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Nahki Wells pulled the ball back for Izzy Brown to sidefoot a volley home to put the Terriers ahead before Wells himself drove in the second.
Luke Freeman capitalised when the visitors failed to clear their lines to net his first Rangers goal.
The R's pressed but could not beat keeper Danny Ward, who a produced a stunning save to deny Matt Smith.
David Wagner's visitors moved up to third in the Championship table following the victory, but were indebted to Wales international Ward for his efforts in keeping Ian Holloway's side at bay.
He produced a stunning save to keep out Conor Washington's volley, before on-loan Chelsea forward Brown scored his fourth goal in six games for the visitors and Wells doubled the lead, and has found the net in all of his three appearances at Loftus Road against QPR.
After an abject first-half display, the hosts came back into it in the second, with home full debutant Smith causing all sorts of problems for the away defence before Freeman fired home to reduce the deficit.
Ward had to be at his best again to keep out Smith's header from a cross by Washington cross, before the forward went down in the box under a challenge by Michael Hefele, only for an offside flag to deny the hosts a penalty.
Rangers piled on the pressure late on, with Ward denying Kazenga LuaLua in the seventh minute of added time, leaving the West Londoners just five points above the relegation zone.
QPR manager Ian Holloway:
"We've probably got to win five or six games, so we've got a big margin for error. We're disappointed to lose again, but if we keep playing like that'll we'll be fine.
"We created three or four chances before they scored. We let the first goal in almost out of nothing and then, before you know it, it's two. We had a mountain to climb but I was delighted with the lads' effort.
"Unfortunately, this league is about taking your chances, and we created more than enough. That's what a venomous snake does to you. It bites you - and we got bitten twice."
Huddersfield Town boss David Wagner:
"We have to be honest; we were not at our best and I think we were lucky today.
"QPR were very good. They were very aggressive, created on the wings and our keeper Danny Ward was by miles the best player on the pitch, which I think says everything.
"We got three lucky points, but three points are three points and we are so happy to have got them. We should not forget also that we scored two wonderful goals and created other opportunities as well."
Match ends, Queens Park Rangers 1, Huddersfield Town 2.
Second Half ends, Queens Park Rangers 1, Huddersfield Town 2.
Attempt blocked. Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town) header from the centre of the box is blocked.
Attempt saved. Joe Lolley (Huddersfield Town) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Nahki Wells.
Attempt missed. James Perch (Queens Park Rangers) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Matt Smith with a headed pass.
Attempt missed. Isaiah Brown (Huddersfield Town) left footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Michael Hefele following a fast break.
Foul by Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town).
Kazenga Lua Lua (Queens Park Rangers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Kazenga Lua Lua (Queens Park Rangers) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Ryan Manning.
Corner, Queens Park Rangers. Conceded by Michael Hefele.
Foul by Philip Billing (Huddersfield Town).
Matt Smith (Queens Park Rangers) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Nahki Wells (Huddersfield Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Grant Hall (Queens Park Rangers).
Foul by Joe Lolley (Huddersfield Town).
Luke Freeman (Queens Park Rangers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Huddersfield Town. Conceded by Nedum Onuoha.
Corner, Queens Park Rangers. Conceded by Michael Hefele.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Massimo Luongo (Queens Park Rangers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Delay in match Philip Billing (Huddersfield Town) because of an injury.
Philip Billing (Huddersfield Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Massimo Luongo (Queens Park Rangers).
Offside, Huddersfield Town. Aaron Mooy tries a through ball, but Joe Lolley is caught offside.
Foul by Isaiah Brown (Huddersfield Town).
Nedum Onuoha (Queens Park Rangers) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Joe Lolley (Huddersfield Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Grant Hall (Queens Park Rangers).
Substitution, Queens Park Rangers. Yeni N'Gbakoto replaces Pawel Wszolek.
Substitution, Huddersfield Town. Tommy Smith replaces Martin Cranie.
Substitution, Huddersfield Town. Joe Lolley replaces Rajiv van La Parra.
Rajiv van La Parra (Huddersfield Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Pawel Wszolek (Queens Park Rangers).
Attempt blocked. Luke Freeman (Queens Park Rangers) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Foul by Martin Cranie (Huddersfield Town).
Kazenga Lua Lua (Queens Park Rangers) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Corner, Huddersfield Town. Conceded by Grant Hall.
Nahki Wells (Huddersfield Town) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Kazenga Lua Lua (Queens Park Rangers).
Attempt missed. Pawel Wszolek (Queens Park Rangers) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. | Huddersfield Town held off a second-half fightback from struggling QPR to record their fifth straight victory. | 38864224 |
Changes to the jet stream could make flights longer and more turbulent.
And higher temperatures could affect the maximum takeoff weight, meaning more weight restrictions and even flight cancellations.
The problems could have an effect on the profits of airlines, which are already operating on slim margins.
Research from Reading University has found that flights could become lengthier and more turbulent because of climate change.
Climate change will make the jet stream stronger, and while tailwinds will help flights in one direction, headwinds will slow them down on the return leg.
This effect doesn't cancel itself out, and in fact on the transatlantic route, the costs could amount to $22m (£17m) in additional fuel every year.
The same researchers found that a more powerful and unpredictable jet stream could increase the number of incidents of severe turbulence by 149%.
This could increase the risk of injury and add to an airline's insurance costs.
Boeing says its planes can be equipped to counter the effects of turbulence as well as to avoid it altogether.
But flying around turbulence could lengthen the flight and add to fuel costs.
A study in July looked at five different commonly-used planes, and found that 10-30% of flights could require some weight restriction by the middle of the century due to rising temperatures.
That could mean a reduction in passengers and cargo of between 0.5-2%.
The problem is that a wing's lift is directly related to the density of the air flowing past it: the denser the air, the greater the lift.
In extreme heat, the air becomes less dense, making take-off harder.
Engines are affected too, because they create less thrust.
As a result, a plane might have a lower maximum take-off weight, or it might need more space on a runway to get airborne.
For most major passenger jets, the maximum operating temperature is around the 49C, give or take a few degrees depending on the aircraft.
At the moment, those temperatures are mercifully rare.
Still, major airlines were forced to delay or cancel dozens of flights out of Las Vegas and Phoenix airports in June due to a heat wave.
The concern is that climate change will make it more common.
While deserts are obviously the most affected, the study's author Ethan Coffel says some Asian airports - Bangkok and Hong Kong, for example - could see a substantial fraction of long-haul flights requiring some takeoff weight restriction during the hottest parts of the day.
Mr Coffel thinks the problem could be a "non-trivial" addition to an airline's costs, which will come in the form of reduced payloads.
This is an industry with slim profit margins and on any given flight the difference between making a profit or a loss might boil down to just a few passengers. It's why airlines overbook flights.
This year, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) expects the airline industry globally to make a profit margin of 4.1% and to keep $7.54 for each passenger, but this is a good year and those figures are much lower outside the lucrative US market.
Some industry-watchers feel the research is extremely speculative, because it deals with conditions that are several decades away.
"It could be an issue very long term, but you've got to expect aircraft performance will improve, or maybe people will fly less," said FlightGlobal's Greg Waldron.
Canadian manufacturer Bombardier says airlines that operate in very hot cities tend to get around the problem by scheduling flights in the evening or early in the morning to operate in lower temperatures.
Boeing says its customers can order a "high and hot" package, which improves performance with slightly more thrust and slightly larger control devices on the wing.
But Ethan Coffel notes that those solutions aren't free.
"There is always an opportunity cost - performance would have been better without climate change," he said.
At the other end of the spectrum, flights are sometimes cancelled due to cold weather too.
For example, more than 6,000 flights were cancelled in the US because of a storm in March, mostly due to icy conditions on the runway.
So if the climate continues to get warmer, would a few flights cancellations in Phoenix be balanced out by fewer cancellations in Toronto because of less freezing weather?
"It is possible that cold weather impacts could be reduced - that would be a useful future research area," said Ethan Coffel. | As if flying wasn't already enough of a chore, there's an increasing number of studies showing climate change might make it worse. | 40604442 |
There was a 78% majority, with 245,358 in favour and 70,253 against on a 29% turnout.
The vote means there is likely to be a huge national strike on 30 November.
On Wednesday, the government offered to change its plans, which are aimed at cutting the cost of funding public service pensions.
Following the ballot result, the Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude called on Unison members not to go ahead with a strike.
"We listened to the concerns of public sector workers about their pensions and yesterday responded with a new generous settlement which is beyond the dreams of most private [sector] employees."
"Today's Unison ballot received a very low turnout - with less than a third of their members even voting - which shows there is extremely limited support for the kind of strike action their union leaders want," he added.
However, the government's changes to its original plans have met with only a lukewarm response from public sector unions.
Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: "Yesterday's statement in Parliament was a marked improvement on earlier proposals."
"But it is important to understand that the statement has to be translated into offers in the scheme-specific talks.
"We still have had no offer in those negotiations, where such an offer can legitimately be made," he added.
The 30 November "day of action" is being co-ordinated by the TUC and could involve members of 20 trade unions in the public sector.
Five already have a mandate for action from earlier this year, while the others are still in the process of balloting their members.
If they all vote in favour of action, then the day may turn into the biggest co-ordinated strike since 22 January, 1979.
Then, during the so-called "winter of discontent", four big public sector unions held a strike in pursuit of a pay rise above the then Labour government's 5% ceiling.
As well as many NHS and local government staff, Unison represents police staff (though not police officers), probation officers, and clerical and ancillary staff in schools, colleges and universities, who are all in the local government pension scheme.
Some civil servants across the UK took part in a pension strike in June this year.
They were joined by many teachers and further education lecturers in England and Wales, and the next strike is likely to involve them all again.
The government's pension plans have been largely inspired by Lord Hutton's independent inquiry into the rising cost of public service pensions.
He suggested that most staff should pay higher contributions, with the increases being phased in during the next three years.
Then, from 2015, most current staff and all new recruits will be offered career-average schemes instead of the more expensive, mainly final-salary, versions now on offer.
These new schemes will typically involve staff working to later pension ages, which in turn will rise in step with the state pension age.
The government has made it clear all along that it wants public employees to work longer, and pay more.
But it argues that for most staff the pensions they receive will be the same as before, or even better.
Negotiations with trade unions have been taking place over the past few months, and more are scheduled, but there has been no agreement so far. | Members of the Unison trade union have voted in favour of striking against the government's plans to change public service pension schemes. | 15570669 |
Paul Dixon, 22, of The Avenue, Seaham, had initially denied five offences under the Computer Misuse Act.
However, on the opening day of his trial at Newcastle Crown Court, Dixon admitted attacking websites including Durham Police, Police Scotland and British Airways in October 2014.
He was released on bail to be sentenced on 4 May. | A man has admitted hacking the websites of British Airways and a number of police forces. | 39482304 |
Michel Onfray tweeted his controversial reaction the day after the atrocities telling followers: "Right and left sowed war against political Islam, and now they are reaping it back."
Widely seen as a maverick among left-wing thinkers, Onfray has long argued that the West should get out of the Arab-Islamic world and let the people there sort out their own problems.
Though in general he is scornful of Islam, his pronouncements have periodically received the dubious endorsement of so-called Islamic State (IS). His tweet even appeared on an IS propaganda video.
According to a French member of IS (speaking of Onfray and quoted by the expert in jihadism David Thomson), "we accept the word of truth, even from the mouth of the worst of the miscreants."
Onfray of course does not argue that the Paris attacks were justifiable. His view is that they were inevitable, as soon as France joined the United States in trying to impose Western ideas on the Middle East.
As he said in a 2013 interview, also re-broadcast by IS: "Why do we have a problem of terrorism? Muslims are not stupid. We bring war to their homes and kill them by tens or hundreds, and then expect them to be nice.
"They aren't nice, and why should they be?"
But his position after the Paris attacks has been roundly condemned by other French thinkers.
Alain Finkelkraut - a philosopher who has views close to Onfray on immigration and integration - said that it was wrong-headed to regard everything that happened in the Islamic world as a reaction to the West.
"We have got to put an end to what I call this 'guilty conscience ethnocentrism'," he said.
"The West has to drop this megalomaniac notion that it is it - the West - that in all circumstances is leading the dance.
"In fact there are other historical agents at work, with their own agendas."
How the Paris attacks are affecting Muslim children
Who were the Paris attackers?
Interview transcript: 'My brothers were manipulated, not radicalised'
Special report: In-depth coverage of the attacks and their aftermath
On the left, Laurent Joffrin, editor of Liberation newspaper, accused Onfray of lumping all Muslims together under a single rubric.
"In a naive and dangerously masochistic way, he has taken as his own the argument of the fundamentalists - who repeatedly present their own crimes as a response to western aggression.
"He turns Daesh (IS) - what an honour! - into the heart of the Umma (Muslim community), conferring on this obscurantist and terrorist militia the status of legitimate representative of Islam in the world."
Intellectuals such as Joffrin have a particular beef against Onfray. This is because in the last couple of years he has, in their view, betrayed the left, endorsing ideas on immigration and Islam put out by a group dubbed 'les neo-reacs' (the new reactionaries).
Les neo-reacs argue that France has failed to address the cultural aspects of immigration from the Arab-Muslim world, and needs to be far more aggressive in pushing its secular values.
They believe in a reassertion of the French nation state.
Among figures associated with the new reactionaries are the journalist Eric Zemmour, whose book French Suicide was a huge hit last year, and the novelist Michel Houellebecq.
In his first reaction to the attacks, Houellebecq wrote a coruscating article in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
"The (French) governments of the last 10 years (or is it 20, or 30?) have failed pitifully, heavily, systematically in their fundamental mission - which is to protect the French population," he said.
"Who was it that announced the cuts in police manpower, reducing them to exasperation, incapable of carrying out their functions?
"Who explained for years that our ancient borders had no longer any meaning, that they were a nauseous symbol of outdated nationalism?"
In his first reaction, Eric Zemmour said (jokingly) that as well as the Syrian city of Raqqa, France should bomb Molenbeek - the Brussels neighbourhood described as a hotbed of jihadism. | Recriminations are flying in the elevated world of Paris intellectuals, after a leading philosopher said France brought the 13 November attacks on itself. | 34904939 |
Geoffrey Stewart, 74, of Dumfries, was one of three men in their 60s and 70s who went missing in the Southern Uplands on Tuesday.
Police said he died late on Wednesday night at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary.
George Crosbie, 73, also from Dumfries, died earlier on Wednesday. A third man, Bobby Thomson, 64, remains in hospital.
A statement from Mr Stewart's family said: "Our family would like to extend our love and thoughts to the families involved at this very sad and tragic time.
"Sincere gratitude and appreciation goes out to all the services involved in the rescue efforts and hospital staff at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary."
The men failed to return from a walk in the hills at Durisdeer on Tuesday.
Sixteen members of Moffat Mountain Rescue team (MRT) and two search and rescue dogs combed the hills for the men until the early hours of Wednesday.
However the search was stood down amid heavy rain, snow, high winds and poor visibility.
When it resumed at 08:30 on Wednesday, more than 50 people were involved in the search, including neighbouring mountain rescue teams and a Coastguard helicopter.
The men were found that afternoon and taken by helicopter to the hospital in Dumfries.
Police said Mr Crosbie died shortly afterwards and his walking partners were treated for hypothermia.
Colin Golphin, Moffat MRT leader, said: "The weather, although OK during the day, deteriorated rapidly overnight.
"The team searched the hills during the night in extremely poor conditions.
"Our condolences are with the family of the walkers who died."
The experienced walkers were said to be regular visitors to the Lowther Hills and were familiar with the area. | A second hillwalker has died after being rescued in Dumfries and Galloway, police have confirmed. | 35603235 |
James Macmillan attacked father-of-five Mahmoud Hussein in Birmingham before running away, leaving him for dead.
Witnesses saw MacMillan shouting abuse before picking up a coping stone and attacking Mr Hussein.
At an earlier hearing at Birmingham Crown Court, Macmillan, 25, admitted attempted murder.
Detectives told the court he had never shown any remorse for the attack, which happened in December 2014 on Stud Lane in Stechford.
After the hearing, Det Insp Nick Dale said: "Despite his guilty plea, Macmillan has never shown any remorse for his actions.
"We are satisfied with the sentence handed to him, which reflects the viciousness of his unprovoked and violent attack."
Speaking to the BBC in July, Mr Hussein - who was left with brain damage and has no recollection of the incident - said the attack "destroyed" his life.
He said he had brought his family to the UK from Palestine to escape troubles there. | A "remorseless" attacker who hit a stranger over the head with a concrete slab until he was unconscious has been jailed for 17 years. | 33825215 |
Ceri Ann Sullivan, 21, from Cyncoed, lost control of her Renault Clio on the A48 near St Mellons on 24 May, 2014.
Cardiff Coroner's Court was told how the mother-of-one collided with Rodney Jones, who was driving his Ford Mondeo in the opposite direction.
Miss Sullivan suffered massive head injuries and was pronounced dead at Cardiff's University Hospital of Wales.
Mr Jones told the inquest: "As it [the Clio] came round the bend its rear came outwards towards the other lane - it seemed to twitch.
"It righted itself for a split second and I thought she'd gained control and then it violently went into a slide.
"The car skidded sideways and came at me - I was unable to avoid a collision."
Mr Jones smashed "head-on" into the passenger side of Miss Sullivan's car in the accident in May.
South Wales Police investigators said they did not know what caused her to lose control during the early morning collision on her way into work.
Collision investigator Wayne Evans said the road had been "damp" but this was not a factor in the accident.
Miss Sullivan also had defective front tyres which were below the legal tread depth although he did not believe this had caused the accident either.
The mother-of-one was not found to have been speeding or using her mobile phone at the time.
A post-mortem examination showed no alcohol in her system although pathologists did find traces of cannabis use "at some point before her death".
Coroner Andrew Barkley reached a conclusion of accidental death and said: "Why she lost control will never be known." | A young mother killed when she lost control of her car in Cardiff was not wearing a seatbelt, an inquest heard. | 29244976 |
If all goes as planned, the hope is it will usher in a second industrial revolution - and hundreds of new jobs.
In a high-ceilinged atrium, a faded banner cheerily welcomes visitors "to our grand opening" while signs in bright shades of lime green and purple proclaim "the future is now".
It's a clean, quiet, and largely vacant 94,000-sq-ft (8,700-sq-m) space - not unlike the factory of the future, according to its tenants, the University of Illinois Labs' Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII).
"It's not going to be a dark and dingy shop floor," Jason Harris, DMDII's director of communications, tells me as he gestures towards half a dozen machines that have been donated by the Institute's corporate partners, including large firms like General Electric and Lockheed Martin.
With a mix of $70m (£46m) in federal funds and over $200m in private investment, the goal of DMDII is to apply research from the consortium's university lab partners in real-world factory settings in order to create a series of software programs and private networks that will usher US manufacturing into the digital age.
The question is whether this initiative, and others like it, will one day lead to the creation of the 200-plus jobs that were lost after Republic Windows drew down the shutters - or whether the factory of the future will be spotless, advanced - and empty.
Unveiled last month, DMDII is just one of a planned network of 15 manufacturing hubs championed by US President Barack Obama as part of his National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI).
The idea is that by investing in research into applied technologies, the US can give American manufacturers a competitive edge, which will lead to more demand for goods - and more jobs.
"Our first priority is making America a magnet for new jobs and manufacturing," he said in his State of the Union speech in 2013.
That's crucial, as US manufacturing jobs tend to be higher paying and have a "multiplier" effect. This means that the economic impact of each manufacturing job - in terms of creating supporting positions and sustaining economic activity - is incredibly high.
Furthermore, the US manufacturing sector is a $3tn (£2tn) industry, which represents about 12% of total US economic output, so any technology that can give the sector a competitive edge could have a profound impact.
Here on Goose Island - where Chicago's tanneries, soap factories, and coal plants once generated so much exhaust in the late 19th Century that the area was nicknamed "Little Hell" - DMDII is working on reviving the city's manufacturing base by creating digital technologies.
"Manufacturing is very much a pencil and paper industry today - in many parts of the manufacturing sector, the 'state of the art' is using a fax machine to share information," says DMDII's chief technology officer Dr William King, who is also a professor at the University of Illinois.
"It's amazing - you go into a Walmart and there's a whole aisle devoted to wearable computing - you can buy 100 different products for your personal consumer use to digitise your life, and none of that is used in a factory."
The way it works is that DMDII issues "calls for proposals" on needs that its 70 industry partners have identified.
Organisations submit plans of action, which the institute can then choose to fund. Five proposals out of 20 have been funded so far, and all must address how the eventual technology can be monetised and sold.
The eventual products could include possible software that would allow manufacturers to retrofit old machines to make them modern, or a manufacturing equivalent of Apple's Siri, in which a worker could ask a digital assistant about a broken part while on the shop floor.
To help train workers, an initiative located just a few miles west of DMDII's headquarters - in one of Chicago's most dangerous neighbourhoods - could serve as a model.
The Chicago Manufacturing Renaissance Council was founded by Dan Swinney in the 1980s after he was laid off from his job as a machinist in the first wave of US manufacturing outsourcing.
Mr Swinney initially created the group because "there was the sense that manufacturing is going the way of the dinosaurs - but it was so devastating for working class communities that there had to be something that could be done," says his daughter, Erica, from a booth in MacArthur's, a neighbourhood soul food institution.
In 2008, after noticing that there were still quite a few manufacturers located in Austin who couldn't find workers to fill their jobs, the group started asking why it was that in a neighbourhood where "people are dying because they don't have access to gainful employment" so many jobs were going unfulfilled.
After hearing from employers that the skills students were often taught in high school were useless on modern manufacturing floors, the group founded Austin Polytechnic - a new vocational high school focused on training students so they could get current manufacturing certifications.
Back then, Ms Swinney says most people looked at them like they "were aliens".
"We couldn't find one high school counsellor who would recommend one kid going into manufacturing," she says.
Now, the school has about 120 students - and has been successful in helping low-income students transition into jobs at neighbourhood factories. It was even cited by President Obama as a potential model for training workers in the future.
