|  |  |  | | | | | The Guardian World News | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Follow live updates as the Syrian opposition urges Obama to take a more aggressive stance against Assad in his second term
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | • Scenes of jubilation at Obama HQ greet president's victory
• President overcomes Romney challenge in key swing states
• Republican hopeful fails to take Pennsylvania or Virginia Barack Obama promised the American people that the 'the best is yet to come" as he accepted a second term in the White House after easily beating off the challenge from his Republican rival, Mitt Romney. With a second chance to fulfil some of the expectations that greeted his election in 2008, Obama used his soaring victory speech – by far his best of the entire campaign – to press for a bipartisan approach to politics and returned once again to his theme of hope. In a speech that lasted more than 25 minutes, Obama told the ecstatic crowd of supporters at his victory rally in Chicago: "Tonight in this election, you, the American people, reminded us that while our road has been hard, while our journey has been long, we have picked ourselves up, we have fought our way back. And we know in our hearts that for the United States of America the best is yet to come." After paying emotional tribute to his wife Michelle, and his daughters Malia and Sasha - as well as to his vice-president, Joe Biden - Obama returned to the message that first brought him to national attention. "We are not as divided as our politics suggests," he said. "We're not as cynical as the pundits believe. We are greater than the sum of our individual ambitions, and we remain more than a collection of red states and blue states. We are, and forever will be, the United States of America." The address was the finale to a night that had begun with many of the swing states too close to call but ended with an overwhelming victory as Obama held seven of the nine battlegrounds upon which his presidency had been founded. With votes still being counted in Florida, Romney managed to secure victory in just one state, North Carolina. After one of the most closely fought and polarised campagns in recent history, Obama held Ohio, Virginia, New Hampshire, Colorado, Nevada, Iowa and Wisconsin. Shortly before 1am ET, Romney phoned the president to concede. In a gracious concession speech in Boston, Romney told his supporters: "The nation, as you know, is at a critical point. At a time like this, we can't risk partisan bickering and political posturing. Our leaders have to reach across the aisle to do the people's work." He continued: "This is a time for great challenges for America and I pray the president will be successful in guiding our nation." Romney paid tribute to his wife, Ann, and running mate, Paul Ryan, as he said they had given everything to the campaign. "Paul and I have left everything on the field. We have given our all to this campaign. I so wish – I so wish that I had been able to fulfill your hopes to lead the country in a different direction. But the nation chose another leader. Obama, in a speech that saw a return to the kind of oratory he produced regularly on the campaign trail in 2008, offered a practical example of the kind of bipartisanship he had in mind, saying he had offered to sit down with Romney in the coming weeks to see if they could work together. He was gracious about Romney, talking not only about his challenger but his father, the former governor of Michigan. "The Romney family has chosen to give back to America through public service," Obama said. Obama now has the chance to build a real legacy – his victory on healthcare reform – but also to preside over a possible US economic recovery. Obama has also promised to make immigration reform a priority along with major investment in education. But he faces immediate challenges, not least finding a way to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff of tax rises and automatic spending cuts that are due to kick in at the end of the year. As in his first term, he will have to deal with a hostile, Republican-led House of Representatives. Republican activists were stunned by suddenness with which victory was declared for Obama. At a so-called 'victory party' in Tampa, there was a stampede for the door when the announcement came. Among those who remained was Brad Evans. "I really don't know what happened," he said. "He should have hit Obama a bit harder on Libya."
Summer Turner simply refused to accept reality. "I remember going to bed crying when they declared Al Gore the winner and I remember waking up and he was no longer the winner. So I don't believe it," she said. The campaign almost throughout has been a referendum on Obama. Although there was widespread disillusionment with the slow pace of economy recovery and a high unemployment level, Americans decided to stick with the incumbent. Historically, it would have been a disappointment for African-Americans and many white liberals if the first black presidency had ended in failure, halted prematurely. Romney fought a largely lacklustre campaign, with only one flash, his overwhelming win over Obama in the first presidential debate on 3 October.
The Republicans now face a lengthy period of bloodletting. While some rightwingers will argue the defeat is because Romney was not conservative enough, there is a new generation of younger Republicans such as Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio who will lead the argument for a new, inclusive coalition that will welcome women, Latinos and African Americans. Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, unlikely to be tarnished despite running on a losing ticket, is also likely to be part of the debate. Conservative commentator Charles Krauthammer said he had always regarded Romney as being no more than "a transitional figure". Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential challenger in 2008 and one of the undeclared leaders of the Tea Party movement, told Fox she could not believe "the majority of Americans would do this". She added: "It's a perplexing time for many of us right now." Romney secured at least one consolation prize when he took North Carolina, an unexpected win in the south by Obama in 2008. The rightwing commentator Erick Erickson saw the loss of Pennsylvania as crucial. "At this point, I am thinking game over," he tweeted. Turnout was reported to be at record levels in many states, reflecting the strength of feeling aroused by the long election campaign. There were still long queues of people waiting to vote after polls had officially closed. Early exit polls showed the economy was the dominant issue for voters, with four out of 10 saying the economy was getting better – more than in 2008. Forty-six per cent said the country was headed in the right direction, while 52% said it was on the wrong track. More than half of those surveyed blamed the economic mess on George W Bush. Asked about what they regarded as the biggest economic issue, 40% said unemployment, 37% rising prices, 13% taxes and 8% the housing market.
