Ebola Crisis: Alex Crawford's Special Report

In a week when the World Health Organisation declared deaths from ebola have reached over 4,000, Sky's Special Correspondent Alex Crawford gained exclusive access to a body recovery team in Liberia.

You can watch a special version of the highlights of the report, or watch the full documentary and read her full story.

Our Health Correspondent Thomas Moore looks in detail at this latest global health crisis in this Sky News special report.

:: Watch a special Sky News programme on the ebola crisis at 3.30pm today and 3.30pm on Sunday - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

Video: Africa Ebola Crisis: Special Report

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

UN Warning As Deaths From Ebola Pass 4,000

Fears are growing worldwide about the spread of the ebola outbreak in west Africa as the number of people killed by the virus passed 4,000.

The figure came after staff threw medical gloves at the Spanish prime minister when he visited a hospital in Madrid where a nurse has ebola.

According to the World Health Organisation, 4,033 people had died from the disease as of October 8 out of a total of 8,399 registered cases in seven countries.

The sharp rise in deaths was revealed as the United Nations said aid pledges to fight the epidemic have fallen well short of the $1bn (£0.63bn) needed.

Meanwhile, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has predicted the number of cases could reach 1.4 million by January unless efforts to contain the virus are stepped up.

Video: Hospital Staff Throw Gloves At PM

On Friday the Canadian government advised its citizens to leave African countries worst hit by ebola, while arranging for travellers to be screened at its own borders.

It follows the decision by the US and Britain to begin ebola screening at major airports and in the UK's case at Eurostar rail terminals.

Serious concerns remained in Spain over how the virus could have spread in the country's main isolation centre at the Carlos III hospital in Madrid.

Video: Ebola Screening Coming To The UK

Healthcare workers told AFP the quarantine floor where 44-year-old nurse Teresa Romero was infected was shut last year as a result of spending cuts.

They said it only re-opened for two missionaries flown back from Africa with the disease in August.

Ms Romero, who caught the deadly virus while caring for the pair, was said to be in a "stable but serious" condition on Friday.

Video: 'We Responded To Medical Advice'

The hospital took in three more patients for observation on Friday, bringing to 17 the number under surveillance, including Ms Romero, her husband and other medical staff.

Elsewhere, a public building in Paris was briefly evacuated on Thursday when an African man became unwell. Test showed he did not have ebola.

In Macedonia people who had come into contact with a Briton who died after exhibiting ebola-like symptoms were quarantined.

Video: Ebola 'Could Become Next AIDS'

A Guinean man in Brazil feared to have ebola was also quarantined, although the authorities stressed it was a precautionary measure and he no longer had a fever.

The Moroccan government has called for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations to be postponed due to the epidemic.

Ebola causes fever, diarrhoea, vomiting and in some cases internal and external bleeding, and is spread by contact and the exchange of bodily fluids.

Video: How Doctors Should Deal With Ebola

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola Exercise To Test Britain's Readiness

A national exercise will be held to test Britain's readiness for an ebola outbreak, with actors simulating symptoms of the deadly virus.

Government ministers will join dozens of medical professionals, some of whom will wear protective equipment, for the eight-hour drill in locations across the country.

A simulated meeting of the Government's COBRA emergency committee will also be held, chaired by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Meanwhile, aid ship RFA Argus, which is to be sent to Sierra Leone next week to help fight the outbreak, has arrived in Falmouth, Cornwall, to be loaded with medical supplies before being deployed to West Africa.

The exercise was ordered by David Cameron as part of the UK's contingency plan against ebola, which has killed more than 4,000 people in West Africa.

It comes after the Prime Minister was forced to defend the decision to introduce enhanced screening for the virus at major points of entry, saying it had been taken on "medical advice".

Video: Hospital Staff Throw Gloves At PM

Questions have been raised about the checks, with a spokesman for Gatwick saying the airport had not been given any instructions about how the screening should be carried out.

The move was also criticised by health experts, with one describing it as a "complete waste of time", while Labour MP Keith Vaz said the lack of precise information was "shambolic".

Mr Cameron said: "What we do is listen to the medical advice and we act on that advice, and that's why we are introducing the screening processes at the appropriate ports and airports.

Video: Ebola Screening Coming To The UK

"What we are focusing on as a country is taking action right across the board to deal with this problem at source."

The Department of Health has said it will provide further details about ebola screenings at Heathrow and Gatwick airports and Eurostar terminals next week.

The department has not revealed the locations of the national exercise, although a spokeswoman said it has been planning its response to an ebola case in the UK "for many months now".

Video: Ebola Crisis: On The Front Line

"It is vital that we test these plans in as realistic a situation as possible - with real people," she said.

As well as ministers these will include hospital staff, the ambulance service and Public Health England.

The spokeswoman added: "It is important to remember that the overall risk to the public in the UK continues to be very low.

Video: How Doctors Should Deal With Ebola

"The UK has some of the best public health protection systems in the world with well-developed and well-tested systems for managing infectious disease."

:: Watch a special Sky News programme on the ebola crisis at 3.30pm today and 3.30pm on Sunday - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Reaction To By-Election Results: Live Updates

We use cookies to give you the best experience. If you do nothing we'll assume that it's ok.

UKIP vote soars as party claims first elected MP

{headline} {source} ]]>

{headline} ]]> Recommended by Outbrain Recommended by Outbrain

1. Breaking News: 'We're After You': UKIP Claims First Elected MP
2. Breaking News: UKIP Near-Miss Will Send Biggest Shock
3. Breaking News: Nigel Farage Gets 'Free Rein To Wreak Havoc'
4. Breaking News: Malala Yousafzai Wins Nobel Peace Prize
5. Mikhail Gorbachev 'Deteriorating' In Hospital

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

UKIP Near-Miss Will Send Biggest Shock Waves

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

As I left the count with UKIP's deputy leader Paul Nuttall after a nail-biting night at Heywood and Middleton, he said to me: "I need a pint of Guinness!"

