Video Of Horrifying Moment Flyover Collapses

A graphic video has shown the aftermath of the collapse of a motorway flyover in Brazil, which left at least two dead and many injured.

It shows injured bus passengers walking away from the crushed vehicle in Belo Horizonte covered in blood.

The camera then approaches the front of the bus, where a barely conscious woman can be seen trapped in the wreckage.

The driver of the bus was killed in the collapse

CCTV footage has also been released showing the moment the entire unfinished section of road dropped onto the motorway below in a split-second.

Alexandra Pereira, a teacher who was in an apartment building just 20 yards from the overpass, said it sounded like an "earthquake or bomb".

"I looked out my window and panicked," she said.

One person said it was like an "earthquake or bomb"

"I couldn't see anything but a huge cloud of dust."

The accident happened in the north of the city, where teams have been based throughout their World Cup campaigns.

The bridge was supposed to be built in time for the tournament.

The car that was crushed in the collapse

The nearby Mineirao Stadium has hosted four World Cup matches and is due to host a semi-final next Tuesday.

Fire services sent more than a dozen engines and a helicopter to the scene to aid those trapped in the wreckage.

A fire department spokesman told the AFP news agency that scaffolding was being taken down at the time of the collapse and the flyover was in the final stages of construction.

It is not known at this stage why the flyover collapsed

Live TV images showed what appeared to be a school bus and other vehicles trapped under the rubble.

The female driver of the bus was killed, with 13 people rescued from the vehicle.

Two trucks belonging to the construction company and one car were crushed along with the bus.

Two construction trucks were also crushed

City firefighters said on their official Twitter account that at least one person was dead but other sources said the death toll was two, with at least 22 injured.

Officials say they do not expect the casualty toll to rise too sharply, although they have not yet reached a small car that was flattened.

It is not known if anyone inside the car escaped or remained inside.

More than a dozen fire engines were called to the scene

It is not yet known why the flyover collapsed. Cowan, the construction company responsible for building it, said investigators are on site.

Groups of people gathered near the scene of the accident, with some of them shouting.

A man holds a banner that reads 'Cup dirty with blood' close to the scene

Bank worker Leandro Brito said: "Because of the World Cup they sped everything up to finish faster.

"That's why this tragedy has happened. They are not making things properly. Everyone is very angry."

Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte

Ms Pereira said that, along with her neighbours, she complained to the mayor that they feared for their safety from the construction and asked authorities for compensation so they could move.

She said the request was rejected and the mayor's office assured them the project was safe.

Fire department spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Estevo da Silva said officials had inspected the apartment buildings and did not find any sign they were at risk because of the overpass collapse.

The World Cup has been dogged by delays to stadiums and infrastructure, and there were several accidents during construction of the stadiums.

Just three days before the tournament began on June 12, an accident in Sao Paulo killed one worker and injured two others when an unfinished monorail collapsed.

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Coulson Arrives At Old Bailey For Sentencing

Former News Of The World editor Andy Coulson has arrived at the Old Bailey where he will be sentenced for phone hacking.

The ex-Number 10 spin doctor faces up to two years in prison after being found guilty of conspiring to intercept voicemails.

He arrived at court in a cab and made his way through waiting photographers and reporters to the court's entrance.

Coulson, from Charing in Kent, is being sentenced alongside three former colleagues and private detective Glenn Mulcaire, who all admitted their part in the phone hacking plot last year.

Mr Justice Saunders said he would take into account the impact on the lives of those whose phones were hacked, the profit made from the crimes.

The prosecution has also asked for costs totalling £750,000 be paid following the trial.

NOTW news editor Greg Miskiw, 64, from Leeds; chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck, 52, of Esher, Surrey; and James Weatherup, 58, of Brentwood in Essex have all admitted one general count of conspiring together and with others to illegally access voicemails between October 2000 and August 2006.

Mulcaire, 43, from Sutton in south London, was first convicted of phone hacking with NOTW royal reporter Clive Goodman in 2006 and served a prison sentence.

More follows...

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Disgraced Rolf Harris In Court For Sentencing

The Fall Of One Of Britain's Best-Loved Stars

Updated: 6:09pm UK, Monday 30 June 2014

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

Despite being born in Australia, Rolf Harris' lengthy career in show business, spanning almost six decades, has ensured he is one of Britain's best-known and, until now, best-loved stars.

From his humble beginnings as a swimming champion in his native Western Australia, he moved to London in 1952 after deciding to abandon a teaching career and study art instead.

Within weeks he was singing in ex-pat clubs and two years after stepping off a liner, he signed a contract with the BBC which marked the start of a lengthy association with the broadcaster.

Artist, singer-songwriter and TV star, his legendary career earned him an MBE, OBE and CBE and Australian honours as well.

He was given a BAFTA fellowship, painted a portrait of the Queen and has met other members of the royal family countless times.

Harris also made numerous TV commercials and appeared at Glastonbury six times - opening the event in 2010 - and singing in front of a crowd of almost 100,000.

