Afghan preliminary election results expected

Turnout was high, despite poor weather and threats of violence from the Taliban

Preliminary results from Afghanistan's presidential election are due to be announced, three weeks after the vote was held.

Earlier partial results put former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah ahead with 43.8% of votes cast, short of the 50% needed to avoid a run-off.
The BBC's David Loyn in Kabul says there are increasing claims of fraud.
Final official results are due to be announced on 14 May after a period for adjudication of complaints.
Incumbent President Hamid Karzai is barred from standing for a third term. Eight candidates are vying to succeed him.
If none gains more than 50%, a second round between the two frontrunners is scheduled for 28 May.
Saturday's announcement will come two days after full preliminary results were expected to have been declared.

Abdullah Abdullah is believed to be the frontrunner

Ashraf Ghani is a former Afghan finance minister

Our correspondent says the continuing delay is increasing suspicion that the result is being manipulated.
There are allegations on all sides that ballot boxes were stuffed and that the count itself was rigged, he says.
When 80% of votes were counted, Mr Abdullah's main rival Ashraf Ghani - a former World Bank economist - was in second place with 32.9% of the vote.
A second-round vote could be avoided if a power-sharing deal is struck between the two leading candidates.
However, both men have vowed to fight on if a run-off is required.
"We have not talked or negotiated with anyone about forming a coalition government," Mr Abdullah told reporters after Thursday's results.
Millions of Afghans defied Taliban threats to take part in the election.
Turnout was double that of the previous presidential election in 2009, despite a number of attacks in the run-up and bad weather on polling day.
The next president will face several challenging issues, including the expected withdrawal of foreign combat troops from Afghanistan later this year and attacks by the Taliban.

Ukraine crisis: Pentagon says Russian jets violated airspace

Armed pro-Russia groups remain in control of seized buildings in eastern Ukraine

 The US says Russian military aircraft have entered Ukrainian airspace on several occasions, amid rising tension in the east of the country.

A Pentagon spokesman called on Russia to "de-escalate the situation".
The statement came as the G7 group of industrialised countries agreed on Saturday to "swiftly" impose fresh sanctions on Russia over Ukraine.
Meanwhile, talks are under way to secure the release of international observers seized by separatists.
Russia has tens of thousands of troops deployed along its side of the border with Ukraine as pro-Moscow separatists continue to occupy official buildings in a dozen eastern towns, defying the government in Kiev.
'Dangerously destabilising' Russia has accused the West of wanting to "seize" Ukraine.
In a statement on Friday, Pentagon spokesman Col Steven Warren said Russian aircraft had entered Ukrainian airspace several times in the past 24 hours.
He gave no further details, but called on Moscow to take "immediate steps to de-escalate the situation".
US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel earlier described Russian activity along the Ukrainian border as "dangerously destabilising" and "very provocative".

Images released by Nato this month appeared to show a Russian military build-up near the Ukrainian border

Ukrainian troops have set up checkpoints around Sloviansk where buildings are occupied

Last week, Ukraine and Russia struck an agreement in Geneva calling for separatists to leave official premises and give up their arms. The pact included an amnesty for those who left peacefully.
But so far pro-Russian activists have refused to give in to the demands.
A joint statement from the G7 said Russia had taken "no concrete actions in support of the Geneva accord".
"We have now agreed that we will move swiftly to impose additional sanctions on Russia," the statement said.
"Given the urgency of securing the opportunity for a successful and peaceful democratic vote next month in Ukraine's presidential elections, we have committed to act urgently to intensify targeted sanctions and measures to increase the costs of Russia's actions."
White House sources told reporters that sanctions could be in place as early as Monday.
It is unclear what form they will take. Under current US and EU measures, assets freezes and travel bans have targeted a number of Russian officials.
On Friday, Ukraine's interior ministry said armed separatists had seized seven representatives from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), as well as five Ukrainian army personnel and a bus driver.
Pro-Russian leaders in Sloviansk confirmed the bus had been stopped near the town of Sloviansk and said they were checking the identities of those on board.
The self-proclaimed mayor of Sloviansk, Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, said at least one passenger had been carrying maps showing separatist checkpoints in the area, which suggested "their involvement in espionage".
A 'bloody crime' Last weekend, Mr Ponomaryov broadcast an appeal to President Putin asking for Russian troops to protect the city from "fascists" after three of his men died in a gunfight.
Tensions have risen in recent days as Ukraine launched military raids to try to regain occupied buildings.
At least two separatists have been killed in the raids which Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described as a "bloody crime".
Mr Lavrov repeated the accusation made previously by Moscow that Ukraine was waging a war against its own people.
Unrest in Ukraine began last November over whether the country should look towards Moscow or the West.
Last month, Russia annexed Ukraine's mainly ethnic-Russian Crimean peninsula. This followed a referendum in the region that backed joining the Russian Federation but which the West and Kiev deemed illegal.

