demonstrated extreme cynicism. Look at what they are doing!" he said.
"They have invaded the territory of another country and are brazenly plundering it."
The defence ministry cited satellite images that it said showed oil tankers travelling from IS-held territory to Turkey.
The trucks, it said, travelled to three locations - including refineries - in Turkey and some was then moved on to a third country.
Russia said it was producing only "part of the evidence" for now and did not provide direct proof of their claim that Mr Erdogan and family were involved.
US officials have previously said they have information suggesting Turkish "middlemen" were involved in the illegal IS oil trade.
The Turkish authorities have made commitments to tackle smuggling on their territory.
Despite the tensions, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said he is prepared to meet Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu at a conference in the Serbian capital Belgrade this week.
Mr Lavrov said he was willing to "hear what Mr Cavusoglu has to say", in comments broadcast on the Rossiya 24 news channel.
It would be the first time the men have met since the downing of the jet.
Turkey said the Russian SU-24 fighter plane intruded into its airspace and ignored repeated warnings to leave.
The two sides have important economic ties, and in the wake of the incident Moscow imposed visa requirements for Turkish visitors, and placed restrictions on trade with Ankara. | Russia's defence ministry has accused the family of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of being directly involved in the trade of petroleum with the Islamic State group. | 34982951 | [
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The 21-year-old will help cover the loss of James Clare, who has a serious knee injury, and the release of Lee Smith from his contract.
Naughton came through the academy at Bradford, and spent a year at Sydney Roosters before joining Hull in 2015.
"Bringing in Curtis gives him an opportunity to catapult his career at the top level," said coach Neil Jukes. | Super League newcomers Leigh Centurions have signed Hull FC utility back Curtis Naughton on a season-long loan deal. | 38905952 | [
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Sam Sebastian, 18, also suffered a cardiac arrest at West Gate School, in Leicester, on 27 January 2016.
Eileen Coull, 63, from Leicester, and Marilyn Smith, 61, from Ratby, Leicestershire, will be sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on 13 July.
A charge of wilful neglect was dropped.
The teenager, who has mental and physical disabilities, slipped out of his rubber ring and was underwater for a minute and a half before being revived.
He also suffered lung damage following the swimming lesson.
The court had heard it was difficult to assess the extent of his injuries due to his disabilities.
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated Eileen Coull and Marilyn Smith were charged with wilful neglect. | Two staff members have admitted failing to take reasonable care of a disabled pupil who suffered brain damage when he was submerged in a swimming pool for 90 seconds. | 40508074 | [
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The as-yet-untitled book will appear in 2013, the 60th anniversary of the super-spy's first literary outing, in Ian Fleming's Casino Royale.
Boyd has revealed that his story will mark a return to "classic Bond" and will be set in the late 1960s.
He is the third author in recent years to be invited by the Ian Fleming estate to write an official Bond novel.
Before him came American thriller writer Jeffery Deaver, who penned Carte Blanche in 2011; and Sebastian Faulks, whose Devil May Care was published to mark Ian Fleming's centenary in 2008.
Deaver's book, released in May last year, is set in the present day and portrayed Bond as a Royal Naval Reserve veteran whose service included a tour of Afghanistan. It has sold over 160,000 copies to date and is out in paperback next month.
Sales of Carte Blanche
in its opening week were about a third of those achieved by Faulks' book in the same period.
Other writers to take on Fleming's hero include John Gardner and Charlie Higson, author of the Young Bond
books.
Boyd said he had "accepted at once" when invited by the Ian Fleming estate to write the new Bond novel.
"For me the prospect appeared incredibly exciting and stimulating - a once-in-a-lifetime challenge," he said.
"In fact my father introduced me to the James Bond novels in the 1960s and I read them all then - From Russia with Love being my favourite."
Boyd's novels include A Good Man in Africa (1981), which won the Whitbread First Novel Award; An Ice-Cream War (1982), shortlisted for Booker Prize; Brazzaville Beach (1990); Any Human Heart and Restless (2006).
Boyd's "fascination" with Ian Fleming was previously seen in Any Human Heart (2002). He wrote Fleming into the narrative, making him responsible for recruiting the protagonist, Logan Mountstuart, to the Naval Intelligence Division in World War II.
Boyd also points out that three of his screenplays have starred big-screen Bond actors: Sean Connery in A Good Man in Africa, Pierce Brosnan in Mr Johnson and Daniel Craig in The Trench.
"The idea that these somewhat random connections with Fleming and Bond should culminate in my writing a new James Bond novel is irresistibly appealing," Boyd said.
"The only thing I'm prepared to say at this stage about the novel that I will write is that it will be set in 1969."
His most recent novel, Waiting for Sunrise, was published in the UK in February and comes out in the US later this month.
"William Boyd is a contemporary English writer whose classic novels combine literary elements with a broad appeal," said Corinne Turner, managing Director of Ian Fleming Publications Ltd.
"His thrillers occupy the niche that Ian Fleming would fill were he writing today and with similar style and flair. This, alongside his fascination with Fleming himself, makes him the perfect choice to take Bond back to his 1960s world."
The new Bond novel will be published in the UK and Commonwealth in autumn 2013 by Jonathan Cape - Ian Fleming's original publisher - and simultaneously by HarperCollins Publishers in USA and Canada.
Cape was also the publisher of the first ever official Bond novel following Fleming's death in 1964, when Kingsley Amis wrote Colonel Sun as Robert Markham in 1968.
Fleming's first Bond novel, Casino Royale, was published in 1953. Since then, the Bond books have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide.
The 14 books, including two short story collections, will be relaunched this summer.
Sales are likely to be boosted by the release, in October, of Daniel Craig's third 007 film Skyfall, which comes 50 years after the original Bond film, Dr No. | Booker-nominated author William Boyd is taking on the mission to write a new James Bond novel. | 17677611 | [
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The party won 33 seats on Thanet District Council, Kent, in May, making it the first authority in the UK to have a UKIP majority.
UKIP councillor Jeff Elenor announced on Tuesday he was defecting to join the Democratic Independent Group.
He joins four other UKIP councillors who defected last month saying they were unhappy with the council's lack of action over Manston Airport.
They also said they were unhappy about what they felt was insufficient focus by the council on issues such as housing, mental health and disabilities.
Mr Elenor said he did not feel the council was fulfilling its election pledge on Manston.
In May, UKIP won 33 seats, the Conservatives 18, Labour four, and independents one - 29 seats were needed for a majority.
UKIP now has 28 members, but remains the largest party on the council.
Earlier this week, the US company seeking to purchase and reopen Manston Airport accused the council leader of holding up the process.
The airport closed in May 2014 and was sold to a private consortium that plans to build homes on the site.
RiverOak said it had offered the money to help with a compulsory purchase order (CPO), and in an email to the council leader, it accused Chris Wells of "throwing one road block after another in front of us in order for you to carry out whatever your real agenda might be".
"Whatever it is, that agenda does not appear to recognise the will of your constituents, which is that Manston Airport be opened and operating at the earliest possible moment," chief investment officer George Yerall said.
Mr Wells said the council was seeking further assurances that RiverOak could afford to purchase the site.
The matter is due to be formally discussed at a cabinet meeting later this month. | The UK Independence Party has lost overall control of its only council. | 34517022 | [
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Sandwell Councillor Mahboob Hussain is accused of six alleged council code of conduct breaches, according to solicitors Gowling WLG.
The law firm was brought in 15 months ago to investigate alleged irregularities in the sale of the authority's former properties.
Mr Hussain, now suspended by Labour, denies any wrongdoing.
Gowling investigated alleged irregularities in sales from 2011-2013, including three old public toilet blocks and a former coroner's office in Smethwick.
A parallel police investigation ended in March with no further action.
Publication of Gowling's report had been delayed after legal action by "one of the parties named", the council said, but was published on Friday "in the public interest".
Documents leaked to the BBC earlier had shed light on its findings.
The authority's chief executive Jan Britton said the "next step" was to refer allegations to its internal disciplinary watchdog- the standards committee - to consider.
Mr Britton said a review would take place to "tighten up council procedures on land sales" and it would "consider if any disciplinary action against employees was required."
The allegations set out in the report include:
Former economy chief councillor Mr Jones and Mr Hussain stood down from the ruling cabinet after investigations began, but both had their suspensions from the Labour party lifted before elections on 5 May.
Mr Hussain has now been suspended afresh, the party confirmed.
Tipton Green ward councillor Mr Jones, whom the report said faced no misconduct issue, said he was "pleased" to see the report published and with those conclusions.
He added: "Throughout this matter I have always protested my innocence of any wrongdoing and I have always fully co-operated with all investigations."
Oldbury ward councillor Mr Hussain gave evidence to the report that he did not know who was buying the toilet blocks because the purchase was through a company name, not the name of his friend.
He said he had not been consulted and had not been aware of the price.
Mr Hafeez, who was arrested last year, provided no evidence despite requests, the report said. He has not yet responded to further questions from the BBC.
Police told him in November 2015 he would face no action.
He said in November his arrest "did not relate to the sale or purchase of any former Sandwell Council properties" and he was "considering taking legal action against a number of individuals and organisations".
Analysis
Behind this saga is no little irony.
The council introduced its so-called asset management strategy, under which it planned to streamline its operations into fewer buildings, to reduce its overheads and bring in some money by selling off property it no longer needed, it said to mitigate government cuts.
In the months since these investigations began, the council has spent thousands of pounds on solicitors to investigate these serious allegations ‎and commissioning James Goudie QC to advise the council on whether it could publish the solicitors' work, putting a big dent in any money it might have made on these sales. | Misconduct alleged against a former deputy council leader will be pursued, the authority says. | 36340283 | [
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Bohn, ranked world number 71, had chest pains following the second round and called for a medic.
"He was taken by ambulance to Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, where tests revealed a mild heart attack," a PGA Tour statement said.
"Jason is resting comfortably and in good spirits," his agent added.
"He is scheduled to have more tests this weekend," Justin Richmond said.
"We know he appreciates the concern from so many people in the PGA Tour family who have reached out."
The PGA Tour statement added Bohn's wife was at "home in Atlanta but his in-laws joined him at the hospital, as did fellow player George McNeill, who said Bohn was in good spirits".
Bohn carded 72 in the second round, which would have seen him make the cut at the PGA National.
Saturday's third round proceeded without Bohn, and finished with Spain's Sergio Garcia and Australia's Adam Scott sharing a commanding four-shot lead over America's Blayne Barber.
Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy missed the cut for a second year. | American two-time PGA Tour winner Jason Bohn has suffered a heart attack at the age of 42 during the Honda Classic in Florida. | 35678820 | [
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Some people, including Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, questioned how this transfer could be allowed under European football's governing body Uefa's Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules.
Remember, the £198m is only the initial outlay - PSG will also have to pay the Brazilian star that amount in wages over a five-year contract, as well as hefty fees to his father who is his agent and insurance premiums to protect their investment.
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu had threatened to report PSG to Uefa for breaching FFP rules.
But Uefa does not have the power to block the deal. In a statement, it told the BBC: "We are not in a position to stop clubs from buying players, but the clubs will face sanctions if they fail to abide by Financial Fair Play rules."
Uefa introduced break-even FFP rules in 2013 to stop clubs accumulating too much debt and to prevent wealthy owners from injecting too much cash into their clubs.
The rules state that over a three-year period a club like PSG, which is owned by the Gulf state of Qatar via its Oryx Qatar Sports Investments fund, can spend 30m euros more than it earns.
It is possible that PSG has accumulated lots of profits over the past two years to make it easier for them to make such a big outlay in the current year.
Uefa allows spending on things like stadiums, youth development and women's teams to be excluded from the calculations.
Barcelona was given the whole transfer fee up front, but that does not mean it has to all be accounted for in the current year.
"For FFP accounting purposes, the transfer fee will be divided over the length of the player's contract," says Daniel Geey, a sports lawyer at Sheridans.
"So if it's a five-year deal, that will count as around £40m of transfer spending per year."
But £40m a year plus wages is still a hefty outlay, so how might PSG balance the books?
There has been much talk of the club recouping the outlay by selling lots of Neymar shirts, but Mr Geey is not optimistic.
"It's a complete misnomer that clubs make a fortune from shirt sales increasing after big transfers," he says.
Kit deals tend to involve a big outlay up front with only limited profit-sharing of 10% to 15% after a certain number of shirts have been sold, he explains, so many millions of extra shirts would have to be sold to make serious inroads into the extra spending.
Of course, it may mean the club receives more money from Nike when it comes to renegotiate, but its current deal runs until 2022.
PSG is presumably confident that such a high-profile player will help it to sign other commercial deals and there is no limit to the number of official products they could have.
We do not know what deal has been struck over Neymar's image rights, but if PSG can get a proportion of those it will help with meeting the FFP rules.
Then there is money to be earned on the pitch. PSG is already making a considerable amount of money in the Champions League - in the last five years it has reached the quarter-finals four times and been knocked out in the round of 16 once.
Last year, a team getting to the semi-final was paid an extra 7.5m euros (£6.7m), the losing finalists earned 11m euros (£9.9m) and the winner 15.5m euros (£14m). And that's just prize money, there are other pots of cash distributed to successful teams.
The club came second in the French league last year but had won the title for the previous four years so there is not much scope for extra prize money there.
They may argue that their huge acquisition will make French football more popular and lead to more lucrative television deals from around the world, but that would be a big impact for a single player, although it might help them sell expensive hospitality packages at their stadium the Parc des Princes.
Of course, PSG could always balance the books by selling a few of their existing players, but losing them would not help their Champions' League ambitions.
PSG fell foul of the FFP rules in 2014 when Uefa ruled that a £167m commercial contract with the Qatar Tourism Authority was unfairly generous - effectively, the governing body ruled that Qatar had been using the contract to bypass the FFP rules.
They were given a £20m fine, their spending was capped at £49m and they competed in the 2014-15 Champions League with 21 players in their squad instead of the usual 25.
Read more from Reality Check
Follow us on Twitter | Paris-St Germain have completed their deal to sign Neymar from Barcelona for 222m euros (£198m). | 40814333 | [
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Thousands of people were at the ceremony at BAE Systems' Devonshire Dock Hall in Barrow to mark the end of the build process for Artful.
Another four of the nuclear-powered submarines are being built at the yard.
The ceremony was carried out by Amanda Lady Zambellas, wife of the Royal Navy's First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir George Zambellas.
BAE Systems Maritime - Submarines managing director John Hudson said: "The design and build of a nuclear-powered submarine is as challenging as it is complex, so today represents a significant milestone in Artful's programme.
"It requires real skill and innovation to deliver submarines as sophisticated as Artful and this would not have been possible without the valued contribution of our employees and the collaborative efforts of the whole submarine enterprise."
Artful will remain at the Barrow yard while commissioning activities are carried out and is due to be launched early next year for further tests.
HMS Astute and HMS Ambush have already been launched. The other vessels are at various stages in the design and build process and will be called Audacious, Anson, Agamemnon and Ajax.
The Barrow yard has been working on the Astute programme since 2001.
The Ministry of Defence said the Astute class of submarines have greater firepower, state-of-the-art communications equipment and advanced stealth technology, making them quiet and harder to detect. | The third Astute Class submarine to be built at a Cumbrian shipyard has been named. | 24175371 | [
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The judge also fined him 1m shekels ($289,000; £171,000) and ordered that 560,000 shekels in assets be seized.
Olmert's lawyers said he was innocent and would appeal. If he is unsuccessful he will become the first former head of government in Israel to be jailed.
The 68-year-old was convicted in March over a real estate deal that took place while he served as mayor of Jerusalem.
The Tel Aviv District Court found he had accepted a 500,000-shekel ($145,000; £86,000) bribe from the developers of a controversial apartment complex, known as Holyland, for which planning and zoning laws were changed, and another 60,000 shekels for a separate project.
By Yolande KnellBBC News, Jerusalem
This jail sentence is a dramatic fall from grace for a man who was once one of the most powerful figures in Israel.