In announcing the initiative, President Obama touted that over 500,000 manufacturing jobs have been created since he took office, an implicit argument that the long decline of US manufacturing jobs - which began in the 1970s, but accelerated during the recession - could be over.
Yet the biggest question of all remains mostly unanswered: who will actually be able to man these new digital technologies, which are very different than those currently in use in US manufacturing firms, big and small, across the country?
"It will create jobs but the jobs will be different, and there may not be as many workers on the shop floor," concedes Mr Harris.
Although Dr King and others emphasise that each proposal the institute accepts must include in its plan a way to educate workers for these new digital platforms, there is the basic question of where these employees will come from, given the well-known skills gap that has led thousands of manufacturing jobs across the US to go unfilled.
It's a problem that is already well-known in DMDII's back yard.
Craig Freedman is the chief executive of Freedman Seating, which was founded during the World's Columbian Exhibition in Chicago in the 1890s. Now, the firm - located just a 20 minute drive west of Goose Island - has over $100m in revenue and 700 employees.
"Every machine you buy today has some digital component to it - it isn't what our grandparents or parents operated in the day pressing a couple buttons," says Mr Freedman.
"It's going to be a challenge to fill these positions because the technology is outstripping the ability to train workers."
Mr Freedman cites the efforts of the Chicago Manufacturing Renaissance in creating a vocational manufacturing training programme at a local public school, Austin Polytechnic, as a potential model that DMDII could follow.
"I think Austin Poly is one programme that is really working on bringing the skills to the employers and not just training employees for jobs that aren't going to exist." | Nestled in the cavernous former site of Republic Windows, where over 200 workers staged a sit-down strike in 2008 to protest against the window manufacturer's decision to shut the plant, around three dozen people are working on an initiative that could transform the future of US manufacturing. | 32925287 |
The security protocol is used to encrypt Voice Over Internet Protocol (Voip) calls.
In a blog, University College London researcher Steven Murdoch described vulnerabilities in how such conversations were encrypted.
GCHQ said it did not recognise the findings.
Dr Murdoch did not say that the vulnerability would give direct access to conversations, but that it would make it possible to undermine the system's security.
The network operator could listen in to calls, or authorise someone else to, and anyone who hacked the system would be able to eavesdrop, he said.
One of Dr Murdoch's chief concerns was that the security standard has "key escrow" by design - meaning, for example, that a third party has access to data sent between two people in a conversation.
This, he said, is an example of a backdoor.
In this case, it could allow an intelligence agency, or the organisation which is using the standard, to intercept phone calls, Dr Murdoch said.
"I think this comes from a conflict of interest within GCHQ in that they are there to prevent spying but they are also there to spy - so they facilitate spying," he told the BBC.
Dr Murdoch added that he was aware of two products which use the standard, both of which are government certified.
"They could be in use inside government," he said.
The protocol in question is known as Mikey-Sakke (Sakai-Kasahara key encryption in multimedia internet keying).
It works by generating encryption keys that are used to encrypt and decrypt voice conversations.
Although it is technically possible to create these keys on two separate computers and only share part of those keys publicly, the Mikey-Sakke protocol does not do this.
Instead, keys are distributed by a third party to the conversation participants - the process known as key escrow - meaning that they are much more vulnerable to interception.
There are cases in which this would be desirable, commented Prof Nigel Smart, a cryptography expert at the University of Bristol.
"It could make sense to have a form of key escrow where someone can break into communications - you could use it for traders communicating on the London stock exchange," he told the BBC.
"You might want them to be encrypted most of the time but you might want a regulator to be able to come in and decrypt."
However, Prof Smart points out that with Mikey-Sakke, it's not clear where or how the protocol is being used.
It was up to GCHQ, he said, to make the scope of the protocol clear.
"If you don't explain how you're going to use it, what systems it's going to be used in, what the scope and limit of the escrow facility is, then you're going to get bad publicity," he said.
A spokesman for GCHQ said: "We do not recognise the claims made in this paper.
"The Mikey-Sakke protocol enables development of secure, scalable, enterprise grade products."
Questions continue to be raised over government policy towards encryption, generally.
For instance, a petition to prevent the British government from banning strong encryption standards has received a response from the Home Office this week.
"The government is not seeking to ban or limit encryption," the statement read.
"The government recognises the important role that encryption plays in keeping people's personal data and intellectual property safe online."
Out of a target of 100,000, 11,000 people have so far signed the petition.
And, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, several tech giants have raised the issue of whether governments should be allowed to gain access to secure communications on demand.
The Wall Street Journal reports Microsoft's chief legal officer as saying: "You could be placed in a situation where you have to decide what law to break. It isn't a comfortable place to be." | A security researcher has said software developed by the UK intelligence agency GCHQ contains weaknesses making it possible to eavesdrop on phone calls. | 35372545 |
Tahir Ahmed suffered a fractured skull after being attacked during an attempted robbery at A&A Newsagents in South Trinity Road on Friday 12 August.
David Allan, 49, and Liam McMeechan, 22, are accused of attempted murder, attempted robbery and assault to severe injury.
Mr McMeechan faces a further charge of police assault.
Mr Allan was charged on Wednesday 31 August and appeared in court in private the following day.
Both men made no plea or declaration at their court appearances and were committed for further examination and remanded in custody. | Two men have appeared in court in connection with the attempted murder of a shopkeeper in Edinburgh. | 37295737 |
The group, made up of representatives from the business, economic, environmental, academic and health sectors, aims to ensure environmental issues are given a greater prominence.
They will come up with a series of short and long-term recommendations to the council.
Some places are available to the public for the meeting on 2 December.
The 19 commissioners will sit over several months and collect evidence, both oral and written, as well as holding debates and hearing from expert witnesses in areas such as health, fuel poverty, sustainability and transport.
Frances Wells, one of the commissioners, said: "This is the start of a public conversation about a sustainable future for Sheffield.
"It will help us understand more about the ideas, know how and initiatives that will be good for a sustainable economy and business, good for our environment and good for local people's health and well-being." | A "green commission" set up in Sheffield is to hold its first public meeting. | 30267218 |
Brendan Rodgers' side were without Griffiths and fellow striker Moussa Dembele as they drew 0-0 in the first leg of their Champions League tie.
But the Scot is free of suspension for the return leg of the qualifier.
"Hopefully the wee man could be fit. But, if not, we have a lot of options," insisted the midfielder.
"He's been working around the clock to try to get fit.
"The wee man's always chomping at the bit to get on the park to score goals.
"As soon as he gets that ball, he wants to put it in the back of the net and I'm sure he'll be ready to do that. Here's hoping anyway."
Following the goalless first leg at Celtic Park, Rodgers explained his lack of cover for Griffiths and Dembele by stressing that having three top strikers at a Scottish Premiership club would be an expensive luxury.
Midfielders Tom Rogic and Scott Sinclair were both used up front during the third qualifying round game against Rosenborg, while Callum McGregor could be an option in Norway after his three goals in Saturday's friendly win over Sunderland.
"The gaffer is very relaxed that way and he knows we've got attacking midfielders who can create chances and score goals," said Brown.
"Scotty, Tom, Jamesie Forrest, Callum McGregor scored a hat-trick at the weekend, so we know we've got people there who can score goals.
"That's why we've got a big squad and that's why we believe and put faith in other people as well."
Brown has shrugged off a knock he took near the end of the match against Rosenborg in Glasgow.
"I'm fine," he said. "It's old age. That's what it is. Just a wee slight tackle.
"The guy left his studs in and I've managed to kick the bottom of his foot, but everything's okay."
Brown does not accept that home advantage now makes Rosenborg favourites to reach the play-off stage.
"The game plan was spot on from them," he admitted. "They defended well and they managed to stop us from scoring goals.
"But we had a lot of possession and now we just need to move the ball a lot quicker and create more chances and, once we create those chances, we have to take them as well.
"It's 0-0, so if we score a goal, they need to score two.
"It's still 50-50. It depends on who wants it more on the day."
Meanwhile, Brown revealed that former Celtic team-mate Shaun Maloney was at their Lennoxtown training ground on Monday after being linked with a return to the club as an under-20s coach.
The 34-year-old Scotland midfielder, who turned down the offer of a contract extension with Hull City, had been poised to join Aberdeen until an injury problem was revealed.
"He was in today to have a look around and I was speaking away to him," added Brown. "The wee man would be brilliant.
He's just a great guy overall. He works well, is willing to learn and he'll bring a lot of class as well." | Captain Scott Brown remains hopeful that Leigh Griffiths will be fit to face Rosenborg but thinks Celtic have plenty others who can score goals. | 40779658 |
The 7th Earl of Lucan vanished after the death of his children's nanny, Sandra Rivett, in 1974.
An inquest subsequently ruled that he murdered her.
The drama is based on John Pearson's book The Gamblers, which claimed Lucan's wealthy friends helped him leave the country.
Christopher Eccleston and Sir Michael Gambon will also appear in the drama, which will begin filming in London in August.
Writer Jeff Pope has penned a number of true crime dramas for ITV, including Mrs Biggs, and acted as executive producer on Appropriate Adult and The Murder of Stephen Lawrence.
Sandra Rivett was found dead at the home of Lord Lucan's estranged wife in the Belgravia area of London in 1974.
Lady Lucan was also attacked but managed to escape.
Lord Lucan disappeared and his car was later found abandoned and soaked in blood in Newhaven, East Sussex.
A year later an inquest jury ruled that Lord Lucan had killed Rivett, whom many believe was mistaken by the aristocrat for his wife Veronica.
Lord Lucan was officially declared dead by the High Court in 1999. Since his disappearance there have been numerous "sightings" around the world.
Executive producer Francis Hopkinson said the drama would bring "new insight and revelations which will surprise the audience".
Kinnear, the son of actor Roy, played Bill Tinner in the Bond films Quantum of Solace and Skyfall and can be seen this weekend in Channel 4 drama Southcliffe.
His first play, The Herd, has its premiere at the Bush theatre in London in September. | Skyfall actor Rory Kinnear is to play aristocrat Lord Lucan in a two-part ITV drama marking the 40th anniversary of his mysterious disappearance. | 23518476 |
The IOC said last week that men's 800m and women's 1500m freestyle races would be added to the swimming programme.
Peaty, who won 100m breaststroke gold at last summer's Olympics, was in favour of including 50m races in breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly.
"Sprints engage people more than distance events," he told BBC Sport.
"I don't like that there's another distance event and I don't think that's what's needed. I'm a bit disappointed."
Freestyle is the only discipline to have a 50m competition at the Olympics, with breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly contested over 100m and 200m only.
In previous Games, women could compete over 800m in freestyle, but not 1500m, with men contesting 1500m events, but not 800m races.
And Peaty agrees with those in the sport who have suggested that one of the two longer distances could have been dropped all together.
"Maybe they could have both just done a 1500m and then done away with the 800m," said the 50m world champion and world-record holder, who was speaking at the launch of his new Arena swimwear range.
"You can't please everyone and I know I'm a sprinter but they're the races I always remember growing up watching the Olympics."
Swimming will be among five sports to have new mixed competitions - where men and women compete against each other - at Tokyo 2020.
Peaty helped guide the British team to gold and a world record as the 4x100m mixed medley relay event made its World Championship bow two years ago.
"It's going to be a huge barrel of laughs," said Peaty, who won Olympic silver as part of the men's 4x100m medley relay team at Rio 2016.
"I'm going to put as much focus into it as I do for my individuals because it isn't just an add-on event anymore."
After a final warm-up event in Rome next week, Peaty will next target the defence of his 50m and 100m breaststroke crowns at the 2017 World Aquatics Championships.
The event in Budapest, Hungary, runs from 23-30 July. | Rio gold medallist Adam Peaty says the International Olympic Committee (IOC) made a mistake by not including three new 50m sprint events for Tokyo 2020. | 40285906 |
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said there was a moral, if not legal, duty to provide protection.
Turkey says the refugees are receiving food and shelter inside Syria and there is no need to allow them to cross.
About 35,000 Syrians have fled a Syrian government offensive on rebel-held positions near Aleppo.
Ms Mogherini said the EU was providing funding to Turkey to make sure it had the "means, the instruments, the resources to protect and to host people that are seeking asylum".
In November, the EU clinched a deal with Turkey, offering it €3bn (£2.3bn; $3.3bn) to care for Syrian refugees on Turkish soil.
Ms Mogherini's call was echoed by EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn and Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders, whose country currently holds the EU presidency.
"I look at these images of people standing at the Turkish border and I just wanted to underline the message people who are in humanitarian need should be allowed in," said Mr Koenders.
However Kilis governor Suleyman Tapsiz said the move was not necessary.
"Our doors are not closed but at the moment there is no need to host such people inside our borders," he said.
Turkey already hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees - 2.5 million.
In the past few days, the Syrian army - backed by Russian air strikes - has made a series of gains around Aleppo, Syria's largest city.
On Thursday, 60 donor countries meeting in London pledged billions of dollars to ease the plight of Syrian refugees.
About 4.6 million people have fled Syria since the civil war began in 2011. Another 13.5 million are said to be in need of humanitarian assistance inside the country.
March 2011: Anti-government protests erupt across Syria, but Aleppo is initially untouched as a result of a state crackdown
February 2012: As the rebellion turns into a conflict, clashes between rebels and the government are reported with increasing frequency in Aleppo province
July 2012: The battle for Aleppo begins. Rebels make swift advances, but are unable to consolidate their gains and the city becomes divided
2013: The government begins bombarding rebel districts with barrel bombs, causing thousands of casualties
September 2015: Syria launches a fresh offensive in the wake of Russia's intervention in the conflict
February 2016: The government captures towns north of Aleppo, threatening to encircle the city
Aleppo profile | Officials in the EU have urged Turkey to let in tens of thousands of Syrian refugees trapped on its border at Kilis after fleeing fighting. | 35514855 |
The path near Llanmadoc, north Gower, has been impassable since storms in 2014 breached a medieval seawall letting water flood in.
Local walkers have been calling for the section of the Wales Coastal Path at Cwm Ivy to be restored and rejoined.
But NRW have said this is not feasible.
After the storms a diversion was created through the nearby Cwm Ivy woods so that the Wales Coastal Path would be kept intact.
But locals in the Swansea village argue the loss of the seawall path to the route has spoiled a pretty, circular walk and it should be re-connected to the continuous walk.
Local resident Randolph Jenkins said: "Three years ago this marshland was grassland, full of flowers and wildlife. The wall has been here for centuries, and my family has been here since 1923. I have grown up with the wall and the footpath.
"There are so many people who support re-connecting the path - from local walking and rambling groups to the local assembly member. But Natural Resources Wales is against it."
Cafe owner Sian Griffiths said the loss of the route had impacted on footfall for her business.
She said: "There was a lot of places you could go for a walk. That has all gone now."
NRW have suggested a number of alternatives to owners Swansea council, including building a new path away from the marshland, or considering building a new wooden or rope bridge to bridge the gap.
Hywel Manley of NRW said: "The council is responsible for the public footpath, and we have suggested alternatives.
"But re-joining the old path is not feasible."
Swansea council said it was working with a number of bodies to try and resolve the issue. | Villagers have criticised Natural Resources Wales (NRW) after it said a path around their village should not be re-opened two years after flooding. | 38297165 |
RNLI lifeboat volunteers responded to a call-out but a Sea King helicopter crew from RAF Valley at Anglesey airlifted the pair to safety on Sunday evening. | Two teenagers had to be winched to safety by an RAF rescue helicopter after getting cut-off by the tide and stuck on a cliff at Aberystwyth. | 32377506 |
The firm said in a statement work at the Wolverhampton site would stop on 20 December after nearly 90 years there.
This will be followed by a close-down period, estimated to end in June 2017. It is believed about 70 of the 330 workers are still based at the site.
Unite union official Cyril Barrett said he felt "very sad for the people" and "for the community of Wolverhampton".
Plans were first announced for the closure of the factory in June 2015.
See more stories from Birmingham and the Black Country here
Mr Barrett, Unite union branch chair at the site, said: "I feel very sad for the people, I feel sad for the community of Wolverhampton."
He added: "We are down to about 70 to 75 people and production is gradually being wound down.
"There will be a handful of people kept back to clean the site in the new year, but production will finish on or around 20 December."
Staff had been offered work at the firm's plant in Mexico. Mr Barrett said he believed no-one in Wolverhampton had taken up the offer.
In a statement the firm said: "Over the last 18 months we have worked closely with our associates and the trade unions to help those affected by the closure of the Wolverhampton plant.
"Of those seeking further employment, the majority have secured positions around the local area."
The company added: "We are very grateful to our associates for their support and professionalism during this difficult time." | Production will cease at tyre company Goodyear's only UK factory days before Christmas, bosses have confirmed. | 38106680 |
They will examine the "practical commercial viability" of models which can tackle inequality and poverty.
The faith groups said the joint venture arose from a shared belief that financial institutions had in recent years "lost their social conscience".
They plan to come up with solutions over the next year.
In a joint statement, the faith groups said their work aimed to benefit all of society, regardless of faith or belief.
The project will research, shortlist and test ideas before a consultation and business plan phase is launched.
A workshop will be held in May in Edinburgh, with theological and financial experts coming to Scotland from as far afield as Nigeria, Malaysia and Bahrain.
The Church of Scotland and IFC said ongoing scandals of mis-selling payment protection and interest rate fixing had "raised the question" if reforms had worked in the aftermath of the banking crisis of 2008.
The Right Reverend Dr Angus Morrison, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, said: "Our current system has gone badly wrong, creating massive inequality and the destruction of our shared natural resources by money-making machines overtaking commerce that serves the common good.
"The Christian and Islamic faith traditions share a commitment to economic justice and a call to an equal distribution of the gifts of God.
"By collaborating and 'putting our money where our morals are' we have an opportunity to live out our common values and make a tangible change for those most affected by poverty."
IFC advisory board member Omar Shaikh said: "In recent years we have developed a strong relationship with the Church of Scotland and this project is a result of that positive engagement and the mutual desire to work collaboratively on a project which brings together the best of our respective faiths.
"Scotland has a proud heritage in ethical finance with the savings bank movement able to trace its origins back to the Rev Henry Duncan of the Church of Scotland.
"This model was also used as the blueprint for the early Islamic banking attempts in the 1960s, which makes it particularly poignant that this new initiative in being led in Scotland." | The Church of Scotland and the Islamic Finance Council UK (IFC) have joined forces in a drive to create new ethical financial services. | 35871981 |
Diane McGrail, 53, and 14-year-old Kira Elizabeth McGrail, from Market Drayton, died after a crash on the A5 near Weston Park on 6 July last year.
They were travelling as passengers in a black Seat Ibiza.
Vinod Dahiya, 46, from Telford, faces two counts of causing death and one count of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
He will appear at Cannock Magistrates' Court on 24 February. | A man has been charged with causing the death of a mother and her daughter in a five-car crash in Staffordshire. | 35324274 |
So much so that she altered a script when she thought Nina Fawcett was appearing as too much of a stereotypical "wife" - with the director framing the scrawled-on piece of paper.
The film - based on a true story - is about explorer Percy Fawcett, played by Charlie Hunnam, and his quest to find a mysterious lost city in the heart of the Amazon.
His first mission in 1906, accompanied by surveying partner Henry Costin (played by Robert Pattinson), sees them return with apparent evidence that this previously undiscovered community exists.
Percy is drawn to return again and again, while his wife supports him and raises their family.
But one of Nina's first lines sees her complain about how restrictive a corset is - and her inability to be contained and constrained by society is a running theme.
"In the script, I was adamant that she wasn't just a wife - because she's a suffragette and she's a mother, and she was incredibly brave, self-sacrificing and stoic," says Miller.
"She was a huge part of the engine that ran this entire discovery; she found the piece of paper that proved there was a Z. She was just tireless in her support and her love.
"I can't imagine what it would have been like to be a woman then, and I wanted to represent the frustrations of how that would have felt, and not ask for pity, which I think is an easy trap to fall into when you're playing someone who's raising children and is left behind.
"She was very defiant and I loved that about her."
The star of High Rise says Nina "wasn't your typical early 20th Century housewife", and that she and Percy - who were both Buddhists - were "forward-thinking, progressive people".
She says: "What film can do is give you a sense of what something would have felt like and the empathy that comes from that, and acknowledging how far we've come and how much further we have to go.
"I hope it's thought-provoking, and I hope it's emotive. That's all you can hope for when you make a piece of work."
Miller says she doesn't think the film would have portrayed Nina as anything other than "just a wife" if it had been made even just 10 years ago.
"On paper, initially I did read it as sort of a wife part," she says. "Both James [Gray, the director] and I were aware of that and worked really, really hard to ensure that wasn't the case.
"We were doing a script read-through and I was sitting next to James and there was a page that still felt very 'wifey'. I wrote in the middle of the read-through, in black letters, 'This. Needs. Work.' - like that, while people were reading, and underlined it.
"He's framed that piece of paper now.
"I was just pioneering for her and he was as well. He's a feminist man. Ten years ago, or in the hands of the wrong director, she would have been a complete afterthought.
"But he's a good man with daughters and a great wife and he understands that women should be appreciated and heard."
Gray says of Miller's role: "Sienna's an actress who brings great resources emotionally to the role of Nina. It was always refreshing to be on set and watch her do things you knew she was capable of but hadn't yet shown to the world."
And Hunnam says Nina was "fearless and sassy", adding: "Percy was obviously a real badass of the time, but so was Nina."
Nina ages from 20 to 60 in the film - and Miller says she is grateful to the prosthetics department.
"For me, it was just heaven, because you've an arc and you've something to map," she says. "What's this experience done to her? Is she brittled? There are so many knocks in her life, and I just wanted her to hold on to that hope.
"You can represent a life, basically, so it was really interesting. Left alone in the prop cupboard, I would have one eye and a hunchback, so I'm all up for prosthetics. And, it was interesting to play this older lady. I loved it."
One of Miller's next roles is Maggie in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at London's Young Vic, opposite Jack O'Connell.
She's previously taken on West End roles in As You Like It at Wyndham's and Flare Path, but said of the production of the Tennessee Williams play: "It's amazing, but hugely demanding - with a lot of dialogue."
But, she adds with a smile: "I'm so excited about it - slash absolutely terrified."