Eight out of 10 said they had made up their minds who to vote for in September, suggesting that neither Romney's victory in the first presidential debate nor Obama's widely praised handling of Sandy were major factors. Final estimates show the election was the most expensive in US history, with Obama having raised close to $1bn and Romney more than $800m. When figures for spending by supporters – mainly by the Super Pacs – are included, the total is well over $2bn.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Greece is gripped by the second day of a general strike as MPs debate the country's €13.5bn austerity package
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | • Scenes of jubilation at Obama HQ greet president's victory
• President overcomes Romney challenge in key swing states
• Republican hopeful fails to take Pennsylvania or Virginia Barack Obama was re-elected for a second term in the White House late on Tuesday night, securing another four years in which to try to fulfil the promise that greeted his election in 2008. After one of the most closely fought and polarised campaigns in recent history, Obama easily beat Mitt Romney by holding many of the key battleground states upon which his presidency had been founded. Obama reacted to his victory in a tweet: "Four more years." He told his supporters: "I want you to know that this wasn't fate, and it wasn't an accident. You made this happen." There were immediate scenes of jubilation in Obama's Chicago headquarters contrasting with the dejection among Romney officials and supports at their base in Boston. Shortly before 1am ET, Romney phoned the president to concede. In a gracious concession speech in Boston, Romney told his supporters: "This is a time for great challenges for America and I pray the president will be successful in guiding our nation" The Associated Press, along with the major television networks, called the election for Obama after declaring he had won the pivotal swing state of Ohio, a state Obama and Romney had visited more than any other. Obama was also projected the winner in Colorado, Nevada, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Virginia. Although the popular vote was expected to be close, Obama's supporters will point to the breadth of his victory as a strong mandate for his second term. Despite spending hundreds of millions of dollars on a presidential run which began over a year ago, the only swing state Romney has managed to secure so far is North Carolina. Obama now has the chance to build a real legacy – his victory on healthcare reform – but also to preside over a possible US economic recovery. Obama has also promised to make immigration reform a priority along with major investment in education. But he faces immediate challenges, not least finding a way to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff of tax rises and automatic spending cuts which are due to kick in at the end of the year. As in his first term, he will have to deal with a hostile, Republican-led House of Representatives. Republican activists were stunned by suddenness with which victory was declared for Obama. At a so-called 'victory party' in Tampa, there was a stampede for the door when the announcement came. Among those who remained was Brad Evans. "I really don't know what happened," he said. "He should have hit Obama a bit harder on Libya." Summer Turner simply refused to accept reality. "I remember going to bed crying when they declared Al Gore the winner and I remember waking up and he was no longer the winner. So I don't believe it," she said. The campaign almost throughout has been a referendum on Obama. Although there was widespread disillusionment with the slow pace of economy recovery and a high unemployment level, Americans decided to stick with the incumbent. Historically, it would have been a disappointment for African-Americans and many white liberals if the first black presidency had ended in failure, halted prematurely. Romney fought a largely lacklustre campaign, with only one flash, his overwhelming win over Obama in the first presidential debate on October 3. The Republicans now face a lengthy period of bloodletting. While some right-wingers will argue the defeat is because Romney was not conservative enough, there is a new generation of younger Republicans such as Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio who will lead the argument for a new, inclusive coalition that will welcome women, Latinos and African Americans. Romney's running mate Paul Ryan, unlikely to be tarnished despite running on a losing ticket, is also likely to be part of the debate. The conservative commentator Charles Krauthammer, said he had always regarded Romney as being no more than "a transitional figure". Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential challenger in 2008 and one of the undeclared leaders of the Tea Party movement, told Fox she could not believe "the majority of Americans would do this". She added: "It's a perplexing time for many of us right now." Romney secured at least one consolation prize when he took North Carolina, an unexpected win in the south by Obama in 2008. The rightwing commentator Erick Erickson saw the loss of Pennsylvania as crucial. "At this point, I am thinking game over," he tweeted. Turnout was reported to be at record levels in many states, reflecting the strength of feeling aroused by the long election campaign. There were still long queues of people waiting to vote after polls had officially closed. Early exit polls showed the economy was the dominant issue for voters, with four out of 10 saying the economy was getting better – more than in 2008. Forty-six percent said the country was headed in the right direction, while 52% said it was on the wrong track. More than half of those surveyed blamed the economic mess on George W Bush. Asked about what they regarded as the biggest economic issue, 40% said unemployment, 37% rising prices, 13% taxes and 8% the housing market. Eight out of 10 said they had made up their minds who to vote for in September, suggesting that neither Romney's victory in the first presidential debate nor Obama's widely-praised handling of Sandy proved to be major factors. Final estimates show the election was the most expensive in US history, with Obama having raised close to $1bn and Romney more than $800m. When figures for spending by supporters – mainly by the Super Pacs – are included, the total is well over $2bn.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Full coverage of the 2012 presidential results, with all eyes on Iowa, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin and the key swing states
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Full coverage of the 2012 presidential results, with all eyes on Iowa, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin and the key swing states
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Dozens killed and wounded as gunmen shoot dead the brother of the parliament speaker in the latest rebel attack Bombs have exploded in three districts of the Syrian capital Damascus killing and wounding dozens.Gunmen have also shot dead the brother of the parliament speaker in the latest rebel attack on a figure associated with the ruling elite. The opposition said at least 100 more people were killed elsewhere in the civil war. Syrian state media said at least 10 people were killed and 30 wounded by an explosion in the Hai al-Wuroud district in the northwest of the capital. The hilltop neighbourhood is situated near a barracks and housing for elite army units, and is home to members of Assad's Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam. Syria's rebellion in is drawn mainly from the Sunni Muslim majority. Opposition activists said three explosions were heard in Hai al-Wuroud and at least 15 people killed. A car bomb also detonated near a shopping mall in the mixed neighbourhood of Ibn al-Nafis, killing and injuring several people, they said. On Tuesday evening, activists reported another car bombing, this time near a mosque in the Sunni working-class district of al-Qadam in south Damascus, causing dozens more casualties. Buildings were damaged and bodies buried under debris that clogged the streets, the activists told Reuters. "Lots of people were hit inside their apartments. Rescue efforts are hampered because electricity was cut off right after the explosion," said Abu Hamza al-Shami. "There is a state hospital nearby but we are afraid to take the wounded there because they could be liquidated." Bomb attacks along sectarian lines have escalated in the 19-month-old anti-Assad uprising. Last month several bombs went off during the Muslim Eid holiday near mosques in Sunni districts and the Damascus suburbs, killing and injuring dozens. Officials and their families are increasingly being targeted by assassins as violence spreads in the capital. Victims have included parliamentarians, ruling Baath party officials, and even actors and doctors seen as Assad supporters. State television said gunmen had assassinated Mohammed Osama al-Laham, brother of the speaker of parliament, in Damascus's Midan district. No group claimed immediate responsibility. Peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi warned that Syria, where some 32,000 people have died in the upheaval, could end up a collapsed state like Somalia, prey to warlords and militias. More than 100 people were killed across the country on Tuesday, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a pro-opposition body based in Britain that compiles activist reports. Air strikes killed 17 people, including women and children, in the Damascus suburb of Kfar Batna, it said. Video footage of the raid's aftermath posted on the Internet, which could not be verified, showed a toddler with a severed head and the torso of a young man, his head and limbs gathered near him by rescuers. Insurgents killed 12 soldiers and wounded 20 in an attack on a convoy of off-road vehicles in the northern province of Idlib.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Full coverage of the 2012 presidential results, with all eyes on Iowa, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin and the key swing states
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Millions of voters go to the polls in the US as gruelling and expensive presidential campaign comes to an end
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Witnesses say Robert Bales, who faces 16 counts of murder, followed orders when he turned himself in at Camp Belambay The US soldier accused of killing 16 civilians in a night-time attack on two villages in Afghanistan in March was largely calm and compliant when he turned himself in, witnesses testified Tuesday at the second day of his hearing. Staff sergeant Robert Bales followed orders, sometimes sat with his head in his hands and made a joke in a failed effort to ease the tension. But Bales also deliberately mangled his laptop, folding the screen, said two soldiers assigned to accompany him while he gathered his things. That didn't prevent investigators from retrieving information from the computer, sergeant Ross O'Rourke said. He didn't say what information was collected. Bales, 39, a veteran of four combat tours, faces 16 counts of premeditated murder and six counts of attempted murder. The hearing will help determine whether the case goes to a court martial. The March 11 attack on the villages of Balandi and Alkozai prompted the US to halt combat operations for days in the face of protests. It was a month before military investigators could reach the crime scenes. A prosecutor's opening statement and other witness testimony Monday suggested Bales spent the evening before the massacre at his remote outpost of Camp Belambay with fellow soldiers, watching a movie about revenge killings, sharing contraband whiskey from a plastic bottle and discussing an attack that cost one of their friends his leg. Within hours, Bales embarked on a killing spree, killing 16 Afghans before returning to the base in pre-dawn darkness, bloody and incredulous that his comrades ordered him to surrender his weapons, said prosecutor lieutenant colonel Jay Morse. "I thought I was doing the right thing," a fellow soldier recalled Bales saying.