It is also likely to end any hopes of a political comeback for Ehud Olmert.
Recently, as he criticised the Israeli government's handling of peace talks with the Palestinians, it seemed he still held ambitions to return to public life.
However, the judge in this case said that Olmert's crimes involved "moral turpitude", meaning he will be barred from office for seven years after serving his sentence.
In his memoirs, Olmert claims he came very close to a peace deal with the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in 2008.
But in his three years in office he also took Israel into two bloody, armed conflicts - the 2006 war with the militant Lebanese Shia Islamist group Hezbollah, and a three-week offensive on Gaza in 2008-2009 that left some 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis dead.
Now corruption has been added to Olmert's political record. However, many Israelis hope his sentencing is a sign that their country is cleaning up its political culture.
Ten other government officials and businesspeople were convicted alongside Olmert. The sentences handed down on Tuesday against six of them ranged from three to seven years.
Judge David Rozen said bribery offences "contaminate the public sector" and "cause the structure of government to collapse".
He added: "People who receive bribes give rise to a feeling of disgust and cause the public to despise the state's institutions. The taker of bribes is like a traitor who betrays the public trust that was given to him - trust without which a proper public service cannot be maintained."
The judge said Olmert had made a "large contribution to the country".
But he described his offences as "noxious" and said he was guilty of "moral turpitude", which under Israeli law would preclude him from running for public office for seven years after finishing his jail term.
Olmert reportedly stood quietly in the courtroom with his head bowed. His lawyers had sought a non-custodial sentence.
The judge told him to report to prison on 1 September, effectively giving his lawyers time to lodge their planned appeal.
"He did not take a bribe. He did not receive a bribe. He sees himself as innocent, and it is with those feelings that he will be going to the Supreme Court to appeal," Olmert's lawyer, Eli Zohar, told reporters.
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who served as Olmert's deputy prime minister and foreign minister said: "It is a difficult day when a former prime minister is sentenced."
"I have complete trust in the court and law enforcement officials, and the public should as well."
Olmert served as prime minister from 2006 to 2009, until a flurry of corruption allegations led to his resignation.
He was acquitted of most of the major charges eventually brought against him by prosecutors but was also found guilty of breach of trust and given a one-year suspended jail sentence.
He was found to have made decision when he was minister of trade and industry that benefited clients of a close associate. | A court in Israel has sentenced former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to six years in prison for bribery. | 27387568 | [
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The Victory Medal belonged to Pte William John Boaden of the 3rd Battalion Devonshire Regiment.
It was found in a farmer's field in Porthcawl by a team of metal detecting enthusiasts.
Researcher Stephen Lyons then tracked down Pte Boaden's family in Tiverton, Devon, where he was born in 1897.
But it is still not known how the medal came to end up in the field.
Pte Boaden signed up on the outbreak of the First World War aged 17.
His regiment served in France and Belgium, Mesopotamia, Salonika, Macedonia, Egypt, Palestine and Italy.
The medal is badly damaged but Pte Boaden's name and regimental number are still visible.
Chris Jeffreys made the discovery after sitting down on a fallen tree to take a break from metal detecting.
"I didn't have many finds that day," he said, until his detector picked up a "beautiful signal" around the tree.
"The area had been covered dozens of times before, so whether the tree falling disturbed something I don't know.
"It's the first medal I've found," he added. "I was overjoyed."
Keen to unravel the mystery of how the medal ended up in the field, Mr Jeffreys and his fellow metal detecting enthusiasts appealed for help to find out what happened to Pte Boaden.
A First World War expert based in Cwmcarn, researcher and historian Stephen Lyons answered the appeal.
Following a tenacious and at times pain-staking research, he tracked down daughter-in-law Moira Boaden and his grandson Stephen Boaden living in Tiverton, Devon.
Mr Jeffreys recently met them to present the medal.
Mrs Boaden said she was "delighted" as she never knew of its existence and that the family "will treasure it".
"It's so interesting hearing all the history of my father-in-law."
Stephen Boaden said he had nothing of his grandfather's, not even a photograph, until recently.
"It was a very nice surprise," he said.
"To find out so much information about what he went through and who he was - it gives him a personality."
He added that the medal was not just something that belonged to his grandfather, but was "evidence of his service to his country." | A war medal found in a field in Bridgend county has been returned to its rightful owners almost a century after it was awarded. | 36597103 | [
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Deputy Hunter Adam handed the Bailiff Richard Collas a letter informing him of the decision following a recess for his board to discuss its options.
Deputy minister Barry Brehaut and deputies Elis Bebb, David Inglis and Arrun Wilkie have also resigned.
Earlier, deputies voted to allow the department to overspend by £2.5m.
However, that unanimous decision came despite severe criticism of the department's handling of its finances and its decision in November to close wards and postpone non-emergency operations.
Deputy Mark Dorey, a former Social Security minister and a current member of Treasury and Resources, was voted to replace Deputy Adam.
He beat the current Housing Minister Dave Jones by 27 votes to 16.
During his speech to members, Deputy Dorey said: "I believe that I would bring a fresh approach to the role, characterised by energy, openness and willingness to listen."
States members adjourned, following his election to allow time for deputies to discuss nominations for the remaining four seats.
They went unopposed to Deputy Sandra James and Deputy Martin Storey and two former board members, Deputy Elis Bebb and Deputy Barry Brehaut.
All were proposed by the new minister and their nominations were seconded by the unsuccessful ministerial candidate Deputy Jones. | Guernsey's minister for Health and Social Services has resigned, ahead of a planned States debate on a motion of no confidence. | 20712797 | [
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Media playback is not supported on this device
On Friday, the Jordanian Al-Qadi family bought a 92% stake in the promotion-chasing League Two team.
Rovers sit sixth in the table after coming from behind to beat Morecambe 2-1 on Saturday.
"If they want to sack me, they want to sack me, but as it stands at the minute the owner's fully behind me," Clarke, 38, told BBC Points West.
"I don't fear for my job - why fear for my job? As soon as you're a manager and you start fearing for your job, you're out the door.
"What I will say is that I have it a certain way. I'm the manager, I pick the team, I pick the players that come into the club and the new owners are embracing that."
The Pirates are five points outside the League Two automatic promotion places, having secured their return to the Football League last May.
But Clarke, who replaced John Ward as Rovers manager in March 2014, said he did not find out about the takeover until the morning the deal was announced.
"We never knew about a takeover," he said. "You hear rumours and all the bits and pieces, but we found out about this on Friday morning and I'm supposed to be preparing my team.
"It's great what the owners have been saying and how the club's going to move forward, it's great for the supporters. But on the back of that, I've got to manage that.
"I've got staff who are thinking: 'Well, what's going to happen with my job?' You've always got people that are concerned about their jobs." | Bristol Rovers boss Darrell Clarke says he is not worried about losing his job following the club's recent takeover. | 35631441 | [
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Kenneth David Dickie, 64, was found with a serious head injury at the Rockley Park site in Poole on Sunday 8 May.
A 34-year-old man from Poole appeared before magistrates on 10 May charged with causing grievous bodily harm.
A woman, aged 57, arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm with intent and perverting the course of justice, has been bailed until July.
Dorset Police said Mr Dickie died from his injuries on Saturday at Southampton General Hospital. | A man injured in an alleged assault at a Dorset holiday park has died. | 36304781 | [
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The Belmond British Pullman arrived at Ashford International at 07:00 GMT as passengers waited for a London train.
The train, dating back to the 1920s, is the sister of the Venice Simplon-Orient Express.
Travel firm Belmond put on the service to treat commuters on a 90-minute journey through Charing, Maidstone, Otford and Swanley to London Victoria.
Some of the passengers had registered for the journey after seeing a social media campaign, while others had a surprise upgrade.
The train is usually reserved for leisure travellers on trips to major sporting fixtures or for special events, such as an afternoon tea hosted by Great British Bake Off's Mary Berry.
Gary Franklin, managing director at Belmond, said: "We wanted to sprinkle some magic on the rails and do something that reminded people just how wonderful train travel can be when you have the luxury of time."
Commuters on the service were treated to a three-course breakfast and musical entertainment.
Tamzin Crook, 41, said: "I turn up every day, stand in the same spot and wait for the same train.
"The standard experience is to fight for a seat and then put your head down and read.
"Here, it's like something out of an amazing film. It's opulent. It feels like we're going on holiday, not to work."
'Come on board'
Nathan Charlton, 25, and his fiancee Alicia Ray, 26, said they were running late for their train and saw the Pullman from the car park.
"We spoke to the staff and they said 'You're more than welcome to come on board'," Mr Charlton said.
"The only problem is that we'll want to do this every day." | Commuters were given a surprise upgrade when a luxury train arrived for their daily journey to work. | 38011196 | [
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Australian businessman David Prior said he hoped to double production at Bladnoch Distillery, near Wigtown.
The single malt will be relaunched and he also has plans to introduce a new blend called Pure Scot.
Mr Prior said it would be aimed at a new generation of whisky drinkers in his homeland and hoped it would have a considerable local economic impact.
"I think there's some great things happening in other parts of the world with whisky - but it has got a long way to go to catch up with Scotch," he said.
"So I wanted to invest in that, I wanted to be part of that.
"I didn't want to try doing it back home or some other market, I wanted to do it here."
He said it was "very exciting" to have Bladnoch in his "stable of businesses".
"I suppose our vision is to see this as a very, very vibrant and big, functioning distillery creating a lot of employment for this region and to be the cornerstone of this community," he said.
"That is what we are working towards."
Get live news updates from the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway throughout the day on our South of Scotland live page service. | The new owner of Scotland's most southerly distillery has revealed ambitious plans for its future. | 34442744 | [
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The 32-year-old former Charlton, Fulham, Chelsea and Bristol Academy player has been with Yeovil since 2015.
She netted seven goals in her first term for the Lady Glovers and a further seven in 2016 as Yeovil won WSL 2.
"I am so happy to be given another opportunity with Yeovil to play in WSL 1," Heatherson told the club website. | Yeovil Town Ladies forward Annie Heatherson has signed a new contract with the Women's Super League One club ahead of the 2017 WSL 1 Spring Series. | 39233219 | [
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In December, the government announced finalised plans for a cull, initially in pilot areas, as a way to curb the spread of tuberculosis in cattle.
In applying for judicial review, the Badger Trust says culling will not stop TB and may in fact help spread it.
Other campaign groups are considering action under the Bern Convention, which protects European wildlife.
The government's plans are likely to result in farmers funding contractors to shoot badgers in a number of areas of England, with two initial pilots in west Gloucestershire and west Somerset taking place later this year.
"We have identified some serious flaws in the way by which the Secretary of State [Caroline Spelman] reached her decision to cull badgers," said Gwendolen Morgan of Bindmans solicitors, lawyer for the Badger Trust.
"Given that Defra's proposals come at an enormous cost to farmers, and threaten to prompt rather than prevent the spread of disease, we hope that this ill-conceived decision will be struck down by the court."
She pointed to government projections that culling would reduce TB incidence by 12-16% over nine years.
TheProtection of Badgers Actsays licences to kill can be granted for "preventing the spread of disease" - and the trust argues that the slow-down in the rate of increase, or "reduction in new incidence", projected by Defra does not qualify as "prevention".
The government's plan involves having Natural England issue culling licences. The Badger Trust says the guidance given to Natural England is unlawful.
Potentially the most important element of its case concerns the methods used to kill badgers.
In the landmark UK study, the Randomised Badger Culling Trial (RBCT), badgers were trapped before being shot.
However, the government plans to allow licensed contractors to shoot badgers as they roam - "free shooting" - which is likely to be less efficient and to increase disruption of badger families.
The RBCT showed that when badger's social groups are disrupted, they roam further, carrying the TB bacterium to more farms.
For this reason, the trust argues that after the pilots, farmers may be forced to resort to trap-and-shoot, because free shooting will either prove ineffective or a hazard to public safety.
That would escalate the cost by anything up to a factor of 10 - and the Badger Trust says this possibility damages the government's economic case for a cull.
As the majority of new cases arise through infection from other cattle rather than from badgers, the trust says the government should simply invest in stricter cattle control measures.
Regulations on farmers were recently tightened and testing regimes intensified - but the National Farmers' Union, the government and other proponents believe culling is needed in badly affected areas in addition to existing measures.
In 2010, 25,000 cattle were slaughtered as a result of TB infection, and the disease is costing the UK taxpayer in the region of £100m per year.
They also argue that culling would in the end benefit badgers, as TB infection is seriously debilitating to them.
"Nobody wants to see badgers culled, but no country in the world where wildlife carries TB has successfully controlled the disease in cattle without tackling its presence in wildlife as well," said a Defra spokeswoman.
"Unless further action is taken now, it will continue to get worse."
Badgers are protected under UK law, and also under the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats.
Campaigners are also considering using this as another weapon to use in the long-running battle over culling.
Last year, wildlife groups began programmes of vaccination, and some animal groups believe this will in the end remove any need for culling.
The Welsh Assembly Government is due to announce its decision on a proposed pilot cull in West Wales early this year.
Follow Richardon Twitter | The Badger Trust has launched a new legal challenge to the government's plans to cull badgers in England. | 17183020 | [
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Two other children, aged 10 and seven, suffered minor injuries in the crash, in Ballards Road, off Church Lane, in Dagenham at 15:50 BST on Friday.
The 22-year-old motorcyclist was taken to hospital where he later died.
Police said a KTM motorcycle was involved in a collision with a Vauxhall Zafira car. The 38-year-old male driver of the car was not injured.
A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out.
The boy, who was a rear passenger in the car, was taken to an east London hospital where he remains in a serious condition.
No arrests have been made and police are appealing for witnesses.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Serious Collision Investigation Unit based at Chadwell Heath. | A motorcyclist died and a five-year-old boy was left in a serious condition in a crash in east London. | 32182140 | [
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Warning: Readers may find some of the details of violence in this piece distressing.
It was late October 2014, and on paper the young banker had lived what could only be described as a privileged and successful life. But over the space of a few drug- and alcohol-fuelled days, he tortured and killed Sumarti Ningsih, 23, and Seneng Mujiasih, 26, before calling the police to let them know what he had done.
In court, lawyers described a much darker side to his apparently gilded existence, one involving drugs, sexual sadism, and an extreme personality disorder.
Jutting had tortured Ms Ningsih for three days, before he killed her by slashing her throat over a prolonged period, nearly decapitating her. He then hid her body in a suitcase.
A few days later, Jutting brought his second victim, Ms Mujiasih, to his flat. This was a woman he would go on to describe simply as "the prey" he had been hunting.
"Sumarti was generous. That much is clear from the evidence in the house. Her driving force was to improve life for her family, to make them richer. Life may be peaceful in the village but she would have been all too aware of the possibilities of a life with more material comforts."
The story of Sumarti: Born in Indonesia, murdered in Hong Kong
Experts for the defence say Jutting's IQ score is 137 - putting him in the top 1% of the population. But they also diagnosed him with four disorders, which they said combined to lead to the killings:
•Narcissistic personality disorder
•Sexual sadism disorder
•Cocaine use disorder
•Alcohol use disorder
Prosecution witnesses argued that such conditions should not "substantially" diminish his ability to control his actions. But according to the defence, when it came to his narcissism, the signs were there from an early age.
Jutting was born in London in 1985. His first name Rurik was chosen by his mother, and literally translated as "great one" - it was an imperial dynasty in Russia.
He described himself as an ambitious boy who had a happy childhood. But even from a young age, Jutting displayed feelings of superiority and entitlement, his defence argued. He was admitted to the prestigious private school Winchester College in his early teens but was disappointed that he ranked sixth in the scholarship selection, rather than first.
When his mother expressed delight at his entrance exam results, Jutting commented that he found her reaction "almost insulting", because it implied that she was surprised he had got in.