Countless generations of children and adults know him through iconic programmes from the 70s, 80s and 90s, such as The Rolf Harris Show, Rolf Harris Cartoon Time, Animal Hospital and Rolf On Art.

His wife of 56 years, Alwen, and daughter Bindi, 49, supported him in court throughout the seven-week trial, although only Bindi was called to give evidence in the case.

She described how she wanted to ''stab herself with forks'' after discovering Harris had been having a relationship with her best friend, who was the subject of seven of the charges.

In his 2001 autobiography, titled after his catchphrase "Can You Tell What It Is Yet", there is a telling passage in which he explained his feelings about his family.

He wrote: ''Alwen and Bindi have to come first. It has only been in the last five years that I have realised this. Late, but better than never.''

Telling, because it was in 1997 Harris wrote to the father of Bindi's best friend to tell him of the affair he had been having with his daughter when his own daughter found out.

He also wrote of how, as his career took off in the 60s, he found himself ogling women in backstage dressing rooms set aside for dancers he worked with.

Harris wrote: ''I tried not to watch - or be seen watching - but it wasn't easy, I spent most of my time reading the same page of a book 14 times realising I was holding it upside down.''

It's also clear he had a difficult relationship with his daughter and wife - blaming himself for not being with them as he devoted his time to his career - leaving them a painful second.

In the early 1960s as his career hit the big time, Alwen visited Australia with him and it later emerged she had contemplated suicide, Harris only finding out about it 30 years later when he found her diary.

Harris described how ''the words struck me like hammer blows'' adding that he ''felt terrible and I kicked myself for my selfishness''.

His awards and honours count for nothing and he will now swap his luxury Thames-side home in Berkshire for the cold harsh surroundings of a prison cell, as a convicted sex offender.

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Airport Security Tightened Over 'Bomb Fears'

Security at British airports has been increased after warnings from the US that terrorists are developing bombs that can be smuggled on to planes without being detected.

US Homeland Security chief Jeh Johnson said he had tasked officials to "implement enhanced security measures in the coming days at certain overseas airports with direct flights to the United States".

However, he declined to say which airports would be affected.

Flights from UK airports direct to the US will be subject to the measures

A statement issued by the US Department for Homeland Security said: "We are sharing recent and relevant information with our foreign allies and consulting the aviation industry.

"These communications are an important part of our commitment to providing our security partners with situational awareness about the current environment and protecting the travelling public."

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said the additional security was not expected to cause "significant" disruption to flights.

US Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson

He told Sky News: "I would like to reassure the travelling public we have got one of the toughest security regimes in the world, along with the United States.

"It is important that we take these measures to protect the travelling public and the public have confidence when we get information we take the right measures.

"There will be extra security checks but they will be made in the course of events people already go through and I hope there will not be significant delays."

But British aviation security expert Philip Baum said heightened security will inevitably mean longer queues and increased waiting times to board flights at UK airports.

"It will mean an increase in the number of random searches, secondary searches and an increase in the number of passengers asked to remove shoes and possibly all passengers being asked to remove shoes if they're going on certain flights," he said.

"It stands to reason that if we're going to spend longer doing checks, people are going to have to spend longer waiting in line to board flights."

Jabhat al Nusra militants. The Syrian group are said to be behind the plot

US officials said the security alert followed intelligence reports that Islamist groups in Yemen and Syria had joined forces to prepare an attack on the US.

Bomb-makers from al Nusra Front, al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, and Yemen-based al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) are believed to be working together to develop the new devices.

According to ABC News, they are trying to build non-metallic bombs that could evade metal detectors.

An image of home-made improvised devices tweeted by a British jihadist

As a result security enhancements are likely to include greater scrutiny of US-bound passengers' electronics and footwear and installation of additional bomb-detection machines.

Prime Minister David Cameron's official spokesman said: "There are terror organisations around the world that seek to do the UK, its citizens, and citizens of many other countries including our Western allies, harm.

"We need to always be vigilant to situations that can develop."

Sky's US correspondent Dominic Waghorn said US officials were also closely monitoring the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) over concerns its success in Iraq might help it recruit jihadists from Europe, who would have easier access to flights bound for US cities.

The thousands of foreign fighters flocking to join ISIS, including an estimated 400 from Britain, is a serious concern, he said.

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Cot Death Warning Over Sharing Bed With Babies

By Thomas Moore, Health And Science Correspondent

Parents have been warned not to fall asleep with their baby on a bed or a sofa until the child is at least one year old.

New draft recommendations from health watchdog National Institute For Clinical Excellence (Nice) say parents can easily suffocate their babies while they are asleep.

And the risk is higher if they have drunk alcohol, taken drugs or smoked.

Babies are also more likely to die suddenly in their sleep if they were born small or premature.

Professor Mark Baker, Nice's clinical practice director, said: "Falling asleep with a baby, whether that's in a bed or on a sofa or chair, is risky.

"We recognise that some parents may choose to share a bed with their baby because it could make breastfeeding easier, or for cultural reasons.