Corporal David Godwin testified that Bales asked him to bleach his blood-soaked clothes. Morse said that after Bales attacked one village he returned to his post, woke a colleague to report what he had done and said he was headed out to attack another village. The colleague took it as a bad joke. "I never got out of bed, sir," the colleague, sergeant Jason McLaughlin, testified. "I thought it was ridiculously out of the realm of normal possibility, sir." Bales has not entered a plea. His attorneys have not discussed the evidence, but they say Bales has post-traumatic stress disorder and suffered a concussive head injury during a prior deployment to Iraq. The defense did not give an opening statement. Bales was not expected to testify. A surveillance blimp captured video of a caped man, identified as Bales, returning to the base. He was greeted by McLaughlin and other soldiers with "weapons at the ready," said Morse. McLaughlin said Bales' first words were: "Are you (expletive) kidding me?" McLaughlin testified that Bales then turned to him and asked: "Mac, did you rat me out?" McLaughlin replied: "No." Before the attack, Bales and fellow soldiers watched Man On Fire, a 2004 Denzel Washington movie about a former CIA operative on a revenge spree, the prosecutor said. Godwin testified that Bales seemed normal as they shared whiskey, discussed Bales' anxiety over whether he'd get a promotion and talked about another soldier who lost his leg a week in an attack a week earlier. Shortly before leaving the base, Bales told a special forces soldier, sergeant first class Clayton Blackshear, that he was unhappy with his family life and that the troops should have been quicker to retaliate for the March 5 bomb attack, Morse said. "At all times, he had a clear understanding of what he was doing and what he had done," said Morse, who described Bales as lucid and responsive.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | New storm expected to bring fresh flooding and snow to region that is still recovering from superstorm Sandy New York officials are encouraging a partial evacuation of low-lying coastal regions on Tuesday, ahead of a nor'easter that is expected to bring fresh flooding and snow to a region that is still recovering from superstorm Sandy. "The National Weather Service has put our city on a high-wind watch and coastal flood watch," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said, in an update on recovery efforts in New York. Cold weather continues to pose a risk to thousands of residents who are still without power after last week's storm. Volunteers and officials will go door to door in an attempt to help elderly and vulnerable residents evacuate properties left uninhabitable by Sandy. As many as 40,000 people could need resettlement, according to city officials. Bloomberg has said that adequate shelters are available and that police patrol cars will tour areas still cut off from power, using loudhailers to encourage residents to seek refuge. The operation has been given added urgency by the approach of a new storm that is due to hit New York and neighbouring New Jersey on Wednesday. The nor'easter could dump wet snow on trees, raising the risk of downed power lines. As of Tuesday, some 91,000 customers in New York City remained without electricity. With much of the blackout affecting coastal areas, it is feared that hypothermia could lead to more deaths; more than 100 deaths have been attributed to Sandy in the US. At a press briefing on Tuesday, Bloomberg said that in the coming days the temperature was likely to fall to the mid-30s fahrenheit, but would feel more like the upper 20s due to wind chill factor. In addition, the mayor said, tidal surges of up to four-and-a-half feet could bring flooding to coastal areas. Bloomberg said that in officials would urge people to leave a "handful of low lying areas", but added that they were not ordering the mandatory evacuation of any zones. In a separate briefing Tuesday, state governor Andrew Cuomo urged caution over the incoming storm. "We live by the adage 'prepare for the worst, hope for the best'," he said. The governor also said that he believed periods of extreme weather were likely to become common in the coming years. "I have been governor less than two years and we have gone through two terrible storms already," he said. "I think that is a symptom, I think these extreme weather patterns will continue." Cuomo also maintained pressure on utilities companies over their perceived slow response to fixing broken power lines. He acknowledged that the number of homes in the state without electricity was "way down" on recent days, but said that the current situation was "still not OK". "I share New Yorkers frustration, I understand, we are not happy with the preparations or rate of recovery from the utilities companies," he said. "I promise the people of this state that utilities companies will be held accountable."