Jerry Dammers gets South Africa honour for Free Nelson Mandela

Jerry Dammers twice met Nelson Mandela on his visits to the UK

The songwriter behind the anti-apartheid protest anthem Free Nelson Mandela is to receive an honour from the President of South Africa.

Jerry Dammers will be given the Order of the Companions of OR Tambo, at a ceremony in Pretoria on Sunday.
The South African government said his award was for writing the 1984 hit and his Artists Against Apartheid work.
Other people also being honoured at the ceremony include former Labour leader Lord Neil Kinnock.
Mr Dammers wrote Free Nelson Mandela with Coventry-based band The Special AKA (formerly the Specials) in 1984.
At that time Mr Mandela had been in prison for more than two decades and it would be another six years before he was released.

Jerry Dammers (second left) was a founding member of The Specials, who later became The Special AKA

The single originally reached number nine in the UK charts and number one in New Zealand but was played around the world.
It was banned by South Africa's white-minority government but illicit copies were widely listened to until apartheid was lifted in 1994.
The ceremony is part of events that are being held in South Africa this weekend to mark Freedom Day, the 20th anniversary of the country's first democratic elections, in which Mr Mandela was elected president.
Mr Mandela died in December 2013.
The government said the Order of the Companions of OR Tambo "recognises eminent foreign nationals for friendship shown to South Africa".

Ratings agency judges French government optimistic on jobs, budget deficit

Prime Minister Manuel Valls (L) and Finance Minister MIchel Sapin announce their plans to tackle France's economic problems

Reuters/Philippe Wojazer

Standard and Poor’s (S&P) on Friday maintained its AA rating for France and judged the Socialist government too optimistic over prospects for the budget deficit and employment. A US-based business consultancy has blamed France’s competitiveness deficit on slow growth in productivity over the last 10 years.

S&P has rated France AA – its third highest rating - since November 2013.
There was uproar when the agency downgraded the country from AAA at the beginning of 2012, although a predicted rise in interest rates on loans failed to materialise.

Dossier: Eurozone in crisis

Friday’s maintenance of the AA had no significance on 10-year lending rates at opening on Friday.
S&P welcomed the government’s cuts in employers’ social security contributions, praised it for not raising taxes on business and said that the cuts being implemented by Prime Minister Manuel Valls’s government could boost medium-term competitiveness and growth.
But it judged government forecasts on the budget deficit and jobs optimistic.
The deficit, which Paris has pledged to bring below 3.0 per cent, will be 3.8 per cent of GDP in 2014 and 2.7 per cent in 2017, compared to the government’s prediction of 1.3 per cent in 2017, the agency believes.
It also judges that President François Hollande’s Responsibility Pact may not be enough to revive employment.
A report released on Friday by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) blames a decline in France’ competitiveness on by the slow pace of improvement in productivity, rather than labour costs, the principal target of the government’s measures.
France scored better than Germany in competitiveness rankings in 2004 but has now fallen behind.
The BCG report puts most of the blame on a relatively weak five per cent rise in productivity, compared to 14 per cent in Germany, 20 per cent in the UK and 23 per cent in Spain, although it also classes France as a high-cost exporter, along with Italy, Belgium, Switzerland and Sweden, in an analysis of the 25 countries who are responsible for 90 per cent of world exports.
Three Socialist MPs, Laurence Dumont, Jean-Marc Germain and Christian Paul announced on Friday that they would not vote for the government's cuts package.

Madrid waanza vema nusu fainali, wailaza Bayern 1-0.

Timu ya soka ya Real Madrid ya Hispania jana iliibuka mshindi katika mechi ya nusu fainali ya klabu bingwa Ulaya dhidi ya Bayern Munich.

Mechi hiyo iliyochezwa katika uwanja wa Santiago Bernabeu, ilikua na ushindani  wa aina yake. Goli peke katika mechi hiyo lilifungwa mnamo dakika ya 19 na Mfaransa, Karim Benzema baada ya kuunganisha pasi safi kutoka kwa Modric.
Mechin ya marudiano itachezwa Alianz Arena huko Ujerumani, wiki ijayo.
Endapo Madrid watafanikiwa kuingia fainali wataandika historia nyingine kwani ni zaidi ya miaka 12 sasa hawajaingia katika fainali hizo.

Ukraine crisis: West wants to 'seize control' - Russia

Russia has denied involvement in the seizures of official buildings by pro-Russians in eastern Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the West of wanting to "seize" Ukraine, amid escalating rhetoric between Russia and the US.