"Or they may be forced to co-sleep because they may not have the space or money for a cot.

"This is why it's so important for parents to understand what the risks are."

Just under 250 babies a year die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in England and Wales.

Doctors still do not understand what causes babies to die. But Nice says the risk factors are becoming clearer.

Existing advice warns parents not to "co-sleep" with their babies until they are six to eight weeks old.

Nice says new research shows the risk period extends up to one year.

SIDS charity The Lullaby Trust said it regularly has contact with families that have lost a baby older than eight weeks.

Francine Bates, chief executive, said: "If every parent followed these guidelines we believe we could go a long way in achieving our ambition of halving the rate of SIDS in this country by 2020."

But Belinda Phipps, chief executive of the National Childbirth Trust, warned exhausted parents are likely to ignore the advice.

"We know that around half of UK mothers bed-share with their baby at some point in their first few months," she said.

"Nice guidance needs to reflect this reality. We are concerned that these guidelines will lead to parents hiding the fact that they are bed-sharing, or doing so through desperation or exhaustion without safety strategies in place."

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Saudi Arabia 'Deploys Troops To Iraq Border'

Saudi Arabia has deployed 30,000 troops to its border with Iraq, according to reports.

The move follows the withdrawal of Iraqi soldiers from the area, the Reuters news agency reported, quoting Saudi-owned Al Arabiya TV.

The Dubai-based satellite channel posted a video on its website which it said showed some 2,500 Iraqi soldiers in the desert area east of the Iraqi city of Karbala after they abandoned their posts, leaving the border area with Saudi Arabia and Syria unguarded.

An Iraqi officer in the video said the Iraqi soldiers had been ordered to quit their posts for no apparent reason.

"We received an order to withdraw, we didn't know why," he said.

The authenticity of the recording has not been independently verified.

The world's top oil exporter shares an 800km (500 mile) border with Iraq, where ISIS insurgents and other Sunni Muslim militant groups seized towns and cities in a lightning advance last month.

Saudi's King Abdullah has ordered "all necessary measures" to protect the kingdom against potential "terrorist threats", state news agency SPA reported.

Saudi troops on a training exercise in March

Sky News' Diplomatic Editor Tim Marshall said: "Six days ago, the Saudis put their armed forces on the highest alert.

"And that's because they were getting reports that, along the border between the two countries, the Iraqi army was beginning to drift away, which obviously means that ISIS can advance towards the Saudi border.

"Today, it's become apparent to them (the Saudis) that it's almost unguarded and therefore someone's got to guard it and it's going to be them."

The Iraqi troops appeared to have left the areas in the Sunni-controlled Anbar province because they just thought: "We can't hold this, we're going to die," he said.

"So, let's put it in military terms, they appear to have run away."

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Ebola Outbreak: State Of Emergency 'Needed'

By Thomas Moore, Health and Science Correspondent

The doctor who first identified the deadly Ebola virus has warned the outbreak in West Africa is now so bad that a "state of emergency" should be declared.

Professor Peter Piot told Sky News that the disease, which kills up to 90% of patients, now affects such a wide area that it will be "difficult" to bring under control - and it will spread further without "very, very strict vigilance."

Prof Piot, now Director of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, helped to bring to an end to the first known outbreak of Ebola in Zaire in 1976.

There have since been more than 20 outbreaks in Central and West Africa. But the current epidemic affecting Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone was "unprecedented" he said.

Professor Peter Piot: 'A local problem is now a regional crisis'

The virus causes a high fever, organ failure and severe bleeding. Contact with any bodily fluid can transmit the virus. There is no treatment.

Prof Piot said: "We have waited too long. In cases like Ebola it is better to be accused of overacting than underestimating the situation.

"It is far more difficult to contain an epidemic that involves quarantine of people, isolation of patients and tracing their contacts when it has reached big urban populations.

More than 400 people have been killed across three countries

"This has turned from a local problem to a regional crisis.

"Even countries that are not yet affected by Ebola may become affected. Mobility of people including patients and sometimes cadavers is high across borders and I think it's time for declaring a state of emergency."

Professor Piot said the World Health Organisation must engage with community leaders to explain to local populations the importance of isolating victims in hospital to prevent further transmission of the virus.

He said burial practices in which the infected body is washed by unprotected relatives must also cease.

"In theory Ebola is very easy to stop with gloves, soap, isolating patients, and not reusing needles and syringes," he said.

Professor Piopt suggests using anti-viral drugs to treat Ebola

"But in practice it is about people and their beliefs.

"If you think that someone dies of witchcraft or that western medicine is at the origin, that is something that must be overcome."

Professor Piot also urged medical authorities to try using anti-viral drugs to treat patients. Tests on infected monkeys have suggested the drugs work to some extent against Ebola.

"This is the time to try them," he said.

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Superbugs 'Could Send UK Back To The Dark Ages'

Britain is to lead the fight against antibiotic-resistant superbugs which risk sending Britain "back to the Dark Ages", David Cameron will announce today.