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | As tens of thousands of people take to the streets, Greek finance minister implores MPs to back €13.5bn package in parliament Facing its greatest challenge since assuming power in June, Greece's fragile coalition government is heading for a cliffhanger vote on fresh austerity measures with the country paralysed by a 48-hour general strike. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets on Tuesday to protest over policies that have increased poverty and unemployment. With Greece's eurozone future dependent on passage of the €13.5bn package, the finance minister, Yiannis Stournaras, implored wavering MPs to back the bill, saying it was the only way of assuring debt-stricken Athens did not default on its mountain of debt. "The country has to adopt this package of measures to which it has committed to avoid bankruptcy," the technocrat told a parliamentary committee on the eve of the ballot. "We are now at the most crucial crossroads and we have to make the right decision. The road ahead is difficult and steep but it is our historic responsibility to complete the effort that we have begun." International creditors at the EU and IMF say adoption of the budget cuts is crucial to releasing €31.5bn in rescue funds that are desperately needed by a state whose coffers are due to run dry by 16 November. The country's embattled prime minister, Antonis Samaras, has pledged the measures "will be the very last" to be imposed on a nation whose disposable income has dropped by an estimated 35% since the eruption of Europe's debt crisis in Athens three years ago. But with pensions and wages set to be slashed, taxes increased and the retirement age raised, the promise has fallen on deaf ears with unions and anti-bailout forces, led by the radical left main opposition Syriza party, vowing to step up opposition on the street and in the corridors of power. "At any moment there could be an eruption of blind violence," said Panos Skourletis, Syriza's spokesman. "Even if these measures are passed," he added referring to the package which is expected to be endorsed, if narrowly, by Athens' 300-seat house, "they will never be able to enforce them because Greeks are at the end of their tether." Unionists described Tuesday's peaceful demonstrations – which drew as many as 40,000 people according to police – as a "dress rehearsal" for the fiery protests that would coincide with the vote on Wednesday.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Police accused of planting weapons next to Marikana miners' bodies in bloodiest such incident since end of apartheid Police in South Africa have been accused of planting weapons on the bodies of dead miners as part of an official cover-up of the Marikana massacre, in August. Damning photographic evidence was presented to an independent commission of inquiry examining the deaths of 46 people during nearly six weeks of violent strikes at the Lonmin-owned mine. The revelation follows a series of media reports alleging that on the worst day of bloodshed, when 34 striking miners were killed, some were subjected to execution-style shootings away from the TV cameras. Photographs taken by police on the night of 16 August showed more weapons by the bodies than photos taken immediately after massacre, the commission was told. The crime scene expert Captain Apollo Mohlaki, who took the night pictures, admitted the discrepancy. In one picture, a dead man is seen lying on rocky ground near the mine; a second picture, taken later that same day, is identical except that a yellow-handled machete is now lying under the man's right hand. Mohlaki said he saw the weapon under the man's arm in the night photo he took, but when looking at the day photo of the same body, he said of the weapon: "It is not appearing. I don't see it." George Bizos, a veteran human rights lawyer representing the mine workers, said the evidence presented at the commission indicated an attempt to alter the crime scene. "The evidence clearly showed there is at least a strong prima facie case that there has been an attempt to defeat the ends of justice," he said. "Changing the evidence is a very serious offence." Bizos, who defended Nelson Mandela during the Rivonia trial, half a century ago, called for high-ranking officials to be brought before the commission to explain whether they granted colleagues permission to move traditional weapons from where they had been found. Ishmael Semenya, a police representative, said the national police commissioner, Riah Phiyega, had launched an investigation two weeks previously, after receiving evidence that one of the crime scenes had been tampered with. But Bizos said Phiyega's investigation was not to be trusted because of her public statements shortly after the massacre. Three days later, Phiyega was quoted as saying: "Safety of the public is not negotiable. Don't be sorry about what happened." Video evidence shown to the inquiry on Monday also indicated that some of the slain miners may have been handcuffed. Family members at the hearing wept as they saw two lifeless bodies with their hands tied behind their back. When asked if he had seen whether any of the dead miners' hands were bound, Mohlaki said he had not. "If I am looking at the video, there is a person handcuffed possibly, but on the day I did not observe that," he said. In one of the videos, police can be heard joking and laughing loudly next to the dead bodies, which lie scattered amid dust and blood. Bizos called for a transcript of what the police were saying. In August, television footage of police opening fire on the miners caused shock around the world. And in subsequent weeks, the journalist Greg Marinovich produced a series of reports for the Daily Maverick website pointing to evidence that some of the miners had died at a second site, having probably been killed in cold blood. Autopsy reports allegedly show that several of the dead had bullet wounds in the back. On Monday Dali Mpofu, a lawyer representing about 270 injured and arrested miners, told the inquiry: "Evidence is going to be led to the effect that the people at scene two were hiding away when they were shot." Mpofu said one of the bodies recovered from the scene, known as Body C, stood out from the rest because it was "riddled" with 12 bullet wounds; all the other bodies had single bullet wounds. The massacre of 34 workers was the bloodiest security incident since the end of apartheid, in 1994. The inquiry has heard that at least 900 bullets‚ "400 live rounds and 500 rubber bullets", were fired that day. It followed 10 fatalities, including those of two police officers who were hacked to death. In the immediate aftermath, the authorities sought to portray the miners, who were striking illegally, as responsible for the violence. Some 270 of the striking miners were arrested and charged with murder, though the charges were later dropped. The strike ended in September after workers agreed a 22% pay rise with the mine's owners, the platinum giant Lonmin. The inquiry began last month and is expected to continue for four months, investigating the roles played by police, miners, unions and Lonmin in the deaths. It has been plagued by complaints that family members were unable to attend and allegations that police have arrested and tortured witnesses. Mpofu told the commission last week: "One person [said] he was beaten up until he soiled himself. Another lost the hearing in his right ear and another had visible scarring." With their reputation already in tatters, the police have been criticised for a lack of full disclosure to the commission, which last week was shown a 41-minute police video that appeared to have missed out everything important. James Nichol, a lawyer representing the families of the dead miners, said of the photo anomaly: "Even the police service did not know about these new photos until two Thursdays ago. Who concealed them until then? It's astonishing they have not come to light until now. "There are only two possible conclusions: a cover-up and a systematic planting of evidence." Referring to a video played to the commission, Nichol added: "What was grossly offensive was that you see dead bodies and what you hear is the raucous laughter of police officers." Asked if he suspected a police cover-up, David Bruce, a senior researcher in the criminal justice programme at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, said: "To my mind, there is no question about that. When we're talking about a cover-up, we're talking about something very elaborate. There's a massive pattern of concealment that seems to permeate what the government is doing at the moment." The police had followed an "illegal doctrine" of using maximum force that could be traced back to the government, in particular to the police minister, Nathi Mthethwa, Bruce added. "The issues of responsibility do go very directly to the minister," he said. "The police said the Friday after the massacre that they used maximum force and you've got several incidents where the minister recommended maximum force. As far as I'm concerned, it's an open-and-shut case." Bruce called for Mthethwa and Phiyega to resign. "We have a government who are completely shameless. If you have any integrity around the office of the minister of police, something like that should have been followed the next day by the resignation of the minister."