On Thursday US Secretary of State John Kerry had accused Russia of "distraction, deception and destabilisation" in eastern Ukraine.
The US says Russia has failed to live up to an agreement to end the crisis struck in Geneva last week.
American officials say Russia is behind unrest in eastern Ukrainian cities.
Pro-Russian separatists are occupying key buildings in a dozen eastern Ukrainian towns, defying the central government.
Ukraine has launched military raids to regain the buildings, which Mr Lavrov described as a "bloody crime".
"The West... wants to seize Ukraine so to speak, being solely motivated by its own geopolitical ambitions and not the interests of the Ukrainian people," Mr Lavrov said, according to AFP.
"The might of US propaganda" was aimed "at smearing Russia, smearing those who protest against the illegal actions of the [Kiev] authorities," he went on.
Soon after Mr Lavrov's comments, Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Russia wanted to "start World War Three" by occupying Ukraine "militarily and politically" and by creating a conflict that would spread to the rest of Europe.
Russia has ordered new military exercises on its border following the Ukrainian military raids, drawing condemnation from Kiev.
Moscow has tens of thousands of troops along its side of the border and on Friday acting Ukrainian Defence Minister Mikhail Koval told the Interfax-Ukraine agency that they had come within a kilometre of the border.

Natalia Antelava investigates who entered Mariupol's city council building

'Active role' Earlier US Secretary of State John Kerry issued a strongly worded statement in which he called on Moscow to help defuse the crisis or face further sanctions.

Continue reading the main storyThese are strong words from John Kerry. But they're unlikely to convince the Kremlin to change its position on Ukraine.
Experience shows that President Putin doesn't respond well to Western criticism. He believes the United States and the EU are hypocritical, that the West is the sponsor of what Moscow sees as an illegitimate government in Kiev. He suspects Western governments are plotting to undermine Russia's national interests.
If you analyse the tough language coming out of Moscow in recent days and look at the way this conflict is being portrayed by Russian TV channels - as Kiev sending in troops against innocent civilians - there is no sign that the Kremlin is prepared to change its view.
If that is the case, then Russian military intervention in eastern Ukraine on the pretext of protecting Russians and Russian-speakers there remains a distinct possibility.

Mr Kerry praised the interim authorities in Kiev, saying they had honoured the agreement struck in Geneva on 17 April to de-escalate the crisis.

But he said Russia had "put its faith in distraction, deception and destabilisation" and said it had failed to call for separatists to leave official buildings and give up their arms as stipulated by the Geneva agreement.
He also accused Russian media of promoting President Vladimir Putin's "fantasy" about events in Ukraine.
Mr Kerry said US intelligence was confident that Russia was "playing an active role in destabilising eastern Ukraine" with personnel, weapons, money and operational planning".
Also on Friday, reports from the port city of Odessa indicated that an explosion at a checkpoint injured at least seven people.
On Thursday morning raids by Ukrainian commandos on pro-Russian checkpoints around the town of Sloviansk left at least two separatists dead.
Unrest began in Ukraine last November over whether the country should look towards Moscow or the West.
Last month, Russia annexed Ukraine's mainly ethnic-Russian Crimea. This followed a referendum in the region that backed joining the Russian Federation but which the West and Kiev deemed illegal.

South Korea ferry: President condemns crew actions

South Korean President Park Geun-hye says those responsible will face charges

South Korean President Park Geun-hye has condemned the conduct of some of the crew of the ferry that sank last week, calling it "akin to murder".

Ms Park said that those to blame would have to take "criminal and civil" responsibility for their actions.
Divers are continuing to recover bodies from the ferry, as they gain access to more of the submerged hull.
The death toll now stands at 64, with 238 people still missing, most of them students from a school near Seoul.
Bodies are being brought two or three at a time back to Jindo, a southern island close to where the ferry sank.

Lucy Williamson reports on the traumatised town where many of the students came from

Police, meanwhile, have been given access to hundreds of messages sent by passengers and crew so they can construct a detailed chronology of the ferry's last hour.

“Start Quote

The thoughtless and cold move by the captain and crew is beyond belief and pardon”

JoongAng 

Transcript released

Ms Park, whose government has faced criticism over its initial response to the disaster, told aides that the actions of the captain and some of the crew "were utterly incomprehensible, unacceptable and tantamount to murder", the presidential office said.

"The captain did not comply with passenger evacuation orders from the vessel traffic service... and escaped ahead of others while telling passengers to keep their seats. This is something that is never imaginable legally or ethically," she said.
Those who had broken the law or "abandoned their responsibilities" would be held to account regardless of rank, she said.

Teams have been bringing bodies recovered from the sunken ferry ashore to Jindo island

Bereaved relatives are desperate to have the bodies of their loved ones returned

It is not yet clear when the vessel could be raised, but specialist equipment has been brought in

Over the weekend relatives confronted police as they took part in a protest march

A total of 174 passengers were rescued from the Sewol, which capsized as it sailed from Incheon in the north-west to the southern island of Jeju.
But there were 476 people on board - including 339 children and teachers on a school trip. Many were trapped inside the ship as it listed to one side and then sank.
Investigations are focusing on whether the vessel took too sharp a turn - perhaps destabilising the vessel - before it started listing and whether an earlier evacuation order could have saved lives.

Details of the panic and indecision on the bridge emerged on Sunday, when the coastguard released a transcript of the last communications between the crew and controllers.