Lost City of Z is out in UK cinemas on 24 April.
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]. | If there's one thing Sienna Miller has in common with the character she plays in exploration epic Lost City of Z, it's that she's not afraid to air her views, loud and clear. | 39371863 |
Swansea born and bred, the 20-year-old has agreed a three-year deal after making his Pro12 debut in the draw with Glasgow in January.
Beard, who is 6ft 8in, has made five senior appearances for the Ospreys.
"I'm chuffed to bits. I've been working hard the last few years since I signed my development contract," said Beard.
"I'm just grateful of the opportunity I've been given and I'm looking forward to the next three years.
"I'm still young, I've still got a lot of things to learn and there isn't a better to place to do it than here with people like Alun Wyn [Jones] and Lloyd Ashley to learn off.
"The competition in the pack is second to none and that can only make me a better player in the future." | Wales Under-20s lock Adam Beard has signed his first professional contract with the Ospreys. | 35621161 |
United Passions was funded by about £17m of Fifa cash, and was completed before corruption charges were made against 14 of its officials in May.
Starring Tim Roth as Sepp Blatter, the hagiography of football's governing body has had damning reviews.
The Village Voice called it "not merely ham-fisted, but pork-shouldered, bacon-wristed, and sausage-elbowed".
The Guardian added that "as proof of corporate insanity it is a valuable case study."
The movie's budget was estimated at between $25m - $32m (£16- £21m), with Fifa said to have put up about three-quarters of the money.
It debuted in the States on Friday, on just 10 screens.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the FilmBar cinema in Phoenix reported takings of just $9, meaning only one person bought a ticket.
Its release came as Fifa faces an investigation into allegations of corruption during the bidding process to host the 2010 World Cup.
The US Department of Justice has indicted a total of 14 current and former Fifa officials and associates on charges of "rampant, systemic, and deep-rooted" corruption following a major inquiry by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
President Sepp Blatter stood down last week, although he faces no charges himself.
United Passions purports to present the history of Fifa through three leaders, and co-stars Sam Neill as Blatter's predecessor, Joao Havelange, and Gerard Depardieu, who plays Fifa founder Jules Rimet.
Depardieu was the only actor who attended the film's world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in 2014. | A vanity film about the history of Fifa has flopped in the US, taking just $607 (£397) in its opening weekend. | 33050289 |
The Scottish government decided not to call in decisions to shut Mouswald and Drochduil primaries along with the Elmbank Centre in Dumfries.
The properties will now be declared surplus to requirements by the education department.
They will be passed to the council's property and architectural services to decide how to dispose of the sites. | Dumfries and Galloway Council has confirmed the closure of three schools in the region. | 36672640 |
Former F1 racer Mark Webber won the championship with Porsche in 2015, while Nick Heidfeld and Kamui Kobayashi are among those competing this year.
Priaulx, a three-time World Touring Car champion, will make his Endurance bow at Silverstone this weekend.
"The crowds and popularity are growing to an all-time high - I think it's competing with Formula 1," he said.
"These guys are all pros - they're either on their way to Formula 1 or just finished Formula 1.
"The next two races will be about learning the ropes and rejoining a World Championship which is the highest level you can achieve in sports car racing."
The highlight of the Endurance season is the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which takes place in June this year.
Priaulx, 41, left BMW after 13 years to join the new Ford Chip Ganassi Racing team.
"I would say we're rookies and we've got the approach of rookies, but we're ambitious rookies," Priaulx told BBC Radio Guernsey.
"You have literally four categories racing in one big race and that makes it very exciting for the fans - there's lots of overtaking." | Ford driver Andy Priaulx believes the World Endurance Championship is rivalling the status of Formula 1. | 36052980 |
Stewart Spence used a derogatory term about homosexuals at The Marcliffe Hotel during a Hospitality Industry Trust (HIT) Scotland event last week.
Mr Spence later said he wanted to "sincerely apologise".
VisitScotland said the Marcliffe had been removed it from its website while it investigated the incident.
The agency told the BBC that all members of its Quality Assurance Scheme scheme must comply with the Equality Act 2010.
"Scotland is an inclusive, welcoming nation, and as an organisation VisitScotland is opposed to all forms of unlawful and unfair discrimination," a spokesman said.
"VisitScotland is currently looking into this matter as a priority and in the meantime, we have suspended the Marcliffe's QA membership and the hotel's entry on VisitScotland.com."
The hotel's five-star status and website listing will not be reinstated until "written evidence" is submitted that it does not operate a discriminatory policy with staff and customers, the spokesman added.
HIT Scotland said homophobic views and comments were made about the industry during the event and that it was "shocking".
A source who was at the dinner said "jaws dropped".
Mr Spence later said in a statement: "I made some very ill-advised comments at the dinner and I am absolutely mortified.
"I would like to sincerely apologise for the offence caused. I don't know what I was thinking."
The hotel - a popular venue for wedding receptions and functions - has been at its North Deeside Road venue since 1993. | Tourism agency VisitScotland has suspended the five-star status of an Aberdeen hotel following the owner's homophobic comments. | 37766831 |
The United Nations agency's estimate is for the number of teachers required to meet the promise of primary and secondary places for all children.
The biggest gaps in staffing are in sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia.
The Unesco report says there needs to be a "seismic shift" in recruitment to overcome "massive shortages".
At present, the report from the Unesco Institute for Statistic says there are about 263 million children without a primary or secondary school to attend.
This includes about 25 million children who will never set foot inside a school of any kind.
World leaders last year agreed a set of global targets for access to education, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.
But the report says that keeping this promise for primary and secondary school for all by 2030 will require a huge increase in teachers.
The most acute pressure is in sub-Saharan Africa, where countries would need to train another 17 million teachers to meet the demand.
More stories from the BBC's Global education series looking at education from an international perspective and how to get in touch
The Unesco study warns that there are already shortages of teachers in these countries, as they struggle with rising populations.
"Without urgent and sustained action, the situation will deteriorate in the face of rising demand for education," says the report.
The report identifies countries where staffing numbers are "getting worse, rather than better", including Burundi, the Central African Republic, Kenya, Malawi and Mozambique.
But there are a number of countries in the region on track to have enough staff to meet the targets, including Ethiopia, Rwanda and Swaziland.
The study highlights the importance of the quality as well as the quantity of teachers.
In countries such as Niger, Ghana, Sierra Leone and Liberia, fewer than 60% of teachers in primary school have been trained.
Pauline Rose, professor of international education at Cambridge University, says the lack of teachers also affects class sizes, particularly when the population is rising.
"So in countries like Malawi, it is common to find over 100 children in classes in the early grades of primary school. This has been a persistent problem for many years."
The lack of pupils completing secondary school in some countries in sub-Saharan Africa further compounds the shortage of teachers.
Prof Rose says that in "some countries around half of secondary school graduates would need to go into teaching to fill the teacher gap, which is clearly not viable".
There is also a problem with low pay which makes teaching less attractive, particularly to the most able graduates.
Prof Rose says that in some countries in sub-Saharan Africa teachers are "paid below the poverty line, and so not surprisingly they take second jobs to compensate. This has an impact on the quality of their teaching".
And she says there might be enough teachers trained on a national level, but there could still be local shortages in regions where schools cannot get teachers to apply.
The Unesco report highlights the importance of retaining staff and says this will require teaching to have a competitive salary and contracts which will give them job security.
Vikas Pota, chief executive of an education charity, the Varkey Foundation, said: "We already know that better pay will attract the best graduates into the profession and give them an incentive to stay.
"A 10% increase in teachers' pay tends to result in a 5% to 10% increase in pupil performance. Given the stretched finances of developing world governments, the international community has a responsibility to help fund this."
The Varkey Foundation has been experimenting in Ghana with interactive distance learning to try to offer training on a wider scale than would be possible with in-person classes. It is training up to 5,000 teachers over two years.
The UN report says the success of global targets for education will depend on tackling the teacher shortage.
"Such efforts could falter if they fail to prioritise those on the front line: the world's teachers, who are tasked with the actual delivery of a good quality education for all."
Last month, there was another warning from Unesco about the delays in creating enough primary school places by the 2030 target.
A report warned that at current rates of progress it would be 2042 before all primary-age children would be able to attend school.
The most limited access to schools was found in countries which were the poorest or most troubled by conflict.
Niger, South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Afghanistan, Mali and Chad were among the nations whose children were likely to spend the least time in education. | Almost 69 million teachers need to be recruited around the world by 2030 if international pledges on education are to be kept, warns Unesco. | 37544983 |
The footage shows some of the men beheading prisoners and conducting military training in the Middle East.
It also shows locations that were attacked in the French capital, leaving 130 people dead.
The video ends with images of UK MPs backing air strikes against IS in Syria.
The footage was released through the media channel of IS, Site monitoring group said.
President Francois Hollande said the video would not stop France from resisting terrorism.
"Nothing will deter us, no threat will make France waver in the fight," he told reporters in Delhi during an official visit to India.
The president said that the attacks were planned in Syria but prepared and organised in Belgium.
Site said the video was filmed in Raqqa, the de facto capital of IS, before the Paris attacks.
One of the images shows a man closely resembling Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the suspected ringleader of the attacks.
Abaaoud, a Belgian national, died in a police raid on a flat in Saint-Denis, near Paris, days after the attacks.
Nine suspected attackers died on 13 November or in the days after, and two more are on the run.
It is not clear why the video - which describes the attackers as "lions" who "brought France to its knees" - has been released more than two months after the attack. | So-called Islamic State has posted a video apparently showing nine of the suspected Paris gunmen before they carried out the 13 November attack. | 35397214 |
States members voted 25 to 20 in favour of the proposition lodged by the Council of Ministers.
The temporary measure was opposed by some members who felt it went too far and by others who felt it did not go far enough.
Chief Minister Ian Gorst said the target was needed to help the government plan services.
Approval of the measure came after a two-day debate.
Two amendments, including one that would have extended from five years to seven the residency period required before non-islanders can freely apply for jobs, were rejected.
The main arguments revolved around economic growth, employment and housing.
The policy is intended to be a short-term measure while lawmakers formulate a long-term strategy.
Deputy Geoff Southern said 325 was a heavy burden and not a compromise.
"The least acceptable solution to an ageing society is allowing more people to live in Jersey," he said.
"That is the opinion of residents, not of business, but of residents."
If re-elected in October, he said he would propose a vote of no confidence if ministers missed immigration targets.
"Minister after minister seem to consider economic growth at the expense of immigration. That has to stop," said Deputy Southern.
Treasury Minister Philip Ozouf said it was "deluded" to imagine that politicians were able to completely control immigration in a modern economy.
Deputy James Baker said the target would not lead to a fall in unemployment.
"It means the opposite," he said.
"It ultimately hampers growth, means less tax receipts, lower confidence and is a clear decision by the council of ministers to take Jersey further back from the competitive front line.
"Stifling growth at this point in the economic cycle is not a smart idea." | Jersey politicians have voted for an immigration target equivalent to 325 people a year. | 27222703 |
Police said the crash happened on the A6094 between Howgate and Rosewell.
The heavily damaged Honda Civic was discovered by another motorist at about 07:30 on Saturday. The 27-year-old driver is being treated in hospital.
Officers have appealed for any witnesses to contact them. | A man has been seriously injured after his car came off the road and was discovered in a wooded area in Midlothian. | 33036398 |
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After Tuesday's session, boss Michael O'Neill said he had "no concerns" about Lafferty's fitness for Sunday's Euro 2016 opener against Poland.
However, Lafferty, 28, was unable to take part in Wednesday's training.
As his team-mates trained Saint-Georges-de-Reneins, Lafferty did a workout on an exercise bike.
Norwich striker Lafferty pulled up in Tuesday morning's training session after appearing to stretch his groin, but O'Neill said it was "just a little twist".
"It was precautionary to take him out of training. We're just being careful," added the Northern Ireland on Tuesday.
"After examination by the doctor, he feels good. We're more concerned about the thunder and lightning, to be honest."
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Lafferty was the only member of the Northern Ireland squad to miss training on Wednesday morning as Craig Cathcart and Gareth McAuley took part in the session after not being involved on Tuesday.
The Norwich striker's seven goals were crucial to Northern Ireland's surprise qualification for the finals in France.
The county Fermanagh man appeared to be in some pain after reaching to control a ball during Tuesday's session.
He was directed into an ice bath on the side of the pitch at Northern Ireland's training base at Saint-Georges-de-Reneins near Lyon, and afterwards walked gingerly to the changing rooms. | Northern Ireland are awaiting scan results following the groin injury picked up by key forward Kyle Lafferty in training on Tuesday. | 36468237 |
Przemyslaw Kaluzny faces a total of 13 charges over a series of alleged incidents in April.
The 41-year-old has not yet made a plea, and Dundee Sheriff Court heard psychiatric reports were being prepared on Kaluzny's sanity at the time.
The case was continued until next week.
Kaluzny is charged with first stealing a mobile phone and baseball flat from a neighbour's flat, on 5 April, before intentionally exposing his genitals to her.
He is then accused of stealing a car key before driving off in a Renault Laguna car from outside the Watson Street property, and driving to the Kingsway Retail Park without a licence or insurance, still with the bat, an offensive weapon, with him.
Prosecutors say he then went into the Toys R Us store and behaved in a threatening and abusive manner by removing his clothing, shouting, brandishing the bat, struggling violently with staff and customers and placing them in a state of fear and alarm.
Kaluzny is further accused of running through the store naked, before abducting a six-year-old boy by picking him up and taking him from the shop against his will. He then allegedly assaulted the boy's 67-year-old grandmother by hitting her on the head with a cricket bat, to her injury.
A final charge alleges that he wilfully destroyed property belonging to another by snapping the plastic casing and metal connecting bar of a pair of handcuffs while he was being taken to Dundee's police headquarters,
Nicola Brown, defending, said investigations were ongoing as to Kaluzny's sanity at the time and his fitness to stand trial.
She said a psychiatric report would be available by next week, and Sheriff Elizabeth Munro continued the case until then. | A man accused of running naked through a Dundee toy shop, abducting a six-year-old boy and hitting a woman with a cricket bat may not be fit to stand trial, a court has heard. | 33427436 |
They warn that it will take time for the routes to be remade. The government has not announced an official decision.
At least 19 people were killed in the avalanches.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake is now known to have killed more than 7,000 people and injured more than 10,000.
Most climbers have now left the Base Camp and abandoned their expeditions, Sherpa porters based there have told the BBC.
Officials of the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) told the BBC that "icefall doctors" - who are expert rope and ladder-fixing Sherpas - decided that further climbs were impossible this spring after inspecting avalanche-hit areas of the mountain.
The Sherpas say that climbing routes have been badly damaged and in places blocked by huge chunks of ice that were shifted by the quake.
Mountaineering firms - many of whose climbers were killed by the avalanches - have now decided to abandon ascent plans after losing a huge amount of equipment, including scores of climbing ladders, in the snow.
Almost a year ago another avalanche at the world's highest peak claimed the lives of 16 Sherpa guides.
At the moment the Nepalese government is refusing to officially announce that there will be no more climbing on Everest this year.
It knows it would be an unprecedented move because it would be the second year in a row.
And that could have implications for the country's vital tourism industry of which mountaineering and trekking are major parts.
Those climbers who had wanted to continue their Everest expeditions will be frustrated, while many of the teams will want their permits carried over to next year, which will mean a loss of revenue for the government.
A senior official had also told the BBC earlier that they wanted to normalise the situation in the country as quickly as possible after the earthquake to minimise the damage to the tourism industry.
The government appears to be leaving the decision about scaling Everest to individual climbers - 357 were registered for this climbing season.
"The government will not officially announce the closure because we have given the permit to climbers," Tulsi Prasad Gautam of the tourism department told Reuters news agency.
Mr Gautam said on Monday that small tremors were still being felt on Everest.
Some climbers meanwhile have accused the government of dragging its feet over closing Everest to escape having to refund permit fees which can reach as much as $70,000 (£46,200) per climber.
The government says much of the rescue work after the quake is over, and the remaining operations can be handled mostly by local teams.
But it says that it will require huge international support for reconstruction and rehabilitation.
More than 4,000 aid workers from around the world have been helping with relief and rescue operations. | Climbing Mount Everest this season is "almost impossible" because the routes have been damaged by avalanches triggered by last month's earthquake, officials in Nepal say. | 32581236 |
The House of Commons backed the move "as a contribution to securing a negotiated two-state solution" - although less than half of MPs took part in the vote.
The result, 274 to 12, is symbolic but could have international implications.
Ministers abstained on the vote, on a motion put forward by Labour MP Grahame Morris and amended by former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw.
Middle East Minister Tobias Ellwood said the UK reserved the right to recognise Palestine when it was "appropriate for the peace process".
In 2012 the UN General Assembly voted to upgrade the Palestinians' status to that of "non-member observer state". Some 41 nations - including the UK - abstained.
Current UK government policy is that it "reserves the right to recognise a Palestinian state bilaterally at the moment of our choosing and when it can best help bring about peace".
During the Commons debate on Monday Mr Morris said recognising Palestine as a state would be a "symbolically important" step towards peace, saying relations between Israelis and Palestinians were "stuck at an impasse".
The full motion stated: "That this House believes that the government should recognise the state of Palestine alongside the state of Israel as a contribution to securing a negotiated two-state solution."
Explaining Labour's support, shadow foreign minister Ian Lucas said it would "strengthen the moderate voices among the Palestinians who want to pursue the path of politics, not the path of violence".
"This is not an alternative to negotiations. It is a bridge for beginning them," he said.
Conservative Nicholas Soames said: "I'm convinced that to recognise Palestine is both morally right and is in our national interest."
Another former foreign secretary, Conservative MP Sir Malcolm Rifkind, said he too wanted to see a two-state solution but added: "Symbolism sometimes has a purpose. It sometimes has a role. But I have to say you do not recognise a state which has not yet got the fundamental ingredients that a state requires if it's going to carry out its international functions and therefore, at the very least, I would respectfully suggest this motion is premature."
It is convention that ministers abstain when voting takes place on a backbench MP's motion and those of both the Liberal Democrat and Conservative parties did so. It is, however, Lib Dem policy to support recognition of Palestinian statehood.
The government is not bound to do anything as a result of the vote. Mr Ellwood said the timing of when the UK opts to accept Palestinian statehood was "critical", insisting: "You can after all only play this card once."
He added that Israel lived "in a tough neighbourhood" and had the right to defend itself. But he said its recent expansion settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem made it hard for its friends, including the UK, to make the case that it was committed to peace.
Mr Ellwood also said: "Only an end to the occupation will ensure that Palestinian statehood becomes a reality on the ground. The UK will bilaterally recognise a Palestinian state when we judge that it can best help bring about the peace."
The vote comes amid moves elsewhere in Europe to recognise Palestinian statehood officially, more than 100 countries having done so.
Israel says moves to recognise Palestine are premature and undermine efforts to reach a peace settlement between the two sides.
But Palestinian officials say they have been forced to pursue measures including seeking greater recognition internationally because a succession of peace talks has failed.
Labour has twice called on the government - in 2011 and 2012 - to back Palestine's request for official state recognition at the UN.
The full list of how MPs voted can be read on Hansard's Official Record of the debate. | MPs have voted in favour of recognising Palestine as a state alongside Israel. | 29596822 |
Its poll of 30,000 people found overall happiness on 74% for Northern Rail's Lancashire to Cumbria route, but 98% on Grand Central's London-Bradford trains.
The Bradford service scored 82% in the value for money category, compared with 28% for the Stansted Express.
Industry body the Rail Delivery Group said average satisfaction remained at record highs but it was not complacent.
The National Rail Passenger Survey, published twice a year, was conducted between September and November last year; people were asked for their opinion on the journey they were taking on that day. It found overall satisfaction with rail services was 83%, down from 85% a year before.
"Although generally satisfaction has remained fairly high over the last five years, we want to see a more consistently high level of service for passengers, wherever they may be travelling to and from," said David Sidebottom, acting chief executive of Passenger Focus.
He said a key factor in the survey findings was punctuality, which had barely changed in the last five years.
Overall satisfaction in this category dropped since the previous year from 83% to 79%.
Services rated as having low satisfaction for reliability and punctuality included London Midland's West Coast service with a 60% rating and First Capital Connect's Thameslink loop on 67%.
The highest-rated routes in this category were South West Trains' Island Line on the Isle of Wight and Merseyrail's Wirral route, both on 98%, followed by Virgin's London to Liverpool service on 97%.
Passenger Focus said satisfaction with how train operators handled delays also varied too widely, with its findings revealing that only 23% of people were happy with Northern Rail's South and East Yorkshire route, compared with 69% for East Coast's route from London to Scotland.
Michael Roberts, director general of the Rail Delivery Group industry body, said: "Even though overall passenger satisfaction remains at a near record high, these latest results are a sober reminder that the industry can never be complacent on the issues that matter to passengers.
"All parts of the rail industry are stepping up efforts to reduce delays and improve how we communicate with passengers, particularly during disruption. We will continue to listen to and act on what passengers tell us is important."
Rail Minister Stephen Hammond said he shared passengers' concerns over punctuality.
He added: "We are investing more than £38bn to maintain and improve our railways, and the industry must make sure that investment translates into improvements on the ground.
"I also recognise there are areas where satisfaction is low, such as fares. That is why we have reduced the average regulated fare rise."
Anna Walker, from the Office of Rail Regulation, said: "To see satisfaction dip to 83% partly due to declining punctuality and reliability of services is disheartening, and reinforces our decision to bring in tough new punctuality targets for the railways."
The survey was published as the Citizens Advice charity said the number of people seeking advice about trains has trebled, from 14,138 in 2012 to 43,282 last year, with most inquiries being about getting compensation or making a complaint. | Satisfaction with rail services still varies too widely across Britain, the Passenger Focus watchdog has said. | 25832009 |
Nigeria's intelligence agency said it had seized firearms during a raid on his properties in July.
Mr Dasuki pleaded not guilty to the charge and was given bail.
He is the first senior official of the former government to be charged since President Muhammadu Buhari was inaugurated in May.
Mr Buhari is the first opposition candidate to be elected president in Nigeria.