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Judge orders woman from Cleveland, Ohio, to spend two sessions at crossroads sporting sign condemning her behaviour A woman caught on camera driving on a pavement to avoid a Cleveland school bus unloading children will have to stand at a crossroads wearing a sign describing herself as an idiot. A Cleveland municipal court judge on Monday ordered 32-year-old Shena Hardin to stand at the crossroads on two days next week. She will have to wear a sign that reads: "Only an idiot drives on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus." The judge ordered her to wear the sign from 7.45am to 8.45am on both days. Hardin's licence was suspended for 30 days and she was ordered to pay $250 (£156) in court costs. The driver of the school bus, Uriah Herron, filmed Hardin driving on the pavement, a detour she is thought to have made every day. His manager, Eric Taylor, said: "We had a very conscientious driver for 30 years. He really cares about his children and he took the extra step [to ensure] that this doesn't happen again."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Israeli government announces tenders for building work in apparent warning to Palestinians over UN recognition bid Israel says it is pushing forward with the construction of more than 1,200 new homes in Jewish settlements, in an apparent warning to the Palestinians to rethink their plan to ask the United Nations to recognise an independent state of Palestine. The Israeli government announced late on Monday that it was accepting bids from contractors to build the homes in two Jewish enclaves in East Jerusalem, Ramot and Pisgat Zeev. The homes are among 1,200 whose construction Israel ordered to be fast-tracked in November 2011 after a key UN body granted full membership to Palestine. While construction would take months to begin, officials indicated that the timing of the tenders was meant to signal to the Palestinians that they should consider the possible consequences of their plan to ask the UN general assembly later this month to upgrade their status to non-member observer state. Asked whether this was a sign of what could come, an Israeli official said if the Palestinians went to the general assembly it would be a "blow to peace" and cause problems. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to discuss the matter with reporters. Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat condemned the Israeli action and urged the US to pressure Israel to halt settlement construction. "What you need to stop is not the Palestinian efforts at the UN," he said. "What you need to stop are these settlement activities that are destroying and undermining the possibility of a two-state solution." Earlier this week, the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, urged the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to resume negotiations without preconditions. "Peace may be advanced only around the negotiating table and not via unilateral decisions in the UN general assembly, which will only push peace further away and will only lead to instability," Netanyahu said. Netanyahu met with his security cabinet on Tuesday to discuss possible responses to the UN bid. There was no word on any decisions. Following last year's move by the Palestinians to join the UN cultural agency, Unesco, Israel retaliated by accelerating settlement construction and withholding funds from the Palestinian government. The US also withheld money from the Palestinians, and the US Congress has threatened similar sanctions if the Palestinians proceed at the UN again. The Palestinians say the appeal to the UN is not designed to replace peace talks, which broke down four years ago. They argue that with talks stalled, they have to look for other ways to push their claims to establish a state in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. The 193-member general assembly is dominated by countries sympathetic to the Palestinian cause and the petition for a status upgrade is assured. Last year, the Palestinians failed to receive the necessary UN security council support for their bid to become a full member state.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Shuttle buses take the homeless and those without power to non-damaged polling stations as new storm approaches Residents of areas of New York and New Jersey that were left without power when Hurricane Sandy struck last week were on Monday being bused to non-damaged polling stations, in order to vote. Executive orders have been signed in both states to allow voters to cast their ballot at any booth, in an attempt to accommodate people who were forced out of their homes by the superstorm. Ernie Landante, a spokesman for the New Jersey Division of Elections, said: "We are doing everything we can in this extraordinary situation not to disenfranchise voters displaced by Sandy. Their voices and their votes will be heard no differently than anyone else's." Officials in both states must also provide shelter for all those who are still without power, ahead of a storm which could hit the area as early as Wednesday. The expected nor'easter could bring winds of up to 60mph and more flooding to areas which were hit badly by Sandy. In New York, up to 40,000 people are expected to need accommodation in the coming days. In cut-off areas of Staten Island and the Rockaways – a coastal region in the borough of Queens – some homeowners have endured an eighth night without power. On Monday, temperatures dropped to near freezing for a second consecutive night. New York's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, said on Monday that the city had adequate shelters for those who needed them. "Every New Yorker who needs a warm place to live and a roof over his or her head is going to have one," he said, before adding that the incoming storm would make the work of emergency teams "more difficult and more urgent". Bloomberg said that housing everyone who needed help would pose a "big challenge". The Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) said it had spent more than $200m on emergency housing assistance and had found places for 34,000 displaced people in hotels and temporary homes in New York and New Jersey. No long-term plan for accommodating all those hit by Sandy has been made. It is thought that more than a million homes and businesses are without power, as a result of downed lines and broken cables. Sandy has been blamed for more than 100 deaths in the US, adding to scores of deaths in the Caribbean. It is feared that with more bad weather on the way, hypothermia could claim move victims, especially among the elderly and infirm. Door-to-door searches are underway in New York, in an attempt to encourage those still suffering from loss of power to find alternative shelters. For some on Tuesday, voting was not an immediate concern. One Staten Island resident, Paul Hoppe, said he probably would not vote. He said his home, a block from the beach, was uninhabitable, his family had been displaced and their possessions ruined. "We've got too many concerns that go beyond the national scene," Hoppe said. But for others, finding a polling booth was part of the transition back to normality. New York City authorities planned to run shuttle buses every 15 minutes to bring voters to the polls. Sixty of the city's 1,350 polling sites were unusable. Bloomberg said city residents should check the Board of Elections website, in order to find out about polling changes. "Vote. It is our most precious right," he said. In the badly-hit coastal region of Ocean County, New Jersey, officials hired a converted camper van to bring mail-in ballots to shelters in Toms River, Pemberton and Burlington Township. "It's great. This is one less thing I have to think about," said Josephine DeFeis from Seaside Heights, who voted on Monday. In New York and New Jersey, election officials were guardedly optimistic that power would be restored and that most polling places would be open in all but the worst-hit areas. New York governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order Monday allowing residents to cast a so-called affidavit or provisional ballot at any polling place in the state. Such votes will be counted after officials confirm the voter's eligibility. Cuomo said: "Compared to what we have had to deal with in the past week, this will be a walk in the park when it comes to voting."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | First day of general walkout in Athens sees large crowds take to the streets, but the marches pass off peacefully... apart from one attack on a fire engine
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | First day of general walkout in Athens sees large crowds take to the streets, but the marches pass off peacefully
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Judge orders woman from Cleveland, Ohio, to spend two sessions at crossroads sporting sign condemning her behaviour A woman caught on camera driving on a pavement to avoid a Cleveland school bus unloading children will have to stand at a crossroads wearing a sign describing herself as an idiot. A Cleveland municipal court judge on Monday ordered 32-year-old Shena Hardin to stand at the crossroads on two days next week. She will have to wear a sign that reads: "Only an idiot drives on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus." The judge ordered her to wear the sign from 7.45am to 8.45am on both days. Hardin's license was suspended for 30 days and she was ordered to pay $250 (£156) in court costs. It was the driver of the Cleveland bus, Uriah Herron, took the video of Hardin driving on the pavement, a detour she is thought to have made every day. His manager, Eric Taylor, said: "We had a very conscientious driver for 30 years. He really cares about his children and he took the extra step [to ensure] that this doesn't happen again."