In the transcript, a crew member repeatedly asks if vessels are on hand to rescue passengers if evacuation is ordered.
The captain, Lee Joon-seok, has said he delayed the move for fear people would drift away.
Mr Lee, 69, was not on the bridge when the ferry began listing. It was steered by a third mate who had never navigated the waters where the accident occurred, prosecutors said on Saturday.
The captain and two other crew members have been charged with negligence of duty and violation of maritime law.
Four more crew members were reported to have been detained on Monday over allegations they failed to protect passengers.
Investigators had also banned the head of ferry operator Chonghaejin Marine and its largest shareholder from leaving the country, Yonhap said.
It has since emerged that Mr Lee appeared in a promotional video for the journey four years ago, describing the ferry journey as safe as long as the passengers followed the crew's instructions.

In a 2010 promotional video, Captain Lee Joon-seok says he believes ferries are the safest form of transport "as long as passengers follow the instructions of our crew"

A coastguard spokesman said divers on Monday were focusing on the third and fourth decks where cabins were located in their search for the missing.
"We have also opened a route leading to a dining hall, and will try to enter that area," AFP news agency quoted the spokesman as saying.
Over the weekend, there were angry confrontations between relatives of those on board and police, after a group began a protest march.
The relatives say they want more information both about what happened and about how soon the remains of their loved ones can be recovered.

Chibok abductions in Nigeria: 'More than 230 seized'

Heavy security in north-eastern Nigeria has not stopped the attack

Some 190 Nigerian schoolgirls remain missing after being abducted last week, their head teacher has told the BBC - far more than the official figure.

Asabe Kwambura said the parents of 230 girls had reported them missing but 40 had managed to escape.
Earlier, a local state governor said that about 77 of the teenagers had not been accounted for.
Islamist group Boko Haram is suspected to be behind the kidnapping but has not issued any statement.
Some 1,500 people are believed to have been killed in attacks blamed on Boko Haram this year alone.

Boko Haram at a glance

• Thousands killed in attacks, mostly in north-eastern Nigeria
• State of emergency declared in three states in 2013 but violence continues
• Some three million people affected
• Declared terrorist group by US in 2013
• Founded in 2002
• Initially focused on opposing Western education
• Nicknamed Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden" in the local Hausa language
• Launched military operations in 2009 to create an Islamic state

• From preachers to slave raiders
• What is Nigeria's Boko Haram?

The group, whose name means "Western education is forbidden", is fighting to establish Islamic law in Nigeria. It often targets educational establishments.

According to the AP news agency, parents from the school in the town of Chibok told Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima when he visited on Monday that 234 girls had been abducted.
When news first emerged of the kidnap last Tuesday, initial reports said more than 200 students had been seized but state officials soon downgraded the numbers, saying the correct figure was about 130.
The students were about to sit their final year exam and so are aged 16-18.
Ms Kwambura told the BBC Hausa service that about 43 had fled their captors.
"None of these girls were rescued by the military, they managed to escape on their own from their abductors," she said.
Asked about the conflicting reports on the number of students kidnapped, she said: "Only reports that come from us is the truth and based on the register we have on paper."
She has previously called on the kidnappers to "have mercy on the students".
Before visiting Chibok on Monday, the Borno state governor said that eight more girls had escaped over the weekend, meaning a total 52 had fled.
Mr Shettima did not give details of how the girls had escaped, for security reasons.
The confusion over the numbers comes after the military last week said that all but eight of the students had been rescued before withdrawing its claim a day later.
It is thought that the militants took the girls to the Sambisa forest near the Cameroonian border.
Parents and vigilante group have gone there to help search for the teenage girls.
Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states in north-east Nigeria have been under emergency rule since last May.

South Sudan conflict: Bentiu 'ethnic slaughter' condemned

The army was forced out of Bentiu last week

Hundreds of people were killed because of their ethnicity after South Sudan rebels seized the oil hub of Bentiu last week, the UN has said.

They were targeted at a mosque, a church and a hospital, the UN Mission in South Sudan said in a statement.
It added that hate speech was broadcast on local radio stations, saying certain groups should leave the town and urging men to rape women.
The Nuer community are seen as supporters of rebel leader Riek Machar.
President Salva Kiir is a member of the country's largest group, the Dinka.
Although both men have prominent supporters from various communities, there have been numerous reports of rebels killing ethnic Dinkas and the army targeting Nuers since the conflict broke out in December 2013.
Since then, more than a million people have fled their homes in what was already among the world's poorest nations.
'Piles of bodies'

South Sudan analyst James Copnall says that in a civil war marked by numerous human rights abuses, the reports from Bentiu are among the most shocking.