Tens of thousands of people around the world are dying from infections caused by bugs that have become resistant to treatment including malaria, salmonella and tuberculosis.

An estimated 627,000 people died from malaria in 2012

The WHO has warned that unless coordinated action is taken the world is heading towards a post-antibiotic era in which common infections and minor injuries can once again kill.

"This is not some distant threat, but something happening right now," the Prime Minister will say.

"If we fail we are looking at an almost unthinkable scenario where antibiotics no longer work and we are cast back into the dark ages of medicine where treatable infections and injuries will kill once again."

Dame Sally Davies: 'We must act now on a global scale'

Professor Dame Sally Davies, the Chief Medical Officer for England, said: "We must act now on a global scale to slow down antimicrobial resistance.

"In Europe, at least 25,000 people a year already die from infections which are resistant to our drugs of last resort.

"New antibiotics made by the biotech and pharmaceutical industry will be central to resolving this crisis which will impact on all areas of modern medicine.

"I am delighted to see the Prime Minister taking a global lead by commissioning this review to help new antibiotics to be developed and brought to patients effectively."

David Cameron raised the issue with US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel when they met at the G7 summit in Brussels last month.

The initial £500,000 cost of the work will be met by the Wellcome Trust. Director Jeremy Farrar said: "Drug-resistant bacteria, viruses and parasites are driving a global health crisis.

"It threatens not only our ability to treat deadly infections, but almost every aspect of modern medicine: from cancer treatment to Caesarean sections, therapies that save thousands of lives every day rely on antibiotics that could soon be lost.

"We are failing to contain the rise of resistance and failing to develop new drugs to replace those that no longer work. We are heading for a post-antibiotic age."

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Africa Battles To Stop Deadly Spread Of Ebola

By Alex Crawford, Special Correspondent, In Liberia

The worst Ebola outbreak ever is spreading and will almost certainly extend across West Africa unless there is cross-country co-operation and urgent international assistance.

The porous borders between Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone has meant the disease is not being contained and now risks spreading even further.

Health workers at the epicentre, where the borders of the three countries meet, have made an urgent appeal through Sky News for immediate international help to try to control the virus.

Philip Azumah, the Foya district health officer, said: "We need help now, or the virus will spread and kill more people."

The latest outbreak has spread to three countries

It is difficult to determine exactly how many people have already died from the disease given the cross-border contamination and lack of accounting.

But it is already clear there are many more deaths than any previous outbreak.

Aid organisation Doctors Without Borders has already said it is the largest outbreak on record, with the highest number of deaths.

Across the three countries, more than 400 have died in this latest outbreak, with no sign of the disease being halted.

And for the first time the disease has spread to highly populated areas including cities such as Guinea's capital, Conakry.

At one of the high-risk infection centres set up in Foya, in Liberia, the medics insisted we, like them, took extreme precautions.

This included wearing two layers of protective head-to-toe clothing featuring one waterproof all-in-one outfit, face and head masks, double gloves, thick plastic aprons, sturdy goggles and rubber boots.

Among the victims was a nurse who contracted Ebola after caring for a person who later died from the virus.

Elizabeth Smith was too weak to raise her head

Nurse Elizabeth Smith was lying on a bed next to another nurse who had contracted Ebola from the same patient they had both treated.

But Ms Smith was significantly weaker than her co-worker. She did not raise her head as we entered and her bed was soaked in blood.

Neither woman had realised they were treating a patient with Ebola, so had taken none of the precautions their colleagues were now taking.

Two of them sprayed Ms Smith with disinfectant, down her legs, her feet, her hands and arms as they stood arms-length away in their head-to-toe protective clothing and visors. Gingerly, they took her arms and helped her to her feet, before escorting her down the tent corridor to the high-risk area.

The nurse contracted Ebola treating another victim

Here, every patient is a confirmed Ebola case and the odds are that 90% of them will die.

The frightening deadliness of Ebola, plus the ignorance around it and the lack of a cure, has thrown the medical staff in this area into a panic.

Francis Forndia, administrator for Foya-Borma Hospital, where medical staff have died after treating victims, told us his workers simply fled after nurses began dying.

"It is hard to get them to return, but we have managed to persuade some to come back by explaining to them how needed they are," he said.

Mr Azumah is co-ordinating the health battle against Ebola in this area. He tells me the first recent outbreak in Liberia was in March, when an infected woman travelled to Foya from Guinea.

She died two days after being admitted to the sole and tiny hospital in Foya. By the time of her death, she had infected eleven people in hospital alone.

Officials say cultural traditions have helped spread the virus

Two of them were nurses who went on to die. The remaining nine somehow managed to survive.

Then Liberia went a solid three weeks without an incident and believed they were clear - until the end of May.

This time, a woman from Sierra Leone, probably out of fear, gave misleading information about where she had come from.

She told investigators she was local, which was true, but did not mention she had in fact spent some time in an infected area of Sierra Leone.

This time the consequences were much more widespread. She had infected a stream of people, six of whom died.

They are still trying to trace all those she may have been in contact with.