The judge ordered the agency to return Mr Dasuki's passport to the court as part of his bail conditions.
Mr Dasuki appeared calmed and relaxed, reports the BBC's Nasidi Adamu Yahya from the court.
Some associates of former President Goodluck Jonathan were present in solidarity to the retired army officer, he says.
President Buhari replaced Mr Dasuki and other security chiefs in July in a renewed effort to end a six-year insurgency by militant Islamist group Boko Haram.
This has been a swift change of fortune for the man who was an extremely powerful figure in the immediate past administration.
As the National Security Advisor, he oversaw the fight against Boko Haram and as a sign of how influential Col Dasuki was, it was on his advice that this year's elections were postponed - a move which some believed was aimed at buying time to give Mr Jonathan a boost.
Apart from the accusation of possessing illegal weapons, Mr Dasuki may have bigger problems ahead.
He may be asked to help explain where the $5bn (£3.3bn) annual security budget went, especially as it became clear that for some time the Nigerian military did not have the weapons it needed to fight the jihadists.
Some Nigerians accuse President Buhari of pursuing a personal vendetta. Thirty years ago Sambo Dasuki was reportedly amongst a group of officers who arrested Gen Buhari who was then the military head of state.
He has however denied that he was present when the arrest took place and Mr Buhari was toppled. | Nigeria's sacked national security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, has appeared in court in the capital, Abuja, charged with illegally possessing weapons. | 34116480 |
All but 60 of the plant's 400 jobs are set to go after a deal to save it from closure collapsed.
A task force led by Economy Minister Edwina Hart is due to meet next week to attract new jobs to Pembrokeshire.
Plaid Cymru MEP Jill Evans said money should be available under the EU's Globalisation Adjustment Fund.
"Many workers in other European countries who lose their jobs have benefitted from this support to retrain, look for new work or set up their own businesses," she said.
"We all pay into this fund so it's time that workers in Wales got the same help.
"The UK government has never used the fund because it would reduce the amount of rebate the Treasury gets from the EU," Ms Evans added.
"At a time of crisis with the announcement of the Murco closure, the government should give priority to the needs of the workers, their families and communities in Pembrokeshire."
Ms Evans said she was writing to Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb urging him to apply for the funds.
Mr Crabb, who represents the area as MP for Preseli Pembrokeshire, is inviting Murco workers to meet him at an open surgery in Milford Haven on Friday.
The Milford Haven estuary must have looked quite different before the oil industry came along in the 1960s.
It was a fishing port which, over a period of just 13 years, suddenly became dominated by four huge refineries, with towering chimneys which lit up the sky at night. One after the other, they were built in a frenzy of major construction work.
Over the years, those four refineries haven't just employed a lot of people. They've brought thousands of highly skilled workers to the area to carry out well paid jobs, which clearly benefits the local supply chain. UK petroleum industry figures suggest that Murco alone has been worth around £30m a year to the local economy.
The succession of huge multinational owners have also taken an interest in the local area, donating big money to local causes, building local facilities, and sponsoring community ventures.
So when the oil industry came to Pembrokeshire, it may have changed the landscape of the Milford Haven estuary forever, but there was much to celebrate.
Unfortunately, there is very little that local politicians can do when a global industry changes, and, one by one, three of those four refineries have now gone again, and been turned into facilities which require far fewer staff.
Pembrokeshire has suffered other jobs blows over the years. Around 325 people worked at the Dewhirst jeans factory in nearby Cardigan, until it shut in 2002.
In 1995, more than 500 people lost their jobs when the Royal Navy Armaments Depot at Trecwn shut.
The ITV Digital call centre was hailed as a vital employer of 900 people when it opened in 2000 at Pembroke Dock, but it closed two years later.
Now, the county's larger private sector employers tend to be in retail, offering low-paid jobs, often only part-time.
Since the closure of ITV Digital, Pembrokeshire has managed to stay below the average unemployment rate for Wales, thanks mainly to a decade of major construction work around the Milford Haven estuary for a new gas-fired power station and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals.
Two weeks ago the UK government confirmed planning permission for a new combined heat and power plant at South Hook.
If it goes ahead, that will create hundreds more construction jobs on the haven, at least in the short-term.
The sale of the plant to the Swiss-based Klesch Group was called off on Tuesday night after months of work behind the scenes involving close co-operation between the Welsh and UK governments.
The refinery will now enter a shut-down period and will be decommissioned while the company looks for a new buyer for what will become a storage and distribution base.
Economy Minister Edwina Hart told BBC Radio Wales on Thursday she was setting up a task force to look at ways of attracting new jobs to the area which redundant Murco workers could take up.
"Pembrokeshire and those individuals require help and assistance now," she said.
Jamie Adams, leader of Pembrokeshire council, said employers in the county and elsewhere would be invited to take a look at the "great skills" of the Murco workers and give them jobs where possible.
"There are... very new and innovative industries, those in renewables, so many opportunities coming," he said.
Energy industry executive Dr Carol Bell said she was "very saddened" to hear the news that the deal had fallen through.
Describing the oil refining industry in Western Europe as "challenged", she said she hoped former Murco employees would find other work, but stressed they may have to move to do so.
She said: "When I've seen things like this happen in America, what people do is move to where the work is. So people might have to move to find comparable jobs." | European Union funding should be sought to help hundreds of workers hit by the closure of the Murco oil refinery in Pembrokeshire, Plaid Cymru has said. | 29939556 |
The pets were found to be unwell when they returned to their owners' home in Onthank Drive, Kilmarmock, on 24 October.
The Scottish SPCA said they were taken to a local vet but had to be put to sleep.
The animal welfare charity said it believed someone was "intentionally killing these cats".
A spokesman for the Scottish SPCA said: "A number of cats in this area have been poisoned with anti-freeze over the past few years.
"Unfortunately one of the owners in this case has had her pets poisoned twice, each time leading to them being put to sleep.
"This was not an accident and someone is intentionally killing these cats. We ask anyone with information to get in touch to prevent any more animals being needlessly killed."
Anyone with information has been urged to contact the Scottish SPCA. | Three cats have died after being poisoned with anti-freeze in an East Ayrshire town. | 38262331 |
The BBC One comedy reached 9.69 million viewers, up from a live Christmas Day audience of 7.61 million.
Call the Midwife was the second most popular show, attracting 9.4 million.
Viewing figures were generally down on last year, with nearly two million fewer people watching the number one rated show than last year.
Irish-based sitcom Mrs Brown's Boys, starring Brendan O'Carroll, also topped the Christmas Day ratings last year, but the number of viewers dropped from the 11.5 million it attracted then.
The Queen's Christmas Message, the most watched programme live, fell to 7th position with a total of 8.04 million viewers.
BBC One had six of the top 10 most watched programmes while ITV had four - the channels shared the Queen's Christmas Broadcast at 15:00 GMT, which was also aired on Sky News and Sky One.
The Queen used her broadcast to highlight the importance of reconciliation between people, speaking of the impact of the Scottish independence referendum, and recalling the moment German and British soldiers put down their weapons and met on Christmas Day in 1914.
Strictly Come Dancing's Christmas special, which saw gymnast Louis Smith scoop the champion title for a second time, attracted 8.98 million viewers, putting it in third position.
Sitcom Miranda, which drew to a close on 1 January in a two-part special, was in fourth position with 8.65 million viewers and an audience share of 30.6%.
BBC drama Doctor Who was in 6th position with 8.28 million viewers, a decline on the 11.1 million viewers last year, when former Doctor Matt Smith was seen regenerating into Peter Capaldi.
ITV's highest rating Christmas Day show was for Coronation Street with 6.65 million viewers tuning in. ITV's figures do not include ITV+1. | Mrs Brown's Boys was the most-watched Christmas Day show, according to consolidated data that includes catch-up viewings. | 30657226 |
The companies owe workers £162,000 and face fines of £67,000.
They span sectors including fashion, publishing and hospitality, and include a Champneys spa and a branch of hairdressing chain Toni and Guy.
The accused companies have 28 days to respond to the allegations.
Toni and Guy said: "As a company with over 400 salons globally under its brand umbrella, we do not condone any kind of mishandling of staff wages. Once made aware, the franchisee resolved the issue swiftly."
G1 Venues, trading as Arta Restaurant in Glasgow, was the worst offender, having failed to pay £45,124 to 2,895 workers, according to HM Revenue and Customs.
Fashion retailer French Connection UK, London, failed to pay almost £16,500 to 367 workers, while Freedom Sportsline - trading as Foot Locker - owes more than £16,700 to 601 employees.
A spokesman for French Connection said the underpayments were regrettable but the amounts were small in most cases.
"French Connection co-operated fully with HMRC in assessing the amounts involved and paid the arrears at the earliest possible opportunity. French Connection fully supports the UK Government's minimum wage legislation and we are apologising to our staff for the inconvenience," he added.
In October 2013 the Government revised rules allowing it to publicly name companies that have been found to breach wage laws.
Since that time, a total of 210 companies have been accused of wage theft, after investigations by HMRC.
In total, those firms owe some £635,000 to workers, as well as fines of nearly £248,000.
Business minister Jo Swinson said: "There's no excuse for companies that don't pay staff the wages they're entitled to."
Last week, the Government announced that the minimum wage will increase by 20p an hour to £6.70 from October.
It stands at £6.50 per hour for adults, £5.13 per hour for 18 to 20-year-olds and £3.79 per hour for 16 to 17-year-olds. Apprentices must be paid at least £2.73 an hour.
Employers who fail to pay the appropriate wages can face fines of up to £20,000, as well as criminal prosecution. | Ministers have publicly named 48 employers including French Connection and Foot Locker that have paid their workers less than the minimum wage. | 32027007 |
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Klitschko, who is entering his 29th world title fight, revealed on Thursday he has made a video of his prediction for their heavyweight bout at Wembley.
That has been saved on a memory stick which will be sewn into his robe.
"It's strategy," said Joshua, 27. "An attempt at a mind game. I didn't take it the way he wanted to express it."
Former heavyweight champion Klitschko, 41, will auction his robe - and its contents - for charity after the Wembley Stadium super fight for Joshua's IBF title and the vacant WBA belt.
At a news conference free of the antics seen at many pre-fight gatherings, he told BBC Radio 5 live: "Don't ask me what's on the stick. Only one person will know about it. If that person wants to put it on social media, then the world will know."
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The pair will meet in front of an expected 90,000 fans, a post-war record for a UK boxing match.
Neither man has spoken negatively about their rival during the build-up, but Klitschko broke rank briefly on Thursday, saying Joshua is no more than a "puncher" while adding that he himself is "a boxer who can punch".
The Ukrainian added: "I am the winner, already before the event. Even if it is his home, I'm taking it as my event and my fight, my win."
Joshua, who has had 18 professional fights compared to Klitschko's 68, responded: "If I couldn't box I wouldn't be here. I may not be the best but what I do good, I do brilliantly. That's got me here.
"If he claims to be the better boxer so be it, but when I start punching you in your jaw, you best stand up to the power. This is just another stepping stone towards greatness."
Klitschko - who shouted "fake news" at one reporter when asked about a rumoured eye-socket injury - is bidding to regain two of the three major titles he lost to Tyson Fury in his last outing in 2015.
He admits being introduced as the challenger still feels "weird" but pointed to his experience, stating he had been involved in boxing for the 27 years Joshua has been alive.
Victory for the Ukrainian would see him become a three-time heavyweight champion, like his retired brother Vitali, who believes Joshua is complacent in his approach.
"I've never seen my brother so concentrated," said Vitali.
"I want to say that Joshua is a great fighter, great skills, but he has never been at such a high level. He looks relaxed, like it will be easy. It will not be.
"After I was told about the fight I studied Joshua and I was happy. He has the right style for Wladimir, a good opponent."
Joshua enters Saturday's fight with 18 knockout wins in his 18 matches, while Klitschko boasts a record of 64 wins - 53 by KO - and four defeats. | Anthony Joshua has challenged Wladimir Klitschko to "stand up to the power" after the Ukrainian branded him only "a puncher" in the run up Saturday's bout. | 39734096 |
Trucks have entered the rebel-held town of Muadhamiya, near the Syrian capital Damascus, the Red Crescent said.
Aid is heading as well to Madaya and Zabadani, also near the capital, and to the pro-government northern villages of Foah and Kefraya.
The deliveries are part of an agreement that world powers hope will lead to a "cessation of hostilities" by Friday.
However, offensives by Syrian government forces and Kurdish militia fighters on rebel-held areas of the northern province of Aleppo have dimmed hopes for a truce.
Almost 500,000 people live in besieged areas in Syria, according to the UN.
Some 100 trucks left Damascus earlier on Wednesday, carrying food, non-food items, medical equipment and medicine.
They are intended to provide one month's worth of aid for more than 90,000 people, 30,000 in Muadhamiya alone, the UN said.
A spokesman for the Syrian Arab Red Crescent told the BBC many Syrians were desperate for basic supplies.
"People in Kefraya and Foua, they need diesel to switch on the water pumps - without the diesel, they cannot dig for water, they need water, drinking water," Mouhannad al Assadi told the BBC.
Two more places - Kafr Batna and Deir al-Zour - are expected to receive aid later in the week.
Humanitarian supplies reached some of the areas last month amid reports of people starving.
On Tuesday, UN special envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said it was the "duty" of the Syrian government to allow aid to reach whoever needed it.
But a senior aide to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Mr de Mistura should focus on peace talks rather than on aid deliveries.
"His mission now is to establish a list of terrorist groups, and a list of opposition groups who should dialogue with the Syrian government," Buthaina Shaaban told the AFP news agency.
The UN named seven areas where it would deliver aid:
Syria: The story of the conflict
Medecins Sans Frontieres has said at least 25 people are now confirmed to have died when one of its hospitals in Syria was bombed on Monday - 14 more than it previously reported.
The facility was among several hospitals in schools hit in strikes on Monday, killing up to 50 people, according to the UN.
Russia, who is carrying out strikes in support of the Syrian army, has rejected accusations it was responsible.
The nationwide "cessation of hostilities" is due to come into force on Friday.
The agreement, approved by the 17-member International Syria Support Group (ISSG), does not apply to the fight against Islamic State or al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate. | The first of several convoys carrying badly-needed aid to besieged areas of Syria has arrived at its destination. | 35597909 |
A North Korean referred to only as "Kim" was paid to carry out an attack with biochemical substances, the ministry of state security said.
The plot was foiled, it said, but gave no details on the fate of "Kim". The CIA declined to comment and South Korea has issued no statement so far.
The North's claim comes amid continued high tension on the Korean peninsula.
US President Donald Trump has promised to "solve" North Korea and stop it developing nuclear weapons.
Full text of North's allegation
The statement should be treated with scepticism. The regime has a track record of false information. It would be surprising if American or South Korean intelligence agencies didn't try to have agents in North Korea but the specific allegations about an assassination plot raise many questions.
Why hasn't a suspect been produced? Why does the KCNA statement cite poisoning at one moment and a bombing the next? How would anyone get access to Kim Jong-un, a man perpetually surrounded by squads of protectors and whose movements are secret?
Journalists who go to Pyongyang have cell-phones taken off them whenever they go to events where he might be, presumably to prevent tracking - so how would an ordinary citizen get more access?
Plots to kill Kim Jong-un may have been hatched but a bald statement by the media controlled by a vicious regime does not add up to convincing evidence.
The ministry of state security statement, carried by state news agency KCNA, said the CIA and South Korean intelligence services had "hatched a vicious plot to hurt the supreme leadership of the DPRK".
It did not mention Kim Jong-un by name, but he is widely referred to as the supreme leader.
The ministry said a plot had been hatched to use "bomb terrorism" to target the supreme leadership at a military parade or at an event at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, the mausoleum of Kim Il-sung, the country's founding leader.
It said "Kim" had been told that the best method was the use of "biochemical substances including radioactive substance and nano poisonous substance" whose results would "appear after six or 12 months".
June 2014: A North Korean working at a timber firm in the Khabarovsk territory of far-eastern Russia is "corrupted and bribed" by CIA and South Korean intelligence agents. The man - "Kim" - is given cash and a "satellite transmitter-receiver" and returns to Pyongyang
January, May, August, September 2016: "Kim" is in satellite contact with South Korean agents on handling biochemical agents and on the possible sites of an assassination attempt
March and April 2017: "Kim" meets a South Korean agent in the city of Dandong in China and is given a new transmitter and more cash. Further communications take place in April. The last date that appears in the North Korean statement is "early May", when "Kim" is supposed to receive "necessary equipment" via a "liaison centre" he has set up with his funding. No details are given on "Kim's" apprehension or fate
Source: Ministry of state security statement via KCNA
Full text of North's allegation
"Only the CIA can produce such substance", it said, adding that South Korea had borne the funding.
The ministry alleged that the North Korean man had been "turned" by the CIA and the South Korean intelligence service while working in Russia in 2014.
The ministry refers to two payments to "Kim" of $20,000 (£15,500) and a further two of $100,000 for "bribery" and obtaining equipment. It refers to another of $50,000 but it is unclear if this is additional.
On his return to Pyongyang, it says, he was instructed to provide detailed information about a frequently used event ground and to assess possible methods of attack.
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Trump: I would meet Kim Jong-un
North Korea crisis: Your questions answered
The ministry statement gave no details of how the alleged plan had been uncovered or about the fate of "Kim", whom it described as "human scum".
The ministry said the "intelligence and plot-breeding organisations of the US imperialists and the puppet clique", referring to the South, would be swept away.
Earlier this year, Kim Jong-un's half brother, Kim Jong-nam, was killed with the banned nerve agent VX at Kuala Lumpur international airport. South Korea and Malaysia say it was an assassination carried out by the North.
A war of words between the West and nuclear-armed North Korea has escalated in recent weeks, with Pyongyang threatening to carry out a sixth nuclear test.
On Saturday, North Korea conducted its second failed ballistic missile test in two weeks.
The US has sent a warship to the region and installed a controversial anti-missile defence system in South Korea.
President Trump has warned of "major, major conflict" with North Korea.
But he also said this week he would be willing to meet Kim Jong-un, in the right circumstances. The White House quickly clarified that conditions were "clearly not there right now" and said the North should "end its provocative behaviour immediately". | North Korea has accused US and South Korean agents of plotting to kill its Supreme Leader, Kim Jong-un. | 39815561 |
The fall contrasted with growth of 0.7% for the UK as a whole.
Scottish government statisticians found output was flat in the service sector - and down in production and construction, by 0.9% and 0.8% respectively.
Scottish GDP grew by 0.4% over the calendar year - compared with growth of 1.8% for the UK as a whole.
Reacting to the figures, the Scottish government said the impact of the Brexit vote contributed to lower growth in Scotland last year.
Finance Secretary Derek Mackay said: "Before the EU referendum, the UK government told us Brexit will make us 'permanently poorer'.
"What is now quite clear is the economic reality of the Brexit vote.
"We have already seen significantly lower consumer confidence in Scotland since the vote last summer.
"Now we see that feeding through into our growth figures and all of this is before the UK actually leaves the EU."
The Scottish Conservatives said the country was now "on the path to recession" under the SNP.
Finance spokesman Murdo Fraser said: "Nicola Sturgeon's Scottish government must take responsibility for this mess.
"She has made Scotland the highest-taxed part of the UK and created more instability and uncertainty with her threat of a second referendum.
"Now we see the real-life impact of her mismanagement.
"These figures also smash the SNP's claim that Brexit is to blame for a slowdown.
"If that was the case, why is the rest of the UK powering ahead, while Scotland comes to a standstill?"
There may be one positive that comes out of the negative number issued on Wednesday morning by the Scottish government.
With a decline of 0.2%, October-to-December output from the Scottish economy certainly grabs attention - because if there's another quarter of contraction, it's called recession.
Read more from Douglas here.
Scottish Labour's economy spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said the figures provided "further compelling evidence that the last thing Scotland needs is another divisive independence referendum".
She added: "With Scotland's economy flatlining and Brexit creating unprecedented levels of uncertainty, it is time the SNP government in Edinburgh started taking some responsibility for its failures and acted to address them.
"The SNP should take a second referendum off the table and get back to governing the country."
Fraser of Allander Institute director Prof Graeme Roy said the latest figures were "deeply disappointing" and confirmed a more general slowdown in Scotland's economy.
He said: "With the Scottish economy shrinking in the final quarter of 2016, this means that the Scottish economy did not grow at all through 2016.
"At a time when the UK economy grew at 1.8% over the same period, this is a serious cause for concern.
"With any Brexit uncertainty affecting the UK as well, it's hard to argue that Scotland's relatively weaker performance can be explained by the outcome of the EU referendum."
He added: "While the downturn in the oil and gas sector remains part of the explanation, it is difficult to ignore the substantial declines in construction over the past year (-6%) or in manufacturing (-7.3%) - with all areas of manufacturing, not just those tied to the North Sea supply chain, shrinking during 2016."
The Scottish Chambers of Commerce called for urgent government action to restore confidence in the Scottish economy.
Chief executive Liz Cameron said: "The news that Scotland's economy is contracting at a time when the overall UK economy is growing healthily must ring alarm bells for both the Scottish and UK governments.
"While Scotland's growth has been sluggish since the fall in oil prices in 2015, the evidence now shows that no sector in the Scottish economy is experiencing growth, with production and construction falling and our service sector flatlining."
The Federation of Small Businesses described the latest growth figures as "anaemic".
Scottish policy convener Andy Willox said: "If Scotland is to avoid recession, we need to see action from governments in Edinburgh and London to boost local firms.
"Scottish government and UK government ministers need to avoid fixating on inward investment - and put real effort into developing genuinely resilient local economies." | Scottish economic output contracted by 0.2% in the final quarter of last year, according to official figures. | 39501748 |
Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is investigating the tree felling in Blackwood where about 200 hedgerow beech trees were cut down.
Action of this kind requires a licence, but NRW said none had been given.
Jim Hepburn of NRW said: "This is a devastating case which will have a terrible impact on the local environment".
The trees would have been about 150-200 years old and standing up to 49ft (15m tall).
Mr Hepburn said they provided valuable habitat for wildlife.