Non-Nuer South Sudanese and foreign nationals were singled out and killed, the UN Mission in South Sudan (Unmiss) said.
Some 200 civilians were reportedly killed at the Kali-Ballee mosque where they had sought shelter.
At the hospital, Nuer men, women and children, who hid rather than cheer the rebel forces as they entered the town, were also killed, it said.
The UN's top humanitarian official in South Sudan, Toby Lanzer, was in Bentiu on Sunday and Monday.
He told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme that the scenes in Bentiu were "perhaps [the] most shocking set of circumstances" he had ever faced.
He said he saw "piles of [the bodies of] people who had been slaughtered" last week, adding that they all appeared to be civilians.
Many of those killed were Sudanese traders, especially from Darfur, Mr Lanzer said.
Analyst James Copnall says they could have been targeted because rebel groups in Darfur are alleged to back President Kiir against the rebels.
One rebel source said many of those killed in the mosque were actually soldiers who had taken off their uniforms.

Video footage from the UN shows bodies lying in the streets of Bantiu

The situation in South Sudan is "in a downward spiral", Mr Lanzer said, describing the stakes as "very, very high".
There are now more than 22,000 people seeking refuge at the UN peacekeeping base over the border in Sudan, he said, including families from the majority community in the state.
"When I asked them why [they were seeking refuge] they said: 'When the violence has such a cycle of revenge you can't tell what will come next'," Mr Lanzer said.
He added that the UN base was not built for such large numbers, and that there was currently only one litre of drinking water for each of the 22,000 civilians in the base, and one latrine for every 350 people.
Upsurge in fighting Bentiu, capital of the oil-rich Unity State, has changed hands several times during the conflict.
Control of the oilfields is crucial because South Sudan gets about 90% of its revenue from oil.
A ceasefire was signed in January but there has been a recent upsurge in fighting.
Last week, the UN said an attack on one of its bases in the central town of Bor in which at least 58 people were killed could constitute a war crime.
Fighting broke out last year after Mr Kiir accused Mr Machar of plotting to stage a coup.
Mr Machar, who was sacked as vice-president last year, denied the charges but launched a rebellion.
The UN has about 8,500 peacekeepers in South Sudan, which became the world newest state after seceding from Sudan in 2011.

Socialist MPs make counter-offer to French PM's budget reduction plan

Manuel Valls outlines his strategy to cut the budget on April 8

Several socialist MPs have thrashed out new proposals to reduce the budget without penalizing purchasing power. They propose three scenarios to generate fresh cash, notably by fighting tax evasion.

The counter-offer is designed to make the government's responsibility pact more acceptable to the Socialists, before they vote on it at the end of April.
But the Prime minister's proposals to curb public spending by 50 billion euros between 2015 and the end of President Francois Hollande's term in 2017 have been heavily criticized.
The spending curbs are meant to come through capping social benefits, but socialist MPs say that this will hurt the poorest members in society, like single mothers and low-income workers.
The MPs say they are not challenging Paris' commitment to reduce its public deficit to 3 percent of national output by 2015, but question how it does so.
They criticize the two-year time frame to generate fresh savings as too short, and argue that the government is looking in the wrong place.
Instead of capping social benefits and pension rights, they say that as much as 2 billion euros could be saved if the government fought more seriously against tax evasion and banned fiscal optimisation for big companies.
Their proposals will be presented on Tuesday by Bruno Le Roux, the Socialist leader at the National Assembly and Valérie Rabault the new budget writer.

South Sudan Free to Purchase Weapons Says Army Spokesman

SPLA spokesman Philip Aguer, shown here at a briefing in March 2012, says South Sudanese Army soldiers have killed more than two dozen members of David Yau Yau's rebel group. (AP)

 

The spokesman for South Sudan’s national army says President Salva Kiir’s government has no restrictions to purchase weapons from its international partners to protect lives and property as enshrined in the country’s constitution.

Colonel Philip Aguer says the army will protect unarmed civilians in the country’s conflict to enable officials of the government to continue with peace negotiations with the rebels to resolve the crisis.

“The government is capable of interacting with any political entity in the world including Egypt.  But the procurement is the business of the government so wherever they get the weapons should not be an accusation,” said Aguer.  “The government is capable of getting weapons from anywhere.  There [are] no restrictions on the government of South Sudan on where to buy and where to get weapons.”

His comments came after rebels allied to former vice president Riek Machar accused neighboring Egypt of providing military support to the government in Juba.  They contend that Egypt’s military support could regionalize the conflict and exacerbate the crisis.

The rebels say the government in Juba appears to be disinterested in the ongoing peace negotiations to resolve the conflict by seeking military support from Egypt.  But Aguer disagreed.

“The government is entitled to protect and provide the security of the citizens and the integrity of the republic of South Sudan,” said Aguer.  “It is when the rebels get weapons when it should be questioned because the rebels have no legal mandate to get weapons elsewhere.  However, we have not talked about weapons their sources of weapons.  We know they are dealing with some [people] around the region.”

Aguer declined to name the entities he says supply weapons to the rebels.  He admits, however that the rebels could get their arms supply from the black market.

But the rebels say the government lacks goodwill in the peace negotiations by seeking military support to combat allies of the former vice president.

