Demo Against UK's Use Of Armed Drones

In a first national protest, anti-war demonstrators are to gather outside an RAF base today to voice their opposition to the UK's use of armed drones in Afghanistan.

Members of the Stop The War Coalition, CND, The Drone Campaign Network and War on Want will march from Lincoln to nearby RAF Waddington.

The RAF began remotely operating its Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles deployed to Afghanistan from the Lincolnshire airbase earlier this week.

Previously operated from a US Air Force base in Nevada, the aircraft are used to support coalition ground forces in Afghanistan.

The hi-tech Reaper drones are primarily used to gather intelligence on enemy activity on the ground, but they also carry 500lb bombs and Hellfire missiles for precision strikes on insurgents.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the RAF said it had commenced supporting the International Security Assistance Force and Afghan ground troops with "armed intelligence and surveillance missions" remotely piloted from RAF Waddington.

The organisers of the protest march and rally are calling on the Government to abandon the use of drones, claiming they make it easier for politicians to launch military interventions, and have increased civilian casualties.

Remote pilots can operate the drones and fire missiles

Commenting ahead of the protest, War on Want senior campaigns officer Rafeef Ziadah said: "Drones, controlled far away from conflict zones, ease politicians' decisions to launch military strikes and order extrajudicial assassinations, without democratic oversight or accountability to the public.

"Now is the time to ban killer drones - before it is too late."

Chris Nineham, vice-chairman of the Stop the War Coalition, claimed drones were being used to continue the "deeply unpopular War on Terror" with no public scrutiny.

Calling for armed drones to be banned, Mr Nineham said: "They're using them to fight wars behind our backs."

The Ministry of Defence has defended its use of drones in Afghanistan, which it says have saved the lives of countless military personnel and civilians.

An MoD spokesman said: "UK Reaper aircraft are piloted by highly trained professional military pilots who adhere strictly to the same laws of armed conflict and are bound by the same clearly defined rules of engagement which apply to traditionally manned RAF aircraft."

Lincolnshire Police have held talks with the organisers of the protest to minimise disruption to the local community.

The route of the march from South Common along the A15 to the peace camp site opposite RAF Waddington will see the road closed in phases to limit inconvenience to drivers.

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9/11 Plane Part Found Between NYC Buildings

A part from one of the commercial planes that was flown into the Twin Towers on 9/11 has been found between two buildings, police say.

New York Police Department Spokesman Paul Browne said the piece of landing gear, discovered on Wednesday wedged between a mosque site and another lower Manhattan building, has a clearly legible Boeing identification number.

The twisted and rusted equipment features cables, levers and giant bolts. It measures 5ft high, 3ft wide and 1.5ft deep.

"The odds of this being wedged between there is amazing. It had to have fallen just the right way to make it into that space," Browne said.

The part was found wedged in this narrow crevice

He added that other wreckage has been found nearby in the years since the terrorist attack.

The part was found by surveyors who had been hired to inspect the site of a planned Islamic community centre at 51 Park Place, about three blocks from ground zero.

The surveyors spotted the debris as they looked down between the buildings from the roof, quickly called 911, and the scene was secured and police documented the findings with photographs, Mr Browne said.

The National Transportation Safety Board and police will work to determine whether the wreckage belongs to American Airlines Flight 11, which struck the North Tower, or to United Airlines Flight 175, which crashed into the South Tower. Both planes were Boeings.

A plane can be seen before it flies into one of the Twin Towers on 9/11

Police are awaiting a determination from a medical examiner on whether to sift the soil around the building to search for human remains.

The medical examiner's office is in the middle of a 10-week sifting operation as it attempts to identify additional human remains in debris unearthed at the World Trade Center site during construction of a new skyscraper.

If the landing gear's origin is authenticated, it would mean it sat undisturbed for nearly a dozen years.

Patricia Riley, the sister of 9/11 victim Lorraine Riley, called the discovery "very strange."

"Twelve years later we are still finding remnants of the attack on our country," she said.

The ruins of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 attack

"For years to come we'll continue to find things that we didn't see before. Hopefully, they'll serve as a reminder that we have to stay vigilant."

More than 2,750 people were killed at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, when terrorists hijacked the two commercial passenger planes and flew them into the upper floors of the Twin Towers, then the tallest buildings in the world.

Hijackers also took over two other planes that day, crashing one into the Pentagon in Washington DC.

The fourth plane went down in a field in rural Pennsylvania.

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M62 Hen Party Crash: Bride-To-Be Named

The bride-to-be whose hen party turned to tragedy when a minibus collided with a lorry on the M62 has been named locally as Stefanie Firth.

Ms Firth and 20 other members of her hen party remain in hospital after the crash suffering a variety of injuries.

One woman died in the collision, which occurred about 11.30am on Friday. Seven of those wounded suffered serious injuries.

Among the injured is Ashleigh Warner, who posted a photograph on Facebook with Ms Firth.

Before the accident, Ms Firth's friends had posted excited comments about the upcoming hen-do.

On Friday morning, Ms Warner wrote on Facebook: "Jumping on the Liverpool status bandwagon ......... Cos I'm sooooooo excited had my tshirt on since 8 this morning:))) hope Stefanie Firth has the best time xxxx".

The group had set off from South Elmsall, near Pontefract, West Yorkshire, when their vehicle collided with a Farmfoods lorry at junction 32 of the westbound carriage of the M62.

The driver of the lorry, a local man, was arrested in connection with the incident and remains in custody, West Yorkshire Police said.

In total 21 of the women were injured in the crash, which left the minibus on its side across a carriageway and luggage strewn across the motorway.

Six air ambulances were called to the scene, and four took casualties to nearby hospitals.