There were other troubling episodes. When he was 16, his father tried to take his own life by slashing his wrists while he was in the house. Jutting had to help provide the initial care and go to hospital with him.
Jutting also said he had been sexually assaulted by another student while studying at Winchester. In 2003, he was seen by a psychiatrist, who said he experienced suicidal thoughts and that he was affected by knowledge of his parents' marital problems and concerns about his mother's health.
Nonetheless, Jutting excelled academically, being admitted to Cambridge University to study history and law at Peterhouse college. A fellow of the college, who asked to remain anonymous, told the BBC Mr Jutting was ambitious, a keen athlete, committed to his studies and from a stable Catholic background.
British banker guilty of murders
Killed by Jutting and forgotten by Indonesia
'We were lucky it wasn't us' (video)
Jutting gained first class honours in his history degree but was disappointed to receive a 2:1 in law, and challenged the examiner's approach. The inability to accept criticism, psychiatrists said, was another sign of his narcissistic personality traits.
On graduation, Jutting worked at Barclays bank, before being head-hunted by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. His role involved developing complex tax products and, within a few years, his salary had risen to £270,000 ($334,705) per year.
But then, things began to go wrong.
In 2012, while trying to market a tax product in Luxembourg, auditors began investigating his team for possible violation of regulations, flagging up Jutting in particular as a serious risk to the organisation. Jutting described this as a "negative turning point" in his career and felt his move to Hong Kong the subsequent year had been arranged by bosses to get him out of the way.
At one point, his manager told Jutting he was one of the most unpredictable people he had ever worked with.
Jutting's alcohol use was also uncontrollable around this time, as he needed to drink excessive amounts in order to get to sleep. His then-girlfriend was so worried about his reliance on alcohol she banned him from drinking at home. He briefly saw a psychiatrist at this point, and said he often felt down and tearful at work.
By the time he had moved to Hong Kong in October 2013, he was consuming three quarters of a bottle of vodka to sleep and using cocaine. He said he smuggled cocaine up his rectum on his flight to Hong Kong.
Once in Hong Kong, he rented a flat in The J Residence, a luxury development in Wanchai popular with expatriate workers. Although located in a busy street in the heart of the city, the development gives off a sense of exclusivity. Keycards are needed to access individual floors, while the sheer height of the building, at over 41 floors, means that residents can enjoy views of Hong Kong's skyline - from the bar, garden, and even swimming pool on the roof.
But Jutting described himself as feeling increasingly despondent and nihilistic in the city. He did not have much of a social life and spent long periods drinking at home while playing computer games.
Jutting also had extreme sexual interests, and an obsession with sadistic pornography, experts said. He began using sex workers in 2009 and as time went on his behaviour became increasingly forceful. On a number of occasions, he removed condoms during sex without their consent, despite knowing this would constitute rape in the UK.
Jutting continued to fantasise about rape and kidnap even while he was remanded in a psychiatric centre after his arrest, prosecution expert Dr Kavin Chow said.
By 2014, he was "spiralling out of control". He would go on cocaine binges that lasted for days. At one point, he missed a scheduled meeting in London and, as an excuse, he told his boss he had HIV. He developed a round-the-clock craving for the drug, his weight ballooned and in the weeks before the killings took place he stopped going to work. Instead, he spent hours watching and reading violent pornography.
He attempted to find men on Grindr to have sex with, later telling a psychologist he had been "trying to do everything I could to get new experiences", but described everything as "disappointing".
On 25 October 2014 Jutting took Ms Ningsih to his flat, after offering to pay her for sex.
They had had sex on one occasion before, in a hotel, but things had got so violent that Ms Ningsih asked to end the session early, and refunded half his money. On this second occasion, the sex also switched from consensual to non-consensual, as Jutting began to beat Ms Ningsih.
He then held her captive, and tortured her using pliers, his belt, sex toys and his hands. He filmed some of the torture on his phone, in footage that was shown to the jury. The details that follow are distressing and brutal.
Jutting claims he drifted in and out of the influence of cocaine: "When I became relatively less under the influence of cocaine I became quite apologetic - I told her repeatedly I loved her," he said in one police interview. Yet, in another interview, he said that he hadn't tortured Ms Ningsih as much as he would have liked, before killing her.
He killed her on the third day, after he made her kneel in front of the toilet bowl, with her hands tied behind her back, and lick the bowl. He then cut her throat with a knife but Ms Ningsih did not die immediately, so her dragged her into the shower and continued.
Jutting recorded several videos describing the aftermath of the killing on his phone. Eventually, he wrapped up the body and placed it into a suitcase, which he left on the balcony.
Jutting began planning to torture a second victim on 31 October. He bought tools, including sandpaper, nails and a blow torch, filming them on his iPhone, describing how he might use them to torture a victim.
That night, he went out and met Ms Mujiasih, inviting her back to his flat for sex. They began kissing and cuddling on the sofa but Ms Mujiasih began shouting when she saw a gag by the sofa. Jutting held a knife against her throat, telling her he would kill her if she continued to struggle. She continued struggling, and he killed her by slashing at her neck.
He later told police: "She was simply, the word I'd use is prey. I was hunting for prey and she was unfortunately the person who was hunted".
After taking more cocaine, he says he contemplated taking his own life. He eventually called 999. He also called his boss, saying: "I'm in a lot of trouble, you need to do something about the reputation of the bank."
Even though he had not been to work in the two weeks leading up to the killings, the office was still on his mind.
After he killed Ms Ningsih, he changed the out-of-office message from his work email to: "I am out of the office. Indefinitely. For urgent enquiries, or indeed any enquiries, please contact someone who is not an insane psychopath. For escalation please contact God, though suspect the devil will have custody. [Last line only really worked if I had followed through..]"
On one occasion, according to an expert witness, Jutting likened his life to The Truman Show, a movie starring Jim Carrey about a man who's entire life, unbeknownst to him, is a TV show.
This too may reflect his narcissism because Jutting wanted to believe that "his life was so significant that… millions of people would be interested in watching it".
He is now likely to spend much if not all of it in jail. | On the 31st floor of an upmarket block of flats in Hong Kong's energetic Wanchai district, British banker Rurik Jutting brutally killed two Indonesian women in what would become known as one of the city's most notorious killings. | 37845488 | [
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Filled with jazz solos and politically-charged lyrics, it appers to be a companion piece to Butterfly, rather than a standalone record.
All of the tracks are untitled, save for the date they were recorded.
Strangely, its appearance seems to have been prompted by basketball star LeBron James.
The sportsman tweeted Lamar's record label boss Anthony Tiffith following the rapper's incendiary Grammy Award performance - in which he debuted a verse that alluded to the 2012 death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin - demanding "you have to release those untitled tracks ASAP!"
Tiffith replied he would think about it and, earlier this week, hinted at the release in an Instagram post: "I've decided to drop a project one day this week. I won't say what day or who." He later posted that fans should thank James for the new release.
Untitled Unmastered appeared at around 04:00 GMT on all major streaming services including Spotify, Apple Music and Google Play.
It features a cameo from singer Cee Lo Green, while Alicia Keys' five-year-old son Egypt allegedly produced the sprawling, eight-minute Untitled 07, which ends with a lo-fi recording of Lamar improvising lyrics to amuse his friends.
The musician recently told hip-hop site 2 Dope Boyz he was sitting on a vault of material which didn't make the cut for To Pimp A Butterfly.
"I got a chamber of material from the album that I was in love with where sample clearances or something as simple as a deadline kept it off the album. But I think probably close to 10 songs that I'm in love with that I'll still play and still perform that didn't make the cut."
Fans will already be familiar with some of the songs, which Lamar has performed on US TV. Among them is Untitled 03, originally unveiled on late-night chat show The Colbert Report, which deals with religion, success and the exploitation of his music.
Curiously, the studio version fades out before the song's original, angry coda, written as a response to the Black Lives Matter movement: "What the Black man say? Tell em, we don't die / We multiply."
But the album doesn't shy away from political commentary, with Lamar chanting: "The government mislead the youth / And welfare don't mean well for you."
The Compton-born performer was the most-nominated artist going into this year's Grammys, shortlisted in 11 categories.
He took home five prizes on the night - including best rap album - but lost out on the main prize, album of the year, to Taylor Swift's 1989.
To Pimp A Butterfly also had some high profile fans, including US President Barack Obama who named the song How Much A Dollar Cost, a parable with parallels to the Biblical story of the Good Samaritan, as his favourite song of 2015.
Lamar is due to headline the BST festival in London's Hyde Park this summer. | Rapper Kendrick Lamar has released a surprise eight-track album, Untitled Unmastered, comprising outtakes from the Grammy-winning To Pimp A Butterfly. | 35724391 | [
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The 27-year-old former Aberdeen forward, who moved to Blackburn for £2m in 2011, has signed a one-year deal at League Two side Plymouth Argyle.
Goodwillie won the last of his three caps five years ago, scoring his only goal from the spot against Spain.
"I don't think about it too much, but as you get a bit older you think 'is it away from me?" Goodwillie said of his international hopes to BBC Radio Devon.
"If you're a player at any age, if you're performing well I don't see why you can't still think about it, but right now I'm just concentrating on club football."
Goodwillie scored just eight goals in two seasons at Aberdeen, and spent the final part of last season at Argyle boss Derek Adams' former club Ross County, for whom he scored once.
"It helps that he (Derek Adams) is Scottish and he knows about Scottish culture and he can put his arm around you," added Goodwillie.
"You're quite far from home and he'll understand that, and I think that was a big decision for me."
Goodwillie was on the scoresheet for Dundee United when they beat Adams' Ross County 3-0 in the 2010 Scottish Cup final.
"He's proven goalscorer, he's a player that has commanded a high transfer fee over a period of time," Adams told BBC Radio Devon.
"He's a very good football player. I think it's important that we take football players to this football club that enhance us on the pitch and he'll certainly do that." | David Goodwillie says he has not given up on representing Scotland once again. | 36706164 | [
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Gray opened the scoring in the 52nd minute with a fine solo goal before Slimani doubled the lead shortly after.
The Algerian scored his second four minutes later as he bundled home Gray's cross from close range.
Caolan Lavery's fortuitous late strike cut the deficit but Musa fired home in stoppage time.
The first half was largely uneventful as both sides made eight changes from the weekend's league matches.
Gray's goal was the first moment of quality in the match as he collected the ball 30-yards from goal on the left wing, drove in field and beat three defenders before slotting through Blades' goalkeeper Jake Eastwood's legs.
Slimani then scored a four-minute brace which looked to have settled the tie as the striker - signed for £29m in 2016 - showed excellent movement and composure.
But, Lavery pulled a goal back in the 83rd minute as his miscued cross beat Ben Hamer at the near post before the Blades pushed further with 19-year-old Foxes debutant Josh Knight making a fine block to deny Billy Sharp.
The Leicester defence continued to hold strong and in the 93rd minute Musa powered through the United defence and drove home to confirm the result.
Match ends, Sheffield United 1, Leicester City 4.
Second Half ends, Sheffield United 1, Leicester City 4.
Goal! Sheffield United 1, Leicester City 4. Ahmed Musa (Leicester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the top right corner.
Attempt blocked. Ahmed Musa (Leicester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Islam Slimani (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by David Brooks (Sheffield United).
Foul by Ahmed Musa (Leicester City).
David Brooks (Sheffield United) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Attempt missed. David Brooks (Sheffield United) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by John Lundstram with a cross following a corner.
Corner, Sheffield United. Conceded by Josh Knight.
Attempt blocked. Billy Sharp (Sheffield United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Caolan Lavery.
Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by Chris Basham.
Attempt missed. Islam Slimani (Leicester City) right footed shot from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Ahmed Musa.
Goal! Sheffield United 1, Leicester City 3. Caolan Lavery (Sheffield United) right footed shot from a difficult angle and long range on the right to the bottom right corner. Assisted by David Brooks.
Foul by Nampalys Mendy (Leicester City).
Caolan Lavery (Sheffield United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Leicester City. Josh Knight replaces Harry Maguire.
Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by Chris Basham.
Attempt blocked. Demarai Gray (Leicester City) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ahmed Musa.
Substitution, Leicester City. Nampalys Mendy replaces Wilfred Ndidi.
Foul by Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City).
Samir Carruthers (Sheffield United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Video Review:.
Offside, Leicester City. Ahmed Musa tries a through ball, but Wilfred Ndidi is caught offside.
Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by John Lundstram.
Attempt blocked. Ben Chilwell (Leicester City) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Ahmed Musa.
Corner, Sheffield United. Conceded by Ben Chilwell.
Substitution, Sheffield United. Paul Coutts replaces George Baldock.
Substitution, Sheffield United. Chris Basham replaces Jake M Wright.
Goal! Sheffield United 0, Leicester City 3. Islam Slimani (Leicester City) right footed shot from very close range to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Demarai Gray with a cross.
Corner, Leicester City. Conceded by Jake Eastwood.
Attempt saved. Demarai Gray (Leicester City) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Andy King.
Attempt blocked. Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Corner, Sheffield United. Conceded by Wilfred Ndidi.
Goal! Sheffield United 0, Leicester City 2. Islam Slimani (Leicester City) left footed shot from the left side of the six yard box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Andy King with a through ball.
Substitution, Sheffield United. Billy Sharp replaces Ched Evans.
Christian Fuchs (Leicester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by George Baldock (Sheffield United).
Offside, Sheffield United. Ched Evans tries a through ball, but George Baldock is caught offside.
Offside, Leicester City. Daniel Amartey tries a through ball, but Islam Slimani is caught offside. | Goals from Demarai Gray, Islam Slimani (2) and Ahmed Musa took Leicester past Championship side Sheffield United and into the EFL Cup third round. | 40932154 | [
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This week's edition of the influential news magazine Der Spiegel is a beseeching entreaty in red, white and blue.
Covered in a union jack and printed in English and German, the publication is dedicated to the referendum debate.
Der Spiegel is unambiguously opposed to a Brexit: "The only internationally known politician in favour of a Brexit,' its editors write, 'is Donald Trump - and, if nothing else does, that alone should make the British worry."
The majority of Germans apparently agree; earlier this month a poll revealed 79% don't want Britain to leave the EU.
For months many here have been bemused, perplexed and downright concerned by the notion that Britain might want to leave.
The Germans hoping Britain stays in the EU
Germany conflicted on how to handle Brexit
German power is the real key to Europe
EU referendum: All you need to know
EU referendum issues guide
In the words of one of Angela Merkel's senior conservatives: "David Cameron is like the sorcerer's apprentice. He doesn't know what he's started."
But, with just over a week to referendum day, the German press are happy to lay bare their version of how it could finish.
A Brexit, Spiegel predicts, would be "a threefold catastrophe: bad for Germany, bad for Britain and cataclysmic for Europe."
The newspaper Die Zeit envisages a doomsday Brexit scenario. Panic at the London stock exchange, a scramble among Europe's leaders to maintain a united front, a party for Marine le Pen and independence for Scotland. Great Britain, the newspaper predicts, will be flying blind.
Europe is jittery. For the first time, yields on 10-year German government bonds have fallen below zero.
And the real possibility that Britain may vote leave has generated a palpable sense of alarm in Berlin.
Which explains Angela Merkel's recent intervention in the referendum debate.
She and her advisors have been wary of doing so; they are keenly aware that British voters and commentators could (and some did) interpret any public comment as interference. And they don't wish to unwittingly boost the Leave campaign.
Mrs Merkel's language was careful and muted. Her short statement carefully timed and co-ordinated with Downing Street. But it contained a stark warning; if Britain opts out, it will lose its bargaining power with the EU.
Her finance minister was less diplomatic. "Out is out," said Wolfgang Schauble.
A Britain outside the EU could forget access to the single market, he said, ruling out the kind of trading relationship held by Norway or Switzerland.
"That won't work," he said. "It would require the country to abide by the rules of a club from which it currently wants to withdraw."
Far less well publicised was what a senior German CDU MP told Der Spiegel.