Aguer disagreed.  He says the national army needs the supply of weapons to carry out its duties.

“The duty and constitutional responsibility of the army is to provide protection to the integrity of South Sudan to the people and their property.  If we need weapons to do that constitutional mandate then we do that while the government negotiates political settlement,” said Aguer.  “We are sure the conflict is a political issue that was taken very far.  The politicians should have resolved the political problem away from violence.”

Some South Sudanese have called for more targeted sanctions on both sides of the conflict following President Barack Obama’s recent executive order that paved the way for U.S. sanctions on anyone threatening the stability of South Sudan, as well as those committing human-rights abuses.

Aguer says the army is not to blame for the country’s crisis.

“The rebels have rejected the cessation of hostilities and they have continued attacking Malakal attacking Duke County with the interest to capture the oil fields [and] that is direct rejection of peace,” said Aguer.  “Why do you look for other people that are obstructing peace if somebody announcing that they are not for cessation of hostilities?”                                                      
Aguer says the government is committed to the peace talks as the army continues to protect civilians from rebel attacks.

S. Sudan Conflict Interrupting Children's Education

A displaced girl sits a school-leaving exam at the U.N. compound in Juba in January, 2014. The exams, which were due to begin on Dec. 16, were delayed when fighting broke out in the capital.

JUBA — Children displaced in South Sudan by four months of fighting not only face a greater risk of disease and malnutrition, but their education is also suffering, analysts and NGOs say.

“The environment in which these children are living is deplorable," said Zachariah Diing Akol, a director at the Sudd Institute think tank, referring to U.N. compounds that have been turned into camps for tens of thousands of internally displaced South Sudanese, most of whom are women and children.

"Shelters are not available in some places ... tents are what these children get. And some are sometimes directly under the trees. That exposes them to diseases,” Akol said.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned last week that as many as 50,000 children in South Sudan could die of hunger before the end of the year unless more aid is provided.

Humanitarian leaders from the United States, United Nations and European Union said at the weekend that they are already seeing signs of malnutrition among children in South Sudan, and called for aid to be stepped up immediately.

Education taking a back seat

Akol said even if children do not die of hunger, disease or as a direct consequence of combat, they are still missing out on educational opportunities.

“Education has to take a backseat, unfortunately," Akol said.

"To stop blood and ... lives being taken, I think takes precedence. But definitely children will continue to be out of school if the war continues,” he said.

UNICEF spokeswoman Doune Porter said the U.N. agency is doing what it can to provide as many children as possible with an uninterrupted education.

“To be able to introduce some kind of normality, some kind of routine by going to school is very important," Porter said.

"And one of the things that we are doing in some areas we can reach is to bring in tents – what we call 'temporary learning spaces' – and we are working with teachers so that some basic education can be continued for children,” she said.

More than 170 temporary learning spaces have been set up so far, Porter said. 

Before conflict, adult literacy at 27 percent

Before the current conflict broke out on Dec. 15, only slightly more than one in four South Sudanese adults could read and write, and seven in 10 children between the ages of six and 17 years of age had never set foot inside a classroom, according to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Only one in 10 children completed primary school, according to the local UNICEF office.

In January, the U.N. Mission in South Sudan hosted school-leaving exams for people aged 14 and older, who had sought refuge inside the U.N. compound in Juba.​

Displaced South Sudanese sit the school-leaving exam at a U.N. compound in Juba in January. The week-long exams were supposed to start Dec. 16, but were delayed when fighting broke out.

Four hundred people took the week-long exams, which were originally supposed to begin on Dec. 16.

Porter and Akol acknowledged that ongoing fighting limits their ability to respond to the needs -- including providing them with an education -- of children across the country.

Akol echoed a call by the international community and aid agencies for a cessation of hostilities based on an agreement signed in January. They appealed for government and opposition forces to give humanitarian workers unimpeded access to people in need in South Sudan. But the agreement has been violated many times since then.

But, Akol said, the only way to avoid further suffering and death and to ensure children's schooling is not interrupted for too long, is for both sides in the conflict to stop fighting.

Britain pledges more aid for wartorn Somalia

UK minister for Africa Mark Simmonds visited Somalia’s capital on Tuesday stating that Britain is committed to supporting Somalia with millions of pounds.