There have since been other outbreaks in Voinjamma and the Liberian capital, Monrovia, while Guinea and Sierra Leone continue to register deaths, too.

Mr Azumah said: "In our culture, it is the habit to wash the dead body, look after it for a week in the home, kiss and touch it, even eat meals with the dead body - and we believe this has led to the virus spreading.

"Also people are keeping the illnesses and deaths secret if they suspect Ebola."

By alerting the authorities to possible Ebola, people risk being ostracised by their communities.

There is even a fear among these poverty stricken communities that the visiting health workers are spreading the virus.

But what seems significant is that, in Liberia at least, one of the poorest countries in the world, they are largely coping with this virulent disease on their own - with very little outside help evident.

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Rolf Harris Visited Broadmoor With Jimmy Savile

The Fall Of One Of Britain's Best-Loved Stars

Updated: 6:09pm UK, Monday 30 June 2014

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

Despite being born in Australia, Rolf Harris' lengthy career in show business, spanning almost six decades, has ensured he is one of Britain's best-known and, until now, best-loved stars.

From his humble beginnings as a swimming champion in his native Western Australia, he moved to London in 1952 after deciding to abandon a teaching career and study art instead.

Within weeks he was singing in ex-pat clubs and two years after stepping off a liner, he signed a contract with the BBC which marked the start of a lengthy association with the broadcaster.

Artist, singer-songwriter and TV star, his legendary career earned him an MBE, OBE and CBE and Australian honours as well.

He was given a BAFTA fellowship, painted a portrait of the Queen and has met other members of the royal family countless times.

Harris also made numerous TV commercials and appeared at Glastonbury six times - opening the event in 2010 - and singing in front of a crowd of almost 100,000.

Countless generations of children and adults know him through iconic programmes from the 70s, 80s and 90s, such as The Rolf Harris Show, Rolf Harris Cartoon Time, Animal Hospital and Rolf On Art.

His wife of 56 years, Alwen, and daughter Bindi, 49, supported him in court throughout the seven-week trial, although only Bindi was called to give evidence in the case.

She described how she wanted to ''stab herself with forks'' after discovering Harris had been having a relationship with her best friend, who was the subject of seven of the charges.

In his 2001 autobiography, titled after his catchphrase "Can You Tell What It Is Yet", there is a telling passage in which he explained his feelings about his family.

He wrote: ''Alwen and Bindi have to come first. It has only been in the last five years that I have realised this. Late, but better than never.''

Telling, because it was in 1997 Harris wrote to the father of Bindi's best friend to tell him of the affair he had been having with his daughter when his own daughter found out.

He also wrote of how, as his career took off in the 60s, he found himself ogling women in backstage dressing rooms set aside for dancers he worked with.

Harris wrote: ''I tried not to watch - or be seen watching - but it wasn't easy, I spent most of my time reading the same page of a book 14 times realising I was holding it upside down.''

It's also clear he had a difficult relationship with his daughter and wife - blaming himself for not being with them as he devoted his time to his career - leaving them a painful second.

In the early 1960s as his career hit the big time, Alwen visited Australia with him and it later emerged she had contemplated suicide, Harris only finding out about it 30 years later when he found her diary.

Harris described how ''the words struck me like hammer blows'' adding that he ''felt terrible and I kicked myself for my selfishness''.

His awards and honours count for nothing and he will now swap his luxury Thames-side home in Berkshire for the cold harsh surroundings of a prison cell, as a convicted sex offender.

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Israel Bombs Gaza After Teenagers Found Dead

Israeli fighter jets have bombed dozens of sites in the Gaza Strip hours after vowing to take revenge on the killers of three teenagers.

Soldiers also demolished the West Bank homes of two main suspects in the murders of the kidnapped trio.

A man was shot dead after allegedly throwing a grenade at troops attempting to arrest a militant in the Jenin refugee camp.

A fireball rises above Rafah, southern Gaza, following an Israeli airstrike

The Israeli teenagers' bodies were found under a pile of rocks in an isolated spot near Hebron, three weeks after they went missing.

Eyal Yifrah, 19, and 16-year-olds Gilad Shaar and Naftali Fraenkel disappeared on June 12 while hitchhiking home from the Jewish school where they were studying.

Their bodies were found by soldiers after the biggest Israeli ground operation inside the West Bank in nearly a decade.

Soldiers walk away from the Hebron home of one of the kidnap suspsects

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blamed the Islamic militant group Hamas for the atrocity and said the teenagers were "kidnapped and murdered in cold blood by human animals".

"Hamas is responsible and Hamas will pay," he said.

Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has denied any involvement in the kidnappings, although a spokesman said: "Threats don't scare Hamas and if (Mr Netanyahu) wages a war on Gaza, the gates of hell will open on him."

An adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the country was committed to peace so that "no mother or no family will be bereaved for the loss of their beloved ones, (whether) Palestinian or Israeli."