Firefighters called the crash "the worst they had seen in a number of years", Dave Walton, assistant chief fire officer at West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said.

One patient, a woman in her 40s, suffered suspected serious chest injuries and was anaesthetised before being transported, while another was airlifted to hospital also with chest injuries.

An off-duty firefighter was the first person to report the accident and stayed at the scene to help, while members of the public also helped to give first aid.

Doncaster firefighter John Nichol was passing the scene of the accident as a passenger in his father's car.

Mr Nichol said: "I got out to see if I could help, and realised there was only me there.

"First I saw a lady at the back of the minibus and realised her leg was severely broken. Then I put my head through the roof and just saw a mass of bodies.

"I think there were 11 or 12 in there, with various injuries, and around five people were out of the vehicle, hobbling around.

"I tried to calm people down and, although a bystander had called 999, I called them back to say this was a major incident and that several resources and air ambulances would be needed.

"Then I got the first aid kit out of my dad's car and triaged as many as people as I could."

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London Bus Stabbing: Boy, 16, Dies

A murder investigation has been launched following the death of a 16-year-old boy who was stabbed on a bus in London.

Police were called just after 3pm on Tuesday after the boy was stabbed on the route 393 bus.

The bus was stopped at Highbury New Park, and the youngster was treated at the scene by the ambulance service.

He was taken by air ambulance to an east London hospital, where he died late on Wednesday.

His next of kin has been informed.

A post-mortem will be held in due course.

A 15-year-old boy is currently being held at a north London police station on suspicion of attempted murder.

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Nationwide Drive To Boost MMR Vaccination

By Gamal Fahnbulleh, Sky News Reporter

One million children will be targeted in a measles vaccination drive across England as an outbreak in Wales continues to grow.

The aim is to prevent measles outbreaks by vaccinating as many unvaccinated and partially vaccinated 10 to 16 year olds as possible in time for the next school year.

The number of people infected with measles in southwest Wales has shot up by 78 in just five days, taking the total who have contracted the disease to 886.

A 25-year-old father-of-one from Swansea, who had the disease, died a week ago.

Experts believe around 330,000 children aged 10 to 16 years remain unvaccinated.

Mairead Flavin is a nurse at a GP surgery in Middlesex. She has seen an increase in the number of parents getting their children vaccinated and believes the message is getting through.

Gareth Williams, who had measles, died a week ago

"It's more standard practice now. Back in the day it wasn't. You had to do a lot of convincing and had to try to encourage parents to vaccinate their children. At this moment in time I think they're very anxious to have it done."

Experts believe the rise in measles cases can be mostly attributed to the proportion of unprotected 10-16 year olds who missed out on vaccination in the late 1990s and early 2000s when concern around the discredited link between autism and the vaccine was widespread.

Professor David Salisbury, director of immunisation at the Department of Health, said: "At the moment the hotspots in particular are in the North East and North West.

"That's quite different from where the vulnerability is and the vulnerability is all over the country. London is a real risk but we must be sure that any child anywhere in the country who has not had two doses of MMR gets vaccinated."

Dr Paul Cosford, Director for Health Protection at Public Health England, said: " We believe this national framework for a catch-up programme sets out an appropriate response to the situation in England, using the range of expertise and skills across the new public health system.

"Although nationally the numbers needing catch-up vaccination is quite large, the are relatively few in each local area.

"We are confident that local teams have the resources to identify and vaccinate those children most at risk, and the NHS has sufficient vaccine to cover the approaches described in the action plan."

The most effective time to vaccinate babies, Public Health England says, is at 13 months, with a booster follow up at three to provide 95% protection. A baby under the age of 12 months can be vaccinated if he or she comes into contact with a case of measles.

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UK Economy Avoids Triple-Dip Recession

The UK economy returned to meagre - but better than forecast - growth in the first quarter of 2013, averting the prospect of a triple-dip recession.

According to the first estimate of GDP by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) there was overall growth of 0.3% in the period - driven by the service sector though construction remained in the doldrums.

A contraction in GDP would have given the UK two consecutive quarters of negative output and plunged the UK back into recession, delivering a savage political blow to the Chancellor George Osborne.

GDP had shrunk by 0.3% in the final three months of 2012 but the ONS pointed today to a recovery in services output, with the motor industry particularly strong.

It measured growth in the sector at 0.6%, driven by 1.1% growth in the wholesale and retail distribution, hotels and restaurant trades sector.

Industrial output was lifted by the biggest rise in the mining and quarrying sector since 2002 as some North Sea oil and gas platforms came back on line after repairs that had depressed production in the final quarter of 2012.

The figures also showed that the impact of the cold winter was not as bad as feared, with weather-hit trading on the high street offset by a boost in energy demand as households ramped up their heating.

However, manufacturing output remained weak at -0.3% in the period while construction contracted by 2.5%.

Mr Osborne took to Twitter to give his reaction: "Today's figures are an encouraging sign the economy is healing. Despite a tough economic backdrop, we are making progress.

"The deficit is down by a third, businesses have created over a million and a quarter new jobs and interest rates are at record lows.

"We all know there are no easy answers to problems built up over many years, and I can't promise the road ahead will always be smooth but by continuing to confront our problems head on, Britain is recovering and we are building an economy fit for the future."

The performance will relieve some of the pressure on the Chancellor to rethink his austerity policy, following recent warnings that the UK is a "crisis economy" and last week's ratings downgrade.

IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard told Sky News last week that Mr Osborne was "playing with fire" with his economic strategy.

Business reaction to the GDP figures was largely positive with the chief economist at the Institute of Directors, Graeme Leach, saying it was a crucial time for some some news.