NRW is investigating and said it would "take the necessary action against those responsible". | Trees which were up to 200 years old have been illegally cut down in Caerphilly county. | 38694393 |
The fourth-placed Blues, looking to avoid a third top-flight defeat in a row, led when an unmarked Pablo Zabaleta calmly side-footed in Kevin de Bruyne's deep cross.
Raheem Sterling clipped the Watford bar after the break, before Odion Ighalo poked over the away team's best chance.
And the Hornets, who drop to 11th, were punished when David Silva tucked in a late second on his 200th league appearance after a swift City break.
But the one negative for Blues manager Pep Guardiola was Germany midfielder Ilkay Gundogan suffering a serious knee injury that the Spaniard said will keep him out "for several months".
Cast your mind back to the end of September. Manchester City had won their first 10 matches under Pep Guardiola, including their opening six Premier League games to move four points clear at the top of the table.
Fast forward to mid-December and the picture is less rosy.
Guardiola's side have since dropped from the summit, losing ground on their title rivals after winning just four of their previous 15 matches going into Watford's visit.
Questions have been raised about the acclaimed Spanish manager's methods, which brought him such great success at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
The Blues had not won a top-flight match in front of their own fans since that 10th successive win - a 4-0 victory against Bournemouth on 17 September.
And while their performance lacked the vigour and verve of those early days under Guardiola, the Blues will surely be more than content with a gritty display that keeps them in fourth position.
"It has been a long time without a win playing at home, it has been strange," said Zabaleta.
City remain seven points behind leaders Chelsea, now a point behind Liverpool and Arsenal - with the Gunners visiting the Etihad on Sunday.
Where City's problems have stemmed from in recent weeks is quite clear - their leaky defence.
The Blues had kept just one clean sheet in their 17 previous matches and, following Saturday's embarrassing 4-2 defeat at champions Leicester City, Guardiola changed his defence in both personnel and formation.
England centre-back John Stones was the notable casualty, dropping to the bench as his boss switched from three centre-backs to a four-man defence.
As a result, they looked more organised and resolute than any other time in the past two months.
"It was not the prettiest game tonight but we had determination to win the game. We had the clean sheet we've been talking about and were solid defensively," added Zabaleta.
However, they were still almost punished when striker Ighalo escaped Zabaleta - but he guided Norden Amrabat's right-wing cross over the bar.
The Blues were also grateful to goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, who has received some criticism from City fans, for a smart stop from Hornets midfielder Etienne Capoue.
"It is not easy to come to a new club and a new country," said Guardiola about the Chile international, who arrived from Barcelona in the summer.
"I know what people say about him, but he has good experience. When moments arrive he has to be brave. Today he was excellent."
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Watford have shown two sides to their character under Italian manager Walter Mazzarri - one which is good enough to beat Manchester United and Everton to climb as high as seventh, plus the one which capitulated in a 6-1 thrashing by Liverpool earlier in the season and lost three in four before beating the Toffees at the weekend.
This Hornets performance was somewhere in the middle. They showed resilience in not allowing City to carve them open, but chances at the other end were limited.
Despite sticking three past Everton at the weekend, Mazzarri's side have not found goals easy to come by all season.
Skipper Troy Deeney has not scored since 1 October after failing to net in his past eight appearances, eventually paying the price as he was dropped to the bench at the Etihad.
Instead Mazzarri put together a new-look strike partnership of last season's top scorer Ighalo and 20-year-old former Liverpool forward Jerome Sinclair.
Sinclair, making his full debut following a £4m summer move, was a peripheral figure, while Ighalo worked hard but blew his first real sight of goal in the final stages.
The defeat, coupled with points for West Brom and Southampton, meant Watford drop down to 11th.
Watford manager Walter Mazzarri:
"We were unlucky because of the chance for Ighalo. If he had scored we would have drawn the game and in my opinion that would have been the fair result.
"Ighalo played a great game and he deserved to score. But my whole team played well and they deserved something more. I'm very happy with them.
On midfielder Roberto Pererya going off injured: "He has a knee problem. We need to understand what it is. We will know in the next days. We have not been lucky with injuries. I am not happy with this one.
"I don't know how bad it is. I also asked during the game if he felt a twist. He said it was a knock. I am not sure."
On leaving Deeney out: "We wanted to get Deeney ready for Sunderland. We have three games in a week and he is on four yellow cards."
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Former England defender Phil Neville on Match of the Day:
It was not about the performance tonight, it was about getting the result. They did not play at their fluent best but they did score a couple of really good goals.
It wasn't convincing, it was a bit of a nervous atmosphere at the Etihad today but it was an important three points.
It's pathetic that Pep Guardiola has been getting criticism so soon into a season. We wanted Pep to come to England and now we are trying to destroy him, I don't get it.
Another Premier League home game for Manchester City - against title rivals Arsenal. The Gunners visit the Etihad on Sunday (16:30 GMT).
The Hornets are back on the road at the weekend, travelling north again when they go to bottom side Sunderland on Saturday (15:00).
Match ends, Manchester City 2, Watford 0.
Second Half ends, Manchester City 2, Watford 0.
Attempt saved. David Silva (Manchester City) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Raheem Sterling.
Corner, Manchester City. Conceded by Juan Zuñiga.
Raheem Sterling (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Juan Zuñiga (Watford).
Corner, Watford. Conceded by Gaël Clichy.
Substitution, Manchester City. Leroy Sané replaces Kevin De Bruyne.
Foul by Yaya Touré (Manchester City).
Etienne Capoue (Watford) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Jesús Navas (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Isaac Success (Watford).
Offside, Manchester City. Jesús Navas tries a through ball, but Raheem Sterling is caught offside.
Goal! Manchester City 2, Watford 0. David Silva (Manchester City) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the top left corner. Assisted by Raheem Sterling.
Aleksandar Kolarov (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Troy Deeney (Watford).
Attempt missed. Odion Ighalo (Watford) left footed shot from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Nordin Amrabat with a cross.
Substitution, Manchester City. Jesús Navas replaces Nolito.
Foul by Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City).
Isaac Success (Watford) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Raheem Sterling (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by José Holebas (Watford).
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) because of an injury.
Offside, Watford. Etienne Capoue tries a through ball, but Miguel Britos is caught offside.
Attempt saved. Etienne Capoue (Watford) right footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Miguel Britos.
Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City).
Isaac Success (Watford) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Etienne Capoue (Watford) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Etienne Capoue (Watford).
Substitution, Watford. Troy Deeney replaces Jerome Sinclair.
Raheem Sterling (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by José Holebas (Watford).
Foul by Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City).
Isaac Success (Watford) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Yaya Touré (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jerome Sinclair (Watford).
Attempt missed. Adlène Guédioura (Watford) right footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by José Holebas from a direct free kick. | Manchester City earned their first Premier League home win in almost three months as they battled past Watford at Etihad Stadium. | 38232213 |
At present, there are seven British bosses out of 20 in the Premier League and 18 from 24 Championship clubs.
Jones said: "In five to 10 years, you'd be surprised if there's a British-owned club in the top two divisions.
"And, bringing in foreign owners, they're bringing foreign coaches."
Jones highlighted the number of Midlands clubs under foreign ownership, with Aston Villa, Birmingham City, West Brom and Wolves each having recently been taken over by Chinese investors.
"I'm not saying it's wrong, I'm not having a go - but it's a trend that's going on in our country at the moment and it's what I believe," Jones told BBC Radio 5 live.
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Chinese firm Trillion Trophy Asia (TTA) completed its acquisition of Championship side Birmingham in October and replaced Englishman Gary Rowett with Italian Gianfranco Zola.
Zola has since failed to win any of his 10 matches in charge and the Blues have dropped from seventh to 12 in the Championship.
"Gary was doing a good job but the owners decided they felt they would bring in another manager that wants to do it their way," said Jones.
"They do own the club and they are entitled to do whatever they want. It was just a bit harsh on Gary - a good manager, working hard, up-and-coming.
"There are a lot of good British managers out of work but if you look at all the top divisions around the world and see how many foreign coaches are in maybe Germany, France, Italy, more of their own nations are running the clubs."
Jones also mentioned Wolves and Aston Villa replacing Italians Walter Zenga and Roberto Di Matteo with Paul Lambert, of Scotland, and Englishman Steve Bruce respectively.
"Lambert knows the team, knows the league, is a good manager," he said. "The same with Steve Bruce - the manager they have had has failed and, all of a sudden, they bring in someone who knows the league and has done OK."
Jones took over at League Two Hartlepool in January in his first managerial job since 2013.
"I have a lot of friends who are foreign managers and they have brought a lot to us," added Jones.
"But being out of work as a manager and a coach I bumped into a lot of coaches who felt the same, that we weren't getting the opportunities that we used to and that might just be because there are a lot of foreign-owned clubs who want to go with what they know rather than people in this country."
Burnley boss Sean Dyche and Crystal Palace manager Sam Allardyce have both previously stated their belief that foreign managers are viewed as "sexier".
"Antonio Conte came in at Chelsea and he got commended for bringing a hard, fast, new leadership to Chelsea, which involved doing 800m runs, 400m runs and 200m runs," said Dyche in August last year.
"I thought that was interesting because if you see us doing that you'd say we're running them round in circles - 'a young English dinosaur manager. Doesn't know what he's doing'.
"At Chelsea under Conte everyone thinks it's amazing."
Former England manager Allardyce has also voiced his concern about this issue in May 2016, saying there could be no English managers in the Premier League "very shortly" if current trends continue.
"It always goes to what seems a sexier version than we are. That is, a foreign coach, which I think is a great shame," Allardyce told BBC Radio 5 live's Sportsweek.
"Every time a job becomes available nobody goes down to League One.
"None of the foreign coaches are trained or equipped any better than we are but unless we get the opportunity to get interviewed, which is rare now, particularly for young managers, a manager getting into the Premier League now that is English or British would have to do it via getting promoted through the Championship."
Take part in our Premier League Predictor game, which allows you to create leagues with friends. | Hartlepool United boss Dave Jones believes there might not be a "British coach at the top end of football in this country or a British-owned club" in five to 10 years. | 38839446 |
Shaun Whalley's arrest follows that of striker Ricky Miller.
A club statement said Whalley has been suspended pending a police inquiry.
A Bedfordshire Police spokesman said a 27-year-old from Hitchin in Hertfordshire had been arrested on suspicion of assault.
Luton have launched an internal investigation and the statement added that the club "takes any allegation against a player or member of staff very seriously".
Miller, who has also been suspended by the League Two club, has been released on police bail. | A second Luton Town player has been arrested on suspicion of assault following an incident in the early hours of Monday morning. | 32496069 |
The Moonfruit service lets customers easily build templated websites.
But the company said it had been threatened with a cyber-attack and had decided to make its customers' websites unavailable for "up to 12 hours" to make infrastructure changes.
One business owner told the BBC it was "very bad timing".
On Thursday, 10 December, the company said it had been hit by a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack.
Attackers bombarded the company's computers to overwhelm them with traffic, so they could not serve its legitimate users.
The company consequently told customers it had decided to take websites offline for "up to 12 hours" starting at 10:00 GMT on Monday.
Film-maker Reece de Ville said: "They have been slow to communicate via their website what is going on.
"I'm going to have hundreds of people finding my site today but not being able to access it.
"I could be losing out on a lot of money from potential clients, and they may not come back if they think the company has gone.
"It's incredibly bad timing, especially for businesses selling Christmas cards and gifts on their website."
In an email to its customers, the company apologised for giving them "short notice" that their websites would be offline.
"We have been working with law enforcement agencies regarding this matter and have spared no time or expense in ensuring we complete the work as quickly as possible," the company's director, Matt Casey, said in a statement.
The BBC has invited Moonfruit to comment. | Thousands of business and personal websites have been taken offline by web host Moonfruit, after it was threatened with a cyber-attack. | 35091534 |
The reports suggest deepening ties between President Zuma and the controversial Gupta business family.
But the president's spokesman has dismissed them as an utter fabrication.
Pressure on Mr Zuma has been mounting in recent months because of corruption scandals, cabinet sackings and his handling of the economy.
Senior members of Mr Zuma's governing ANC tabled a motion of no confidence against him on Sunday at a closed-door meeting of the party's national executive committee.
But the chairman of the meeting blocked the move because it was not on the official agenda, state-owned broadcaster SABC said.
It is the second time in six months that party rebels have mounted such a challenge and they are thought likely to try again.
The BBC's Karen Allen in Johannesburg says the ANC now looks like it's in permanent firefighting mode
Emails between President Zuma's son Duduzane and figures from a company owned by the controversial Gupta family - who reportedly wield considerable influence over Mr Zuma - include a letter to the Abu Dhabi royal family, our correspondent says.
"I am happy to inform you that my family has decided to make the UAE a second home," the president is quoted as saying. "It will be a great honour for me and my family to gain your patronage during our proposed residency in the UAE."
This opens up questions as to whether this is part of an exit strategy, with Mr Zuma's party appearing to be turning against him, our correspondent adds.
Meanwhile Zuma loyalists will continue their efforts to block any no-confidence motion on technical grounds.
A motion submitted by opposition parties is being pushed through parliament and is now being examined by the constitutional court.
The president's successor is expected to be selected at a major conference of the ANC's top brass in December.
Until then the party looks set to limp from crisis to crisis, our correspondent says.
Mr Zuma's allies say he will remain in office until his term ends in 2019, but evidence of his unpopularity seems to be growing. He was forced to abandon a May Day rally this year after he was booed by workers demanding his resignation.
His ex-wife Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa are vying to succeed him. | South Africa's embattled president Jacob Zuma has been planning to set up home in Dubai, according to emails published in South African media. | 40075356 |
The National Risk Register of Civil Emergencies says such an outbreak could be expected to hit 200,000 people - and two in five of them "might die".
The document also says "high numbers of deaths could also be expected" from other forms of resistant infection.
It warns infection risk could make "much of modern medicine" unsafe.
The Cabinet Office document says the number of infections "complicated" by antimicrobial resistance is expected to "increase markedly over the next 20 years".
"Without effective antibiotics, even minor surgery and routine operations could become high-risk procedures, leading to increased duration of illness and ultimately premature mortality," it says.
It says procedures such as organ transplantation, bowel surgery and some cancer treatments would become unsafe.
The document, published last month, adds: "If a widespread outbreak were to occur, we could expect around 200,000 people to be affected by a bacterial blood infection that could not be treated effectively with existing drugs, and around 80,000 of these people might die."
It says the UK government is "leading work with international partners" to tackle this "global problem".
Prime Minister David Cameron has previously warned that the world could be "cast back into the dark ages of medicine" unless action is taken to tackle the threat of resistance to antibiotics.
England's chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies, has called the problem a "ticking time bomb".
Antibiotic use in the UK has been rising and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recently called for doctors to "question" the work of colleagues who prescribe too many.
The Cabinet Office document also rates other threats to the UK both in terms of their anticipated likelihood and their "relative impact" - with a flu pandemic and "catastrophic terrorist attacks" given the highest impact ratings. | About 80,000 people could die if there were a "widespread outbreak" of an antibiotic-resistant blood infection, according to a government document. | 32193606 |
Thiam, 22, arrives from French Ligue 1 club Dijon, having netted nine times in 38 games on loan at Clermont last term.
Barnes, 19, spent the end of the 2016-17 season on loan at MK Dons, scoring six goals in 21 League One games.
Barnes has featured once for the Foxes, coming off the bench in the Champions League loss to Porto in November 2016.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page. | Barnsley have signed Senegalese forward Mamadou Thiam on a three-year contract, plus Leicester City midfielder Harvey Barnes on a season-long loan deal. | 40898982 |
The new year-round service, which is expected to carry 26,000 passengers annually, will start on 2 December.
Flights will operate twice-weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays between Glasgow and Milan Malpensa.
The airline already flies to Milan from Edinburgh, London Gatwick and Luton airports. | Budget airline Easyjet has announced that it is expanding its Scottish network with a new route from Glasgow to Milan. | 33362719 |
The Imps were looking to reach the 100-point mark with victory but could not find a way past home keeper Lee Worgan.
Lincoln started the brighter of the two and a neat one-two between Adam Marriott and Jack Muldoon almost saw them take a 17th-minute lead but the former saw his shot hit the outside of post.
At the other end, Ross Etheridge pulled off a fine save to turn Alex Flisher's shot behind for a corner.
Lincoln came close again six minutes into the second half when Sean Raggett headed a Billy Knott free-kick into the direction of Muldoon but his effort hit the bar.
Raggett almost won it at the death but his header from a corner with two minutes remaining flashed inches wide.
Match report supplied by Press Association.
Match ends, Maidstone United 0, Lincoln City 0.
Second Half ends, Maidstone United 0, Lincoln City 0.
Substitution, Lincoln City. Alex Simmons replaces Josh Ginnelly.
Substitution, Maidstone United. Jack Richards replaces Yemi Odubade.
Substitution, Lincoln City. Elliot Whitehouse replaces Adam Marriott.
Substitution, Maidstone United. Jack Paxman replaces Stuart Lewis.
Substitution, Maidstone United. Bobby-Joe Taylor replaces Harry Phipps.
Second Half begins Maidstone United 0, Lincoln City 0.
First Half ends, Maidstone United 0, Lincoln City 0.
First Half begins.
Lineups are announced and players are warming up. | Lincoln's seven-match National League winning run was brought to an end as they were held to a goalless draw at Maidstone. | 39625860 |
The couple - believed to be in their 20s - had scrambled up a steep bank and got stuck near the top of Winnats Pass, Derbyshire.
They were saved on Sunday shortly after sending rescue staff a selfie they had taken earlier on that day.
Edale Mountain Rescue believe it was their first-ever "selfie rescue".
Winnats Pass is described as "a steep-sided valley, three-quarters of a mile long with lots of caves".
Duty leader and medical officer Steve Rowe said six members of the team went onto the hill with safety equipment to rescue the uninjured pair.
"They had described the location very well, and then one said: 'I've got an idea, I'll send you a picture as well', saying they were in a shadow cave in the background of the picture," he said.
"They had also sent a Whatsapp message with the location so that allowed us to get straight to where we needed to be."
Mr Rowe said a system exists to allow staff to text a missing person and they could then click on a link which gives their location.
But he said this was the first "selfie rescue" he had come across in 15 years.
"It was an unusual job because of the couple's ingenuity at thinking their way out of the situation," he said.
"They've used modern technology. Quite a lot of people get into trouble because they rely on technology, but this couple were able to use their mobile phone and photos for their benefit so it was a good result." | A couple who became stuck on a cliffside ledge high in the Peak District were rescued by the emergency services after sending them a selfie. | 36411902 |
The Bingley rider won by 22 seconds from Lincolnshire's Peter Hickman to become the most successful rider in the history of this class with five wins.
The victory was Hutchinson's third Superstock win in consecutive years.
Hickman sealed his third podium of the week, with Manxman Dan Kneen claiming a first rostrum finish in third place.
It was Hutchinson's second success of the week, having also won Sunday's Superbike opener.
Tyco BMW rider Hutchinson, 37, overhauled early leader Michael Rutter to lead Hickman by 4.5 seconds by the end of lap one and continued to extend his advantage throughout.
The Yorkshireman posted two laps at over 131mph, including the fastest of the race at 131.639mph on his final circuit.
"There has been so much effort put in by the guys as I only managed to get one lap on this bike in practice," said the race winner.
"The track is really green so we're not going to get near the speeds that we did last year but I tried to control it once I got a bit of a gap.
"It's hard to concentrate when you can't quite make the bike do what you want it to do."
Runner-up Hickman ended 21 seconds ahead of Kneen, with Rutter ensuring that BMW machines made up the top four positions.
Dean Harrison was fifth on a Kawasaki, with brothers Michael and William Dunlop sixth and seventh respectively.
James Hillier retired at Ballacraine on lap one, with Bruce Anstey and Conor Cummins parking up their Padgett's Hondas at the end of their opening laps.
Kneen, who in addition to sealing his best finish, also set his fastest ever lap of the Mountain Course, said: "Everything has gone right this year and it feels great."
"It felt amazing when my board showed I was lying third on the final lap and there was no way I wasn't going to get on the podium." | Ian Hutchinson clinched the 16th win of his Isle of Man TT career with a dominant performance in Wednesday's rescheduled four-lap Superstock race. | 40187306 |
The owners of Felixstowe Pier want to turn it into a multimillion-pound entertainment and conference venue with restaurants and retail units.
Officers at Suffolk Coastal District Council are recommending councillors approve planning permission next week.
Designer Haydn Evans said the new pier could be open by Easter 2014 if the plans are approved.
Stan Treadwell, the pier's owner, said: "It's great news it's being recommended for approval.
"It's our intention to proceed, but the devil is always in the detail in planning."
The council said it had had nine letters of objection, including complaints from the South Hill Residents Association that the new pier would obscure the sea view, the extra height would mean it overlooks houses and it had the potential to create extra noise.
Seven letters of support were received saying it would boost tourism and trade and regenerate the existing pier and boating lake.
Officers are recommending that outline planning permission is granted to rebuild the existing promenade so that it would be level with the entrance to the new pier.
It is also proposed that a square or plaza is created at the entrance to the pier, which could be shared with the neighbouring leisure centre.
Part of the boating lake would be turned into car parking. | Planners are recommending that a 100-year-old Suffolk pier should be demolished and rebuilt. | 19816936 |
The doll was found in March floating in the sea by a fisherman in the Banggai islands in Sulawesi province.
His family took care of the doll, and pictures soon spread online along with claims it was an angel.
Police investigated amid fears the rumours would cause unrest, and found it was in fact an inflatable sex doll.
Indonesian news portal Detik said photos of the doll dressed demurely and wearing a hijab spread on social media shortly after its discovery.
Rumours then began to spread that it was a "bidadari" along with unverified stories about how it was found "stranded and crying", prompting the police investigation.
Many across Indonesia continue to hold strong beliefs in the supernatural, including the existence of "bidadari", which is a type of angel or spirit.
Local police chief Heru Pramukarno told reporters that villagers had found the doll shortly after the rare March solar eclipse that swept across South East Asia.
The timing of the discovery led some to believe the doll had a divine provenance.