Hoping for peace and reconstruction - women on the beach at Mogadishu

Reuters/Siegfried Modola

Simmonds met Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, cabinet ministers, members of the armed forces, police and justice system and discussed the recent progress in Somalia, including the newly recovered towns in south and central Somalia that were controlled by al-Shebab.
At a news conference in Mogadishu’s presidential palace shortly after his meeting senior Somali government officials, he said that his government would provide millions of pounds to help strengthen Somalia’s armed forces.
“The United Kingdom is committed to provide 10 million pounds sterling for a military stipend to support Somali national army," he announced. "We are also providing an eight-million-pound stipend to the Somali national police, which will help the federal government recruit and deploy approximately 1800 new police officers over the next three years.”
Simmonds also added that his government is the biggest donor to Somalia's stability fund as his government planned to donate another 33 million pounds with its aim to building peace and strengthening local governments by providing services to local communities, resolving local disputes peacefully and encouraging active youth engagement in the communities.
He also spoke about the importance of a secure and stable Somalia and applauded operations outside of Mogadishu by both African mission (Amisom) and Somali troops in which they are striving to recover new lands and towns for the federal government.
This is the second trip by Simmonds to Somalia in less than a year.
Britain’s aggressive development and humanitarian efforts have increased as the UN and foreign nations try to assist Somalia in an eight-year transitional period and in the past promised to fund £1.5 million through USaid to quick impact projects in Mogadishu.

S Korea ferry: Scores missing as ship sinks

Lucy Williamson: Images reveal how quickly the ship went down

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Several hundred people remain unaccounted for after a ferry carrying 476 people capsized and sank off South Korea.

The ferry, carrying mainly school students, was travelling from the port of Incheon, in the north-west, to the southern resort island of Jeju.
A major rescue effort is under way, using dozens of ships and helicopters.
Several hours after the disaster, at least 290 people remained missing, local media said.
South Korean officials had earlier said that 368 people had been plucked to safety, but later said there had been a counting error.
They have now revised down the number rescued to about 180, Yonhap news agency reported.
Two people are known to have died and at least 13 others have been injured, reports say.
Images showed the ferry listing at a severe angle and then later almost completely submerged, with only a small part of its hull visible.
Cause unclear Several coast guard, military and commercial vessels were involved in the rescue effort, which unfolded rapidly on Wednesday morning.

Dozens of passengers have been rescued but the fate of many others remains unknown

Reports said the ship capsized and sank within a period of two hours

Teams have brought rescued passengers to shore - at least 13 are reported to be hurt

Pictures from the scene showed rescue teams balanced on the sinking hull pulling teenagers from cabin windows. Some of their classmates jumped into the sea as the ship went down.
Reports suggest some of those rescued were picked up by nearby commercial vessels.
Navy divers were now searching the scene for those unaccounted for, officials said. The US Navy was also reported to be sending a ship to assist.
One body, of a female crew member, had been recovered from the ship, the coastguard said. Another person, a high school student, died after being rescued.
One student told local media her friends became trapped.
"Currently, I am in the middle of being rescued. At the time, the ship was turning on its side, and none of us were moving as we were told not to move as it was dangerous," the unnamed student said.
"So, I am not well aware of the situation, but I am told that my friends and other friends could not escape as the passage was blocked. It seems that there are many students who could not get out as the passage was blocked by water."

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South Korea ferry

• Ferry - named Sewol - was travelling from Incheon to Jeju Island, a route it serves twice a week
• The 146m-long vessel has a capacity of about 900 people but was carrying about 470 people
• Passengers include about 330 students from Danwon High School in Ansan, a suburb of Seoul

It is not yet clear what caused the incident, but witnesses described hearing an impact, before the ship listed and quickly sank.

One passenger told the YTN news channel: "We heard a big thumping sound and the boat stopped.
"The boat is tilting and we have to hold on to something to stay seated," the passenger said.
Another passenger said the ship was "shaking and tilting", with people tripping and bumping into each other.
Weather conditions were described as fine.
News agencies said the ferry had sent out a distress signal about 20km (12 miles) off the island of Byungpoong at about 09:00 local time (00:00 GMT).
Many of the passengers were students from a high school in a suburb of Seoul heading off on a four-day field trip to Jeju.
Angry parents have gathered at the school in Incheon to demand answers, reports the BBC's Lucy Williamson in Seoul.
Earlier reports put the number of passengers on the ferry at about 350. The vessel is reported to have a capacity of up to 900 people.

Hillsborough was behind Steven Gerrard's emotions at Anfield

Liverpool's Steven Gerrard has revealed that the imminent anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster was behind his emotional reaction at the end of Sunday's win over Manchester City.

The Reds captain covered his eyes after the 3-2 win at Anfield, hiding tears. 

“This week is always about more than football for everyone associated with Liverpool” Steven Gerrard

"The reason I was so emotional was because of when this game fell," said the 33-year-old.

"I'm speaking on behalf of everyone when I say the win was dedicated to the victims and families of Hillsborough."

The win over title rivals City, which boosted the Anfield club's chances of a first league crown since 1990, came just two days before the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy in which 96 Liverpool fans died.

The midfielder's 10-year-old cousin, Jon-Paul Gilhooley, was the youngest of those who lost their lives at the FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough ground on 15 April, 1989.

Gerrard and his team-mates will be among 24,000 people at the annual memorial service, which is scheduled to start at 14:45 BST at Anfield on Tuesday.

There will be a period of silence at 15:06 - the exact time the game at Hillsborough was abandoned.

"[My reaction] wasn't just because it was a big match in our season, it was because this week is always about more than football for everyone associated with Liverpool," he said.