Juergen Hardt, the party's foreign policy spokesman, offered an intriguing glimpse into how Berlin may be preparing for Brexit.
If the UK votes to leave, Mr Hardt said, then the EU should gauge possible action to prevent a British exit from becoming a reality. Brussels shouldn't close the door right away.
One way or another, Germany wants to keep Britain close.
There are the obvious reasons; within Europe, Britain is a powerful economic and political ally for Germany. Without Britain, some here worry that Germany will be perceived as too big, too dominant within the union.
The two countries are important to each other commercially; the UK is Germany's fifth most important trading partner.
Take the car industry: last year Germany sold 810,000 cars to the UK - around a fifth of the total number it exports worldwide.
And German companies manufactured 216,000 cars in the UK, according to the head of the German car makers' association.
Matthias Wissman has repeatedly warned of the negative impact a Brexit would have on the entire industry.
And there is a wider concern in Berlin. As one senior MP put it: "Brexit would be a catastrophic and disastrous message to the rest of the world that Europe doesn't work and can't stick together."
As one commentator put it, part of the reason Angela Merkel supported David Cameron's efforts to renegotiate a relationship with the EU is that she does not want to go down in history as the German chancellor under whom Europe fell apart.
Angela Merkel makes no secret of her commitment to the European project.
The degree to which a Brexit might encourage other countries to follow suit is difficult to quantify.
But it is clear that populism and anti-EU sentiment are changing Europe's political landscape - fuelled in part by the refugee crisis.
Last month, a YouGov poll revealed that, in the event of a referendum here, nearly one in three Germans would vote to leave the EU.
That is surprising in a country where, it is often said, people identify as European first, German second.
There is a general election in Germany next year.
Angela Merkel has yet to announce whether she will stand but it's widely believed that she will.
Her Christian Democrats are likely to lose votes to the party Alternativ Fuer Deutschland.
It has positioned itself as anti-Islamic and wants more power for national governments within Europe.
There is a lot of stake for the Merkel administration.
But there is another force driving those who want Britain to stay.
As one commuter sitting in the sunshine outside Berlin's main railway station put it: "Great Britain is doing what they think is best for them. I like the British, I like London. I'm sure the Brits will do the right thing."
There is, among Germans, a genuine affection for Britain.
As those Spiegel editors write: "Germany has always looked across the Channel with envy… (Brits) have an inner independence that we Germans lack."
That affection was perhaps most in evidence here last summer during the Queen's visit to Berlin (the British Royal Family is hugely popular here) when German television went into royal overdrive and crowds turned out to greet the British monarch.
During that visit, both the Queen and the German president appealed for European unity and made reference to World War Two through which they both lived.
"The European Union needs Britain," said Joachim Gauck.
"A united Europe, a strong European Union represents stability, peace and freedom for us all."
It is a narrative which underpins discussions here because, fundamentally, for many Germans, that's still what the EU is all about.
At times there is frustration at the level of the debate in Britain. Boris Johnson's likening of the EU's aims to those of Hitler irritated many Germans.
And Iain Duncan Smith's claims that "the Germans" had, in effect, bullied David Cameron over his renegotiations infuriated the government.
There is an acceptance here that Britain's perspective on the EU has always been markedly different.
And there is a consensus that, without that perspective, Europe would be a poorer place.
"Obviously, it is up to the citizens of the UK themselves how they wish to vote in the upcoming referendum. I've said repeatedly before that I personally would hope and wish for the UK to stay part and parcel of the EU."
"We work well together with the UK particularly when we talk about new rules for the EU. We have to develop those together with the UK and whenever we negotiate that, you can much better have an influence on the debate when you sit at the bargaining table and you can give input to those negotiations and the result will then invariably be better rather than being outside of the room."
"It would not only be in our interest but it could also be in the interest of Britain when it can bring its whole political weight to the negotiating table as part and parcel of the EU." (Speaking at joint news conference with Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Berlin, 2 June). | "Please don't go!" | 36526839 | [
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Part of the road from the West Circular Road to Lanark Way had been cordoned off since early on Tuesday afternoon.
A police spokeswoman said Army bomb disposal officers "carried out an examination of a suspicious vehicle, however, nothing untoward was found".
She said the vehicle has now been seized for examination. | The Springfield Road in west Belfast has reopened after a security alert. | 34653917 | [
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YouTube said the video - its most watched ever - has been viewed more than 2,147,483,647 times.
It has now changed the maximum view limit to 9,223,372,036,854,775,808, or more than nine quintillion.
Gangnam Style became a worldwide hit when it was released in 2012, largely due to the surreal video.
How do you say 9,223,372,036,854,775,808?
Nine quintillion, two hundred and twenty-three quadrillion, three hundred and seventy-two trillion, thirty-six billion, eight hundred and fifty-four million, seven hundred and seventy-five thousand, eight hundred and eight.
Why was Psy nearly too much for YouTube?
YouTube's counter previously used a 32-bit integer, which is a unit used to represent data in computer architecture. This means the maximum possible views it could count was 2,147,483,647.
On 1 December, it posted a statement saying: "We never thought a video would be watched in numbers greater than a 32-bit integer... but that was before we met Psy."
Google, which owns YouTube, later told website The Verge that engineers "saw this coming a couple months ago and updated our systems to prepare for it".
YouTube now uses a 64-bit integer for its video counter, which means videos have a maximum viewer count of 9.22 quintillion.
Psy has yet to comment although news of YouTube's change was posted on his Facebook and Twitter pages.
The second most-watched video on YouTube - Baby by Justin Bieber - lags behind Gangnam Style by more than a billion views. | The music video for South Korean singer Psy's Gangnam Style exceeded YouTube's view limit, prompting the site to upgrade its counter. | 30288542 | [
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A statement announced the formation of a joint operations room following what it said was an increase in attacks on residential areas and displaced people.
Rebels were said to have subsequently launched attacks in the province of Latakia and in neighbouring Hama.
Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition delegation in Geneva said it intended to suspend formal peace talks.
The cessation of hostilities brokered by the US and Russia to make way for the talks has resulted in a significant reduction in violence since it took effect on 27 February.
But escalating fighting in recent days, particularly around the divided northern city of Aleppo, has left it on the verge of collapse.
"After the increase of violations by regime forces that included targeting displaced people and continuous bombing of residential neighbourhoods, we declare the start of the battle in response," said the rebel statement issued on Monday morning.
The text was signed by the powerful Islamist groups Ahrar al-Sham and Jaysh al-Islam, as well as several groups that fight under the banner of the Free Syrian Army.
Later in the day, the Syrian opposition negotiating team, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), said it "intended to postpone formal participation" in the peace talks, UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said.
Ever since Syria's truce came into force in late February, there have been repeated violations. But these new attacks are the most significant yet - rebel forces are attacking key front lines, and there have been repeated air strikes by the Syrian military.
This upsurge in fighting is putting new pressure on fragile peace talks. Opposition delegates are now discussing if the time has come to leave Geneva - they are reported to have received a letter from rebel forces on the ground, urging them to exert more pressure on the UN envoy Staffan de Mistura who has been mediating in these indirect negotiations between the warring sides.
The opposition is now accusing the UN of bias after Mr de Mistura floated a proposal to allow Syria's President Assad to remain in office, in a ceremonial role.
I've heard that idea in recent months from Russian and Iranian sources. But Syrian opposition groups have flatly rejected it - their Western backers are urging them not to walk out but it is becoming increasingly clear that these talks are not going anywhere.
The HNC wanted to express its disappointment at the deterioration in the humanitarian situation and in the cessation of hostilities, Mr de Mistura said.
But the envoy added that the HNC would remain in Geneva and informal discussions with the two sides would continue with a view to "taking stock" on Friday.
The US on Monday called on Russia to use its influence on the Syrian government to stop attacks that threatened the seven-week cessation of hostilities as well as the Geneva peace talks, a State Department official said.
Separately, President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held an "intense conversation" on Monday that covered Syria, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
Meanwhile, four Syrians including three children in the Turkish town of Kilis were killed in rocket fire from Syrian territory controlled by co-called Islamic State (IS), the local governor's office said.
The Turkish military fired artillery in response, Hurriyet newspaper reported.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that rebels had launched an assault on the positions of government forces and their allies in Latakia's northern countryside early on Monday and by midday had made advances.
The UK-based monitoring group also said rebels were close to taking over the town of Khirbat al-Naqus, in the strategically important Sahl al-Ghab plain in the north-west of Hama province.
A Syrian military source confirmed the attacks, according to the Reuters news agency.
Latakia is the heartland of President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite sect, and the Sahl al-Ghab lies just to the east of the coastal mountains where Mr Assad's ancestral village of Qardaha is located.
Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory said four people were killed in heavy government air strikes in northern Homs province.
Twenty-two civilians were killed over the weekend in Aleppo, with at least 16 dying as a result of rebel shell- and sniper-fire and the six others dying in government air strikes, according to the group.
Militants from the group known as Islamic State (IS), which along with the rival jihadist group al-Nusra Front is excluded from the cessation of hostilities, have meanwhile seized more territory from rebel groups near the Turkish border north of Aleppo, forcing some 35,000 civilians to flee towards the opposition-held town of Azaz.
Medecins Sans Frontieres warned on Monday that the situation was now critical for more than 100,000 displaced people trapped around Azaz, with active fighting just 7km (four miles) away and the border closed for all but the most seriously ill Syrians. | Rebels say they have begun a new battle in north-western Syria in response to alleged truce violations by the army. | 36071608 | [
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The firm successfully completed operational trials of the Train 2 unit ahead of it receiving shale gas ethane from the US this autumn.
New docks and a new pipeline network have been built to receive the gas.
The company said the move means it is now in "great shape" to run the plant at full capacity.
The KG ethylene cracker was unable to operate at full capacity in 2008, leaving Ineos "no option" but to close the second manufacturing unit.
Ineos said the US ethane will be used as a supplementary feed for the KG ethylene plant and will allow the plant to run at increased rates.
Gordon Milne, Ineos Grangemouth operations director, said: "With the successful completion of the Train 2 trial we are now in great shape to receive shale gas from the US and to finally run the Grangemouth plant at full rates.
"All the parts of the jigsaw are finally coming together and Grangemouth will soon be back in the premier league of European petrochemical plants."
The plant's chief executive John McNally said: "Bringing the site back into profitability is the best way to secure our future here in Scotland.
"We know that ethane from US shale gas has transformed US manufacturing and we are now a step closer to seeing this advantage being brought to here to Grangemouth." | A second manufacturing unit at the Ineos KG ethylene plant in Grangemouth will be brought back to life eight years after it was mothballed. | 35918106 | [
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The group carried out a nine-month investigation into the 53,000 images handed to the opposition by a military police photographer, codenamed Caesar.
Researchers interviewed former prisoners, defectors, forensic experts and families of the disappeared.
Syria's government and its allies had questioned the images' authenticity.
They were first published in January 2014 in a report by three former war crimes prosecutors that was commissioned by Qatar, which supports the political and armed opposition in Syria.
In an interview earlier this year, President Bashar al-Assad said: "You can bring photographs from anyone and say this is torture. There is no verification of any of this evidence, so it's all allegations without evidence."
But on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch laid out in a new report what it said was new evidence regarding the authenticity of the Caesar photographs, identifying a number of the victims and highlighting some of the key causes of death.
The US-based group said it had located and interviewed 33 relatives and friends of 27 victims whose cases researchers verified; 37 former detainees who saw people die in detention; and four defectors who worked in Syrian government detention centres or the military hospitals where most of the photographs were taken.
Syria torture report
In pictures: Syria accused of torture
Using satellite imagery and geolocation techniques, HRW confirmed that some of the photographs of the dead were taken in the courtyard of the 601 Military Hospital in Mezzeh, a western suburb of the capital Damascus.
The group also identified a coding system for the cards placed on the bodies.
"We have meticulously verified dozens of stories, and we are confident the Caesar photographs present authentic - and damning - evidence of crimes against humanity in Syria," said Nadim Houry, HRW's deputy Middle East director.
HRW said its report focused on 28,707 of the 53,275 photos smuggled out of Syria by Caesar that, based on all available information, showed the bodies of at least 6,786 people who died in detention or after being transferred from detention to a military hospital.
The remaining photographs are of attack sites or of bodies identified by name as of government soldiers, other combatants, or civilians killed in attacks, explosions or assassination attempts.
Most of the victims were detained by just five intelligence agency branches in Damascus, and their bodies were sent to at least two military hospitals in Damascus between May 2011, when Caesar began copying files and smuggling them out of his workplace, and August 2013, when he fled Syria, HRW said.
Forensic pathologists from Physicians for Human Rights analysed a subset of the photos, and found evidence of several types of torture, starvation, suffocation, violent blunt force trauma, and in one case, a gunshot wound to the head.
Among the 27 victims identified by HRW - all of whose families spent months or years searching for news of their whereabouts, in many cases paying huge sums to contacts and middlemen - were Rehab al-Allawi, a boy who was 14 at the time of his arrest for having an anti-Assad song on his phone, and student Rehab al-Allawi, who was 25 when she was detained while working with an activist group.
The former detainees, held in the same places as most of the victims, told HRW that guards kept them in severely overcrowded cells with very little air circulation, gave them so little food that they grew weak, and often denied them the opportunity to wash. Skin diseases and other infectious diseases proliferated, and the detainees said guards denied them adequate medical care.
"Many of the former detainees who were held in these nightmarish conditions told us they often wished they would die, rather than continue suffering," Mr Houry said.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights, an activist group, has documented the arrest and detention of more than 117,000 people in Syria since the uprising against Mr Assad began in March 2011. | Human Rights Watch says it is confident photos smuggled out of Syria by a defector in 2013 showing 6,786 people who died after detention are authentic. | 35110877 | [
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The unnamed man was stopped at Turin Airport wearing a pilot's uniform and using forged ID cards, police said.
He was charged with endangering air transport security and impersonation.
The suspect led police to a garage containing neatly pressed white shirts with epaulets, black trousers and jackets, like those worn by pilots.
No motive for the man's actions was reported immediately.
Police have established he sat as "third pilot" in the cockpit of an Air Dolomiti plane which flew from Munich to Turin in April. He did not touch the controls, however.
Air Dolomiti is part of the German airline Lufthansa, which gave no details when approached by the Associated Press news agency but insisted he could not have boarded the plane without a ticket.
Investigators are now trying to establish if the man flew on other planes.
Police had long been investigating the suspect, who had allegedly created a fake identity as a Lufthansa pilot named Andrea Sirlo, complete with a Facebook page which included fake flight attendant friends.
They said they had been alerted several months ago after he introduced himself as a captain to a civil aviation lieutenant, who became suspicious because he seemed too young for the job.
Police tracked him down from photos on his Facebook profile, in which he is apparently shown posing in uniform and sunglasses in front of planes.
Officers approached him in a bar outside Turin Airport's check-in area, dressed in a pilot's uniform with no company logo on it, and sipping coffee.
In the garage, officers also found fake IDs and fake flight theory manuals, the Italian news agency Ansa reports.
"On at least one occasion in 2012, pretending to be a pilot of a foreign commercial airline, and with a fake name, he succeeded in flying as the third pilot in the cockpit," police said in a statement.
According to Ansa, a flight took place on 6 April.
In addition, a profile on a website where users can track their flights also shows a "Pilot Andrea Sirlo" flying from Munich Airport to Turin on 23 October last year.
The case has echoes of the 2002 Hollywood film Catch Me If You Can, in which Leonardo Di Caprio played Frank Abagnale, a real-life con-man who flew as a fake Pan American pilot in the 1960s.
Sirlo is the name of a flight corridor over Turin. | Police in Italy have arrested a jobless man who posed as an airline pilot, tricking his way into riding in the cockpit of at least one jet. | 19690725 | [
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The prime minister has invited his German counterpart for a working dinner at his country residence, Chequers.
The wide-ranging talks also cover the threat of so-called Islamic State, the situation in Iraq and Ukraine.