"They have no internet, they don't know what a sex toy is," the police chief was quoted as saying by AFP news agency.
In 2012, a TV station in China's Xian city apologised after running a false report that a local farmer had discovered a giant piece of precious lingzhi mushroom.
The fleshy object, found in a well by the farmer, was identified by many viewers as a sex toy made of silicone. | Indonesian police have confiscated a sex toy from a remote village after its inhabitants and some on social media mistook it for an "angel". | 36189614 |
The £10.6m project is part of a Cube Housing Association's programme which already covers Collina Street in Maryhill and Gorget in Knightswood.
The centre will have three 500KW wood pellet boilers and 1.5MW of condensing gas boilers for top up energy.
Underground heat mains, a new pipe network and heating systems and metering will all be installed.
Social Justice Secretary Alex Neil announced details of the scheme during a visit to Cube's Gorget district heating scheme.
"This £10.6m project will make a massive difference to the lives of hundreds of households in Glasgow, supplying heat more efficiently and saving people money on their bills," he said.
"The district heating scheme will help tackle fuel poverty, be better for the planet and make homes in the Broomhill area warmer and cheaper to heat."
British Gas is carrying out the building and installation work at Broomhill and providing £5.6m in funding.
The remainder of the cost is being met by a £5m loan from the Scottish Partnership for Regeneration in Urban Centres Fund - a joint Scottish government and European Regional Development Fund initiative.
Cube chair Liz Ruine said: "This huge investment in our homes will make a big difference to the lives of Cube tenants and to the communities around it." | A new energy centre will be built to provide heating and hot water to 702 homes in the Broomhill area of Glasgow. | 35251048 |
The Sunflower E has been stuck since 10 March, after legal claims worth £5m were made against the ship in the UK courts.
Eleven Indonesian nationals, one Filipino and a Romanian are on board.
The crew can now go home after liquidators agreed to pursue an £82,000 unpaid wages claim on their behalf.
The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) said the crew had been left without running water or a fridge while awaiting a decision.
ITF inspector Darren Procter said: "Obviously, the crew want to get home, to return to their families and they want the money they have worked for."
He added: "Obviously, their families have got no money, there are school fees to be paid and there have been personal tragedies, which have happened while they have been on board the vessel."
The ship was held in Newport by the UK Admiralty Marshal after claims were lodged against it in the UK Admiralty and Commercial Court.
An order for the ship's sale - made to pay mortgage and utility bill debts against it - was made in the UK court on 8 April.
The ITF confirmed on Tuesday a legal block it had sought against the ship's sale was lifted, after it secured a deal with Italian liquidators to pursue the crew's claim for unpaid wages.
The union said it was now "assisting the crew home", with their departure expected on Wednesday. | The crew of an Italian cargo ship stranded at Newport docks for more than three months can now return home. | 32920950 |
The blueprint for all life forms on Earth is written in a code consisting of four "letters": A, T, C and G, which pair up in the DNA double helix.
But the lab organism has been modified to use an additional two, giving it a genetic code of six letters.
Researchers hope the work could lead to bugs that can help manufacture new classes of drugs to treat disease.
The team from the US, China and France have published their work in PNAS journal.
Previous research had shown that an "unnatural base pair" (UBP), consisting of two synthetic letters called X and Y, could be incorporated into the DNA of Escherichia coli bacteria.
But the resulting bugs grew slowly, and the UBP was expunged after several rounds of cell division.
Now, Prof Floyd Romesberg, from The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, and colleagues, have shown that their single-celled organism can hold on indefinitely to the synthetic base pair as it divides.
"We've made this semisynthetic organism more life-like," said Prof Romesberg, senior author of the new study.
"Your genome isn't just stable for a day," said Prof Romesberg. "Your genome has to be stable for the scale of your lifetime. If the semisynthetic organism is going to really be an organism, it has to be able to stably maintain that information."
Key to the advance was a modification to a molecular transporter, which helps the E. coli bugs import the UBP.
Next, the researchers optimised their previous version of Y so that it could be better recognised by the enzymes that synthesise DNA molecules during replication.
Finally, the researchers set up a "spell check" system for the organism using the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tool.
They were able to take advantage of the tool to ensure that any cells that dropped X and Y would be marked for destruction by the organism.
Their semisynthetic organism was thus able to keep X and Y in its genome after dividing 60 times, leading the researchers to believe it can hold on to the base pair indefinitely.
"We can now get the light of life to stay on," said Prof Romesberg.
"That suggests that all of life's processes can be subject to manipulation." | Scientists have created bacteria that thrive using an expanded "genetic alphabet". | 38737693 |
Oxford's atmosphere breaks European limits for nitrogen dioxide but a government action plan suggests the city will hit targets by 2020.
Oxford City Council said it was "surprised" by the estimate and "concerned" at the modelling used.
The government said it was committed to improving air quality and cutting harmful emissions.
According to a 2016 report from the Royal College of Physicians, air pollution across the UK is linked to around 40,000 premature deaths annually.
Last year Oxford was listed by the World Health Organisation as one of 10 urban areas in the UK breaching air pollution safety levels.
But the government's Draft Air Quality Action Plan predicted Oxford will meet the European Union's target by 2020, without any further action.
Estimates 'incorrect'
Oxford City Council said the government's modelling was "excessively optimistic" and did not use the council's own data.
Councillor John Tanner said: "These draft proposals find that, without taking any further action, the city will have no problem by 2020. We think this is incorrect."
A spokesperson from the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said it had set out its plans to improve air quality through its new programme of Clean Air Zones.
"We are firmly committed to improving the UK's air quality and cutting harmful emissions," the spokesperson added.
The Draft Air Quality Action Plan was described as "weak" by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan when it was released in May, and criticised by the Liberal Democrats and The Green Party.
Consultation on the government's plan closes at 23:45 BST, and DEFRA said it would publish its final air quality plan by 31 July. | Government estimates for air pollution in Oxford have been deemed "excessively optimistic" by the city council. | 40285184 |
Some of them, including two senior commanders, are now in the military.
Until now, only those who supported the previous government have faced justice, prompting criticism from activists.
More than 3,000 people died after ex-leader Laurent Gbagbo refused to accept defeat in presidential elections.
Both sides were accused of atrocities in the bloody clashes that followed the disputed polls.
Mr Gbagbo is awaiting trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, where he faces charges of crimes against humanity, which he denies.
Earlier this year, his wife Simone Gbagbo was sentenced to 20 years in jail in Ivory Coast for her role in the violence.
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) told BBC Afrique that it welcomed news of the indictments, which would help to "re-balance" legal proceedings related to the post-election violence.
"All of them have been charged in proceedings concerning the most serious crimes committed during the crisis," a judicial source told the AFP news agency, confirming an earlier report about the charges.
Presidential elections are due to be held in October, with Mr Ouattara considered a clear favourite.
Africa news updates | Ex-rebels who backed Ivory Coast's President Alassane Ouattara are among 20 people charged with war crimes committed during post-election violence in 2010-2011, judicial sources say. | 33440208 |
Durham, which took on about 60 officers in October last year, said the new positions are mostly to replace officers who have left.
Applicants had a fortnight to apply with the next phase to be held in January.
The Police Federation said it shows people are still excited by the opportunities the police force offers.
Kevin Wilson, branch board secretary for the Durham Police Federation said: "It's one of the only jobs in the world where you go in to start your shift but have no idea what you will end up doing.
"It doesn't surprise me that so many applied, a lot of forces aren't recruiting so I imagine people from all over the country will have applied."
Durham Police and Crime Commissioner Ron Hogg said: "The high number of applicants wanting to join our police service is a reflection of the commitment and standards of our officers and staff."
Durham Police were criticised by Home Secretary Theresa May in October for apparently not having any black officers, although the force's figures show they have "at least" 19 officers classed as black or ethnic minority including one who is British Black Caribbean.
Mr Wilson said efforts are always being made to recruit people from a variety of backgrounds. | Six hundred people have applied for 50 police constable jobs at Durham Constabulary, the force has said. | 34744418 |
The 40-year-old lifted the county from sixth to a third-placed finish in Championship Division Two after standing in temporarily following Paul Grayson's departure in September.
Silverwood had been Grayson's assistant since January 2014 and was "unanimously" chosen by a panel.
"I passionately want to see Essex be successful," he said.
Former England captains Keith Fletcher and Graham Gooch, cricket committee chairman Ronnie Irani and recruitment specialist Wasim Haq were part of the selection panel, which interviewed a five-man shortlist.
"There were some big names on the panel, and to know I've got the support of those guys is immense," added Silverwood.
"There was so much knowledge sat around that table, and to have them pick me out is fantastic."
Silverwood appeared for Yorkshire, Middlesex and Essex during his playing career, taking 577 first-class wickets at an average of average of 27.41 in 184 matches.
He made his Test debut against Zimbabwe in 1996 and later made five further appearances, the last in the 2002-03 Ashes series in Australia, and also played seven one-day internationals.
"Chris Silverwood is a tremendous young coach with the vision, passion and dedication that this club deserves," said Essex chief executive Derek Bowden, who was also on the selection panel.
"His work with the England Lions this month, alongside his time spent with other England and Wales Cricket Board development squads over the past few years, demonstrates how highly regarded he is in the game of cricket." | Former England pace bowler Chris Silverwood has been appointed as head coach of Essex on a full-time basis. | 35059602 |
The £20m Leonardo AW189 - built in Yeovil, Somerset - is the first of two that will operate from Lee-on-the-Solent, near Portsmouth.
The aircraft will conduct training missions in the coming months before starting operational duties in April.
In the meantime the existing AW139 helicopters will continue to operate.
Bristow Helicopters, which operates the UK search and rescue (SAR) helicopter service on behalf of HM Coastguard, has been flying training missions to prepare for the aircraft entering service.
The remaining nine AW189s will be in operation at Prestwick, Lydd, St Athan and Inverness by May 2019.
The 11 AW189s have been specially fitted for UK SAR operations: | Hampshire's Coastguard base is to take delivery of the first of 11 new helicopters being given to five bases across the UK. | 38505033 |
Maurice McCloughan and his friend, Killian Doherty, were killed when two cars collided on the A5 Doogary Road just after 08:00 GMT on Saturday.
There was a guard of honour from his sports club when the cortege arrived at St Lawrence's Church in Fintona.
Mr McCloughan's family said he was their "golden boy" and "never without an infectious smile".
They also said that Mr Doherty was "another fantastic young man that didn't deserve to go so soon and leave behind another shattered family".
"We have laughed together, cried together, danced together and now, without our centrepiece, our baby, we have to mourn together," said the family's statement. | The funeral of a young GAA player who died in a crash in County Tyrone has taken place in Omagh. | 38303842 |
Andy Payne, 53, suffered serious head injuries when he was hit at speed by a Fiat 500 in Brighton on 14 January.
CCTV footage of the crash, released by police in a bid to find witnesses, was viewed almost three million times.
Speaking from her home in Hove, Mr Payne's wife, Lisa, said: "He's getting better slowly. He's not too bad."
In the video, Mr Payne is thrown several feet into the air by the impact in Kemptown. He then lies motionless in Montague Place as passers-by come to his aid.
Crimestoppers confirmed that a £1,000 reward had been offered to help track down the driver of the Fiat 500.
Sussex Police said two people had been arrested in connection with the crash which happened on 14 January.
A 31-year-old man from Brighton was held on suspicion of dangerous driving causing serious injury, attempting to pervert the course of justice and aggravated vehicle taking.
He was detained after trying to hide on a roof in Donald Hall Road, Brighton.
A 56-year-old woman, also from Brighton, was arrested on suspicion of attempting to pervert the course of justice. Both have been bailed until 3 April.
Police said hundreds of people came forward after watching the CCTV and the man and woman were arrested as a direct result.
"We have passed on all the well wishes from people on social media to the victim who is grateful for the support," said Sgt Dan Pitcher.
"He is continuing to recover well at home." | A man who was thrown several feet in the air and left for dead during a hit-and-run crash is "getting better slowly", according to his wife. | 35417963 |
Cacic, ranked 761 in the world, came back from a set down to win 5-7 6-4 6-4 on Bedene's 27th birthday on Tuesday.
Elsewhere, British number four Dan Evans won 6-2 6-1 against German world number 96 Benjamin Becker in the first round of the Citi Open in Washington.
Evans needed 49 minutes to win and will now face Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov. | British number three Aljaz Bedene was beaten by Serb Nikola Cacic - a player ranked 692 places below him - in the first round of the Croatia Open. | 36832498 |
The teenager, from Manchester, was allegedly found with a copy of a document known as the Anarchist Cookbook.
She appeared at Manchester Youth Court accused of two offences under the Terrorism Act 2000.
She was granted bail but was told she must observe a curfew.
The girl must also report to police three times each week and is forbidden from applying for a passport.
In addition, she must remain in England or Wales.
It is alleged that, on or before 3 April, the girl was in possession of information of a kind likely to be of use to a person preparing or committing an act of terrorism.
As well as the Anarchist Cookbook, she was alleged to have possessed a second document, described as "a recipe for explosives".
Wearing a green parka jacket and headscarf, she sat before the district judge flanked by her mother and an uncle.
No pleas were entered, and she was released until a further hearing planned for 26 August. | A 16-year-old girl accused of possessing a guide to making bombs has been released on bail after appearing in court accused of terror offences. | 33705944 |
Lidiya Tsekova secured work at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge after an "unknown person" did a phone interview in her place.
She had already been rejected for a job over concerns about her English after a previous face-to-face interview.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) decided she was not fit to practise.
The council's conduct and competence committee heard Ms Tsekova was told in February 2014 that her English skills were not good enough for her to work at Addenbrooke's.
She had come to the interview with a friend, who had done most of the talking, with Ms Tsekova only answering "yes" or "no".
When she failed to get the job, she was told to reapply when her English had improved.
But when she later applied for another position on the dialysis ward, someone else who was fluent in English did the phone interview. Ms Tsekova was given the job as staff believed it was her on the phone.
It was only when she turned up for an induction and for her first day at work that staff realised she could not speak English.
On her first day, a senior clinical nurse had to mime actions to Ms Tsekova about taking off her apron and gloves as she did not understand the spoken instructions.
Concerns were reported to HR, and Ms Tsekova later refused to do a language assessment when asked to do so by the NMC.
She was dismissed for gross misconduct.
The committee found Ms Tsekova did not have the necessary knowledge of the English language to practise safely. | A Bulgarian woman who was hired to work in a hospital despite not understanding any English has been suspended from practising as a nurse. | 40378676 |
Then 45 years ago, Led Zeppelin arrived, and transformed it into what some critics say is the most significant location in the history and development of rock music.
After two years of almost constant touring, by January 1970 the band were badly in need of a rest, and so singer Robert Plant suggested a cottage where he had holidayed as a child.
Bron Yr Aur had neither running water nor mains electricity, but three months later they had written 'Led Zeppelin III', an album so radically different that it would influence the rest of their career.
It was also during this time that guitarist Jimmy Page is reputed to have begun writing one of the band's most iconic songs, Stairway to Heaven.
According to music journalist Jonathan Wingate, Led Zeppelin III's "folky" feel could only have been created at somewhere like Bron Yr Aur.
"After Led Zeppelin I and II, the fans were expecting another beefy album driven by heavy guitar riffs. But without any electricity to power big amplifiers, what they actually came up with was something which sounded much more acoustic and pastoral," he said.
"When you listen to it you just have to close your eyes and you can hear the echoes of this remote country house. It's an album which you can imagine being performed around a crate of beer in front of a roaring log fire."
The album led others such as Peter Gabriel and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young to try and emulate its less formal, rural style, and has given rise to a whole genre of unplugged, folk-inspired albums.
Though Mr Wingate believes Bron Yr Aur's influence stretched far beyond the acoustic sound necessitated by the lack of power there.
He said: "I've interviewed Jimmy Page and Robert Plant about this, and they both say that the time they spent in Bron Yr Aur was the first opportunity they had to properly get to know each other.
"From 1968 they'd been touring constantly, writing and recording on buses and in hotel rooms. When they finally got to take stock in such tranquil and picturesque surroundings, they got to explore exactly what it was they wanted to get out of their music.
"As well as Led Zeppelin III, the material they wrote in Wales went into the untitled album, 'Houses of The Holy' and 'Physical Graffiti', and the style heavily influenced them from then on."
Today Bron Yr Aur is owned by Scott and Ruth Roe.
And while Mr Roe does not mind the constant stream of fans who make pilgrimages to his doorstep, he is always at pains to urge his visitors to see beyond the band itself.
"Don't get me wrong, the music they wrote here is amazing, but if you arrive too obsessed with Led Zeppelin then you miss the important thing, which is the beauty which inspired them in the first place.
"In fact it's not just Led Zeppelin, the environment here has inspired a whole raft of artists."
To celebrate the anniversary of Led Zeppelin III, Mr Roe and the Friends of Bron Yr Aur are staging an exhibition of some of the other, lesser-known creations to have been inspired there.
Running from 25th to 29th April at Machynlleth's Owain Glyndwr Centre, the exhibits include paintings and photographs of the landscape, and even a sculpture of Bron Yr Aur carved from an Oak tree brought down in last year's storms. | A shepherd's dwelling, hay loft, and latterly holiday home; the cottage of Bron Yr Aur spent two and a half centuries standing - almost unnoticed - overlooking the Dyfi Valley, three miles north of Machynlleth. | 32335059 |
All 330 workers at the Wolverhampton plant are expected to lose their jobs.
Trevor White, who has worked at the factory for 40 years, said the closure would be "another nail in the coffin for the manufacturing industry in Wolverhampton".
Goodyear "considered all options" before deciding to shut, bosses said.
Wayne Devaney, who has been at the plant for 27 years, said the workforce had "grafted really hard and done everything it could to make the factory viable", and that the announcement had "come out of the blue".
Eric Fric, managing director of Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK, blamed the impact of inexpensive imports, the cost of transport and "the strength of the pound".
Goodyear said its plans were subject to consultation with staff and unions, and it was "determined to find responsible and fair solutions for all affected employees".
The plant, which has been at the site since 1927, is due to close by the summer of 2017.
A taskforce, led by Wolverhampton City Council, is being set up to support staff.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said it would be working with the local authority to help workers find new jobs.
The chairman of Goodyear's branch of the Unite trade union, Cyril Barret, said the Wolverhampton plant had been regarded as one to aspire to.
"When you review it, the performance of the workforce, the Goodyear management globally were bringing people in here to witness the transformation of the plant, its improvement in productivity.
"The workforce was trusted to deliver products all over Europe.
"The news of the closure is devastating." | Workers at tyre company Goodyear have said they are "disgusted, upset and angry" at the decision to close its only UK manufacturing site. | 33282173 |
Some parents at the school are unhappy no pupils at the Argyll and Bute school get to sit exams in fourth year.
At most schools, students typically study for National 4 and 5 qualifications in fourth year.
A review by the council is suggesting that there should be more flexibility in the system.
A final decision is expected soon.
The way the new qualifications are put into practice at Hermitage is unusual.
In other schools, after taking exams in fourth year, those who are able to, then go on to study for Highers in fifth year.
But at Hermitage, students chose the six subjects they would eventually like to achieve a Higher in when they are in third year.
Then in fifth year, they are presented for the qualification they have the best chance of achieving.
This means students who might want to leave in fourth year do not get the chance to gain a qualification.
Some parents at the school also argue students are also losing out in fifth year - for instance because they have had little practice sitting exams - and are getting poorer results then than they should have.
Argyll and Bute Council has been carrying out a review of the curriculum at the school.
In a letter sent to parents on Friday, the council highlights planned action.
This includes the possibility of allowing students to gain qualifications in fourth year if this is the right thing for them.
Decisions on just what should happen are expected later.
The council's policy lead for education, Councillor Rory Colville, said the review recognised "many positive aspects to the current model" but also identified a range of improvements that could be implemented.
Mr Colville said: "Amongst a wide range of improvements the school will look to apply greater flexibility in the delivery of the current curricular pathways; improve tracking and monitoring of individual pupil progress to inform early and appropriate interventions and improve engagement with parents and pupils to develop a shared understanding of assessment and presentation policies.
''Wherever possible we have taken action as the review has progressed.
"A full outline of the findings and proposed actions can be found in a report to the Community Services Committee, available on the council website on Saturday. The committee will consider this paper at its meeting on Thursday 10 December.''
The council said it acknowledged that there was "a significant level of parental concern" about the way the new system had worked out at the school.
National 4 and 5 qualifications replaced Standard Grades across Scotland during the 2013-14 school year.
The new system is designed to be more flexible and the focus is now on the highest level of qualification a student achieves in each subject by the time they leave - not what they have by the end of a particular school year.
The argument is that a National 5 qualification is redundant once a student gets a Higher in a subject in the same way as an O Grade or Standard Grade was. But the question is whether studying for it, actually helped them to go on to get the Higher.
Many schools give able students the chance to bypass National 5 qualifications so they can spend two years working towards their Highers. Some believe this helps students to avoid a sudden increase in the difficulty of the course when they enter S5 so improves their chances of a good grade in the Higher.
However decisions on whether to go down this path are usually taken on a subject by subject basis by schools, students and parents.
A spokesman for the parents campaigning for change at the school said: "I welcome the findings of the report however hold judgement until the action plans are published and understood.
"Greater flexibility is what parents want for their children and we can only wait and see if the changes alluded to meet the parents wishes.
"I hope and wish that both the school and parents can move forward and develop a strong partnership for the benefit of the pupils now. However as I said once the action plans are understood then we will be in a better position to move forward." | Changes could be made to the controversial way new school qualifications are put into practice at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh. | 35009412 |
Westminster Magistrates' Court heard the Wasps fly-half was so drunk his eyes were "glazed" after the smash on Imperial Road, Fulham on 1 June 2015.
The 28-year-old was found to be over twice the drink-drive limit.
He was ordered to pay a total of £7,620 in fines and costs and banned from driving for 18 months.
Cipriani had admitted drinking two espresso martinis and a glass of champagne less than an hour before he was arrested, but claimed he was "shocked" when he was told he was over the limit.
His lawyer had tried to get the charge dismissed, claiming there was not "sufficient" evidence as the breathalyser was not working properly.