He said: "Despite the squeeze on real earnings and the negative impact on confidence from the euro crisis, money supply growth has picked up and with more money sloshing around there has been more growth.

"We shouldn't get too excited about 0.3% quarterly growth but it does provide relief from all the doom and gloom."

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Wrinkle Fillers 'A Crisis Waiting To Happen'

By Thomas Moore, Health and Science Correspondent

Injectable anti-wrinkle treatments are a "crisis waiting to happen", Government health advisers have warned.

A review of cosmetic procedures, ordered by the Department of Health, found that widely-used dermal fillers are as loosely regulated as toothbrushes and ballpoint pens, yet they have potentially serious side effects.

It says the injections should in future be available only on prescription and used solely by qualified practitioners.

In the US, where there are much tighter regulations, just 14 products are on the market. But in Europe there are 190 different types of filler on sale.

The NHS medical director Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, who led the independent review, said: "The most striking thing is that anybody, anywhere, anytime can give a filler to anybody else and that is bizarre.

"Dermal fillers - which are things you inject into people and put beneath their skin, and they stay there for a period of time - should be treated the same way as other types of implants."

The review of the cosmetic surgery industry was ordered in the wake of the PIP scandal, in which up to 40,000 British women were given breast implants that were filled with non-medical grade silicone.

Sir Bruce said the debacle had led to a "cacophony" of concern about the industry.

His final report to ministers calls for a ban on financial inducements and time-limited deals that could influence vulnerable consumers.

Patients should also be better informed by surgeons about the risks and potential benefits of a treatment, and there should be an insurance scheme to pay compensation when treatments go wrong, the report says.

The review team also criticised TV shows such as The Only Way is Essex (Towie) for trivialising cosmetic procedures.

Rita Payton nearly died in a private hospital after surgery on her nose went badly wrong. The surgeon sliced off the tip of her nose, and removed too much cartilage causing one nostril to collapse. She came round from the anaesthetic bleeding profusely.

"I was gagging for breath," she said.

"I was choking on my own blood. It was horrible - I was pressing the bell but nobody came.

"The pain in my head was like someone was hitting me with a very big hammer. It was excruciating."

The surgeon has since left the UK to work abroad.

Another surgeon, Mr Rizwan Alvi, reconstructed Ms Payton's nose, although she is still scarred.

He said: "This is as bad as it gets. Complications can happen, but it is essential a surgeon looks after the patient afterwards."

Health minister Dr Dan Poulter said there was currently a "significant risk of people falling into the hands of cowboy firms or individuals whose only aim is to make a quick profit".

The Department of Health will announce a series of controls on the industry later this summer.

The UK's largest chain of cosmetic surgery clinics, Transform, supports reform of the industry.

Since the PIP scandal it has made more information available to patients, including infection rates and details of how often surgery needs to be re-done.

But chief operating officer Pat Dunion said tighter rules for clinics will not prevent another PIP scare.

"The whole PIP scandal was caused by a fraudulent manufacturer and a failure of the regulatory body to check the quality of the implants," he said.

"We urge the Government to address that now. There is a need for the regulatory bodies to come into hospitals and take sample implants and check the quality of them."

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Boston: Suspects' Parents Face Questioning

US diplomats have travelled to Russia's Dagestan region to interview the parents of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects.

A delegation from the American embassy in Moscow has made the journey to the North Caucasus area to interview the pair, Anzor and Zubeidat Tsarnaev.

An embassy official said the trip was in line with the co-operation between the FBI and Russian authorities over the investigation into the deadly bombings allegedly carried out by brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Dzhokhar has been charged

The parents are currently living in Dagestan, a largely Muslim region on the Caspian Sea where the family briefly lived before leaving for the US over a decade ago.

It comes amid mounting questions in the US about whether authorities there missed crucial signals that should have raised suspicions about the brothers before the bombings.

Particular interest has surrounded a six-month trip Tamerlan made in 2012 to Dagestan and Chechnya.

Russian security sources in Dagestan told the AFP news agency he was seen four times with a figure suspected of links with the Islamist underground during his visit but there was never any reason to detain him.

Meanwhile, relatives claimed Tamerlan, 26, fell under the influence of a Muslim convert and was steered towards a strict strain of Islam in the years before the attacks.

After befriending the man, known to the Tsarnaev family only as Misha, Tamerlan gave up boxing and stopped studying music, the family said.

This image appears to show the brothers crouched by a Mercedes

He became vocal about his opposition to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and read websites claiming that the CIA was behind the 9/11 terror attacks and Jews controlled the world.

"Somehow, he just took his brain," said Tamerlan's uncle, Ruslan Tsarni, who recalled conversations with Tamerlan's father about Misha's influence.

It was not immediately clear whether the FBI has spoken to Misha or was attempting to, but efforts by the media to identify and interview the mystery man have been unsuccessful.

Throughout his religious makeover, Tamerlan maintained a strong influence over his siblings, including 19-year-old Dzhokhar, who investigators say carried out the deadly attack by his older brother's side, killing three people.

The family's claims came as new photos were released that apparently show the police stand-off that killed Tamerlan on Friday.

Tamerlan's father Anzor was said to be worried about the mystery radical

The images seem to have been taken from inside a house overlooking the scene of the gunfight, and show the brothers crouching near a Mercedes SUV they had carjacked.   

One of the brothers appears to be holding a gun with both hands in front of his body.

Dzhokhar survived the shoot-out and was caught by police later in the day.

He was charged on Monday with using a weapon of mass destruction to kill. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

Tamerlan (L) boxes at the 2009 Golden Gloves

Based on preliminary written interviews with Dzhokar in his hospital bed, US officials believe the brothers were motivated by their religious views.