Mr Cameron earlier welcomed Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas to Downing Street for bilateral talks.
The meetings with his European counterparts come on the day that a new campaign to get the UK to leave the European Union is being launched ahead of the in-out referendum, promised by 2017.
Vote Leave, made up of Conservative, Labour and UKIP MPs and donors, says it wants to negotiate a new deal based on free trade and friendly co-operation.
Mr Cameron has pledged to reform Britain's relationship with the EU before holding a vote on membership and will discuss his aims with Mrs Merkel as part of his continuing negotiations with European leaders.
The pair will also discuss the migrant crisis affecting Europe, as European countries continue to struggle to cope with the influx of people reaching the continent from the Middle East and Africa.
Russia's bombing campaign in Syria is also likely to be raised at the meeting, as concerns grow about Moscow's involvement in the war-torn country - as well as its backing for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.
During talks with the PM at Downing Street, Estonian Prime Minister Mr Roivas thanked Mr Cameron for the UK's commitment to send 100 British military personnel to the Baltic region.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has said the troops will deter Russian aggression beyond Ukraine and reassure eastern European Nato members.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Mr Fallon - who held talks with his US counterpart Ash Carter in London - said the UK government was committed to building support for air strikes against IS in Syria.
He said Russia's military action had made a "grave situation even worse".
The UK is currently involved in coalition air strikes against IS targets in Iraq but not Syria, after Parliament voted against the move in 2013. | David Cameron is holding talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Britain's EU reform aims, the situation in Syria and the migrant crisis. | 34484682 | [
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Steffan Roberts Vernon, 33, from Caernarfon, died at the Llanberis beauty spot in Gwynedd, on Sunday alongside Alexander Hadley, 21, from nearby Dinorwig.
Two others, aged 27 and 25, were treated in hospital and later released.
Police believe the men got into difficulty while swimming in the "extremely cold" water.
Friends have been posting tributes on a Facebook page called 'Steffan Vernon and why we all love him'.
Debbie Ann Williams wrote: "So sad such a lovely smiley soul the gentle giant who always had a big hug 4 everyone rip steff xxxx"
Eve Maria posted: "Xxx always ready for an adventure full of smiles and a beautiful crazy laugh xxx"
Emma O'Neill said: "Some souls leave the world a far better place than when they arrived....just by being a part of it."
The coroner for north west Wales has launched an investigation into their deaths and an inquest will be opened at a later date. | Tributes have been paid to a "gentle giant" who died while swimming near a waterfall in a north Wales village. | 33069655 | [
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5 January 2016 Last updated at 10:38 GMT
It is not known how the swan got trapped on the rooftop of Agatha's Boutique but it could not fly off as it did not have enough space to take enough of a run up.
A spokeswoman for the RSPCA said: "Happily we were able to rescue this swan and release it back into the wild just a short distance away."
Staff at nearby soundLINCS managed to record the successful rescue. | An RSPCA worker has rescued an adult male swan from the roof of a building in the centre of Lincoln. | 35232149 | [
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The Olympic bronze medallist split the strong Chinese pair of Aisen Chen, who took gold, and Qiu Bo to improve on his bronze-winning performance in Windsor, Canada a week ago.
"There are still things I have to improve, but I'm very happy with the silver medal," said 21-year-old Daley.
"It was fun to battle against Chinese divers to see who can come out on top."
He added on fina.org: "This is the last chance to compete against them before Rio. That's exciting and nice to know that going into Olympic Games I can be very close to the Chinese."
Attention now switches to the European Aquatics Championships in London next month, a key part of Daley's preparations for Rio.
"It will be a very special competition," said Daley. "I live in London, train in London. But it's going to be tough." | Great Britain's Tom Daley claimed silver in the men's 10m platform at the Diving World Series in Kazan, Russia. | 36126453 | [
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A two-vehicle crash on the A470, between Church Street in Rhayader and the Llangurig roundabout, happened shortly after 11:45 GMT on Friday.
It affected motorists travelling between Builth Wells and Llanidloes before the road reopened by 17:30.
The A483, north of Welshpool, was later shut after a crash involving five vehicles just before 15:00 and the road remained closed into the evening.
Check if this is affecting your journey | Two Powys roads were forced to close after separate serious collisions. | 35900335 | [
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Emily Thornberry said Labour would not "frustrate Brexit" even if it failed to amend the bill.
Ten shadow ministers were among 47 Labour MPs who rejected party orders to back it last week.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said frontbenchers would have to quit if they defied the whip at the next vote.
The draft legislation comes back to the Commons on Monday for three days of debate culminating in a vote on its third reading.
Speaking on BBC's The Andrew Marr Show, Ms Thornberry rejected a suggestion the party was "hopelessly divided" on the issue.
She said she understood colleagues not wanting to vote in favour of invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which begins the formal departure process, but said: "We have said that we will not frustrate Brexit. We have got our instructions from the British people. We are democrats and the public have voted to leave the European Union."
Labour will try to amend the draft legislation to secure what it calls a "meaningful vote" on the final deal struck between Theresa May and the EU, and to guarantee the status of EU nationals in the UK and Britons living elsewhere in Europe.
Shadow business secretary Clive Lewis has said he will vote against the bill unless Labour's amendments are accepted, describing them as "red lines".
Ms Thornberry declined to say whether they were non-negotiable red lines for her party, and denied it was "illogical" to demand amendments but still back the bill in the final vote if they are rejected.
"There will need to be back channels, private conversations. There are many conversations going on now," she said.
"We are speaking to government, we are speaking to Tory backbenchers and we are trying to get a compromise that will work."
One of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's closest allies, shadow home secretary Diane Abbott, missed Wednesday's vote, citing illness.
Former Labour minister Caroline Flint criticised Ms Abbott, telling ITV's Peston on Sunday: "We used to have man flu, we now have Brexit flu that Diane has created here… it's about being part of a team.
"I think she holds one of the most important portfolios within a shadow cabinet. If she can't support the leader on this then she should go."
But former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman defended Ms Abbott, pointing out she had earlier said on television she would back the bill so had "already taken the flak on it".
Among the rebels in last week's second reading vote were 10 members of the front bench, who would ordinarily be expected to step down after defying leadership instructions to back the bill.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend that changes to his shadow cabinet would be announced "in the coming few days".
Asked if he should be lenient, he added: "I'm a very lenient person."
Speaking later, he said he expected Ms Abbott to vote with the party this week.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the shadow cabinet would decide how to approach Wednesday's third reading vote on the Brexit bill.
He told Pienaar's Politics on BBC Radio 5 live that if a three-line whip was again imposed, any frontbenchers who rebelled "will have to step down". | The shadow foreign secretary has suggested Labour will continue to support legislation paving the way for Brexit as it passes through Parliament. | 38872899 | [
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Guido Amsel, 49, targeted law firms that represented him or his ex-wife in a lengthy legal battle, police said.
One bomb exploded at an office last Friday, severely injuring a woman.
Two more explosive devices were found at law firms over the weekend in the city, but they were detonated by police, and no one was injured.
Mr Amsel has been charged with two counts of attempted murder, one count of aggravated assault and a number of offences related to possessing explosives.
Maria Mitousis, the 38-year-old injured by the first bomb, represented Mr Amsel's ex-wife during their divorce and a later case.
She is reported to be in a stable condition at a local hospital but suffered several serious injuries to her upper body.
Friends and family of the lawyer set up a fundraising page to help pay for her medical expenses and have so far raised more than $25,000 (£16,000).
They said Ms Mitousis faced "a long road to recovery".
Police said more packages may be delivered to other lawyers or justice officials linked to Mr Amsel and urged "extreme caution" over unusual packages.
Winnipeg city hall was evacuated on Monday after reports of a suspicious package but it was given the all clear after police investigated. There was also a similar false alarm at a Canada Post building. | Police in Canada have charged a man for sending explosive devices to several businesses in the city of Winnipeg and warned that more could be discovered. | 33414260 | [
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Catherine Seeley was subjected to the abuse after she was co-opted as a Sinn Féin councillor in Craigavon, County Armagh.
She thanked pupils at the Boys' Model School in the loyalist Ballysillan area for their "full support".
Ms Seeley was speaking at Sinn Fein's annual conference in Wexford.
She said: "In the past few weeks, in my role as a teacher, I have been subjected to a campaign of sectarian intimidation.
"I have already expressed my warm thanks to all who have offered me support, including family, friends, colleagues, educationalists and politicians from various parties.
"I want to take this opportunity to publicly send a message of gratitude to those pupils of the Boys' Model School in north Belfast who have courageously offered me their full support.
"They are a testimony to the values that should permeate not just education but every aspect of society. They inspire hope and confidence in me for the future."
She added that her recent experience had shown "that students can be much wiser, more mature, more responsible and more respectful than some who claim to speak on their behalf".
Ms Seeley's decision to leave her post was announced on Friday in a joint statement by the school's board of governors and the Belfast Education and Library Board.
She is to move to another education board area.
The Protestant Coalition group had objected to her employment at the school.
It said her role at the school should be looked at because of her political views.
During his speech, the Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness contrasted the response of Miss Seeley's pupils to that of some unionist politicians.
"If this situation was reversed and a young Protestant teacher who was also a member of the DUP was being forced from her job in a Catholic school, I would be at the door accompanying her to her work," he said.
Mr McGuinness also called on those he described as "sensible people within unionism" to use their influence to secure a deal on flags, parades and the past.
Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams told delegates during his address on Saturday evening that the issue of contentious Orange parades still needed to be resolved.
"While there may be obstacles, be sure of one thing - change will not be stopped," he said.
"I am happy to meet with the Orange Order at any time to discuss these matters.
"I want to see the Orange treating its Catholic neighbours with respect.
"I want to see it upholding law and order.
"The Orange Order of Ireland is one of our national traditions.
"And Sinn Féin wants all our traditions freed up from sectarianism from any quarter, to live together in peace and respect and with tolerance from everyone for everyone." | The teacher who quit her job at a north Belfast school after being targeted by online sectarian abuse has spoken publicly for the first time. | 26097570 | [
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Their comments, she wrote, "reminds me how big the world is and how many more decent people there are than not".
The Harry Potter author previously tweeted that her "personal line [had] been crossed" by some abusive comments.
"It isn't always fun being a famous woman on Twitter and I believe in standing up to bullies," she wrote.
Rowling faced a flood of criticism on Twitter last year after it emerged she had donated £1m to the campaign for a No vote in the Scottish independence referendum.
In 2008, she donated the same amount to the Labour party.
On Friday the author revealed she had been called "a traitor" for her political views and had blocked some abusive Twitter users she believed had been supporters of the Scottish National Party (SNP).
"I feel no responsibility to hush up that kind of behaviour to protect the image of any political party," she told one Twitter user.
The 49-year-old also revealed she had "responded to other really nice SNP supporters" and had discussed "how much I had in common politically with many of them".
The writer also joked she would "bring marshmallows" after a Twitter user suggested her books should be burned in public.
The SNP took 56 of the 59 seats in Scotland in Thursday's election and is now the third largest party in the UK. | JK Rowling has thanked Twitter users who offered words of support after she became a target for online abuse in the wake of the general election result. | 32680434 | [
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The new deal will see the 20-year-old striker stay at the club until 2019.
Mead has netted 11 times in WSL 1 so far this season, including a hat-trick against leaders Chelsea, to help put her side in contention for the title.
Despite being tipped for a first senior England call-up, she was not included in the squad to face Estonia in a Euro 2017 qualifier on 21 September.
Sunderland have reportedly turned down a bid from Arsenal Ladies for Mead.
"We're delighted that Beth has signed a new deal - she is one of the best young players in the country," Sunderland manager Carlton Fairweather told the club website.
"Naturally, with a player like Beth, there has been interest from other top-flight clubs. So for us to secure this signing shows exactly where we want this club to be." | Beth Mead, the leading scorer in Women's Super League One, has signed a new four-year contract with Sunderland. | 34224851 | [
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The 51-year-old London mayor has spent more than a decade combining the gravitas of his various roles with an unkempt, humorous persona rarely seen in modern public life.
Prime Minister David Cameron expressed his delight when Mr Johnson announced his decision to run for parliament again in 2015, saying: "I want my star players on the pitch."
But now the MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip has said he will campaign against the PM in the EU referendum, relations between the two may become more tense.
The big question is whether the blond-haired old Etonian wants simply to play for the team or to captain it.
He has arguably the highest profile of any Conservative except Mr Cameron and is thought by many to harbour an ambition to be prime minister.
When he beat Labour's Ken Livingstone to become London mayor in 2008 it was the Tories' first high-profile election success since before Tony Blair's triumphant entry into Downing Street in 1997. He defeated Mr Livingstone again in 2012, giving him even more of a winner's aura.
The hoopla surrounding Mr Johnson broke out again when he ended months of speculation by confirming he would try to return to the Commons as MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
He swept into the safe Conservative London seat in the 2015 general election, taking a spot at the cabinet table as minister without portfolio.
Given the opportunity to enter Downing Street on a fortnightly basis, cycle helmet in hand, was seen as recognition for his unique rapport with voters.
But crucially he is not bound by collective cabinet responsibility, giving him the freedom to rebel against controversial decisions without having to resign.
Although lauded by Conservative activists for his witty speeches, Euroscepticism and lack of PR polish, Mr Johnson's political life has not been blemish-free.
In 2004 he had to make a visit to Liverpool to apologise for an article in the Spectator magazine, which he then edited. It had criticised the people of the city for their reaction to the death of Ken Bigley, the British contractor taken hostage and killed in Iraq.
The following month he was sacked by Conservative leader Michael Howard for failing to tell the party the truth about claims he had an affair.
He created media hysteria at the 2006 Conservative Party conference when he attacked healthy eating advice advocated by the chef Jamie Oliver. He said he would like to "get rid of [him] and tell people to eat what they like".
Later he provoked anger by describing Portsmouth as "too full of drugs, obesity, underachievement and Labour MPs" and associating Papua New Guinea "with orgies of cannibalism and chief-killing".
The London mayor's life has been as exotic as his use of language.
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson was born in New York and he held US citizenship until 2006. Descended from Turkish, French and German stock he describes himself as a "one-man melting pot". His great-grandfather, Ali Kemal, briefly served as an interior minister in the Ottoman Empire.
The son of a diplomat and Conservative Member of the European Parliament, he was educated at Eton College, where he was senior to Mr Cameron. There is said to be a sense of resentment on Mr Johnson's part at being overtaken by his younger rival.
At Oxford University, Mr Johnson, who flirted briefly with the centre-left Social Democratic Party, was President of the Union. After only a week as a trainee management consultant he moved to journalism. Fired from the Times for making up a quote, he then worked for the Wolverhampton Express and Star before joining the Daily Telegraph, working as its Brussels correspondent and assistant editor.
In his seven years as MP for the ultra-safe Conservative seat of Henley from 2001 he did not make the shadow cabinet, becoming a party vice-chairman and holding roles as a junior spokesman on education and culture.
His decision to run for London mayor in 2008 added excitement to the contest. However, during the campaign he made a conscious effort to avoid giving reason for accusations of eccentricity. Most Londoners seemed to approve, as he beat Mr Livingstone by 54% to 47%.
Days after his victory he banned alcohol consumption on public transport. A keen cyclist himself, he launched a central London bicycle hire scheme, known colloquially as "Boris bikes", and ditched the "bendy bus" in favour of a new generation of double-deckers.
Although suffering a series of high-profile resignations from City Hall, it was Sir Ian Blair's departure as the Metropolitan Police Commissioner which attracted most controversy. Sir Ian said he was stepping down because of a lack of support from Mr Johnson.
He was in charge when riots hit the capital in the summer of 2011. Initially criticised for taking too long to return from a holiday, he was later praised for his handling of events, including making tours of the affected areas.