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Head of compounding pharmacy blamed for outbreak that has killed 30 summoned to appear alongside drug regulators The head of a compounding pharmacy blamed for a meningitis outbreak that has killed 30 people in the US has been summoned to appear before a House committee, alongside drug regulators. The energy and commerce committee of the House of Representatives said Monday that Dr Margaret Hamburg, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will testify before lawmakers on 14 November. Barry Cadden, co-founder of the New England Compounding Centre (NECC), which sent thousands of contaminated steroid shots across the nation, has also been asked to attend. On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said 409 cases of fungal meningitis had been recorded in 19 states. The contaminated steroid injections are also thought to be responsible for 10 peripheral joint infections. Health regulators have formally matched the fungal meningitis to a contaminate found at the premises of NECC in the Boston suburb of Framingham. Agents from the FDA raided NECC last month, as part of a criminal investigation. One of the areas under investigation is whether the company violated regulations by supplying bulk orders to clinics without matching the drugs to specific prescriptions or patients. NECC has a chequered history of violating health and safety standards, having been cited on numerous occasions by the FDA prior to the latest outbreak. The company is already the subject of a number of civil lawsuits brought by people affected by the meningitis outbreak. After it was identified as the likely source of the infection, the NECC recalled all of its products, amid fears that other drugs had been contaminated. The energy and commerce committee has yet to hear from Cadden. It has also invited James Coffey, director of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Pharmacy, to testify. Compounding pharmacies fill special orders placed by doctors for individual patients, turning out a small number of customised formulas each week. But some, like NECC, have in recent years grown into much larger businesses, supplying bulk orders of medicines to thousands of doctors and hospitals across the country. House and Senate lawmakers have called for hearings to examine how the outbreak of fungal meningitis could have been prevented and if greater safeguards are needed in the oversight of compounding pharmacies, which operate in something of a regulatory grey area. FDA officials said last month that new laws may need to be enacted, in order to clarify the federal government's role in overseeing the sector.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Keith Bristow to review how police originally handled widespread allegations of sex abuse, and investigate latest claims The home secretary, Theresa May, has appointed the chief of the National Crime Agency to conduct an investigation into how North Wales police handled allegations of child abuse in the 1970s and 1980s. Keith Bristow, the director general of the NCA, is to review how police originally handled the case, as well as look at the latest allegations by one of the victims. May made her statement to MPs following fresh allegations by the BBC Newsnight programme and others that both the police and a subsequent public inquiry led by Sir Ronald Waterhouse into abuse at almost 40 children's homes in the region were not carried out properly, and claims of a cover-up on behalf of a close ally of Lady Thatcher. "The government is treating these allegations with the utmost seriousness," May told MPs. "Child abuse is a hateful, abhorrent and disgusting crime and we must not allow these allegations to go unanswered." She said Britain had "an appalling and shameful" record in relation to young people in care. She indicated that the government was still considering a wider public inquiry into all the issues raised by a series of claims about police and other institutions ignoring allegations of abuse, not just in north Wales but in other recent cases, such as revelations about the TV and radio presenter Jimmy Savile, and the treatment of victims of the sex ring preying on children in care in Rochdale. But she resisted calls from MPs from both sides of the House of Commons for an immediate decision to bring together what are now at least nine separate inquiries covering the north Wales and Savile claims. "If, at the end of the process we have set in train, it appears it is necessary to move forward to a wider investigation, we'll look forward to that," May said. "At this stage we need to get the police investigations under way and make sure the Waterhouse inquiry did what it was intended to do and did it properly." Ending her statement, May addressed the fact that MPs could use parliamentary privilege, without fear of prosecution for defamation, to name one or more of the public figures alleged on the internet to be involved in the abuse at north Wales care homes. But she warned: "If they [MPs] plan to use parliamentary privilege to name any suspects, they risk jeopardising any future trial and, therefore, the possibility of justice for the victims that I believe the whole House wants to see." In the event, no individuals were named. But the Labour MP Susan Jones said if any member of the House of Lords was found to be involved in child abuse they should be "stripped of their peerage". The Labour backbencher Tom Watson, who has raised claims of a past paedophile ring linked to No 10 and of a former cabinet minister being allegedly involved in child abuse, dismissed the latest moves as simply "the next stage of a cover-up". Watson had urged the government to act after one of the alleged victims, Steve Messham, said the Waterhouse inquiry had only covered a fraction of the assaults. On Newsnight, Messham said he had been abused by a senior Tory and said the claims had been "swept under the carpet". According to reports at the weekend, as many as three victims have named the same individual as one of their abusers. Newsnight said at least one other victim of abuse in the homes said he was abused by the politician. Messham was due to meet the Welsh secretary, David Jones, on Tuesday. May's statement followed the announcement by David Cameron on Monday that there would be two investigations into the claims about the north Wales abuse and inquiries in the 1990s. The prime minister said during a trip to the Middle East that he would appoint a senior independent figure to lead an inquiry into the conduct of the Waterhouse inquiry, including the remit it was given and claims that it ignored evidence from victims about abusers who were not employed at the care homes. No 10 said on Tuesday that details of who would lead the inquiry, its exact remit and timing were being discussed with the Welsh assembly, which now has devolved responsibility for the issue. "We want to get on with this and don't want to take too much time, but equally it's got to be done properly," the prime minister's official spokesman said. Announcing details of the police inquiry, May said Bristow would head a team which would include officers from the Serious and Organised Crime Agency and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre. It would act as the single point of contact for fresh referrals relating to historic abuse. An initial report was expected by this April, she said. The NCA becomes operational next year. Responding to several complaints that the police investigation did not go far enough to tackle the actual claims of abuse, May said the Bristow inquiry would have powers to carry out criminal inquiries into any allegations of sexual or physical abuse that were not properly investigated by the original police operation. "[It will] look at those historic allegations to make sure everything that was supposed to be done was done, and if there are any avenues to pursue in terms of criminal investigations the police should take them wherever they are going," she said. Later, May reiterated that the government had been "absolutely clear" that "if there are people who should be pursued for prosecution, that then takes place". "I believe the whole House will also be united in sending this message to victims of child abuse: 'If you have suffered and you go to the police about what you have been through, those of us in positions of authority and responsibility will not shirk our duty to support you. We must do everything in our power to do everything we can to help you, and everything we can to get to the bottom of these terrible allegations.'"