Two US officials say the brothers had no tie to terrorist groups, but Tamerlan's relationship with Misha could be a clue in understanding the motives behind his religious transformation and, ultimately, the attack itself.

Elmirza Khozhugov, 26, the ex-husband of Tamerlan's sister, Ailina, said Tamerlan was idolised by his siblings.

"You could always hear his younger brother and sisters say, 'Tamerlan said this,' and 'Tamerlan said that.' Dzhokhar loved him. He would do whatever Tamerlan would say," he said.

Mr Khozhugov, who now lives in Almaty, Kazakhstan, said he was close to Tamerlan when he was married and they kept in touch for a while but drifted apart in recent years.

Tamerlan is seen here with little brother Dzhokhar and their sisters

"Of course I was shocked and surprised that he was Suspect No 1," Mr Khozhugov said, recalling the days after the bombing when the FBI identified Tamerlan as a suspect.

"But after a few hours of thinking about it, I thought it could be possible that he did it."

The Tsarnaev brothers, who were ethnic Chechens, were raised in a home that followed Sunni Islam, the religion's largest sect.

They were not regulars at the mosque and rarely discussed religion, Mr Khozhugov said.

Mr Tsarni made a public appeal to his nephew when he was on the run

Then, in 2008 or 2009, Tamerlan met Misha, who the family described as slightly older, heavyset and bald with a long reddish beard.

"Misha was important," Mr Khozhugov said. "Tamerlan was searching for something. He was searching for something out there."

Mr Khozhugov did not know where they had met but believed they attended a Boston-area mosque together.

Misha was an Armenian native and a convert to Islam and quickly began influencing his new friend, family members said.

Once, Mr Khozhugov said, Misha came to the family home outside Boston and sat in the kitchen, chatting with Tamerlan for hours.

"Misha was telling him what is Islam, what is good in Islam, what is bad in Islam," said Mr Khozhugov, who said he was present for the conversation.

"This is the best religion and that's it. Mohammed said this and Mohammed said that."

Dzhokhar remains in Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre

The conversation continued until Tamerlan's father, Anzor, came home from work around midnight.

"His father comes in and says, 'Why is Misha here so late and still in our house?' He asked it politely. Tamerlan was so much into the conversation he didn't listen."

Mr Khozhugov said Tamerlan's mother, Zubeidat, told him not to worry.

"'They're talking about religion and good things. Misha is teaching him to be good and nice," Mr Khozhugov recalled the mother saying.

As time went on, Anzor became so concerned about his son that he called his brother, worried about Misha's effects.

"I heard about nobody else but this convert. The seed for changing his views was planted right there in Cambridge," Mr Tsarni said.

Last week, Mr Tsarni made a public appeal for Dzhokhar to turn himself in when he was still at large following his brother's death.

Since the attacks, Anzor has insisted his sons are innocent and the attacks were orchestrated to frame them. Other members of the extended family have made similar claims.

"It's a set-up, a political order, a Hollywood show," Anzor said.

But two US officials have confirmed that Tamerlan, who was married with a young daughter, became an ardent reader of jihadist websites and extremist propaganda.

Lawyers for Katherine Tsarnaeva, Tamerlan's widow, say she is doing everything she can to assist authorities.

In a statement her legal team said Tsarnaeva, a Muslim convert, and her family were in shock when they learned of allegations against her husband and brother-in-law.

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Bangladesh: Dozens Dead After Building Fall

At least 82 people have died after an eight-storey building collapsed on the outskirts of Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka.

Another 700 are reported to have been injured in the building's collapse which involved several garment factories, a senior emergency ward doctor at a nearby hospital revealed, while many remain still trapped inside the building.

Tens of thousands of people gathered at the site, some of them weeping survivors, some searching for family members.

Brigadier General Mohammed Siddiqul Alam Shikder, in charge of the recovery operation, said 600 people had been rescued but the death toll could rise.

Clothing factories are usually staffed 24 hours a day.

Firefighters and soldiers using drilling machines and cranes worked together with local volunteers in the search for other survivors from the building, which fell into itself, leaving it about two storeys tall.

Hundreds of factory workers were trapped inside the building

The collapse stirred memories of a fatal fire in a clothing factory in November that killed 112 people and raised an outcry about safety in the nation's garment industry.

That fire at the Tazreen factory drew international attention to the conditions workers toil under in the $20bn-a-year (£13bn) textile industry in Bangladesh.

The country has about 4,000 garment factories and exports clothes to leading Western retailers - the industry wields vast power in the South Asian nation.

Tazreen did not have emergency exits and its owner said only three floors of the eight-story building were legally built.

Surviving employees said gates had been locked and managers had told them to go back to work after the fire alarm went off.

The factory made clothes for Wal-Mart, Disney and other Western brands.

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Canada: 'Al Qaeda Train Terror Plot' Foiled

Canadian police have foiled an al Qaeda-backed "major terrorist plot" to attack a passenger train on a railway line between New York and Toronto.

Two people have been arrested and charged with conspiring to carry out the attack and murder people in association with a terrorist group, police revealed at a news conference in Toronto.

The suspects - Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, and Raed Jaser, 35 - had been under surveillance since August 2012 after authorities were tipped off about one of the men.

They will attend a bail hearing in Toronto today.

The pair were allegedly planning to target and derail a Via Rail passenger train in the Toronto area, and are alleged to have received "direction and guidance" from al Qaeda "elements" in Iran.

Police said there was "no indication that these attacks were state-sponsored" and declined to say where the suspects were from.

They confirmed they were not Canadian citizens but had been in the country "a significant amount of time".

The suspects' plans were "not based on their ethnic origins but on an ideology," police said.