Mr Johnson also represented the city when it received its greatest publicity in decades, during the 2012 Olympics. His speeches were well received but he was a little embarrassed when, at one promotional event, he became caught on a zipwire, to the delight of photographers.
In 2011 he told the BBC's Newsnight he did not expect to do "another big job in politics" after leaving the mayoralty. This was not universally accepted at face value.
Mr Johnson has arguably fuelled speculation about his ambitions by continuing to make speeches touching on issues beyond his remit in London, in particular on Europe.
His latest decision means that speculation is guaranteed to continue. | Boris Johnson's decision to campaign for Britain to leave the EU is being regarded as a huge boost for the Out campaign. | 35625669 | [
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The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) leader Colum Eastwood, who visited Brussels this week, is in no doubt.
He described the prospect of the UK's withdrawal from Europe as "the biggest immediate threat to the economy of Northern Ireland and to the island as a whole".
He insisted a Brexit - the inelegant shorthand for Britain leaving Europe - "would undermine and destabilise the fabric of successive Anglo-Irish agreements".
It would "undermine and destabilise our north-south institutions", he added, and would "resurrect borders and resurrect barriers for business".
In Northern Ireland Questions in the House of Commons, the Democratic Unionist Party's (DUP) Sammy Wilson took the opposite view.
He maintained a vote to leave the EU would "help the Northern Ireland economy insofar as it would release £18bn every year for expenditure on public services".
He also said it would "enable us to enter a trade agreement with growing parts of the world and release us from the stifling bureaucracies of Europe".
Finance Minister Mervyn Storey, Mr Wilson's DUP colleague, attended an event this week to welcome the allocation of more than £400m in EU peace and cross-border funding for Northern Ireland.
Earlier this month, Emma Pengelly, another DUP minister, described the peace money and the European Task Force on Northern Ireland as "essential to making Northern Ireland work and building that better future we want to see".
At the same time, DUP politicians tell you it is only right that Northern Ireland should get its share, pointing out that the UK puts £1.50 into the European pot for every £1 it gets back.
In the Commons, the SDLP, the Scottish National Party and the Labour Party appeared to be intent on exposing the difference between what they termed the "mixed messages" emanating from the Eurosceptic Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers and Ben Wallace, her Europhile junior minister.
When it came to calculating the amount Britain puts into Europe, Mr Wilson set the bar high at £18bn.
Both the DUP's deputy leader Nigel Dodds and First Minister Arlene Foster recently quoted far more conservative estimates of about £9bn.
That, coincidentally, is about the same amount as Northern Ireland's fiscal deficit with Westminster, according to the latest Stormont budget.
This BBC backgrounder opts for a UK EU contribution figure of £11.3bn.
Mr Dodds told the BBC's Question Time that Northern Ireland and the UK could survive quite well outside the EU.
Both he and Mrs Foster are sticking to the official DUP line that they will not make their minds up definitively until Prime Minister David Cameron has completed his negotiations for EU reform.
But given Mr Wilson's belief that Mr Cameron's renegotiation is doomed to fail, and the DUP MEP Diane Dodds' previous criticism of the prime minister's "barrenness of ambition", it appears almost certain that the DUP will end up campaigning for EU withdrawal, together with the Tradional Unionist Voice and the UK Independence Party.
The SDLP, Sinn Féin and the Alliance Party will be in the pro EU camp.
The Ulster Unionists are still in wait-and-see mode.
If Mr Cameron does opt for a summer referendum, voters in Northern Ireland will barely have time to recover from May's assembly election before they are asked to go to the polls again.
The campaign will no doubt feature plenty of financial arguments, not just about the UK's membership fees but also regarding the impact of any withdrawal on future trade between the UK and the rest of the EU.
Mrs Foster told me she would like more clarity about Westminster's plans for Northern Ireland's financial subvention in the event of the UK leaving the EU and the consequent loss of peace and cross-border cash.
Whether she gets such clarity is doubtful, given that the prime minister may be reluctant to contemplate such a possibility.
Away from the numbers game, with the Irish government watching on with concern and nationalists and unionists likely to be polarised, expect plenty of good old-fashioned traditional politics.
Sinn Féin MEP Martina Anderson has said a Brexit "could see the re-emergence of passport checkpoints and customs controls" along the Irish border that would hinder "free movement and disrupt the lives of nearly a million people living in the border region".
Mrs Foster said that is "scaremongering" and appears convinced that "practical solutions" will mean cross-border trade and the free movement of people would continue unaffected.
Just like the Scottish independence referendum, the EU campaign in Northern Ireland may ultimately be more about hearts and minds than it is about facts and figures. | So, is Northern Ireland better off inside or outside the European Union? | 35386510 | [
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US-based golf course designers Mike Keiser, Bill Coore and Todd Warnock have proposed creating the course at Coul Links, near Dornoch.
Four conservation charities have joined forces to oppose the project.
The developers said they were aiming for "minimal intrusion on the landscape".
The Scottish Wildlife Trust, RSPB Scotland, Buglife and Plantlife have concerns the course will result in the loss of a protected sand dunes habitat and rare wildlife.
The developers, who have held two meetings in the local area as part of public consultation on the plans, said the building of the course would involve laying turf over less than 55 acres (22ha) within a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
SSSIs are areas indentified as having a diverse range of wildlife and geology.
The developers said their planned new course, close to Embo, would compliment nearby Royal Dornoch golf course and others in the East Sutherland area.
Mr Keiser, who owns Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon, said: "This is a wonderful opportunity to deliver a spectacular championship links golf course which represents all that is natural about golf, in the home of golf.
"Our golf course developments aim for minimal intrusion on the landscape and the utmost care and respect for the environment.
"Our team of environmental advisors is ensuring complete sensitivity to the land, and its location." | The developers of a planned 18-hole championship golf course have sought to allay concerns about their proposal's impact on a protected coastal area. | 37245928 | [
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Ian Stephens, of Cumbria Tourism, said there was a need to "reassure" travel firms and "get the message out businesses are operating as usual".
He said the reopening of the A591 was a "massive priority" after a four-mile section between Keswick and Grasmere was closed by a landslide.
Some areas were hit by flooding three times in as many weeks in December.
Mr Stephens said the impact on visitor numbers was "still unfolding".
"We've seen a collapse in forward bookings, which is a very worrying trend," he said.
"Accommodation held up reasonably well over the Christmas period.
"As you'd expect there were fewer day trippers around and fewer people in the towns and villages, which has an economic impact, and there's an urgent need to get a positive campaign on the road."
Storm Desmond saw a record amount of rainfall in the county over the weekend of 5 and 6 December, followed by more in the rest of the month.
Carlisle, Keswick, Appleby and Glenridding were badly affected, with water deluging homes and shops.
Cumbria Tourism launched a social media campaign before Christmas and is continuing to work with Visit Britain and Visit England.
"It's a big job to do," Mr Stephens said. "We're talking to coach and travel operators so they don't change their itineraries.
"There's a big danger of them saying, 'We'll wait and go somewhere else in the UK until things are better in Cumbria,' and we then lose a huge number of bookings across the year."
Keswick Tourism boss Linda Furniss, said last week that local businesses had "suffered". | Flooding in Cumbria has led to a "collapse" in bookings in the county, a tourism chief has said. | 35222874 | [
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The unnamed pair waited nine months for their Personal Independence Payments (PIPs) to be paid by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
They brought the test case to the High Court, claiming the delay was unlawful.
A minister said "significant progress" had been made in processing claims.
PIPs started replacing disability allowance in April 2013.
Labour, along with several charities, criticised the government for the way it handled the switchover, which left about 3,000 people waiting more than a year to have their welfare claims processed.
The High Court is now conducting a judicial review into the payment system.
The claimants said they struggled to pay for food and fuel because of the delays and their health declined as a result.
They had a right to such benefits under the law and should have received them within a "reasonable time", their lawyers told the court.
One of the claimants, Ms C, from Kent, said she had to leave her job because of ill health. She suffers from ME and severe depression.
"I was completely isolated during the nine months I was waiting for my payments.
"While my wait came to an end, it is worrying that many, many others have still not received a decision."
Justin Tomlinson, the minister for disabled people, said that PIP claims were being processed "at five times the rate they were in January 2014".
He added: "In addition 21% of claimants have been awarded the highest rate, compared to 16% under the disability living allowance, demonstrating that the benefit is being targeted at those who need it most."
But counsel for the claimants said the "most challenging phase" of the PIP rollout was still to come.
About 1.5 million recipients of disability allowance will be moved into the new scheme at the same time as existing PIP claimants face reassessment.
Currently, up to 16% of applicants are still waiting more than 30 weeks for their claims to be completed, the claimants' lawyers said. | Two disabled people had to turn to loan sharks and food banks because the government took so long to process their benefit claims, the High Court has heard. | 32738655 | [
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The 2012 Tour de France champion's assertion was questioned after leaked World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) documents revealed he had been given three injections of allergy medication.
"Brad stands by his comment concerning the use of illegal intravenous needle injections," a spokesman said.
Wiggins' medical records were leaked by the 'Fancy Bears' hacking team.
The records show Wiggins was given permission to take two banned substances on several occasions between 2008 and 2013, prior to competitions including the 2011 and 2012 Tours de France and the 2013 Giro d'Italia.
One of the substances, triamcinolone, was taken for an allergy to pollen, according to the certificates.
It is the same drug for which disgraced American cyclist Lance Armstrong tested positive at the 1999 Tour de France.
However, Wiggins' use of the substance was legal as it was covered by a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) relating to his asthma.
In his 2012 book My Time, Wiggins said he had "never had an injection, apart from I've had my vaccinations, and on occasion I've been put on a drip, when I've come down with diarrhoea or something or have been severely dehydrated".
In a statement, Wiggins' spokesman said his comments in the book referred to the "historic and illegal practice of intravenous injections of performance-enhancing substances, which was the subject of a law change by [cycling's governing body] the UCI in 2011".
"The triamcinolone injection that is referred to in the Wada leaks is an intramuscular treatment for asthma and is fully approved by the sport's governing bodies."
Wiggins also denied controversial Belgian doctor Geert Leinders had had any involvement in the decision to apply for TUEs before major races.
Leinders was hired by Team Sky, Wiggins' team at the time, in 2011 and worked for them on a consultancy basis until his name appeared in the United States Anti-Doping Agency's investigation into Armstrong in 2012.
Leinders was subsequently banned for life for multiple doping violations carried out when he worked for the Rabobank cycling team between 1996 and 2009.
"Brad has no direct link to Geert Leinders," the statement added. "Leinders was 'on race' doctor for Team Sky for a short period and so was occasionally present at races dealing with injuries sustained whilst racing such as colds, bruises, etc.
"Leinders had no part in Brad's TUE application; Brad's medical assessments from 2011-2015 were processed by the official Team Sky doctor, and were verified by independent specialists."
A TUE allows an athlete, for medical reasons, to take a prescribed substance or undergo treatment that is otherwise prohibited.
British athletes must contact their national governing body or follow UK Anti-Doping (Ukad) guidance before applying for a TUE.
There are strict criteria for one to be granted:
Ukad says it has "a number of robust controls in place to make it as difficult as possible" for athletes to misuse the system. | Sir Bradley Wiggins has defended claims made in his 2012 autobiography that he had never received injections. | 37397499 | [
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Media playback is not supported on this device
The 23-year-old earned GB's second medal of the Hong Kong championships following Elinor Barker's silver medal in the women's scratch on Wednesday.
Latham emerged from the pack to take bronze as he chased down Adrian Teklinski of Poland, who won gold, and Lucass Liss of Germany, who got silver.
In the men's team pursuit, GB were beaten to the bronze medal by Italy.
Media playback is not supported on this device
"I am really happy to come away with a medal, finally," Latham told the BBC.
"I wasn't sure that Teklinski was going to hold on there.
"I was in a decent position most of the time. I followed the Irish rider Felix English and I had a good lead out."
Elsewhere Britain's sole rider in the men's keirin, Joe Truman, was outclassed in his semi-final, having tried to take the race out with two laps to go.
And in the women's team pursuit, GB finished fifth in the heats and failed to make the bronze-medal ride.
Olympic gold medallist Chris Boardman
"Latham had a fantastic final charge. He timed his effort well there.
"We hardly saw him in the race, he monitored things but that's why. He was waiting for that final sprint. And what a ride that was for him.
"But with three laps to go, I would not have said that Teklinski would make it, but he found something from somewhere to just hang on there.
"More than 2km out, he effectively started to sprint. It will take him some time to recover from that."
Six-time Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy
"I don't think that would be expected. It's the kind of event you can never be super-confident of winning or winning a medal in.
"But if you ride sensibly, which he did, he positioned himself very well and didn't waste any energy in the first part of the race.
"He marked the danger men and clearly had the legs for the sprint at the end. That's fantastic, a really great result for him and the team."
Team pursuit Olympic gold medallist Elinor Barker came into the quartet of Emily Nelson, Manon Lloyd and Ellie Dickinson.
The young squad were unable to compete for a medal but Barker remained positive about their progress.
She told the BBC: "It's the first Worlds for all of these girls and it's made it a lot more exciting.
"The level is so high already physically and technically. We have so much scope for improvement. It's such a good place to be in.
"Four years until Tokyo and we've just come fifth at the Worlds."
Double Olympic gold medallist Joanna Rowsell Shand said on BBC TV: "Coming into the competition, I don't think anyone expected them to medal.
"Until Elinor Barker joined the team today, we had four brand new riders. With an average age of 19, they've all got bright futures ahead of them."
Earlier in the day, Olympic bronze medallist Katy Marchant was eliminated from the women's sprint in the first round.
The 24-year-old, who claimed bronze behind Kristina Vogel of Germany and fellow Briton Becky James at Rio 2016, was the only female sprinter to travel to Hong Kong.
The former heptathlete qualified in 16th place but was ousted by 17th-fastest Lin Junhong of China earlier on Thursday.
Marchant is scheduled to compete in two more events - Saturday's 500m time-trial and Sunday's keirin.
"I'm really disappointed. I feel like I'm just missing a little bit of zing, which is something that coming off Rio is to be expected," she said.
"I didn't get the roar when I got the number on my back today - maybe the fact it's not an Olympic Games or something in the back of my mind telling me that I'm not feeling great.
"I know to get knocked out in the first round is not what we expect from a medallist, but the preparation coming into this competition is about the process leading on to Tokyo."
Media playback is not supported on this device | Great Britain's Chris Latham won a bronze medal in the men's scratch race at the Track World Championships. | 39587051 | [
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Fellow Briton Stephen Cummings won the final stage from Le-Pont-de-Claix to Superdevoluy, but it was Froome who added to his 2013 and 2015 titles.
The Team Sky rider had opened a 21-second lead heading into stage seven and held out to win by 12 seconds from Frenchman Romain Bardet.
Froome won the Tour de France after both his previous Dauphine successes. This year's edition begins on 2 July.
The 31-year-old had to survive some nervous moments in the final 15km on Sunday, as Spaniard Alberto Contador launched several accelerations on the penultimate climb.
Bardet also tried his chances on a rapid descent between the final two climbs but Froome chased down every attack.
Cummings, 35, was the last of a 20-man breakaway group to wilt and finished well clear of the chasing pack.
Ireland's Dan Martin won the sprint for second with Bardet third, and both moved up a place in the overall standings thanks to the bonus points available on the line.
Tasmanian Richie Porte, who started the day second, was caught out in the uphill sprint finish and lost two places.
Meanwhile, Froome's Team Sky team-mate Geraint Thomas is 17th overall in the Tour de Suisse after finishing three seconds behind stage-two winner Peter Sagan.