But Chief Magistrate Howard Riddle said he was "satisfied" the machine had given a "correct reading".
"There is ample evidence from independent witnesses that Mr Cipriani showed signs of being affected by alcohol," he said.
Solicitors for the player, who was at Sale Sharks at the time, said they would launch an appeal.
"Mr Cipriani maintains his innocence and has always disputed being the cause of an accident," they said.
Cipriani, of Raynes Park, had been celebrating with other players in Chelsea after an England XV thrashed the Barbarians on 1 May.
He was found to have 67 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath when his car collided with a taxi and he was arrested.
The legal limit to drive in England and Wales is 35 micrograms. | England rugby star Danny Cipriani has been found guilty of drinking and driving after his Mercedes crashed into a minicab following a night out. | 36620396 |
The 14-year-old girl was stuck up to her waist when she was pulled from the sand on Machynys beach, outside Llanelli, at 19:20 BST on Saturday.
Coastguards attended along with the RNLI, police, fire and ambulance crews.
Incident commander Steve Richards, of Llanelli Fire Station, has warned people to be aware of the sinking sand and high tides.
"If you are venturing out to the beach around the Llanelli area, let people know where you're going and make sure you have a mobile phone with you," he said.
"The girl was very lucky to get out of that sand with the speed of the tide yesterday." | A teenager had to be rescued after becoming stuck in quicksand in Carmarthenshire. | 39761340 |
He said UKIP would then have a "legitimate voice" in Scotland.
During the speech, Mr Farage described First Minister and SNP leader Alex Salmond as a "fanatical EU federalist".
He challenged Mr Salmond - who said UKIP had been "humiliated" before in Scotland - to a debate on independence.
The MEP, who was in Edinburgh to back the party's candidate David Coburn at a rally, predicted that UKIP was on course to win one seat in the European Parliament in Scotland, adding that "if things go really well, possibly even two".
Addressing the first minister, Mr Farage said: "Mr Salmond is pretty scared of us. He's not not scared of the size of us at the moment, but he is very scared of the argument."
Mr Farage, whose party is not currently represented at any level in Scotland, told the rally that Scottish people think they have a referendum on independence "but they haven't".
He accused Mr Salmond of wanting Scotland "to be part of the European Union - and you cannot be an independent, self governing, democratic nation, and be member of a club whose laws are supreme over yours".
The UKIP leader argued that the whole of the UK should be independent, with devolved powers to each part.
About 200 protesters and supporters of Scottish independence turned up at the launch venue to protest against the UKIP leader where they booed and heckled UKIP supporters as they arrived.
The BBC's political correspondent in Scotland, Glenn Campbell, said a small group of UKIP supporters told him they had been unable to get into the rally because of the protesters.
UKIP won 0.91% of the vote across Scottish regions in the 2011 Holyrood election. | UKIP leader Nigel Farage has told a rally in Edinburgh that his party "will win a seat" for the first time in Scotland in the upcoming European Parliament elections. | 27339519 |
Sherratt worked with Blues head coach Danny Wilson at Bristol.
"I'm thrilled to be able to take the opportunity to work at Cardiff Blues and alongside Danny once again," said Sherratt.
Paul John will take on the role of skills coach while he studies for a master's degree, and Graham Steadman will continue as defence coach.
Steadman will be assisted by Richard Hodges.
Sherratt joined Bristol's coaching staff in 2011 having previously worked with Worcester.
"I'm delighted that Matt Sherratt will join us," said Wilson.
"I worked closely with him at Bristol and he always impressed me with his attention to detail and we share a similar coaching philosophy and view of the game." | Bristol's Matt Sherratt will join Cardiff Blues as attack and backs coach at the end of the season. | 35199446 |
Both teams struck the woodwork, with Stefan Johansen and Rory Loy hitting the same post either side of half-time.
The visitors had two second-half headers cleared off the line, while Scott Bain denied Leigh Griffiths twice amid a fine defensive display.
Dundee remain sixth in the table, level with Partick Thistle who sit seventh.
This was only the second time in 23 matches that the defending champions had failed to score in a game and Dundee can take pride from the fact both were against them.
Dundee successfully frustrated them in a 0-0 draw at Celtic Park last month and the tactics Paul Hartley employed that night certainly did a similar job in the first half here.
Griffiths was largely isolated up front as the home defence starved the Premiership's top scorer of supply from wingers Partick Roberts and Gary Mackay-Steven.
Roberts did trick his way into space on seven minutes but blazed his shot over the bar while Scott Bain got out quickly to block from Griffiths when he did break free.
At the other end Celtic's main moments of anxiety once again came when defending set pieces and Nick Ross nearly capitalised only for Craig Gordon to parry his shot.
The goalkeeper needed Dedryck Boyata to tidy things up on that occasion but the Scotland international made a clean save to prevent Loy converting a Kane Hemmings flick-on.
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Celtic did start to exert a more sustained period of pressure on Dundee goal near the interval but Gary Mackay-Steven slashed a chance well wide of the target.
Then two minutes from the interval Johansen's shot took a wicked deflection as it looped its way beyond Bain but the ball bounced to safety off the keeper's left hand post.
Celtic enjoyed Barcelona levels of possession in that first half but the statistics show they actually had fewer shots on target than the home side during the first 45 minutes.
Craig Wighton replaced Dundee's top scorer Hemmings at the interval and the winger, who tormented Celtic in last month's draw, nearly scored with his first run. It took a crucial save by Gordon to deny the youngster.
The change certainly didn't have a negative effect on Dundee and they were only the width of the post away from taking the lead on 57 minutes as they pinned Celtic back for a spell.
Paul McGowan once again brought out the best in Gordon with a shot from 20 yards and Loy could only turn the loose ball against the frame of the goal from close range.
That sparked a positive response from Deila's side and successive corners from Roberts around the hour mark saw first Mikael Lustig then substitute Charlie Mulgrew see headers cleared off the line.
It was end-to-end stuff in a frantic finale as both sides chased a win but Dundee denied Celtic a clear-cut chance while always looking a threat on the counterattack. | Dundee held Celtic to a goalless draw in a tumultuous Dens Park clash, with the league leaders moving five points clear of second-placed Aberdeen. | 35430133 |
Now an 11-year-old from Whitehead in County Antrim is hoping to follow in their footsteps after clinching a trial with the team known as Los Blancos.
Mark Norris, who is with the Linfield FC academy, is due to take part in the trial next year.
His dad Keith said it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for his son.
"His mum is Japanese and he was at a Real Madrid summer camp in Japan a couple of years ago and that was the start of a few guys taking a wee note of him," he told BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster.
The family were advised by Real Madrid to have a video made of Mark playing.
"To cut a long story short there is a guy Raul Valbuena who passed it (the video) on to another guy Alvaro Benito who is an ex-Real Madrid player, who has invited Mark over in May for a week to have a look at him."
Mr Norris said the trial was expected to take place at the Real Madrid training complex, surroundings which are familiar to Mark, who is also a participant in Club NI, the Irish Football Association's player development programme.
"Mark has been over at Real Madrid before in a tournament with Greenisland Football Club a couple of years ago at the training ground, so he will not be in awe," Mr Norris added.
"He will be used to the surroundings, it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
"He is still only 11-years-old, he is only a kid, there are a lot of good footballers in Northern Ireland and he is so lucky.
"People can think one guy has potential and one guy hasn't, it is up to Mark, if he wants to make it, he has to make it himself.
"I will support him as a dad and help him to pursue his dream."
Mark, a pupil at Carrick Grammar School, is a central midfielder who says his favourite player is Cristiano Ronaldo because "he always has good skills and scores the most goals".
The Portuguese international and former Old Trafford icon would also have provided many magic moments for his dad, a Manchester United superfan, renowned for his huge flag "Big Lily" which he takes on global trips following the Red Devils.
Ironically, Mr Norris once gave "Irish lucky charms" to Real Madrid legends Fernando Hierro and Raul Gonzalez Blanco in 2000, the same year they knocked United out of the UEFA Champions League.
Which begs the question, what would he do if United also expressed an interest in his son?
"I'm a Manchester United fan so that answers that question," he replied. | David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo are just some of the superstars who have graced the shirt of Spanish soccer giants Real Madrid. | 35003642 |
While supporters are used to seeing changes in playing personnel, this campaign feels like a significant step into the unknown with Swansea now in the hands of US owners.
The people's club is now owned by investors, though the supporters' trust has retained a 21.1% stake in the Swans and influential chairman Huw Jenkins remains in the role.
However, dreams that heavy investment from the new owners and increased television revenue would translate into a summer or recruitment have proved unfounded, with Swansea arguably selling as many key players as they have managed to sign.
The failure to 'bring home' former midfielder Joe Allen, will also rankle.
"I suppose we are all a little impatient, I guess even more so as we didn't bring in Joe Allen," coach Alan Curtis admitted after losing out on the Wales midfielder.
"I think there is a lot of frustration, with the supporters, but also with the players and maybe the board themselves."
The failure to sign Allen, who joined Stoke despite Swansea registering their interest, was not the only body blow they have suffered.
After eight-years and over 350 games, defender Ashley Williams has departed for Everton in a move the Swans say the Wales captain instigated.
Manager Francesco Guidolin also opted to allow a trio of strikers, Alberto Paloschi, Eder and Bafetimbi Gomis to leave the club, though it is the sale of Andre Ayew, Swansea's top scorer last term, that leaves the biggest dearth in terms of goals.
However, confidence will be high that Swansea have signed players who can provide the goals to more than make up for the absence of the Ghana forward.
Spanish international Fernando Llorente arrives with a pedigree as large as his six foot six inch frame, having excelled previously in both La Liga and Serie A.
He is joined by record signing Borja, the 23-year-old Atletico Madrid forward, who scored 18 La Liga goals on loan at Eibar last season.
Influential midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson will be charged with providing the ammunition for Swansea's Spanish contingent, with his new contract. signed amid serious interest from other Premier League clubs, perhaps Swansea's most significant off-season deal.
The additions of Netherlands duo Leroy Fer and Mike van der Hoorn also boost a club still seeking a replacement for Williams.
The Swans could be forgiven for feeling the fixture computer has conspired against them as they face an exceptionally tough start to the season.
While they will feel confident of their prospects in openers against Burnley and Hull City, two sides expected to be battling the drop, the Swans then face a succession of difficult contests against the Premier League's glitterati.
The Swans visit champions Leicester at the end of August before clashes with Chelsea, Southampton, Man City in September.
Clashes with Liverpool, Arsenal and a visit to Stoke follow in October, with Man United, Everton and Tottenham all in action against the Swans by the beginning of December.
A flying start will be extremely tricky, so Swansea need to ensure their Spanish revolution begins with a bang, not a siesta.
Championship title odds: 1000/1
Championship relegation odds: 7/2
Subscribe to the BBC Sport newsletter to get our pick of news, features and video sent to your inbox. | It has been a summer of seismic adjustment at Liberty Stadium, with the club receiving a major overhaul on and off the field. | 37037095 |
The 78-year-old head of state's surgery lasted just over five hours at the University of Tokyo Hospital.
The emperor, who has suffered from poor health in recent months, plays a largely ceremonial role but is respected deeply by many Japanese.
He ascended the throne in 1989 following the death of his father, Emperor Hirohito.
Emperor Akihito was accompanied by his wife Empress Michiko when he checked into the hospital on Friday morning.
The operation began at around 09:30 (00:30) on Saturday and ended at around 15:30.
"The operation went smoothly as planned," one of the three surgeons, Minoru Ono, told a news conference. "We confirmed a sufficient blood flow back in the arteries."
The emperor had reportedly nodded and told his wife and daughter "it feels good" as he emerged from the effects of the anaesthetics.
But another surgeon, Atsushi Amano, said it was too early to talk confidently of the operation's success, saying it would be "measured by whether the emperor can regain the normal lifestyle he had wished for".
"We are looking forward to that day, but until then, we'll use the word success sparingly," he said.
Emperor Akihito is expected to remain in hospital for about two weeks, during which time his first son Crown Prince Naruhito will handle official duties.
Doctors decided to carry out the operation after tests earlier this month showed his heart condition had worsened since a year ago.
Dr Ono said two of the three coronary arteries were repaired using a blood vessel from another part of his body.
Last year, Prince Akishino, who is second in line to the throne, called for debate on a retirement age for the head of state, who spent almost three weeks in hospital in November 2011.
Emperor Akihito also had surgery for prostate cancer in 2003 and suffered stress-related health issues in late 2008.
In 2009, the Imperial Household Agency said he would cut back on official duties such as speeches and meeting foreign dignitaries.
Under Japan's 1947 Imperial House Law, the emperor is succeeded on his death by a male relative. Crown Prince Naruhito is first in line to the throne, followed by his younger brother Prince Akishino.
Women cannot inherit the Japanese throne and so Princess Aiko, the daughter of Crown Prince Naruhito, cannot succeed her father.
Third in line to the throne is Prince Hisahito, Prince Akishino's son. | Japan's Emperor Akihito has undergone a successful heart bypass operation at a hospital in Tokyo, the palace says. | 17071024 |
"This isn't just about me. It's about my friends, my family and everyone who comes from a background similar to mine, anywhere in the world," he said.
Mr Khan also warned that Mr Trump's "ignorant" views of Islam "could make both our countries less safe".
Mr Trump said he was "happy" that Mr Khan would be leading London.
"If he does a good job and frankly if he does a great job, that would be a terrific thing," he added.
Mr Khan told the BBC he was supporting Hillary Clinton - who is vying for the Democrat nomination - in her bid for the White House, adding: "I hope she trounces him."
Last year, Mr Trump, the Republican presidential hopeful, called for a temporary halt to all Muslims entering the US in the wake of the deadly terror attack in San Bernardino, California.
He said many Muslims nursed a "hatred" towards America and a ban should be in force "until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on".
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Mr Khan, the son of Pakistani immigrants and now London's first Muslim mayor, expressed concern during his election campaign that he would not be able to visit the US, if Mr Trump were elected, because of his faith.
Asked by the New York Times how the ban would apply to Mr Khan, Mr Trump said: "There will always be exceptions."
But in response, the new London mayor said: "This isn't just about me - it's about my friends, my family and everyone who comes from a background similar to mine, anywhere in the world."
He added: "Donald Trump's ignorant view of Islam could make both our countries less safe - it risks alienating mainstream Muslims around the world and plays in to the hands of the extremists.
"Donald Trump and those around him think that western liberal values are incompatible with mainstream Islam - London has proved him wrong."
Mr Khan officially took office on Saturday following Thursday's election, which saw him defeat his Conservative rival Zac Goldsmith by 1,310,143 votes to 994,614 - giving him a larger personal mandate than either of his predecessors Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone.
Mr Khan accused the Conservatives of using tactics "straight out of the Donald Trump playbook" in their campaign against him during the mayoral race, saying: "They used fear and innuendo to try to turn different ethnic and religious groups against each other."
But senior Conservatives including Chancellor George Osborne and Defence Secretary Michael Fallon have defended the tone of the Tory campaign, saying it was part of the "rough and tumble" of an election. | Sadiq Khan has rejected US presidential hopeful Donald Trump's offer to make the new London mayor an "exception" to a ban on Muslims travelling to the US. | 36256087 |
The former Peterborough boss was appointed boss of the Keepmoat Stadium side, who are currently 20th in the table, on Friday.
"This club is ready to go, there is no question about that," the 43-year-old told BBC Radio Sheffield.
"There is a good blend of youth and experience. I've had plenty of time to look at them and there's a team there."
He continued: "It has been made clear that the aim is to get to the Championship. The reality of that means this season we need to get 21 wins from our remaining 35 games.
"It's an exciting challenge and one that we will meet head-on."
Ferguson, who is the son of former Manchester United boss Sir Alex, will take charge of the team for the first time in Saturday's home match against Bradford.
He has replaced fellow Scot Paul Dickov in the Keepmoat Stadium dugout after the former Oldham boss was sacked on 8 September after taking just six points from their opening six league games.
Interim boss Rob Jones won one of his six matches in charge to leave Doncaster above the League One drop zone on goal difference only.
Ferguson left Peterborough in February after four years with the London Road side and has signed a rolling contract with Rovers.
He said he had benefitted from taking some time out of the game.
"I wanted the break and I felt that I needed it in the right way," he added.
"I went straight from playing to management and then had maybe a month between leaving Peterborough and Preston and going back to Peterborough.
"There was an offer straight after I left Peterborough and in the summer, but the timing wasn't right." | New Doncaster boss Darren Ferguson believes the team can challenge for promotion from League One this season. | 34548413 |
Bones from archaeological sites in Orkney show voles were cooked or boiled for food, or possibly for pest control.
This is the first evidence for the exploitation of rodents by Neolithic people in Europe, say scientists.
Rodents were consumed later in history, with the dormouse regarded as a delicacy during Roman times.
The Orkney vole - found only on the archipelago - is thought to be a subspecies of the European common vole.
Charred bones suggest the vole was cooked, most likely for food.
The remains were found with waste products from other foods, suggesting voles may have been roasted in the fire. Alternatively, they may have been cooked or boiled in a pot.
Dr Jerry Herman, curator of mammals at National Museums of Scotland, said evidence from excavations showed there were large amounts of rodent remains in human dwellings.
This suggests that the piles of bone fragments - mainly from voles but also some field mice - were the result of human intervention of some sort.
"The remains were getting into the refuse of the inhabitants and in very large numbers and over a considerable period of time - several hundred years," he said.
"Because some of the remains were burnt - we think that they had been roasted - it may be that the inhabitants were actually eating them and that explained how they got into their living space in such numbers."
The voles were quite small and "would be no more than a mouthful" to eat, but "a perfectly good source of protein", said Dr Herman.
The remains were originally excavated at the well known Skara Brae site in the 1970s.
Scientists sifted through nearly 60,000 rodent bones and teeth to study their origins.
The findings are published in the journal, Royal Society Open Science.
A recent genetic study on the same samples deduced that the vole was introduced to Orkney direct from what is now Belgium.
It is thought the rodents were brought to the island by sea along with cattle and deer by early farmers or traders.
Follow Helen on Twitter @hbriggs. | Rodents appear to have been roasted for food by Stone Age people as early as 5,000 years ago, archaeological evidence suggests. | 37690206 |
The prime minister made his historic announcement in Downing Street after briefing the cabinet.
He said he would be campaigning to remain in a reformed EU - and described the vote as one of the biggest decisions "in our lifetimes".
Ministers immediately divided up into the leave and remain camps as the campaigns got under way in earnest.
The referendum date announcement comes after renegotiations on the UK's relationship with Europe were finalised on Friday night after intense wrangling at a two-day summit in Brussels.
The agreement, which will take effect immediately if the UK votes to remain in the EU, include changes to migrant welfare payments, safeguards for Britain's financial services and making it easier to block unwanted EU regulations.
Some Conservative MPs have announced their intention to back the prime minister. The Labour Party, SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Lib Dems are also in favour of staying in.
But many Conservatives have announced they will back the leave campaign including Mr Cameron's long-time ally, Justice Secretary Michael Gove.
London Mayor Boris Johnson, who has previously been a Eurosceptic, has yet to declare where he stands.
On Sunday, he is expected to confirm he will campaign for out, but has told friends he is genuinely conflicted, BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg says.
Number 10 is resigned to him opposing them following a meeting this week, at which he was disappointed with Mr Cameron's plans, our editor adds.
Mr Johnson has also discussed his decision with Mr Gove.
According to the latest opinion polls, the British public are thought to be fairly evenly split.
Despite the polite promises of civilised debate, Mr Cameron is risking the unity of his party with the referendum.
Cabinet ministers like Iain Duncan Smith and Michael Gove, finally allowed to speak out today, rushed straight from Downing Street to work the phones for one of the leave campaigns.
The gang of six who posed awkwardly for photographs could well become seven when Boris Johnson breaks his continuing silence.
But whatever the individual calculations, expressions of opinion on either side are dwarfed by what today's announcement finally confirms - that in 123 days British voters have the chance to choose to step away from one of the institutions that has shaped our laws, and all of our lives, for more than 40 years.
Read more from Laura
In his statement, Mr Cameron warned that leaving the EU would be a "leap in the dark" as he urged voters to back his reform deal.
"The choice is in your hands - but my recommendation is clear. I believe that Britain will be safer, stronger and better off by remaining in a reformed European Union."
Home Secretary Theresa May said the EU was far from perfect but "for reasons of security, protection against crime and terrorism, trade with Europe, and access to markets around the world" it was in the national interest to remain in.
Read more
Mr Gove said it had been the most difficult decision of his career to go against the prime minister, but he believed "our country would be freer, fairer and better off outside the EU". He added: "Far from providing security in an uncertain world, the EU's policies have become a source of instability and insecurity."
Commons leader Chris Grayling, another leave campaign backer, said: "I actually believe the EU is holding this country back. We cannot control our borders, limit the number of people who come here do trade deals.
"I do not believe we can take decisions in the national interest when we are part of the European Union."
He said the prime minister had "put in a Herculean effort to try to deliver change" to Britain's relationship with the EU, but the "concessions" he had brought back from Brussels did not "give us the opportunity to take decisions in the national interest" without consulting Brussels.
Culture Secretary John Whittingdale, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers and Employment Minster Priti Patel, who is not a full cabinet member but attends meetings, have also joined the leave campaign.
Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom - who is not a member of the cabinet - will also back the leave campaign.
The rest of the cabinet joined Mr Cameron in the remain camp, including Business Secretary Sajid Javid - previously seen as a potential leave supporter.
The UK held a referendum in 1975 shortly after it joined the EU. The vote was in favour of staying in, but there have been growing calls from the public and politicians for another vote because, they argue, the EU has changed a lot over the past 40 years.
The organisation has extended its control and now sets rules in a wide range of areas - including on the environment, transport and consumer rights.
David Cameron initially resisted calls for another vote, but in 2013 he changed his mind. At the last election he promised to renegotiate Britain's relationship with Europe ahead of a public vote to decide whether the UK should stay in or leave the EU.
Mr Cameron claims his EU reform deal will give Britain "special status" within the bloc - tackling concerns over migrants getting "something for nothing" from the benefit system and exempting the country from the EU drive for "ever-closer union".