One of Amer Abu Eisheh's relatives walks through the shell of his home

However, Mark Regev, a spokesman for the Israeli government, told Sky News: "President Abbas says he's committed to peace, reconciliation and fighting terrorism, and yet he's in an alliance with terrorists who kidnap and murder children.

"When he chose to form a pact with Hamas, he was turning his back on his own commitment to fighting terrorism.

"Hamas is part of a family of terrorist movements, such as Hizbollah in Lebanon and Isis in Iraq, who are well known for their violence and their extremism.

Demonstrators march near the UN headquarters in New York

"President Abbas has to decide whether he's with them or with the path of peace and reconciliation."

About 400 suspected Hamas militants were arrested as Israeli air strikes hit 34 targets inside the Gaza Strip.

The homes of chief suspects Marwan Qawasmeh and Amer Abu Eisheh, who are still on the run, were also destroyed, witnesses told the AFP news agency.

Israeli security officials are expected to discuss possible further military action after an emergency meeting on Monday.

Overnight, thousands of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv's central Rabin Square, close to where the teenagers were abducted, to sing, pray and light candles.

It came as Secretary of State John Kerry condemned the "despicable terrorist act" as an "outrage beyond any understanding or rationale".

"As a father, there are no words to express such a horrific loss that shakes all people of conscience," he added.

US President Barack Obama said the murders were "senseless" but warned against retribution that "could further destabilise the situation".

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Dying Reeva's Screams 'As Loud As A Plane'

It is possible Reeva Steenkamp's screams on the night she was shot and killed by Oscar Pistorius were as loud as a plane's engine, a court has heard.

State Prosecutor Gerrie Nel questioned acoustic expert Ivan Lin on the sounds heard on Valentine's Day last year when the athlete's girlfriend was killed.

When asked if he would put Ms Steenkamp's screams at 120 dB, Mr Lin said: "120 means extremely loud, you can almost hear it 100 metres away. It is a very slight possibility, but it is possible."

Sky Correspondent Emma Hurd, who is in the courtroom, said: "Mr Nel is now going through Lin's evidence about the possible volume of a woman screaming. Lin says he used 120DB - loud as a plane.

"Mr Nel is trying to make the point that Reeva Steenkamp would have screamed loudly because she was 'screaming for her life'."

After quizzing Mr Lin about some of the technical details in report, Mr Nel contended that, without exception, everybody heard a woman's screams on that night.

Pistorius hugs a well-wisher in court

He said: "Four state witnesses all heard screams by a woman. That must be reliable even for a scientist."

Pistorius's defence team have previously said the screams came from him, as he was upset that he had killed Ms Steenkamp.

Next to give evidence was Peet van Zyl, Pistorius's manager.

Mr van Zyl, who has worked with the athlete since 2006, told the court Pistorius had a "heightened sense of awareness" and would always park his car in open spaces with plenty of lighting.

Reeva Steenkamp and Pistorius had been dating for around three months

The trial has resumed after an adjournment for a month of psychiatric tests, which found Pistorius was not mentally ill at the time of Ms Steenkamp's death and that he is fit to stand trial.

The results of the mental assessment may play a part in any future sentencing.

The judge ordered the evaluation after a psychiatrist giving evidence in the athlete's defence told the court he suffered from generalised anxiety disorder, and that this may have influenced his judgement.

Pistorius denies murdering Ms Steenkamp, claiming he mistook her for an intruder in his home.

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Pistorius 'Not Mentally Ill' As Trial Resumes

Why Would Prosecution Seek Pistorius Tests?

Updated: 7:15pm UK, Tuesday 13 May 2014

On the face of it, prosecutor Gerrie Nel's decision to request that Oscar Pistorius undergo psychiatric tests may seem an unusual one.

If the athlete were found to be suffering from a mental illness, he could be held not criminally responsible for his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp's death.

Ultimately, he could be found not guilty of premeditated murder - a charge he denies - by reason of "mental illness or intellectual disability".

It may be, however, that Mr Nel is seeking to prove Pistorius is of sound mind, cutting off at the pass any possibility of his opposite number, Barry Roux, claiming he was unable to distinguish between right and wrong or act accordingly on Valentine's Day last year.

The prosecution has already claimed the decision to call forensic psychiatrist Dr Merryl Vorster at this late stage in the trial - after Pistorius himself had given evidence - may be a "fallback option" for the defence in the event of a guilty verdict.

Mr Nel described Pistorius as "not the most impressive witness" and claimed the court had heard "three defences" already.

Sending the 27-year-old for mental health tests at this stage could also eliminate the possibility of an appeal by the defence on the grounds that Pistorius' mental health had not been fully and adequately assessed.

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England Fans Could Face Euro 2004 Riot Charge

By Martin Brunt, Crime Correspondent

A Portuguese court wants to put three England football fans on trial for hooliganism 10 years after they were deported.

The three are named in court papers revealed to Sky News ahead of a hearing in the resort of Albufeira on Tuesday.

The prosecution case involves an accusation that fans attacked police and one police officer needed stitches to a foot injury.