Stage seven result:
1. Stephen Cummings (GB/Dimension Data) 4hrs 05mins 06secs
2. Daniel Martin (Ire/Etixx-Quick-Step) +3:58"
3. Romain Bardet (Fra/AG2R) same time
4. Wout Poels (Ned/Team Sky)
5. Adam Yates (GB/Orica)
6. Julian Alaphilippe (Fra/Etixx-Quick-Step)
7. Diego Rosa (Ita/Astana)
8. Louis Meintjes (SA/Lampre)
9. Richie Porte (Aus/BMC Racing) +4:03"
10. Chris Froome (GB/Team Sky) same time
General classification:
1. Chris Froome (GB/Team Sky) 29hrs 59mins 31secs
2. Romain Bardet (Fra/AG2R) +12"
3. Daniel Martin (Ire/Etixx - Quick-Step) +19"
4. Richie Porte (Aus/BMC Racing) +21"
5. Alberto Contador (Spa/Tinkoff) +35"
6. Julian Alaphilippe (Fra/Etixx-Quick-Step) +51"
7. Adam Yates (GB/Orica) +57"
8. Diego Rosa (Ita/Astana) +1:13"
9. Louis Meintjes (SA/Lampre) +1:30"
10. Pierre Rolland (Fra/Cannondale) +2:43" | Britain's Chris Froome won a third Criterium du Dauphine title on Sunday. | 36511258 | [
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Jack Letts, 20, from Oxford, who has been dubbed "Jihadi Jack" by some newspapers, is said to have left for Iraq aged 18.
John Letts and Sally Lane, denied providing money for suspected terrorism at Westminster Magistrates' Court.
They are due to appear at the Old Bailey on 23 June.
Mr Letts, 55, and Ms Lane, 54, spoke only to confirm their names and address.
They are both charged with three counts of arranging the availability of property or money to another person knowing or having reasonable cause to suspect it could be used for the purpose of terrorism.
It is alleged the couple, both of Chilswell Road, Oxford, transferred £223 on 2 September last year, £1,000 on 31 December 2015 and £500 on 4 January 2016.
Ms Lane is charged with two further counts of attempting to provide money or property knowing or having reasonable cause to suspect it could be used for the purpose of terrorism.
The court heard she allegedly attempted to send two payments of £500 to her son on January 4 2016.
They pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The 20-year-old was suspected of being the first white Briton to join the terror group after he left his Oxford home and travelled to Syria last year. | The parents of a man alleged to have joined so-called Islamic State group have been remanded in custody after being charged with terrorism offences. | 36490929 | [
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Roger Dodds, now 81, was sentenced to 16 years in prison for abusing male colleagues and students who came to him seeking educational grants.
Sheffield City Council was ordered to pay former worker Richard Rowe, who was abused by Dodds in the 1980s, the sum.
He is also expected to receive a similar amount for loss of earnings.
Read more about this and other stories from across Yorkshire
Sex abuser 'left free to assault'
Dodds worked at the council's education department from 1975 to 1993.
The council allowed Dodds to retire with full pension in 1993, despite widespread knowledge among staff of his conduct.
The authority has said it was "deeply sorry" and accepted responsibility.
It said it had "made a raft of changes in policies, practices and procedures", and added that it commissioned an internal report into Dodds' behaviour in 2008.
The report found the authority was "complicit" and allowed Dodds to operate "apparently without sufficient challenge, accountability or consequences".
The council said things have changed significantly and many recommendations have already been implemented.
Since Dodds' conviction, others have come forward alleging abuse.
Mr Rowe was the victim of "surprise attacks" by Dodds in the late 1970s and while he conceded there was "some comfort" in the 16-year jail term, he said it "could have been stopped a lot sooner".
He added: "All the staff knew, it was common gossip, but the seniors... chose to ignore it."
Mr Rowe said he was suspended by the council for a time in 2008 when police started investigating Dodds.
BBC Social Affairs Correspondent, Michael Buchanan, reported that Dodds is still getting a council pension in prison.
South Yorkshire Pensions Authority, which is responsible for the funds, said the council had not tried to halt the payments.
The Authority said a conviction does not automatically stop a pension and it is the responsibility of the council to initiate proceedings. | A council has been ordered to pay £91,000 compensation to a former employee who was sexually abused by one of its officials. | 39951086 | [
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Officially Iran denies it has deployed any combat troops in Syria, but a week before the offensive began, it was reported that hundreds of Iranian troops had arrived in Syria in preparation for an imminent assault on rebel-held areas.
Iran also announced the deaths of four high-ranking officers from the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) in Syria.
At least one of them, Brig Gen Hossein Hamedani - the most senior Iranian military officer to have been so far killed in the Syrian conflict - lost his life near Aleppo.
According to Iranian media, 18 high-ranking IRGC officers have been killed in Syria in the past three years.
But the killing of four in just one week - particularly one just before a major offensive - implies that Iran may be more involved in the war than it has previously acknowledged.
In the past few days, some Iranian and Syrian media outlets have even published photos of Maj Gen Qasem Soleimani purportedly taken in Syria.
For the past year, Gen Soleimani - the commander of the IRGC's overseas operations arm, the Quds Force - has been co-ordinating the Iraqi government's operations against Islamic State (IS).
Several IRGC commanders have also warned that they would take revenge on "the terrorists" who killed Gen Hamedani, suggesting the force might have troops on the ground in Syria.
IRGC officials say that so far their most significant contribution to the defence of President Bashar al-Assad has been the creation of the paramilitary National Defence Forces.
Mohammadreza Naghdi, the commander-in-chief of Iran's own paramilitary force, the Basij, said last week that funding for the NDF was overseen by Gen Hamedani.
In May 2014, the general himself announced that Iran had trained and organised 70,000 Syrians into 128 NDF battalions. A few days ago, IRGC commander-in-chief Mohammad Ali Jafari said the NDF now had 100,000 fighters.
Gen Hamedani also said that 130,000 Basij militiamen and women were ready to go to Syria if necessary.
It is not clear how many Iranians have travelled to Syria to fight, but Iranian media do sometimes issue casualty reports.
In June 2015, the official Irna news agency said at least 400 Iranian and Iran-based Afghan "volunteers" had been killed in the past four years.
Portraying them as "volunteers" may be an attempt to counter accusations that Iranian troops are involved directly in combat.
For possibly the same reason, most of the IRGC officers who have lost their lives in Syria have been described as "retired" or "former" members of the force.
In spite of such assertions, a senior politician has stated that Iran is prepared to join the war.
A few days ago, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, the chairman of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee, told a news conference in Damascus that Iran was ready to send troops to Syria if Mr Assad's government requested them.
It is possible that the defeats suffered by the Syrian army in recent months and the increased worldwide concern over IS have prompted Iran to act.
However, Iran's foes worry that the IRGC may also now be feeling emboldened by the results of the recent nuclear deal, which paves the way for the lifting of sanctions, likely benefitting the force with a source of fresh funds. | The new offensive launched by Syrian government forces in the countryside south of Aleppo has shed light on Iran's growing role in Syria's civil war. | 34572756 | [
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The 21-year-old had been at Hednesford Town on loan this season, but has experience in the fifth tier with Southport and Wrexham.
Adam Lockwood's Guiseley are currently five points from safety.
"Joel's a rapidly developing talent and we've been watching him for some time. We're excited to have signed him," said football secretary Adie Towers. | National League's bottom side Guiseley have signed former Rochdale winger Joel Logan on an undisclosed deal. | 37931089 | [
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The presenter described people involved in hunting and shooting as "the nasty brigade" in an article last year.
The corporation received two complaints from readers stating that Packham should not have expressed his personal opinion in a BBC magazine.
But the BBC Trust said the strapline had made clear the article was an opinion piece.
In a column in the October 2015 issue, the naturalist wrote that conservation groups were "hamstrung by outdated liaisons with the 'nasty brigade' and can't risk upsetting old friends" in the rural and shooting communities.
The Countryside Alliance complained Packham was breaking rules by using his position "to spread propaganda" and called for him to be sacked.
Packham responded by accusing his critics of trying to "neutralise" him and others who oppose grouse shooting.
In its report, published on Friday, the BBC Trust said Packham was a freelancer and therefore not a BBC employee, adding he was not "associated with news or public policy-related output".
It also noted that all parties named in the article had been given a right of reply prior to publication, and readers had the opportunity to respond in subsequent issues.
Both complainants have had letters published in the magazine in response to Packham's column.
The committee added the new editor would not have allowed the term "nasty brigade" to have been published.
In its summary, the BBC Trust said there had been no breach of the impartiality guidelines.
The committee also looked at whether Packham had breached the BBC's conflict of interest guidelines.
But the report stated: "It was clear that Mr Packham had been expressing his personal views as an individual, and that there was no implication that the charities and other causes he supported were endorsed by the BBC."
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram at bbcnewsents, or if you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | The BBC Trust has said no action is required over comments Chris Packham made in BBC Wildlife Magazine. | 37455340 | [
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They were brutal, inhuman regimes led by men with notorious reputations for violence and suppressing opposition - Augusto Pinochet in Chile, Alfredo Stroessner in Paraguay, Jorge Rafael Videla in Argentina and so on.
One of the great success stories across the region, in the intervening three or four decades, was how most of those dictatorships were driven out - usually by the overwhelming force of peaceful, popular pressure - and were replaced by elected democratic governments.
The general consensus among observers, politicians and the Latin American public is that democracy is here to stay.
That is certainly the case here in Brazil, a country that has grown into one of the world's top 10 economies, where vigorous political debate is the everyday norm and where, since the return of civilian rule in 1985, the army's place has unquestionably been back in the barracks.
So, even in these times of social unrest and economic crisis in Brazil, there is no real threat of military intervention. But many people are describing the removal of the country's first female leader as a coup, albeit one carried out by politicians rather than generals.
That is certainly how Dilma Rousseff herself sees things after a vote in the country's senate triggered her dismissal over charges that she illegally manipulated government accounts to hide the scale of the budget deficit.
For Ms Rousseff the experience was not as physically painful as the torture and abuse she suffered as a prisoner under the former dictatorship, but she felt just as keenly a sense of injustice and abuse of power.
Dilma Rousseff vigorously denied the charges which in the great scheme of things could be characterised as relatively minor.
She has repeatedly described the process as a plot by her political opponents to force her from office, replacing without an election a leftist, socialist government with a centre-right, market-friendly alternative.
In other words, say Ms Rousseff and her supporters also believe it was a coup.
But if the term "coup" describes a sudden and illegal seizure of power, that is arguably not what happened in Brazil.
Dilma Rousseff's removal was a long drawn-out legal affair, overseen by the country's Supreme Court.
Impeachment is a provision laid out in the Brazilian constitution, as it is in many other democracies. As flimsy or irrelevant as many thought the charges were, the [now] former president was able to defend herself by legal argument and with counsel throughout.
The law might be an ass, but it is still the law.
Dilma Rousseff has never been formally accused of corruption or self-enrichment, unlike many of the men who have sat in judgment over her in the Brazilian Congress during the recent turbulent weeks and months.
Nor has she been implicated in the wide-ranging "car wash" corruption scandal, involving the payment of billions of dollars in bribes in relation to contracts at the state controlled oil giant, Petrobras.
Several senior politicians, including members of Ms Rousseff's own Workers Party, have been ensnared in the scandal.
One widely-held belief is that the overriding concern for Brazil's well-heeled political elite is to find a way of shutting down or, emasculating, the corruption investigation before it goes any deeper.
Fernando Gabeira, once a left-wing senator but who now commentates on Brazilian politics says what has happened is "good for Brazil".
"The rules were obeyed, the constitution was considered and it means that Brazil's democracy will be stronger than before."
Others, including Gleisi Hoffman, a former minister in the last Rousseff government disagree.
She described the removal of a democratically elected leader as "a sordid and lamentable affair".
Dilma Rousseff's biggest mistake, and perhaps the real reason that she was impeached, was her unwillingness or inability to make the deals and alliances necessary to run an effective government in Brazil's fractured multi-party system.
Her last two years in office have been plagued by an economy in recession, rising inflation and unemployment.
Brazilians have become worried that many of the gains made in the first 10 years of Workers Party rule could be lost under her stewardship, in stark contrast to the years of plenty, fuelled by high oil prices, overseen by her more charismatic, politically astute and but perhaps less scrupulous predecessor, President Lula da Silva.
In the shape of Ms Rousseff's replacement and former deputy, Michel Temer, Brazil now has a centre-right president who has promised to protect the popular social programmes introduced by the Rousseff/Lula governments.
But, vowing to get the country's broken economy back on track, Mr Temer is also looking to cut government budgets and change priorities. It is a familiar conundrum and within an hour of being sworn in, the new leader was flying to China for the G-20 summit.
Brazilian democracy has been damaged and sullied in the eyes of many by what happened in Brasilia.
Back-stabbing, betrayal and the ever-present spectre of corruption? Yes. But a coup? Probably not. | Back in the 1970s, when I first lived in Latin America and was hooked by a fascination for this region that has never left, virtually every country here was ruled by a military dictatorship. | 37271465 | [
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Building work at Wrexham Cemetery will see the restoration of Grade II-listed chapels and a lodge, which has been closed over safety concerns.
Wrexham council warned there would be some disruption, with paths, fencing and entrances also being improved.
It comes after the cemetery won a £1.1m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Councillor David A Bithell, lead member for the environment and transport, said work on the cemetery, which is on the register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Wales, would be completed in 2017.
The council said it was one of the finest examples of a Victorian cemetery in Wales with a well-preserved "gardenesque" cemetery landscape which was typical of the time it was created. | A £1.5m refurbishment of a cemetery - hailed as one of the finest examples of a Victorian burial ground in Wales - could start in August. | 36113710 | [
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The hosts broke the deadlock 13 minutes into the second period courtesy of a Colin Shields strike.
Steve Saviano doubled the lead midway through the third period before Shields sealed victory with 46 seconds left.
Belfast, who have played one game less than Cardiff, take on the Capitals again on Friday at the same venue. | Belfast Giants have closed the gap on Elite League leaders Cardiff Devils to six points with this comfortable win over the Capitals at the SSE Arena. | 38409424 | [
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The star of Ang Lee's award-winning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon said she was happy to receive the award in the place where her career started.
"I hope it's not their way of telling me that I need to retire," Yeoh joked.
The Chinese melodrama Mystery was named best film at Monday's event, which also saw two stars from the Philippines take home the main acting prizes.
Nora Aunor, 59, was named best actress for Thy Womb, while 87-year-old Eddie Garcia was named best actor for Bwakaw.
Garcia, who said he was "elated and honoured" to be recognised, also received the People's Choice award for favourite actor.
Japan's Takeshi Kitano was named best director in absentia for his latest crime thriller, Outrage Beyond.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the ceremony, Yeoh revealed she had long heard rumours of a Crouching Tiger sequel but had yet to see a script.
'Very privileged'
Recent reports have attached martial arts star Donnie Yen to the project, and Yeoh said she would welcome the opportunity to work with him if a sequel was made.
Yeoh appeared in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies and was recently seen playing the Burmese politician Aung San Suu Kyi in film biopic The Lady.
The actress said she studied the pro-democracy leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner for four years in preparation for the part.
"I've worked with truly the best of directors, not just in Asia but around the world,'' said the 49-year-old actress.
"I do believe that the harder you work, the luckier you get and I've been very, very privileged."
Yeoh was welcomed on stage by a quartet of Asian cinema notables, who played "paper, scissors, stone" for the honour of presenting her with her prize.
After two rounds of the traditional elimination game, martial arts star Sammo Hung ended up beating Hong Kong director Mabel Cheung and the action choreographers Yuen Woo-ping and Corey Yuen. | Michelle Yeoh has been honoured with the Excellence in Asian Cinema award at the Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong. | 21827482 | [
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Media playback is not supported on this device
The 25-year-old batsman died when he was by a short-pitched delivery in Sydney.
The incident was described as a "freak" by medical experts.
Hampshire-based manufacturer Masuri has given the BBC an exclusive look at its prototype helmet, which features extra protection at the rear.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Batting for South Australia in a Sheffield Shield game against New South Wales in Sydney, Hughes was hit by a bouncer from Sean Abbott.
The batsman, who was wearing a Masuri helmet, collapsed immediately and died in hospital two days later.