"This is the first known al Qaeda-planned attack that we've experienced in Canada," Superintendent Doug Best said.

Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said the claim that the men were backed by Tehran-supported al Qaeda was "ridiculous".

Canadian police hold a news conference to reveal details of the arrests

"This is the most hilarious thing I've heard in my 64 years," he said.

Public Safety Minister Vic Toews warned later that the "arrests demonstrate that terrorism continues to be a real threat to Canada".

Canadian authorities, the FBI and US Homeland Security police and agents have been involved in a year-long cross-border operation that led to the arrests in Toronto and Montreal.

Assistant Commissioner James Maliza, of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said: "Had this plot been carried out it would have resulted in innocent people being killed, or seriously injured."

His colleague Chief Superintendent Jennifer Strachan added: "We are alleging that these two individuals took steps and conducted activities to initiate a terrorist attack.

"They watched trains and railways in the Greater Toronto area. It was definitely in the planning stage but not imminent."

Sky's US correspondent Amanda Walker said: "They are really hailing this as a successful operation, something that they have managed to prevent.

"It does seem they have treated this as a very serious and major threat which was certainly well on in the planning.

"But not far enough for the public or railway staff to be in any immediate danger.

"So obviously they had a difficult act here to actually balance the timing of when they made these arrests - getting enough intelligence, enough information, but not taking that up to the point when the public would have been in real danger."

The news comes one week after twin bombings at the Boston Marathon killed three people and wounded 180 - and as Canada's parliament debates a proposal to beef up anti-terror measures.

A US Justice Department official in Washington said there was no connection between the thwarted terrorist plot and last Monday's attacks in Boston.

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Boston Bomb Suspects 'Had Religious Motive'

The two brothers suspected of bombing the Boston Marathon appear to have been motivated by a radical brand of Islam, but they do not seem connected to any Muslim terrorist groups, US officials have said.

Authorities have interrogated and charged the surviving brother Dzhokhar Tsarnaev with crimes that could bring the death penalty.

The 19-year-old remains in a serious condition with a gunshot wound to his throat and other injuries suffered during his attempted getaway.

His older brother, Tamerlan, 26, died on Friday after a fierce gun battle with police.

Tsarnaev was charged in his hospital bed with using and conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction.

He was accused of joining with his brother in setting off the shrapnel-packed pressure-cooker bombs that killed three people a week ago.

Tamerlan is seen here with little brother Dzhokhar and their sisters

The brothers, ethnic Chechens from Russia who had been living in the US for about a decade, practised Islam.

Two US officials said preliminary evidence from the younger man's interrogation suggests the brothers were motivated by religious extremism but were apparently not involved with Islamic terrorist organisations.

Dzhokhar is said to have communicated with his interrogators in writing due to his injuries.

They said they were still trying to verify what they were told by Tsarnaev and were looking at such things as his phone and online communications and his associations with others.

In the criminal complaint outlining the allegations, investigators said Tsarnaev and his brother each placed a backpack containing a bomb in the crowd near the finish line of the marathon.

The FBI said surveillance-camera footage showed Dzhokhar manipulating his mobile phone and lifting it to his ear just moments before the two blasts.

A silent tribute was held in Boston on Monday

After the first explosion, a block away from Dzhokhar "virtually every head turns to the east ... and stares in that direction in apparent bewilderment and alarm", the complaint says.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev "virtually alone of the individuals in front of the restaurant, appears calm".

He then quickly walked away, leaving a backpack on the ground; about 10 seconds later, a bomb blew up at the spot where he had been standing, the FBI said.

The FBI did not say whether he was using his mobile phone to detonate one or both of the bombs or whether he was talking to someone.

Meanwhile, Kazakhstan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement saying two foreign nationals arrested on Saturday in the Boston area on immigration violations are from Kazakhstan and may have known the two marathon bombing suspects.

The foreign ministry said US authorities came across them while searching for "possible links and contacts" to Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Their names have not been released.

The aftermath of the Boston Marathon blasts

On Monday, Boston residents observed a moment of silence exactly a week after the first of two bombs went off near the marathon finish line.

A private funeral was also held for Krystle Campbell, a 29-year-old restaurant worker who was among the dead.

Later in the day, a memorial service was held at Boston University for another victim, Lu Lingzi, 23, a graduate student from China.

The youngest person to die was eight-year-old Martin Richard, while police officer Sean Collier was killed during a confrontation with the suspects in the early hours of Friday.

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Millwall FA Cup Violence: Three More Arrested

Police have arrested three more men in dawn raids in connection with violence at an FA Cup semi-final between Millwall and Wigan.

The latest arrests bring the number of people detained in the case to 23, including some who have handed themselves in, police said.

Three people have been charged.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Barnes, who is leading the investigation, said: "We expect to make further arrests.

The images of violence were seen by millions on television

"Our message is clear. Violence at football is unacceptable. If you were involved in the violence come forward and speak with us.

"We will pursue all those responsible."

The police raids happened in London

During the second half of Millwall's 2-0 loss to Wigan on April 13 around 20 Millwall fans were involved in clashes behind the goal at Wembley Stadium.

The disturbing scenes, which were witnessed by millions on television, left some fans bloodied and youngsters in tears.

The three men arrested on Tuesday, aged 21, 22 and 27, were picked up at addresses in London by officers from Operation Arrowtip, which targets football-related crime, Scotland Yard said.

In addition, a further 17 images have been released of people at the match whom police want to speak to.

Anyone with information about the violence or who recognises the people in the pictures is urged to call police on 020 8246 0076 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

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Luis Suarez Bite Video: Liverpool Star Sorry

Liverpool's Luis Suarez has apologised for biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic during a Premier League clash.