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Follow live updates as Britain's prime minister says Assad could be granted safe passage to Britain if would end the crisis in Syria
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | • George tests positive for blood-boosting EPO
• South African has been provisionally suspended The South African cyclist David George, a former team-mate of Lance Armstrong, has tested positive for blood-boosting EPO. South Africa's Institute for Drug-Free Sport says George, who cycled with the disgraced Armstrong on the US Postal Service team in 1999 and 2000, failed a doping test on 29 August. SAIDS says George has been provisionally suspended and faces a doping tribunal. The institute's chief executive, Khalid Galant, said: "His biological passport indicated suspicious activity and that triggered a targeted test for EPO." Armstrong was last month banned for life by the International Cycling Union and stripped of his seven Tour de France titles for doping. George is also a two-times Commonwealth Games medallist.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | First day of general walkout in Athens sees large crowds take to the streets, but no signs of violence
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Millions of voters go to the polls in the US as gruelling and expensive presidential campaign comes to an end
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Mitt Romney to continue campaigning on polling day while Barack Obama goes to home city of Chicago After hundreds of rallies, thousands of miles flown back and forth across the US by the presidential candidates, and billions of dollars in political advertising, the 2012 election campaign has entered its final 24 hours as voters prepare to deliver their verdict on Tuesday. At the end of one of the most polarising, relentless and expensive campaigns in recent US political history, the final batch of polls on Monday showed Barack Obama and Mitt Romney basically where they were at the start of the year: stuck in a dead heat. Both teams claim to be on course to win, as they completed what should have been their final blitz of the swing states. Obama, accompanied by rock star Bruce Springsteen, took in Wisconsin and two stops in Ohio, where he was joined on stage in Columbus by both Springsteen and rapper Jay-Z. From there, he was heading to Iowa for a late-night final rally in Iowa, where his 2008 run for the White House began. Romney's campaigning took him from Florida through Virginia and Ohio, ahead of what should have been his final rally, in Manchester, New Hampshire. But, in a surprise announcement, his team said he would continue to campaign on election day itself. He will vote near his home in Belmont, Massachusetts, in the morning, before heading for Cleveland, Ohio, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. More conventionally, Obama is to stay put in his hometown, Chicago, on Tuesday. He is planning a game of basketball with friends and staff, but is not totally abandoning the campaign trail, with about a dozen television and radio interviews planned. The president's campaign spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, dismissed as stunts Romney's visit to Pennsylvania, a state that leans Democratic, and Ohio, the state that will almost certainly decide the final result and where Obama also holds a narrow lead. "We know that they've been playing a lot of head-faking games and going to states where they don't have a ground game, they've never led in a poll and we have massive voter registration advantages," Psaki said. "Ohio remains a very difficult nut for them to crack. And we feel we have a superior ground game and a superior campaign in the state and we're confident of victory there." The candidates' fates are now in the hands of the voters, but neither campaign is taking any chances. Both teams have put in place lawyers in the swing states in anticipation of messy, inconclusive results, a potential rerun of the "hanging chads" debacle in 2000. Legal challenges have already been launched in Florida and Ohio amid allegations of opportunities for early voting being curtailed and rows over IDs. Psaki said complaints about voting in Florida and Ohio were being monitored. "We're continuing to work on that today. And our plan is always, until the very last moment when the polls close, making sure people who are eligible have the opportunity. And we're confident we'll be able to do that in Florida and in states across the country," she said. Both campaigns also continued to flood television and radio networks with ads, buying up as much space as they could on digital media, too. In an effort to reach almost every possible market, Obama and Romney recorded interviews to be shown at half-time in Monday night's football match between the Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints. Real Clear Politics, which aggregates all the major polls, puts Obama on 48.5% and Romney on 48.1%. In all of the swing states – where the election will be decided – Obama has a slight edge, although in some the lead is so minuscule it is, in effect, a tie. In the most important swing state, Ohio, Real Clear Politics has Obama on 49.7% to Romney's 46.7%. The final Washington Post-ABC News national tracking poll, released on Monday afternoon, had likely voters dividing Obama 50% to Romney 47%, while Gallup's final pre-election survey of likely voters breaks Romney 49% to Obama 48%. Obama, in his closing argument to a crowd of 20,000 in Madison, Wisconsin, defended his record as president and pleaded for four more years. "You have a choice to make. It is a choice between two different visions for America," the president said. About 30 million people have already taken advantage of early voting, an estimated 35% of the final vote, up from 30% in 2008. More registered Democrats have turned out than Republicans in all but one of the crucial swing states. Obama, normally not given to shows of public emotion, was in a nostalgic mood, knowing that whatever happened it was his last day on the campaign trail. He took with him the original members of his 2008 campaign, beginning the day in two of the swing states, Wisconsin and Ohio, and, in another nostalgic touch, ending in Iowa, where his improbable adventure began in January 2008. In Wisconsin, he sympathised with the voters over "way too many TV commercials". He and Romney between them have raised about $2bn (£1.2bn) and much of this has gone on advertising. Reiterating the same message he has pursued relentlessly over the past few days, Obama said: "In 2008, we were in the middle of two wars and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression." He said 5.5 million new jobs had been created under his tenure, the car industry was back on top, home values rising, dependence on foreign oil down, the production of clean energy up, the war in Iraq over, the war in Afghanistan coming to a close, and Osama bin Laden dead. Earlier, in an interview, he said turnout would be decisive. His campaign team is claiming it has built an historically sophisticated ground operation that will give it the edge in the scramble for 270 electoral college votes. A notice circulated to Obama supporters on the campaign's digital network Dashboard said it had 5,117 staging locations in the battleground states from which the get-out-the-vote drive would be co-ordinated at neighbourhood level. Volunteers have made 126 million phone calls or door knocks to closely targeted households homing in on sporadic and new voters who might otherwise fail to vote. "This is the difference between the Obama campaign and any other campaign we have ever witnessed," wrote Mitch Stewart, director of the Obama campaign in the battleground states. Romney, who has to outperform the polls to win, told a rally in Virginia: "One final push is going to get us there. We're only one day away from a fresh start, one day away from the start of a new beginning." In his last speeches, Romney opted for a message of change, as Obama had done in 2008. Not a natural performer on the stump, his speeches are often ponderous, laden with platitudes and his final message appeared vague. "Tomorrow we begin a new tomorrow. Tomorrow we begin a better tomorrow," Romney said. "This nation is going to begin to make a change for the better tomorrow. Your work is making a difference, the people of the world are watching, the people of America are watching. We can begin a better tomorrow tomorrow."