"All the squad will be present at the service to pay our respects as we should."

Current Reds boss Brendan Rodgers will give a reading at the service, as will Everton counterpart Roberto Martinez.

The number '96' will be written on the pitch in large figures made up of scarves donated by fans of all clubs after Kenny Dalglish - manager at the time of the disaster - wrote to all 92 League clubs as well as the English, Northern Irish, Scottish and Welsh national teams asking for support.

The idea was inspired by the 'mile of scarves' formed between Anfield and Goodison Park a week after the disaster.

Italy Ex-PM Berlusconi to do community service - court

Silvio Berlusconi has been fighting court battles for years

Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi must do one year's community service over tax fraud, a Milan court has ruled.

He was convicted of tax fraud in connection with TV rights purchased by his firm Mediaset.
The alternative to community service had been house arrest. It is not yet clear what form his community service will take.
The billionaire has been embroiled in a string of court cases.

Ukraine crisis: USA President Barack Obama urges Putin to rein in separatists

Barack Obama has urged Vladimir Putin to help ease tensions in eastern Ukraine, as James Reynolds reports

US President Barack Obama has urged his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to use his influence to make separatists in eastern Ukraine stand down.

The phone call between the two leaders came as pro-Russian activists continued to occupy buildings in eastern towns.
For his part, Mr Putin rejected accusations of Russian interference, calling the reports "unreliable".
Meanwhile, Ukraine's acting President, Olexander Turchynov, has announced the start of an "anti-terrorist operation".
He told parliament it had begun in the "north of Donetsk Region" on Tuesday morning and was being conducted "stage by stage, in a responsible and weighed manner".
The extent of the operation was unclear but unconfirmed reports on Russian media, quoting separatists, speak of Ukrainian armour being on the move near the flashpoint towns of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
Tanks and armoured personnel carriers could be seen parked 70km (44 miles) from Sloviansk on Monday.
EU foreign ministers say they will expand a list of names targeted by sanctions.
Tension has been steadily rising since Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula, formerly part of Ukraine, last month.
The move, condemned as illegal by Kiev and the West, followed the ousting of Ukraine's pro-Moscow President Viktor Yanukovych in February.

Journalists in Donetsk were targeted by a pro-Russian mob, as Gabriel Gatehouse reports

In other developments

• At least one separatist checkpoint near Sloviansk reportedly came under fire overnight from unknown gunmen in a car but nobody was apparently hurt
• A presidential candidate from eastern Ukraine, Oleh Tsarev, regarded as pro-Russian, appeared before reporters in Kiev with a black eye after being assaulted by protesters as he left a TV studio
• A report from the UN human rights office said the root of the unrest in Ukraine lay in misinformation, propaganda and incitement to hatred

'Grave concern' The White House said the "frank and direct" conversation between the two presidents was made at Russia's request.
"The president expressed grave concern about Russian government support for the actions of armed, pro-Russian separatists who threaten to undermine and destabilise the government of Ukraine," a statement said.
"The president emphasised that all irregular forces in the country need to lay down their arms, and he urged President Putin to use his influence with these armed, pro-Russian groups to convince them to depart the buildings they have seized."
The statement also threatened Moscow with wider sanctions, saying "the costs Russia already has incurred will increase if those actions persist".

A police station in the city of Horlivka is just one of the buildings stormed by pro-Russia protesters

Women prayed for peace in Sloviansk on Monday

Tensions have been at their highest in Sloviansk, in the Donetsk region, where this pro-Russian militant could be seen

These Ukrainian troops and tanks were parked 70km (44 miles) from Sloviansk on Monday

The Kremlin said in a statement that recent unrest in Ukraine's south-east was "the result of the unwillingness and inability of the leadership in Kiev to take into account the interests of Russia and the Russian-speaking population".
It said Mr Putin had urged Mr Obama to "use the resources at the disposal of the American side" to help prevent any bloodshed.

It dismissed claims that Russia was interfering in Ukraine, saying the accusations were based on "questionable information".
UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday the situation in eastern Ukraine was "very dangerous". Speaking to the BBC, he commended the Ukrainian government for acting "very responsibly throughout this crisis".
Thousands of Russian troops are reported to be deployed along the border between Ukraine and Russia. Kiev fears any crackdown on pro-Russian groups could trigger an invasion.
Rebels appeal to Putin Mr Turchynov said on Tuesday the aim of the operation in Donetsk was to "protect Ukrainian citizens, to stop the terror, to stop the crime, to stop the attempts to tear our country apart".
Pro-Russian rebels have seized buildings in about 10 towns and cities across eastern provinces that form the heartland of Ukraine's heavy industry.
A four-way meeting on the crisis, involving the EU, Russia, the US and Ukraine is due to be held in Geneva on Thursday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned on Tuesday that any use of force by the Ukrainian government in the east could undermine the talks.
"You can't send tanks against your own citizens and at the same time hold talks," he said.