The striker said sorry on his personal Twitter account around three hours after the final whistle blew on the game at Anfield on Sunday.

The 26-year-old wrote: "I'm sad for what happened this afternoon, I apologise Ivanovic and all football world for my inexcusable behaviour. I'm so sorry about it!!"

In a statement issued through his club, he added: "I have issued an apology and have tried to contact Branislav Ivanovic to speak to him personally.

"I apologise also to my manager, playing colleagues and everyone at Liverpool Football Club for letting them down."

The FA says it will review match footage - seen by millions of television viewers - that shows Suarez biting the Chelsea defender on the arm.

A spokesman told Sky News: "We will speak to match officials today and review any report in relation to the matter and decide on an appropriate course of action."

The spokesman added that the FA "governance team" were looking at the incident and any video footage would be "very important" to that process.

Cameras captured the striker appearing to sink his teeth into his opponent's upper arm during the second half.

Ivanovic remonstrated with referee Kevin Friend following the incident and the match official briefly spoke to Suarez before allowing the game to continue.

Suarez apologised on his Twitter account a few hours after the incident

The match ended 2-2, with Liverpool's controversial star - who is a contender for this year's player of the season awards - scoring an equaliser in the dying seconds.

In a later Twitter message, Suarez said he had spoken to Ivanovic and his apology had been accepted.

He wrote: "I've just spoken to Ivanovic on the phone and I could apologise directly to him. Thanks for accepting."

A Chelsea spokesman said: "Luis Suarez called Branislav Ivanovic this evening. Branislav appreciated the call and his apology."

Liverpool's managing director Ian Ayre, who cancelled a trip to Australia to deal with the fallout from the incident, said: "Luis has made an unreserved apology for his actions today. 

"His behaviour is not befitting of any player wearing a Liverpool shirt and Luis is aware that he has let himself and everyone associated with the club down.

"We will deal with the matter internally and await any action from the FA."

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers told Suarez the bite was 'unacceptable'

The club's manager, Brendan Rodgers, added: "Having reviewed the video footage and spoken to Luis, his behaviour is unacceptable and I have made him aware of this."

Speaking on Sky Sports, former Liverpool manager Graeme Souness said the Uruguayan striker had "crossed a line".

He said: "I'm not sure what to make of it. Embarrassing. He's making it very difficult for himself to stay at Liverpool, that puts him in the last chance saloon.

"Most important is safeguarding the good name of the football club. Liverpool are world renowned. People will be talking about this for a long, long time, and it will show Liverpool in a very bad light.

"This is not the first time he has bitten someone in the football match. He is risking everything this great club stands for. I've never seen something like that in a football match before.

"There are lines you just can't cross, and he has crossed it today."

Professional Footballers' Association chief Gordon Taylor was coy over whether he would support a punishment, but he expressed his dismay at the incident.

Suarez said he spoke directly to Branislav Ivanovic after the incident

He told Sky Sports News: "It was not good to see to say the least. It was unacceptable. I know it's a really difficult one for Liverpool and the FA are going to have to deal with it."

But Marseille's Joey Barton took to Twitter to urge Liverpool to back their player.

He wrote: "Suarez is a good as a player as there is in world football at the minute. Yes, he's messed up and shouldn't have bitten another player but a player like him has to play right on the edge.

"Without it he wouldn't be the talent he is. LFC would be mad not to back him IMO. If they don't I'm sure the queue of Champions League clubs would stretch round the block."

Meanwhile, Suarez has found a new brother in arms in former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, who famously bit the ear of opponent Evander Holyfield.

Suarez's new Twitter follower: Tyson, who took chunk out of his challenger

According to Tyson's profile page on Twitter, he made Suarez his 432nd and most recent follow.

Tyson took a chunk out of Holyfield's right ear in the third round of a bout in Las Vegas in June 1997, after which Holyfield, nicknamed the 'Real Deal', became known as the 'Meal Deal'.

Tyson was disqualified from the fight and fined $3m (£1.9m).

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Five Killed In Washington State Shooting

Five people have been killed in a shooting at an apartment complex in Washington State, including a suspect who was shot by officers.

Police say officers responded to a 9:30pm emergency call of shots being fired at the Pinewood Apartments complex in Federal Way, south of Seattle.

In addition to the possible suspect, the victims also include three other men and one woman.

Federal Way police spokeswoman Cathy Schrock said: "When we arrived, there was a lot of gunfire already being fired and multiple calls, 911 calls of gunfire."

Police found two injured men on the ground in a parking lot and one of them reached for a gun as the officers moved in to assist them, she said.

At that point, other officers opened fire.

The suspect was killed but it wasn't immediately clear if it was from police gunfire.

The other man on the ground and a third man in the parking lot were found dead.

In a search of the complex, police found yet another dead man in one apartment and a dead woman in another.

Police flooded the scene and carried out searches of the area, and authorities said afterwards they did not think another shooter was on the loose.

It is not clear what set off the shooting, and police are trying to determine if the woman was accidentally hit by gunfire.

"We're gonna continue to go door to door in hopes that we can find some additional witnesses, and hopefully we won't be finding any more victims," Ms Schrock said.

Federal Way is about 20 miles (32km) south of Seattle.

More follows...

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Boston Bombs Suspect 'Awake And Responding'

The surviving Boston marathon bomb suspect is beginning to respond to questions from investigators, reports say.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev remains in a critical but stable condition at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre, where some of the 180 people wounded in the blasts are also being treated.

The 19-year-old is said to have a wound to his throat - reportedly caused by a gunshot through his mouth that exited the back of his neck - which prevents him from speaking.