Richard Freeman (L) and Lewis Andrews deny being involved in the clashes

Builder Richard Freeman, from Berkshire, knew nothing of the case until we told him. He said he was wrongly arrested at the time.

He said: "It's a farce. It's the first I heard of it. I'm certainly not going back to Portugal because they might arrest me. What chance would I have of a fair trial?"

Mr Freeman was one of three dozen England fans arrested on the Algarve coast during several nights of violent clashes during the Euro 2004 championships.

Garry Mann was extradited to Portugal and imprisoned

Most were held for a couple of nights and then deported and banned from returning for a year.

Many were met at Heathrow airport by Metropolitan Police, questioned and told they would face no further action.

A second suspect, Lewis Andrews from Oxfordshire, said police had told his parents six weeks ago they had a letter from Portugal for him, but he had heard nothing directly.

Mr Andrews said: "Why are they suddenly bringing this up again after all this time? What do they hope to achieve?

"I was just walking home when I was jumped on by the police and beaten with batons. They were just rounding up anybody in an England shirt."

Several dozen England fans were arrested during the tournament

Bruno Min, from Fair Trials International, said: "Our advice to these men is consult a Portuguese lawyer and try to find out why there has been such a delay. It is a surprise, but a hearing could be held in their absence and the authorities could possibly ask for extradition."

The third suspect named by the court is Wayne Finney, from Nottinghamshire. His girlfriend said he knew nothing about the new court hearing.

All three men apparently received a court summons in 2008, but did not respond.

That same year the Portuguese authorities began a bid to extradite Kent firefighter Garry Mann who was arrested during the 2004 clashes, convicted and jailed for two years, but then suddenly deported.

In 2010 he was finally extradited to Portugal and jailed, before being allowed back to finish his sentence in the UK.

Court papers suggest another 21 of those deported in 2004 were considered for belated prosecution, but too much time has elapsed in their cases.

The documents indicate the Portuguese prosecutors have until December to put the other three on trial.

The Home Office said it knew nothing about the latest development.

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ISIS Insurgents Declare New Islamic State

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has declared the establishment of an Islamic state in the areas it controls and demanded allegiance from other Muslim groups worldwide.

The Sunni militant group proclaimed its leader, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, as "caliph" - the head of the state, and said the "caliphate" stretched from Aleppo in Syria to Diyala in Iraq.

ISIS spokesman Abu Muhammad al Adnani said in an audio recording on the first day of Ramadan: "He is the imam and khalifah (caliph) for the Muslims everywhere.

ISIS spokesman Abu Muhammad al Adnani announced the 'caliphate'

"His (al Baghdadi's) authority has expanded over wide areas in Iraq and Sham (Levant). The land now under his leadership spreads from Aleppo to Diyala."

He added: "The legality of all emirates, groups, states and organisations becomes null by the expansion of the caliph's authority and the arrival of its troops to their areas.

"Listen to your caliph and obey him. Support your state, which grows every day."

ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi

Al Adnani said that with the establishment of the "caliphate", the group was changing its name to just the Islamic State, dropping the mention of Iraq and Syria.

Charles Lister from the Brookings Institution in Qatar called the declaration the "biggest development in international jihad since September 11".

ISIS fighters overran the Iraqi city of Mosul last month in a lightning offensive and have since been advancing towards Baghdad. 

ISIS has demanded allegiance from Muslims worldwide

In Syria, they have captured territory in the north and east, along the frontier with Iraq.

ISIS's declaration comes as the Iraqi government is battling to wrest back some of the territory it has lost to the jihadist group in recent weeks.

On Sunday, Iraqi helicopter gunships struck suspected insurgent positions for a second consecutive day in the northern city of Tikrit, the birthplace of Saddam Hussein, around 80 miles north of Baghdad.

Iraqi troops have been involved in a fierce counteroffensive in Tikrit

The Iraqi military launched a multi-pronged attack spearheaded by ground troops backed by tanks, warplanes and helicopters.

The insurgents appeared to have repelled the military's initial push and remained in control of the city on Sunday, but clashes were reportedly taking place in the northern neighbourhood of Qadissiyah.

Iraqi army spokesman Qassim al Moussawi told reporters government troops were in full control of the university and had raised the Iraqi flag over the campus.

Iraqi volunteers joining the fight against ISIS

"It is a matter of time before we declare the total clearing of Tikrit," he said.

Jawad al Bolani, a security official in the provincial operation command, said the US was sharing intelligence with Iraq and has played an "essential" role in the Tikrit offensive.

Washington has sent 180 of 300 American troops President Barack Obama has promised to help Iraqi forces.

The US is also flying manned and unmanned aircraft on reconnaissance missions over Iraq.

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Rates 'May Return To Pre-Recession Levels'

Homeowners should expect interest rates to return to their pre-recession levels within a decade, the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England has warned.

Last week the Bank's Governor Mark Carney suggested that even once borrowing costs rise, the "new normal" for them to settle at would be around 2.5% - significantly lower than the long-term average of 4-5%.