After his death, the company began investigating a possible redesign and have introduced a "stemguard", a device made of foam and a rubber-like compound that clips onto the back of a helmet.
According to the company, Masuri provide "the most widely used helmet in Professional Cricket".
Design consultant Alan Meeks believes it will be both light and robust enough to prevent serious injury
"This arrangement of the foam and honeycomb gives as much protection as a hard helmet," he told BBC Sport.
"Even though it moves around and will touch the player when the ball hits them, it will absorb a significant amount of energy."
The International Cricket Council, which governs the game, has raised its recommendations for helmet safety standards in recent years.
Media playback is not supported on this device
However, in response to the growth in popularity of the 20-over format of the game, which encourages a greater range of strokes and a riskier style of batting, research and development had focused on protecting a batman's face.
The death of Hughes, who played 26 Tests for Australia, changed things.
"That tragic event definitely had an impact on the public," said Masuri's managing director, Sam Miller.
"I don't think there was a helmet on the market which would have protected Phillip.
"There had been some talk of protection to that area in the past, but it had been a footnote."
The "stemguard" has been tested extensively in a laboratory while it awaits production. Masuri say they have consulted international cricket boards throughout the design process.
A patent for the product is pending but its introduction in matches will depend on players' desire to wear the redesigned helmets. | A British-based firm has designed a cricket helmet aimed at preventing another tragic death like that of Australian Phillip Hughes last year. | 31421607 | [
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Bell, 19, made three first-team appearances for Dale in addition to loan spells at Chester and Droylsden.
He follows former Forest Green striker Reece Styche among the Tynesiders forward imports this summer.
"Nyal is a young, athletic striker who is prepared to work hard and willing to learn to go on to the next level," assistant manager Lee Nogan said. | Gateshead have signed striker Nyal Bell on a two-year deal following his release by Rochdale. | 36538578 | [
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Earlier this week, he refused to answer the question of whether he believed homosexual sex was a sin.
But he told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show he was "passionate about LGBT-plus rights" and defending equal marriage would be "at the top of my agenda".
He also said he wanted to extend the marital rights of transgender people.
Appearing on Channel 4 News on Friday, Mr Farron, who beat Norman Lamb to the leadership, was asked three times if he believed homosexual sex was a sin.
Each time, he refused to give a direct answer, instead choosing to say "my firm belief is we are all sinners".
Mr Farron was asked by Andrew Marr why he voted against the Equality Bill in 2007 - a law which would have made it harder for businesses to discriminate against gay people.
"Let me be crystal clear, I'm a liberal and I absolutely support equality," he replied.
"I'm passionate about LGBT-plus rights, for example, and as the leader of a liberal party, that is something that will be at the top of my agenda throughout the time that I am leader of our party.
"Not just defending the law on equal marriage, but also saying there are areas where it needs to be extended."
Mr Farron said transgender people currently did not have equal access to marriage due to something known as the spousal veto - which means the husband or wife of someone who has changed gender must give their consent in order for the marriage to continue.
He said the Lib Dems tabled an amendment to the Equality Bill because of concerns about "protection of individual liberties" and when that was defeated he voted against the bill.
He did not answer directly when asked what those concerns were, but said: "I am absolutely in favour of equal access under law for all people whatever their sexuality." | New Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron says he "absolutely supports equality" amid questions over his Christian faith and politics. | 33584822 | [
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Jairo Medina, 62, a professional carer from Chelsea, was found early on Friday morning by a person walking by who then called the police. Once officers got there, Mr Medina had died.
A post mortem examination did not find a cause of death, but it showed that he had been assaulted.
Officers are investigating it as a murder. An area about the size of two football pitches was cordoned off.
The scene was near the mosaic to commemorate The Reformers' Tree in Hyde Park.
The Met Police would like to hear from anyone who may have seen something suspicious in the area between the evening of Thursday 11 August and the early hours of Friday. | A man found dead in London's Hyde Park has been named by police. | 37077417 | [
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The 19-year-old was taken off in the 15th minute at Vitality Stadium after appearing to pick up the foot injury.
City said in a statement: "He will undergo further examinations in the coming days to establish the extent of his layoff."
The Brazil international, who completed a £27m from Palmeiras in January, has played five times for City.
Jesus was hoping to become the third City player to find the net on each of his first three Premier League starts, having scored at West Ham and two against Swansea.
The other two players to have achieved that feat are former striker Emmanuel Adebayor and and current midfielder Kevin de Bruyne.
Metatarsals are the five long bones in the forefoot which connect the ankle bones to those of the toes.
The first is linked to the big toe and the fifth, on the outer foot, links to the little toe.
Together, the five metatarsals act as a unit to help share the load of the body, and they move position to cope with uneven ground.
Injuries usually occur as a result of a direct blow to the foot, a twisting injury or over-use.
Medical experts recommend rest with no exercise and sport for four to eight weeks.
The patient might be asked to wear walking boots or stiff-soled shoes to protect the injury while it heals.
If the cause is over-use, then treatment can vary hugely. Training habits, equipment used and athletic technique should all be investigated.
It all depends on the damage and which metatarsal bone is involved. It is impossible to put a timescale on recovery from a stress injury.
With an impact fracture, after the plaster and protective boot is not needed (usually after four to six weeks), it will be a case of exercise and increasing weight-bearing activities.
Ice packs, strapping and even the use of oxygen tents can be used to assist recovery.
Full return to action can be anything from another four weeks and upwards - depending on the extent of initial damage. Young bones heal quicker. | Manchester City forward Gabriel Jesus broke a metatarsal in Monday's 2-0 Premier League win at Bournemouth. | 38971944 | [
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Sredojevic, who on Sunday lead the Cranes to their first Africa Cup of Nations finals since 1978, complained on social media about not being paid.
Fufa admits it owes the coach and says paying him is a priority.
The association added it is meeting with the coach to resolve the issues.
Fufa also explained that much of its recent income had been used to ensure the "the success of the team" in their final must-win Nations Cup qualifier against Comoros.
The statement continued: "Fufa is committed to ensuring all his salary arrears are cleared and we are confident this will be handled."
The coach has also said that he is prepared to take the matter to football's world governing body Fifa if necessary. | The Federation of Uganda Football Associations (Fufa) has said that it is working on clearing the salary arrears owed to the national team coach Milutin 'Micho' Sredojevic. | 37309713 | [
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They told the BBC's Asian Network they would be unable to grieve until they learned the truth.
Shrien Dewani, 34, from Bristol, is accused of hiring a hitman to murder his wife. He denies any involvement.
Mr Dewani was extradited to South Africa in April after a three-year legal battle.
His legal team argued that his mental health was too fragile for him to stand trial.
Anni Dewani was shot dead in Cape Town in November 2010, just days after the couple's wedding in India.
The trial is due to begin on Monday and is expected to last two months.
Mrs Dewani grew up in Sweden and her childhood home is on a quiet road in the small town of Mariestad.
In the garden where she once played with her two siblings, her wooden playhouse remains intact.
Inside, her room is just the way she left it - a single bed in the corner and a side cabinet adorned with cherished pictures from her childhood and teenage years.
"Every day I come into her room and look at the photos and think about her," says Anni's mother, Nilam Hindocha.
"She was a beautiful girl. I remember her smile, her eyes, her beautiful light brown eyes, her hair, the way she spoke. I remember everything about her."
Photos of her as a happy bride are displayed on the walls of her parents' living room.
"She was a charming, lovely and bubbly girl - we miss her so much," says Vinod Hindocha, Anni's father.
"Now everything in our lives is empty, everything is quiet, there is no charm in life any more."
Her ashes were scattered in the peaceful, glistening blue waters of Lake Vanern, where she spent many summer days. This is a place her parents come to recall happy memories of their daughter.
But they say they have been unable to start grieving for their daughter's death because they still do not know the truth about what happened.
Mr Hindocha says the past four years have been "torture".
"We need to know what happened to our beautiful daughter," he says.
"The only thoughts we have in our head are, 'Why did she die?' We need to know the truth."
Three men are currently serving jail terms in South Africa in connection with the death of Mrs Dewani, including taxi driver Zola Tongo, who was jailed for 18 years after admitting his role in the killing.
Xolile Mngeni, who prosecutors claim was the hitman, was convicted of premeditated murder over the shooting.
Another accomplice, Mziwamadoda Qwabe, pleaded guilty to murder and was handed a 25-year prison sentence.
Nilam, 62, who is in remission from cancer, has vowed to be in Cape Town throughout the trial.
She says: "We know it is going to be torture hearing the details of Anni's death, but we will be in court every day.
"We know it's going to be very difficult but we will do anything to get justice. People say time heals wounds, but in our case, the wounds are deeper the longer we live without answers.
"Once this is over, we hope we can move forward with our lives and our Anni can finally be at peace."
You can hear more on this story on BBC Asian Network at 13:00 and 17:00 BST, or listen back on the BBC iPlayer. | The parents of murdered bride Anni Dewani say they are desperate for answers ahead of next week's trial of their son-in-law in South Africa. | 29462278 | [
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The Age UK review said some people could not even wash, dress or feed themselves and yet were being left to fend for themselves by councils.
And the charity warned that the whole system was close to collapse in some areas with services closing.
It comes after the government said it was looking to solve the problems.
Last week, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt pledged action on social care, which covers care homes and help in the home.
That has prompted a growing expectation that a rescue package will be announced in the Budget in early March.
Care is funded by either councils or individuals themselves - although growing numbers are also relying on family and friends to support them.
The Age UK review looked at existing data and concluded there were nearly 1.2 million people who were not now getting the care they need - a rise of 48% since 2010.
This included:
The charity said this had been caused by cuts to council budgets which had led to a rationing of services.
Last year, fewer than half of the people who requested help from councils were given it.
You stay in your own home while getting help with everyday tasks such as washing, dressing and eating.
average amount of care provided per week, by your council
average paid per hour by your council, 2014-15
average paid per hour in your region if you pay for your own care, 2016
You live in a care home that provides round-the-clock support with everyday tasks.
TBC pay for their own care
You live in a care home which provides round-the-clock support for everyday tasks and nursing care. Depending on your medical needs, the NHS may contribute to your costs.
TBC pay for their own care
Savings, investments and income are assessed, along with the value of your home - unless you or a close relative live there.
As well as reducing the numbers of people they help, councils have also started to squeeze the fees they pay agencies that run care homes and home help services.
A report by market analysts Laing Buission earlier this year that estimated councils were paying £100 less a week than the going rate for a care home place.
The Age UK review said half of councils had seen a care home provider cease trading in their area, while a third had seen a home care agency fold.
Age UK director Caroline Abrahams said: "Our new report makes for frightening reading because it shows just how fragile older people's social care now is.
"We think there is a real risk of collapse in social care in the worst affected areas."
Izzi Seccombe, from the Local Government Association, which represents councils, said the review was "deeply disturbing".
"Genuine new government money is now the only way to protect the services."
Councils spent £16bn last year on services for elderly and disabled people. It comes after funding from central government was cut by a third in real terms during the last Parliament.
Councils protected social care by making big cuts elsewhere but still had to reduce the amount they spent on social care by 6%.
Ministers have given councils the ability to ring-fence council tax increases for care services in the coming years and have used NHS money to invest in services, but the LGA predicts by 2020 there will still be a £2.6bn shortfall.
In an interview with the BBC last week, Mr Hunt pledged the government would address the pressures in the social care system.
A Department of Health spokeswoman said it was not all about money, but added ministers were "working to find a long-term, sustainable solution".
Read more from Nick
Follow Nick on Twitter | Hundreds of thousands of vulnerable older people struggle to get by with little or no care because of cuts to care in England, a charity says. | 38984925 | [
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The police said four men carried out the assault at Altcar Park in the Galliagh area just before 04:00 GMT on Thursday.
It is believed that one of the gang had a handgun. They escaped in a small silver car.
The victim did not need hospital treatment. Police have appealed for information. | A 24-year-old man has been beaten by an armed gang in a paramilitary-style attack in Londonderry. | 34795652 | [
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The 25-year-old Canadian lost to 17-time Grand Slam champion Federer in three sets in last year's final.
But Raonic produced an impressive display at the Pat Rafter Arena on Sunday to clinch his eighth tour title.
Federer, who has been suffering with flu, said: "I'd like to congratulate Milos on a great start. This year you deserve it, well played and good luck at the Aussie Open."
The Swiss world number three added: "I was a bit sick but we made it to the final."
Raonic, who is ranked 14th in the world, had only beaten Federer once in their previous 10 encounters.
He said after his victory: "Hopefully we have a better year this year than the last. I hope in 2016 we learn to love each other a little bit more and the world becomes a safer place."
The Brisbane tournament helps players prepare for the Australian Open - the first Grand Slam of the year - which starts on 18 January. | Milos Raonic beat Roger Federer 6-4 6-4 to win the Brisbane International. | 35275896 | [
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The M8 westbound was closed for five hours at Newhouse in North Lanarkshire because of a jackknifed lorry, which also caused a diesel spillage.
The M77/A77 has reopened northbound at junction 8 Kilmaurs in East Ayrshire following an accident at 06:00.
There was snow in the Inverness area and roads around Fort William and Glencoe were very icy.
Head of network operations at Transport Scotland, Hugh Gillies, told BBC Radio Scotland some incidents had lasted for longer than they would have liked, and he urged drivers to remain cautious as the icy conditions continued.
He added: "There can be no complacency. It has been a difficult couple of days with the weather.
"Speaking to Met Office colleagues the forecast for the next three to four days remains challenging, so vigilance remains the case."
The Met Office has issued amber "be prepared" severe weather warnings for Central, Tayside and Fife, south west Scotland and Lothian and Borders for Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.
A yellow "be aware" warning is in place for the Strathclyde area.
Five schools in the Highland Council area are closed, according to the local authority's website.
In Aberdeenshire, the council warned that there had been some changes to school transport because of the weather, with some school buses not running.
In Glasgow, the Clydeside Expressway was closed westbound - leaving the city - at Finnieston due to an accident, but is now open.
Police said a car skidded on the ice and hit the barrier shortly after 06:00.
BBC Travel online updates
Scotland-wide travel updates
BBC weather updates
Met Office weather warnings
Traveline Scotland
The M8 in North Lanarkshire was closed westbound at junction six from 04:30 until 09:30 causing long delays.
Northern Constabulary said the B9007 Ferness to Carrbridge road was closed at the snow gates.
The A9 Causeway Mire had also been affected by snow. Many side roads in the Caithness area are also affected by lying snow.
Drifting snow was making driving difficult on the A836 Tongue to Lairg road between Altnahara and Crask.
All other routes were open and passable with care.
Grampian Police said several routes were affected.
A number of minor routes in the Formartine and Buchan area had lying snow, as did the A920 Huntly to Dufftown road near Dufftown, the A939 Ballater to Corgarff stretch between Ballater and Gairnshiel, and the A939 Cockbridge to Tomintoul road from Corgarff to the Lecht Ski Centre.
Police said: "If travelling, drivers are advised to allow extra time for their journey and to ensure that both they and their vehicle are suitably equipped and prepared for changeable wintry weather, to exercise caution and drive according to the prevailing weather and road conditions."
In Dumfries and Galloway, the freeze caused a spate of accidents with at least eight vehicles involved.
The accidents were spread across the region from the A76 at Auldgirth to the A75 at Crocketford.
Scottish Transport Minister Keith Brown said: "We have seen a few incidents that have caused some disruption. That is why the Multi Agency Response Team and SGoRR remain operational.
"Our operating companies have also worked through the night, with over 120 gritters out on the trunk roads and motorways to treat every route at least once.
"We are all working hard to keep Scotland moving and get back to normal where disruption does occur, particularly in the north west where conditions are the most difficult.
"We urge the public to continue to exercise care; plan your journey, listen to police advice and check available travel updates." | Drivers have been warned about very icy conditions affecting many roads across Scotland. | 16045419 | [
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