Tamerlan died in a gunfight

But major US news networks say he is responding to questions in writing.

He is under armed guard in hospital and federal prosecutors are preparing to file criminal charges against him.

Dzhokhar is also reported to have been shot in the leg during a shootout with law enforcement the night before his arrest.

His older brother and fellow suspect Tamerlan, 26, died in that gunfight.

A lawyer for Tamerlan's wife, Katherine Russell Tsarnaev, said US authorities have also asked to speak with his client.

Amato DeLuca said Mrs Russell Tsarnaev did not suspect her husband of anything, and nothing seemed amiss after the bombings.

He said she had been working 70 to 80 hours a week as a home health care aide while her husband cared for their daughter.

Mr DeLuca said on the day he died, Tamerlan was home when his wife left for work.

She found out he was a suspect when she heard about it on TV, he added.

After Tamerlan was killed early on Friday, Dzhokhar escaped, triggering an hours-long manhunt that shut down Boston.

Dzhokhar leaves the boat he was hiding in

It ended with the teenager's capture in a boat parked in a backyard late on Friday night.

It has also emerged police chiefs believe the Tsarnaev brothers were planning further attacks.

Commissioner Ed Davis said officers found a large stockpile of weapons and more than 250 rounds of ammunition at the scene of the earlier gun battle.

"They had IEDS," he said, referring to improvised explosives devices. "They had homemade hand grenades that they were throwing at the officers.

"The scene was loaded with unexploded improvised explosive devices that actually we had to point out to the arriving officers and clear the area."

There was a big manhunt for Dzhokhar who escaped after the first gun battle

He said one IED was found in a Mercedes the brothers had abandoned. "This was as dangerous as it gets in urban policing," Commissioner Davis said.

The city's residents have been asked to observe a moment of silence at 2:50pm today, exactly a week after the first of two bombs went off within seconds of each other near the marathon finish line.

Mr Davis said federal authorities were trying to track down how and where the two suspects obtained the firearms and explosive devices.

Three people were killed in the twin bombings

The two were ethnic Chechens who had been living in the United States for a decade.

Dzhokhar became a US citizen in 2012, while his older brother's application was reportedly held up.

Tamerlan began posting militant videos on social media sites in recent years, and travelled to Dagestan, which borders Chechnya, in 2012. Both Russian regions host separatist rebel groups.

The brothers' social media pages appeared to express sympathy with the struggle in Chechnya, which has been ravaged by two wars since 1994 between Russia and increasingly Islamist-leaning separatist rebels.

Three people died and more than 180 others were injured in the twin blasts at the marathon, the worst bombing to take place in the US since 9/11.

The Boston Red Sox, Major League Baseball and several affiliated organisations have contributed more than £400,000 to One Fund Boston, established to help people most affected by the blasts last Monday.

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Measles Victim Died 'After He Was Sent Home'

The first victim to die in the measles outbreak in South Wales had been sent home from hospital, his mother has claimed.

Gareth Williams, 25, was discovered dead on Thursday morning at his home in the Port Tennant area of Swansea.

Initial tests revealed that Mr Williams, who is believed to have suffered from asthma, was infected with measles at the time of his death.

Further investigations are being undertaken by the Swansea Coroner to establish whether his death was due to measles or something else.

Mr Williams' mother, Angela Colfer, said he had been admitted to Swansea's Morriston Hospital after breaking out in red spots.

However, she said he had been released from hospital after several days because doctors thought he was over the worst of it.

Ms Colfer told the South Wales Evening Post: "He was covered in a rash, and what with the measles epidemic in Swansea we wanted to get him to hospital.

"He had been in Morriston Hospital for five or six days before he was sent home."

Mr Williams was treated at Morriston Hospital before his death

The claim came as hundreds more MMR jab vaccinations were administered over the weekend at emergency sessions at four hospitals around Swansea.

Thousands of children have received the MMR jab over the last three weeks amid rising concern at the rocketing rate of measles cases.

The headline rate rose to 808 on Thursday after 43 separate new cases of measles were recorded over a two-day period.

Up to 2,000 more children were vaccinated in school this week as efforts were targeted in communities most at risk.

With the pool of unprotected children reducing on a daily basis, hundreds have still turned out to hospital drop-in sessions.

Rapid vaccination teams at all four locations were well able to deal with the large numbers turning up.

Thousands of children missed out on MMR jabs from the late 1990s due to unfounded fears linking the vaccination with autism.

Despite the progress made in reaching thousands of unprotected children, the health board and Public Health Wales (PHW) are still urging those who have not been vaccinated to come forward.

They warn that people in the 10 to 18 age group, who missed out on the MMR jab in the past, are being hardest hit by the disease.

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Boston Bombing: Suspect Still Unable To Speak

Boston Marathon Blasts: Timeline

Updated: 11:14am UK, Saturday 20 April 2013

Here is a timeline of events from the Boston Marathon bombings to the death of one of the suspects and another one being taken into custody.

Monday, April 15 (Times are local)

2.50pm: An explosion takes place near the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

Around 10 seconds later, there is another blast about 100m further back down the same road, Boylston Street, also on the marathon route.

The explosions occurred four hours into the race and two hours after the men's winner had crossed the line, but thousands of runners were still on the course.

2.57pm: The Boston Globe's Twitter feed reports a witness hearing "two loud booms" near the finish line.

4.02pm: Two people have died and 23 injured in the explosions, Boston Police confirms via Twitter.

6.12pm: President Barack Obama addresses the nation, saying: "The American people will say a prayer for Boston tonight."

8.49pm: At a news conference, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick announces the FBI has taken over the investigation.

It is confirmed three people died as a result of the bombings and at least 100 others were hurt. The injury toll was later put at over 180.