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Israel condemns 'show trial' of absent military chiefs after nine activists were killed aboard the Mavi Marmara in 2010 A Turkish court has launched the trial in absentia of four former Israeli military commanders over the deaths of nine Turkish activists on board a ship bound for Gaza in 2010. Israel denounced the move as a "show trial". The court hearing, in which almost 500 people are expected to give evidence, will further strain relations between the two former allies which suffered a serious breach following the deadly assault on the Mavi Marmara. Tensions will be exacerbated if Turkey's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, follows through on his intention announced last week to make an official visit to Gaza in the near future. Such a move would give a significant political boost to Hamas, the Islamist faction that controls the impoverished coastal strip. In a 144-page indictment, the former senior Israeli military commanders are accused of inciting murder and injury. Prosecutors are seeking multiple life sentences for the four, who include the former chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi. Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement that the trial "clearly falls under the category of a show trial, an act which has nothing to do with either law or justice". It said the trial was "merely a propaganda display. It would be in Turkey's interest to deal with this issue through bilateral dialogue." Since the incident, Turkey has demanded an apology and compensation for the victims' families from Israel. Israel has expressed regret over the deaths but has refused to apologise. The Mavi Marmara was part of a flotilla of ships attempting to breach Israel's blockade of Gaza. Israeli commandos stormed the flotilla in international waters, shooting dead nine activists. Erdogan described the incident as "state terrorism". Israel said hardcore militants intent on a violent confrontation were among the Marmara's passengers. Relations between the two countries have never been repaired. After a UN report in September 2011 concluded that Israel's naval blockade of Gaza was justified but it had used "excessive and unreasonable" force, Turkey expelled Israel's ambassador. The four on trial are Ashkenazi; Eliezer Marom, former commander of the Israeli navy; Amos Yadlin, former commander of the air force; and Avishai Levy, former head of air force intelligence. The case would have a "devastating effect on Turkish public opinion of Israel," said Alon Liel, a former Israeli envoy to Ankara. "All participants in the flotilla have been invited to testify. The exposure will be catastrophic to relations." He said that "three months of constant Israel-bashing" during the trial would damage the chances of Israel apologising for the incident. Erdogan said last week that he planned to visit Gaza, although no date was specified. Following the visit last month by the Emir of Qatar, the first head of state to visit the enclave, an official Turkish visit would be seen as further legitimisation of Hamas and an affront to the West Bank-based Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. According to Liel, a visit was possible because of the good relations between Erdogan and the Egyptian president, Mohamed Morsi. The Turkish prime minister would need Egypt's permission to cross the border into Gaza from the Sinai. An official Turkish visit would have "enormous implications," he said. "It would create a more positive image for Hamas in the moderate Arab world, and would be a blow to [Hamas rivals] Fatah, and to Israel." Turkey has been acclaimed in Gaza since the Mavi Marmara incident. A large monument stands on the quay of Gaza City's fishing port, and Turkish flags fly from buildings and lampposts throughout Gaza.
 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Wall Street Journal claims murdered British businessman provided information on the disgraced Chinese politician's family Neil Heywood, the British businessman whose death sparked the downfall of former Chongqing party boss Bo Xilai, knowingly provided information on the high-flying politician's family to MI6, according to the Wall Street Journal. Bo's wife Gu Kailai was convicted earlier this year of murdering the Briton last November. The court heard that she had feared for her son's safety after a business dispute with Heywood – a claim his friends cast doubt upon. The 41-year-old had known the family since the 1990s, but relations had soured before his death. The Journal, citing current and former British officials and friends of Heywood, said the businessman continued to meet a contact and provide information on Bo's affairs after learning that the person was an MI6 officer. His contact even warned him to be careful "not to become a headline" as his relations with Gu became tense. China closely guards information on the private lives of its leaders, which it regards as state secrets. Heywood was known to have carried out work for Hakluyt, the business intelligence firm set up by former MI6 officers, but following his death the foreign secretary William Hague issued a rare denial of intelligence links, saying Heywood was "not an employee of the British government in any capacity". A spokesman for the British embassy said of the latest claims: "We do not comment on intelligence matters or allegations of intelligence matters." Friends of the businessman noted that the newspaper said Heywood was not paid and was never asked to seek specific information. They argued his overt fascination with James Bond – his silver Jaguar had a registration number containing 007 – was hardly the sign of a major intelligence asset. Heywood's death was initially ascribed to excessive alcohol consumption and his body was cremated without an autopsy, with his wife's approval. Concerns about his death were raised in January, but Britain did not ask China for an investigation until the following month, after former Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun fled to the US consulate in Chengdu, where he told diplomats Gu had murdered Heywood. One source told the Journal that Wang claimed Gu confessed she "killed a spy". Asked about the report, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry in Beijing said judicial authorities had already ruled on the Gu case. He added that China would handle the Bo case "according to party discipline and national law". Bo was once tipped for possible elevation to the Politburo standing committee, China's top decision-making body, in this month's leadership transition. But many think his prospects had faded even before the scandal surrounding Heywood's death. He now faces criminal charges, having been accused of offences including taking bribes and interfering in the murder investigation.
  | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Follow live updates as the Syrian National Council continues to meet in Doha as violence rages in Syria
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Follow how the day unfolded after Britain's prime minister said Assad could be granted safe passage if it would end the crisis in Syria
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Follow live updates as Britain's prime minister says Assad could be granted safe passage if it would end the crisis in Syria
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