But in an exclusive interview with Sky News Sir Charlie Bean, the Bank's longest-serving senior policy maker, said that this lower rate was only caused by a range of temporary factors.

Sir Charlie said that in the "long term", meaning beyond five or ten years, it could easily rise again towards 5% - the level traditionally considered "neutral".

"It might be reasonable to think that in that long term you would go back to 5% but it's probably quite a long way down the road," he said.

Sir Charlie's comments will be welcomed by savers who have suffered ever since the Bank lowered interest rates to just 0.5% five years ago.

However, they may also alarm millions of mortgage holders who may struggle to make their repayments.

The deputy governor, whose term comes to an end on Monday, also said that markets' expectations that the first increase in interest rates would come at the turn of the year seemed "reasonable".

He added: "The market has rates going up to 2.5% over the next three years. That seems like broadly sensible judgement."

Sir Charlie also admitted that in the run up to the crisis he, along with other economists, was "not sufficiently cognisant of the risks building up in the financial system".

However, he said that he was leaving the Bank in safe hands, and the economy far more resilient than when he arrived in 2000.

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England Fan Bites Supporter's Ear Off In Brazil

Police are hunting an England fan who bit another fan's ear off after the national side's World Cup defeat against Uruguay.

The victim was left with half his left ear ripped off and bloodied in the attack, police have confirmed.

The attack happened before Uruguay and Liverpool striker Luis Suarez bit an Italian player, which led to him being banned.

But details of the fan's attack have only just emerged.

Video footage obtained by the Sunday People appeared to show the moment the attack took place on the top tier of the Arena Corinthians.

Several men can be seen in a melee before one is led away by stewards.

When asked what happened, the victim appears to tell the camera: "He bit off my ear."

Blood can be seen dripping down his neck but he continues to smile and laugh.

Luis Suarez consoles England captain Steven Gerrard after the game

Former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore tweeted that he had seen the footage and claimed it would be "the biggest story in the UK, especially who did it".

Chief Superintendent Rachel Barber said: "We were made aware during the England vs Uruguay match in Sao Paulo that an incident had taken place which resulted in an England fan having a portion of his ear bitten off by another England fan.

"In the immediate aftermath, we managed to make contact with the victim and offered advice and support.

"The day after the attack, the victim chose to make a formal complaint to the local police, and they opened an investigation."

No arrests have been made yet but interviews with witnesses gave police a name for the alleged attacker, Ms Barber said.

Police went to England's final match against Costa Rica in Belo Horizonte in case the assailant travelled to the match but did not find him there.

Chief Superintendent Barber added: "Efforts are ongoing to identify the suspect and bring him to justice either in the UK or, if possible, back in Brazil where the offence occurred."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware of an incident in Sao Paulo on June 19 involving a British national and we provided consular assistance."

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Radical Islamic Preacher Seeks Asylum In UK

The family of Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammad are applying for his asylum in the UK after claiming he had been tortured in Lebanon.

They say the radical preacher has suffered systematic torture while in custody at a maximum security prison.

The family say he should be allowed back into Britain on "humanitarian grounds" as his health has deteriorated and he is no longer able to walk.

Mohammad left the UK in 2005 and was barred from returning

The cleric caused outrage in the wake of the 2005 London bombings after saying he would not inform police if he knew Muslims were planning attacks.

He left the UK in 2005 and was told he would not be allowed to return.

But the cleric's son, Mohammad Bakri, told Sky News: "I'm here on the humanitarian basis. At the end of the day, many people find what he says distasteful, and he quotes things from the Islamic perspective.

"But I think unless you know the character, himself, like my father - I grew up with him - so therefore I understand the tactics that he uses to attract the media in order to pass the message of Islam.

"You may find that distasteful, but at the end of the day he has not committed any crimes in the UK."

Sky's Home Affairs Correspondent Mark White said the family's claims have not been independently verified.

"The families of Omar Bakri Mohammad say that he has been transferred to a maximum security prison ... in Lebanon," he said.

"They also say that he has been systematically tortured during his time in that maximum security prison.

Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammad's daughter and son

"We have no independent verification of this, but the family insists that he is in very poor health.

"They claim that he is actually close to death and they're seeking an urgent appeal now to the UK authorities to have him returned to the UK under asylum."

Mohammad holds Syrian and Lebanese citizenship and lived in Britain for 20 years, where he headed the now-disbanded radical Islamist group al Muhajiroun.

He was among 54 people sentenced in Lebanon in November 2010 in trials of militants who fought deadly clashes with the Lebanese army in 2007.

He was convicted of belonging to an armed group that aimed to carry out terrorist acts and plots to kill Lebanese soldiers.

The preacher speaks in London alongside Abu Hamza in 1999

A Home Office spokesperson said: "An individual must be physically present in the UK in order to make a claim for asylum.

"Omar Bakri Mohammad was permanently excluded from the UK in 2005 on the grounds that his presence is not conducive to the public good.

"As Omar Bakri Mohammad is excluded from the UK, he will be unable to make a claim for asylum."

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