Tuesday, April 16

Two victims of the blasts were identified as Martin Richard, eight, and 29-year-old Krystle Campbell.

Martin was waiting with his family to give his father a hug at the finish line when he died.

Restaurant manager Ms Campbell had gone with her best friend to take a picture of the friend's boyfriend crossing the finish when the bombs went off.

Wednesday, April 17

The third victim is identified as 23-year-old Chinese graduate student Lingzi Lu.

Boston University confirmed Ms Lu was studying mathematics and statistics there and was due to receive her degree in 2015.

It said she and two friends had been watching the marathon near the finish line. One of the friends, also a Boston University student, was injured while the other was unharmed, it added.

There are reports a suspect has been detained in connection with the explosions and is due to appear in court - but authorities said there had been no arrests.

The federal court in the city is evacuated due to a bomb scare but people are later allowed to return.

Thursday, April 18

Afternoon: Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama attend an interfaith service at a Roman Catholic cathedral in Boston to remember the bombing victims. The president vows the attackers will face justice.

Evening: The FBI releases photos and video footage of two bombings suspects at the scene before the attacks.

One is pictured wearing a black baseball cap and a second had a white baseball cap on back to front.

Police say the suspects tried to rob a supermarket in Cambridge, across the river from Boston, on Thursday evening.  

10.20pm: Officers receive reports of shots fired on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus in Cambridge.

10.30pm: A police officer at MIT is found with gunshot wounds in his vehicle after being shot several times. He died in hospital.

The bomb suspects are suspected of carrying out the shooting.

They are then thought to have stolen a Mercedes car at gunpoint and later release its driver unharmed.

Friday, April 19

1am: Witnesses in Watertown near Boston report hearing multiple gunshots and explosions. The suspects reportedly threw explosives from the vehicle as police followed it into the area.

The suspects and police exchange gunfire, during which an officer is hurt.

Police say one of the two suspects in the MIT officer shooting, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, is dead. But his younger brother, Dzhokhar, remains at large. The pair are suspected of carrying out the bombings.

An extensive manhunt takes place in the Watertown area for Dzhokhar, who is said to be armed and dangerous.

Almost a million residents in Boston are warned to stay indoors and public transport is stopped as armed police search for Dzhokhar.

The two suspects are said to be from a Russian region near Chechnya and have lived in the US for at least one year.

6.60pm: Massachusetts Governor Patrick Deval announces the "stay indoors" order is being lifted, even though Dzhokhar remains in hiding.

Around the time the order is lifted, a flurry of gunfire breaks out in the community that is being searched. Law enforcement officials locate Dzhokhar in a boat parked behind a home.

8.45pm: Dzhokhar is taken into custody by police.

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London Marathon: Show Of Solidarity For Boston

By Jason Farrell, Sky News Correspondent

The London Marathon has started with the elite women race, with runners wearing a black ribbon to remember the victims of the Boston bombings.

Runners have also been asked to observe a 30-second silence as a mark of respect to victims of Monday's attack.

Virgin London Marathon has pledged to donate £2 for every finisher to The One Fund Boston, which was set up to raise money for the victims of the explosions.

Meanwhile, Mo Farah's preparation for the London Marathon did not go quite as well as he might have hoped this morning: the London 2012 double champion overslept.

The 30-year-old said, laughing: "I'm late! I woke up late! I'm going to miss the bus!"

Every participant is being given a black ribbon to wear during the race

Security has been beefed up for the event, which takes place less than a week after the Boston Marathon ended in tragedy.

Richard Inchley, who has been registering runners for the marathon, says events in Massachusetts have not deterred competitors from taking part in the 26.2-mile challenge.

"People are more determined than ever to take part, and I can't think of a single person who wasn't eager to wear the ribbon," he said.

"One German runner was in tears as he showed me video footage of him crossing the line in Boston as the bomb went off behind him. But I think running in London will be a kind of therapy for him."

British runner Jack Cummings, who ran in the Boston Marathon, said he would also run again today.

"My wife and daughter were across the street from the second blast. It was very unnerving as people at the finish line didn't know what was happening," he explained.

"I was very apprehensive about running today. I felt so empty after what happened in Boston, but I didn't want to disappoint the charity and today I'm running for all those in Boston that got hurt or died."

The police presence during the London race is being stepped up by 40%

Three people, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed at the Boston Marathon bombing, and scores were injured, some seriously.

Even with one of the suspects dead and the other one captured, hundreds of extra police officers have been deployed to reassure the runners and spectators.

The Met is in close contact with the FBI and Boston Police, and there is nothing to suggest any link with the bomb attacks.

Malcolm Baker, a former Police Counter-Terrorism Officer, told Sky News: "The main objective of the police is to provide reassurance and public safety for both the runners and spectators, and secondly it will be to deter any copycat attacks."

Despite the 40% increase in police presence, the marathon will maintain its carnival atmosphere.

Hundreds of runners will turn out in fancy dress for the winding route from Black Heath to Buckingham Palace past some of the capital's most famous landmarks.

Mo Farah says he overslept ahead of the race

Half a million people usually turn up to watch the spectacle.

Farah, the Olympic 5,000m and 10,000m champion, is running half of today's race.

The build-up to his participation in the event has been shrouded in controversy as he will be paid a reported £425,000 for taking part in the 2013 and 2014 events.

But Farah, who won the mini-marathon event three times in a row between 1998 and 2000 as a west London schoolboy, has said the race brings back plenty of happy memories.

One volunteer race official, Lesley Inchley, said: "I think there will be even more people than usual coming to watch. Spectators will want to lend their support to the runners and send a really clear message that we won't be frightened by bombers."

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