But critics say it does nothing to tackle high levels of immigration or take back powers from Brussels.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage said: "The 23rd is our golden opportunity, let battle be joined. Mr Cameron keeps on telling us that Britain would be better in a 'reformed Europe'. But he fails to point out that there is no reformed European Union on offer here. The prime minister's EU deal is pathetic."
Britain Stronger in Europe released a campaign video accusing leave campaigners of "utter hypocrisy" for attacking Mr Cameron's deal, claiming that many of them have been calling for the same reforms.
The key points of Mr Cameron's reform deal are:
The Labour Party is officially campaigning for Britain to remain in the EU, although a small group of the party's backbenchers have joined the leave campaign.
Leader Jeremy Corbyn voted for Britain to leave the European Economic Community, as the EU was then known, in 1975 but has since changed his mind, arguing that "it brings investment, jobs and protection for British workers and consumers".
He branded Mr Cameron's negotiations a "sideshow" aimed at appeasing critics in the Conservative Party and said he had missed an opportunity to protect jobs and "stop the spread of low pay".
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said in a statement the SNP will be "leading the positive case to keep Scotland in the EU". | The UK will vote on whether to remain in the EU on Thursday 23 June, Prime Minister David Cameron has said. | 35621079 |
Negotiations between National Liberation Army (ELN) rebels and the government have been delayed over the ELN's continuous kidnappings.
An earlier deal signed with Farc rebels has ended more than 50 years of war.
On Tuesday, the government called on the ELN to free its remaining hostages.
At least four people are still being held by the Marxist group, the government said.
In its announcement, the ELN said it wanted to "find solutions to difficulties".
The government and ELN agreed in March to hold formal negotiations in Ecuador in May but the rebels failed to meet the government's demand that it stop kidnapping people.
How significant is Colombia's ELN rebel group? | Colombia's second-largest rebel group has said it is ready to begin formal peace talks with the government, days after a historic peace deal was signed with the country's largest rebel group. | 37505149 |
The 22-year-old Scot finished four seconds ahead of Polish opponent Justyna Kaczkowska in the final.
She set a personal best in qualifying on the way as she added gold to the silver she won in the elimination race.
Archibald was part of Britain's gold medal-winning team pursuit quartet at the Olympics in Rio.
"I thought I was destined for failure because I'd been working at a lot slower pace in training," she said.
"I guess I must still be benefiting from my Olympic form but I'm also pretty well rested.
"It guarantees me a place at the World Championships as continental champion so that's my ticket booked. I'm really happy."
Elsewhere, Elinor Barker finished fifth in the points race and Mark Stewart sixth in the new-look omnium, which has been reduced to four events from six and contested over one day rather than two, while Rachel James fell in the Keirin final. | British Olympic champion Katie Archibald won a third consecutive women's individual pursuit title at the European Track Championships in Paris. | 37735927 |
The four-time world champion, back up to third in the world rankings, lost the first frame but sealed victory with breaks of 64 and 69.
But world number two Stuart Bingham made a shock early exit, losing 4-3 to world number 45 Mark Joyce.
Welshmen Mark Williams and Matthew Stevens and Hong Kong's Marco Fu were other first-round winners.
World number four Judd Trump eased through without dropping a frame against Zhang Yong but Northern Ireland's Mark Allen had to battle back from 3-0 down to avoid an upset from Christopher Keogan.
Anthony McGill enjoyed a good start in his home city, making four 50-plus breaks in his 4-1 victory against John Astley.
Fellow Scot Rhys Clark, ranked 76 in the world, also progressed with a 4-3 win over compatriot Eden Sharav.
There was further Scottish success as Scott Donaldson swept aside Germany's Itaro Santos 4-0 to set up a meeting with Higgins in the second round.
Higgins, seeking a 29th ranking title to move into second place on his own in the overall list behind Stephen Hendry's record of 36, was pleased to overcome his friend McManus.
"Alan has beaten me the last couple of times so I am very pleased to come through," he said. "I feel as if I am into the tournament now and hopefully I can go far.
"I have won two tournaments in Scotland before, I can still remember them and I would love to win this one."
The latest event in the Home Nations Series, the tournament is the first World Snooker ranking event held in Scotland since the World Open in 2010, won by Neil Robertson. | John Higgins beat fellow Scot Alan McManus 4-1 as the Scottish Open got under way at Glasgow's Emirates Arena. | 38289581 |
Staff at the Exploris aquarium said that despite their attempts to save it, the turtle, which had hypothermia, died during the night.
It landed on Irish shores after being blown off course from the Gulf Stream into the colder North Atlantic.
Aquarium staff named it Columba.
Tanya Singleton, who works at Exploris said they knew it would be a battle to save the turtle. Staff tried to raise its core temperature, and treated it with antibiotics.
"He was still spending long, long periods being very inactive and very lethargic so we were quite concerned that there were underlying problems there that we just didn't know about."
Colulmba will now be taken for a post-mortem to discover what caused his death. | A loggerhead turtle that washed up on a County Donegal beach and was being looked after at an aquarium in Portaferry, County Down, has died. | 30996907 |
Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Dropbox are among those who have filed court documents arguing that the search warrant violated the US Constitution.
In June, Facebook revealed it had given a New York court the personal data of 381 people involved in a fraud trial.
Only 62 of those were later charged.
Photographs, private messages and other information were supplied by the social media site to the court in 2013, as part of an investigation into fraudulent claimants for US federal disability benefits.
The court said the defendants' Facebook accounts had contained evidence showing that they were, in fact, healthy.
The social media site, which had its initial appeal against the warrant denied, said the request was "by far the largest" it had ever received from a government body.
In documents filed to a New York court, and seen by the BBC, the following US tech firms threw their support behind Facebook:
Some of the companies argued that the process violated the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which protects freedom of speech, and the Fourth Amendment, which protects against "unreasonable searches and seizures" of persons' belongings.
In their submission to the court, firms such as Google and Microsoft said they had "a strong interest in the resolution of the issues in this case", as they too faced similar legal battles over the protection of user data.
A lawyer representing some of the medium-sized firms, including Foursquare and Tumblr, expressed concern that "smaller entities, such as start-ups and other developing companies, may not always have the resources to litigate," when confronted with a government search warrant.
But the firms were most angered by the fact that the entire proceedings had been kept private by the court.
Two months ago, Facebook revealed that the US government had obtained "gag orders" to prevent it from telling the account holders that their data had been passed to prosecutors.
The story was only revealed almost a year later, after a New York judge agreed to make the process public.
The tech firms rallying behind Facebook said it was "far from clear" that the order had served a compelling government interest.
A separate filing was made by both the New York and American Civil Liberties Unions, who outlined their opposition to the court's decision, warning that "Facebook users are at risk of dilution of their constitutional rights". | In a strong display of unity, several large US tech firms have come to the defence of Facebook, as the social network contests a court order which required it to hand over users' data. | 28739329 |
Records tumbled like ninepins as cinemas bruised by 2014's lacklustre takings got the perfect pick-me-up: namely, one must-see blockbuster after another.
There's little doubt this year will be the most lucrative on record in terms of grosses and ticket sales. The question now is whether 2016 has enough in its locker to match it.
The answer? Probably not - though there are still more than enough so-called "tentpole" releases to keep exhibitors, distributors and cinema chains comfortably out of the poorhouse.
In terms of box-office behemoths, it's hard to look beyond 25 March and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the eagerly anticipated, long-delayed face-off between the Caped Crusader and the Man of Steel.
With Wonder Woman and Lex Luthor also along for the ride, Zack Snyder's film is a powerful statement of intent from DC Comics, who also have Suicide Squad - a vehicle for its potent stable of comic-book villains - lined up for a 5 August release.
Marvel Entertainment, DC's fiercest rival, will be hoping its lucky streak continues with Captain America: Civil War (29 April), especially with the new Spider-Man - teenaged Brit Tom Holland - joining the ranks of the all-conquering Avengers.
They will also be hoping the same audiences who flocked to see Robert Downey Jr's Iron Man will be just as happy to watch Benedict Cumberbatch cast spells in Doctor Strange (28 November) in the Sherlock star's new guise as the so-called "Sorcerer Supreme".
With additional outings for vigilante Deadpool (4 February), mutant card-sharp Gambit (7 October) and the rest of the latter's brethren in X-Men: Apocalypse (19 May), comic-book aficionados will be more than sated over the next 12 months.
As this year's Fantastic Four reboot showed, though, superhero films are no longer a sure thing - especially in a marketplace where they are increasingly becoming the rule rather than the exception.
On the subject of the fantastic, you might already be aware of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (18 November), a return to the Harry Potter universe that will introduce Eddie Redmayne as curious wizard Newt Scamander.
Warner Bros are so confident of the spin-off's success that it has already green-lit two sequels, set for release in 2018 and 2020 respectively.
Star Wars will have a spin-off of its own in December with the release of Rogue One, a prequel of sorts that will dramatise events briefly referred to in the 1977 film that started the franchise.
For those who prefer their sequels a little less brain-taxing, the year will also see returns for Ben Stiller's Derek Zoolander (19 February), Renee Zellweger's Bridget Jones (16 September), Matt Damon's Jason Bourne (29 July), and the crew of the Starship Enterprise in Star Trek Beyond (22 July).
Sequels, it appears, come in all shapes and sizes, be they pugilistic (Rocky continuation Creed, 15 January), dystopian (The Divergent Series: Allegiant, 11 March), phantasmagorical (Alice Through the Looking Glass, 27 May) or belated (Independence Day: Resurgence, 24 June).
The world of animation, meanwhile, has sequels of its own in the form of Kung Fu Panda 3 (11 March), Ice Age: Collision Course (15 July) and Pixar's Finding Dory (29 July).
This will be a year, in short, in which pretty much every multiplex-bound title seeking to separate us from our hard-earned will have some form of brand awareness or pre-existing cultural association.
These days you can make a movie out of anything, from a computer game (Angry Birds, Assassin's Creed) to a TV series (Absolutely Fabulous, Dad's Army) to - whatever next? - a classic or best-selling novel (The Jungle Book, The Girl on the Train).
You can even make a new movie by re-tooling an old one. Witness the conspicuously Keanu Reeves-less Point Break (12 February), the all-female Ghostbusters (15 July) and Disney's new version of Pete's Dragon (12 August).
Then again, if they can remake Ben Hur (12 August) and The Magnificent Seven (23 September), they can virtually remake anything. | From Star Wars to Spectre to Jurassic World, the box-office tills in 2015 have rarely stopped a-chinging. | 35000002 |
In response to a Defence Select Committee inquiry into the drug Lariam, officials have also announced that troops will be offered an alternative.
Dozens of British troops have said they have experienced side effects including severe depression and anxiety.
MPs said they were disappointed it was not designated a "drug of last resort".
Lariam - the brand name for mefloquine, a once-a-week anti-malarial tablet licensed for sale in 42 countries worldwide - has been given to more than 17,000 UK service personnel at least once between April 2007 and March 2015.
The Defence Select Committee's inquiry concluded in a report last May that many had not been given proper medical checks before the drug had been prescribed - claims the government said it had taken seriously.
The MoD has said in the past the vast majority of deployed personnel already received alternatives to Lariam.
But ministers say all personnel will now be offered an alternative in case they are reluctant or averse to taking it.
The MoD said: "The revised malaria prevention policy will direct that all anti-malarial drugs are only supplied after a face-to-face travel health risk assessment performed by an appropriately trained and regulated health care professional".
A new telephone and email service has also been set up for current and former members of the armed forces with concerns or questions about Lariam.
The Defence Select Committee said the MoD response was a step in the right direction but it was unable to "pass judgement" until the changes were put in place.
By Sima Kotecha, Today programme
For those who've taken Lariam and suffered, the government response doesn't go far enough.
As one former soldier put it after seeing the statement: "They're simply covering their tracks".
But it would be wrong to ignore the fact the Ministry of Defence is changing its malaria prevention policy as a result of the inquiry.
And promising to carry out robust medical risk assessments prior to prescribing Lariam could be interpreted as an admission they were not following proper protocol.
The inquiry was partly triggered by reports on BBC Radio 4's Today which raised questions about the suitability of the drug in a military setting, where psychological illnesses could be exacerbated by the environment in which personnel sometimes operate.
A document from a senior military medic seen by the programme called on the government to use an alternative until it was clear Lariam was safe. Ministers now say one will always be offered.
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The guidelines from Lariam's manufacturer Roche state the drug should only be given after a doctor has carried out a proper medical check on the patient. But the inquiry heard the MoD had in some instances used risk assessments based on medical records.
In its written response to the committee's report, the MoD said: "Malaria is a deadly disease and we have a duty of care to protect our deployed personnel from it. [Lariam] continues to be recommended as a safe and effective form of malaria prevention by Public Health England, the World Health Organization, and other respected bodies who take account of the body of global evidence."
The Defence Select Committee said the MoD had accepted of a number of its recommendations.
But it said: "The committee is disappointed that the MoD has yet to designate Lariam as a drug of last resort as the report recommended. This would have sent out a clear message that the MoD has acknowledged and accepted the high risks associated with the use of Lariam."
It is not clear how many service personnel have experienced side effects after taking the drug but according to evidence given to the Defence Select Committee inquiry, between 25% and 35% of those who took it, were affected.
Last month, former Army chief Lord Dannatt told the BBC he had refused to take Lariam and personally believes the drug can have "catastrophic" mental health effects.
Retired Lt Col Andrew Marriot, who gave evidence to the inquiry about the side effects he suffered including sleep deprivation and memory loss, told the BBC: "It is good to see that new processes are going to be implemented and personnel should, in future, be protected".
But he said the MoD response on Lariam use in the past appeared to be "evasive and misleading" and his experience with the new helpline was not positive as "they will not discuss individual cases... they advise veterans to approach their GPs". | A controversial anti-malarial drug will now only be prescribed to service personnel after a face-to-face check-up, the Ministry of Defence has said. | 37339369 |
Known as Chespirito (Little Shakespeare), the Mexican's work delighted children over four decades.
His characters included El Chapulin Colorado, the inspiration behind The Simpsons' Bumblebee Man.
Gomez Bolanos, who died at home in the resort of Cancun, appeared in several movies and plays. His live shows played to packed out stadiums.
His television work was exported to 90 countries, translated into dozens of languages, and still shows today.
The cause of death was not immediately known.
Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto tweeted that the country had lost an "icon whose work transcended generations and borders".
Chespirito himself had some 6.6 million Twitter followers.
His nickname stemmed from his short stature.
In 2011 he said: "Nicknames are the most essential in life, more valuable than names."
One of Gomez Bolanos's biggest hits was the show El Chavo del Ocho, about a naive child who hides in a barrel.
The Chapulin Colorado, or Red Grasshopper, character was a comic superhero whose red and yellow outfit and hood which bore antennae inspired The Simpsons' Bumblebee Man.
The superhero's catchphrases included: "You didn't count on my cleverness" and "All the good people, follow me."
Gomez Bolanos said in 2005: "I always tried to be as concise as possible, all to try and reach everyone, but especially the simple people, those who needed to be reached more than anyone else."
Gomez Bolanos is survived by his second wife, Florinda Meza, six children from his first marriage and 12 grandchildren. | One of Latin America's most beloved comic actors, Roberto Gomez Bolanos, has died at the age of 85. | 30256054 |
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said troops had entered the complex, but this is not confirmed.
There are thousands of inmates at the prison, which has been the scene of fierce fighting for months as rebels have tried to capture it.
The area is strategically important as it lies near a key supply route for fighters in rebel-held parts of Aleppo.
On Wednesday, some 60,000 people in the rebel- and government-held parts of Aleppo province received food aid for the first time in months after the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was granted access.
ICRC president Peter Maurer said the operation, which will continue for the next few days, is the largest of its kind in recent months.
The director of the Syrian Observatory, Rami Abdul Rahman, said "regular armed forces backed by pro-regime fighters" had been able "to break the siege of Aleppo Central Prison".
Tanks and armoured vehicles "entered the grounds of the prison", he told the AFP news agency.
Two Lebanese TV stations, which are close to the Syrian government, also reported that the siege had been ended by government troops.
The struggle for control of Aleppo's main prison, on the north-eastern outskirts of the city, has turned into one of those symbolic battles which will be seen as a bellwether when it is decided.
Government forces are reported to have advanced into the prison grounds, breaking through the rebel siege, for the first time in 13 months.
That doesn't mean they have brought it back under full control, and the state media are not yet claiming that. Fighting is reported to be continuing in the vicinity, and advances are often swiftly reversed.
But state forces are reported to have seized control of a major road linking rebel-held parts of eastern Aleppo to the Turkish border, leaving the rebels with only one supply route and at risk of being encircled.
If loyalist troops do win definitive control of the prison, it will be seen as another blow to the opposition in advance of the 3 June presidential election, following the rebel loss of central Homs early this month.
Fighters with the al-Nusra Front, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda, and other Islamist rebel groups began besieging the prison in April 2013.
They have since launched several attacks - including car bombs - trying to free as many as 3,000 inmates believed to be held inside the prison.
Briton Abdul Waheed Majeed died in February driving a truck bomb into the gates of the prison.
Mr Abdul Rahman said the recapture of the prison and its surrounding area by government forces had blocked a "path for essential supplies to rebel fighters between areas they control and the Turkish border".
Aleppo is Syria's largest city, and has been firmly divided into opposition and loyalist controlled areas since mid-2012.
Government forces have kept up an aerial bombardment of rebel-held parts of the city in recent months, causing thousands of casualties.
The Syrian Observatory - which has a network of activists around the country reporting on the violence - says more than 162,000 people have been killed in the three-year conflict. | Government forces have broken a year-long rebel siege of a prison in Syria's northern city of Aleppo, reports say. | 27514897 |
However Mrs Brown's Boys Christmas Special, also on BBC One, was the most-watched programme with an average of 9.4 million viewers.
An average of 8.3 million watched Matt Smith bow out as the Doctor while ITV's Coronation Street averaged 7.9 million.
It beat rival BBC soap EastEnders for the first time in more than 10 years.
BBC One had eight of the top 10 most watched programmes while ITV had four - the channels shared the Queen's Christmas broadcast and the news on each channel shared 10th place.
BBC One controller Charlotte Moore said: "Nothing brings the country together at Christmas quite like BBC One. Huge audiences shared the Christmas Day schedule on the nation's favourite channel."
Danny Cohen, Director of BBC Television, said: "I'm really proud of the quality and range of programmes we've shown across BBC Television this Christmas.
"Much-loved shows like Doctor Who, Strictly, EastEnders and Mrs Brown have been hugely popular with viewers this year."
The peak-time and all-day average audiences on BBC One on Christmas Day were both higher than those of any other channel.
BBC One's peak share was 7.6 million viewers, which was 30.2% of the audience, while ITV's peak average was 6.5 million - 25.6% of the viewers.
The all-day average on BBC One was 3.8 million (26.9%) and ITV's was 2.5 million (17.8%).
The ITV figures do not include the +1 channel.
The ratings, provided by BARB, the official source of television viewing figures in the UK, are only provisional overnight figures and could change once viewers who recorded programmes and then watched them later are taken into account.
Two years ago Downton Abbey was rated fourth in the overnight ratings but eventually rose to first when the final figures were released.
None of ratings will include viewings on catch-up services such the BBC's iPlayer or the ITV Player. | Doctor Who's regeneration was the most-watched Christmas Day television moment with 10.2 million viewers seeing the five-minute sequence on BBC One. | 25518352 |
American rock band A Day To Remember had been onstage for about 30 minutes when the incident happened just after 22:00 GMT.
In a statement, Portsmouth Guildhall said the man appeared to dive off the circle, landing in the stalls.
The man was taken to Southampton General Hospital, where his condition is described as serious.
Fans at the concert said the band stopped playing immediately and it was announced the concert was over.
Following the incident, the band tweeted: "Our thoughts are with the person who was injured at the show.
"Sorry we had to cut the set short due to the circumstances." | A 21-year-old man was seriously injured after falling from a balcony during a music concert in Portsmouth. | 30033174 |
Zebre released a tweet confirming the takeover and future participation in the Pro12 and European Challenge Cup.
An FIR spokesperson told BBC Wales that Italy will continue to have two teams in the Pro12, honouring an agreement with the Celtic Rugby Board.
The new side will be called Zebre Rugby Club and will still be based in Parma.
This replaces the previous incarnation Zebre Rugby Srl and will be under new management, playing along with Treviso as the two Italian representatives in the league.
Doubts emerged about Zebre's future after players were reportedly not paid for two months and there are still concerns about whether they will play beyond the 2017-18 season.
A fresh company called Zebre Rugby Club Company has been created and a new chief executive and directors have been appointed.
Meetings will take place this week to determine the rebranding of the new side from the old organisation, with matters such as contracts and insurance to be discussed with players and staff.
The uncertainty comes with an official announcement this week expected by Celtic Rugby, the organisation responsible for the Pro12, on the expansion of the league with two South African sides.
The Southern Kings and Cheetahs are set to join sides from Wales, Scotland, Ireland and Italy for the 2017-18 season to expand the league to 14 sides, with a two conference system being suggested.
There have been plans mooted to expand the league even further, with a North American franchise being explored. | There will still be two Italian sides in the Pro12 for the 2017-18 season despite the Italian Rugby Federation [FIR] taking control of Zebre. | 40684428 |
Two men aged 35 and a 27-year-old woman all died in hospital after taking the illegal drug in the Stockton area.
Cleveland Police said street dealers were passing the batch off as a higher grade version of the drug.
A spokesman said officers were working with drug support agencies to identify the suppliers.
The first man was admitted to the University Hospital of North Tees on 5 February and died on 11 February.
A second man was admitted to the same hospital on 13 February and a woman was admitted in the early hours of 16 February. Both died on Friday.
The force spokesman added: "Obviously we don't advocate anyone should buy any type of drugs, but we are aware there are batches of particularly harmful heroin on the streets which are being peddled by dealers as a higher standard than they are." | The deaths of three people in the space of a week are being blamed on a batch of low grade heroin which is circulating on Teesside. | 39014935 |
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