The Guinness and the foaming pints of bitter favoured by the UKIP leader Nigel Farage will taste especially good today after a storming by-election victory in Clacton, and a photo-finish in the safe Labour seat of Heywood and Middleton.

Douglas Carswell's comfortable victory by 12,404 votes in Clacton was predictable, but is still an ominous warning to David Cameron and the Conservatives of the damage UKIP can potentially inflict on the Tories in next year's General Election.

But Labour's near-defeat in Heywood and Middleton, clinging on by just 617 votes after a recount demanded by UKIP, has already sent shock waves through the Labour high command and will reignite the criticism of Ed Miliband's leadership inside his party.

Bad tactics, bad strategy, bad leadership, his accusers will claim.

1/16

1. Gallery: The UKIP History In Pictures

   1993: UKIP is founded by Alan Sked in response to the Maastricht Treaty, which set out the modern day EU and paved the way for the Euro. He left the party in 1997 saying it had become a "racist party for the far-right". He is now the leader of New Deal, which has been called UKIP of the Left.

2. 1999: The party takes its first three seats in the European Parliament, under the leadership of the millionaire businessman Michael Holmes. Nigel Farage is one of those MEPs.

3. 2000: Michael Holmes resigns and Jeffrey Titford takes over as leader of UKIP. He leads the party to field 420 candidates at the 2001 General Election and secure 1.5% of the vote.

4. 2002: Former Conservative Roger Knapman takes over at the helm.

5. 2004: The party wins 12 seats at the European Elections, among the UKIP MEPs is the chat show host Robert Kilroy Silk.

6. 2005: Growing speculation Robert Kilroy Silk will take on the leadership comes to nothing and he announces he is leaving the party, calling it a "joke", setting up his own party, Veritas.

7. 2006: In a radio interview David Cameron calls UKIP members "fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists, mostly". It's the same year Nigel Farage is elected leader with 45% of the votes. Mr Farage drives an armoured vehicle to the Conservative Party Conference demanding an apology.

8. 2009: UKIP wins 13 seats at the European Elections but Mr Farage steps down as leader so he can concentrate on preparing for the General Election.

9. 2010: Nigel Farage decides to oppose House of Commons Speaker John Bercow in Buckingham - not the done thing. He fails to win the seat and goes on to reject the party's manifesto as "486 pages of drivel".

10. 2011: Ed Miliband hits the campaign trail at the Barnsley by-election (pictured) but UKIP candidate comes second to Labour, indicating the party presents a challenge to both Left and Right.

11. February 2013: Diane James wins UKIP's highest by-election showing with 27.8% of the vote at Eastleigh. The Liberal Democrats hold the seat.

12. September 2013: MEP Godfrey Bloom quits the party after provoking a row when he called women party activists, who didn't clean behind their fridges, "sluts". It came shortly after he made a reference to "bongo-bongo land".

13. May 2014: UKIP becomes the first party other than Labour or the Conservatives in more than a century to win the majority share of the vote in a UK election at the local and European elections. Mr Farage claims he delivered the "earthquake" he promised.

14. August 2014: Conservative MP Douglas Carswell announces he is defecting to UKIP triggering a by-election in Clacton.

15. September 2014: Conservative MP Mark Reckless follows Mr Carswell and defects to UKIP on the eve of the Tory party conference, triggering a by-election in Rochester and Strood.

16. October 2014: Nigel Farage announces he has parked his tanks on Labour's lawns as he joins the campaign trail in Heywood and Middleton, where a by-election is triggered by the death of the Labour MP Jim Dobbin, on the same day as the Clacton vote.

Until now, Labour has complacently assumed that UKIP could unseat Conservative MPs but merely eat into Labour majorities in its safe seats in the north of England. That assumption has now been shattered by the Heywood and Middleton result.

Make no mistake, Labour got a horrendous fright in this former northern stronghold. At the beginning of the night, senior Labour figures were confident of victory and expected to win with a comfortable majority, with UKIP in second place.

But after it was revealed that the turnout was just 36% and not in the mid-40s, as they expected, I watched as the colour drained from the faces of the Labour campaign team.

They stared at the bundles on the tables in the centre of the room and saw that they were virtually identical in size.

Video: Speech: Douglas Carswell MP

As UKIP successfully called for a recount, Mr Nuttall declared that the margin between the two parties was 620 votes. He turned out to be almost spot on.

Last week, I went to Clacton on the day Prime Minister David Cameron paid a brief visit and inspected the sea defences being built to protect the coastline against storm damage.

But in a seaside constituency with an elderly electorate, the UKIP storm was always going to blow the Tories away.

Interviewed by Anna Botting on Sky News after his victory, Mr Carswell was gracious enough to admit that Heywood and Middleton was the more significant result.

Video: Interview: Labour MP

After Clacton, though, the second UKIP defector, Mark Reckless, looks well placed to hold his Rochester and Strood seat in his by-election.

But Mr Cameron's Tory conference gag: "Go to bed with Nigel Farage and wake up with Ed Miliband", looks mistaken now.

That's because these two by-elections, held on the Prime Minister's birthday, have shown that UKIP is capable of damaging Labour as well as the Conservatives.

The lesson for Labour is that just talking about the NHS, as its Heywood and Middleton candidate Liz McInnes did, isn't enough. Voters want to hear about the economy and immigration too.

Video: Interview: Nigel Farage MEP

The lesson for the Conservatives is that trying to out-UKIP UKIP doesn't do any good. Why vote for a party copying UKIP policies when you can vote for the real thing?

The beer and Guinness enjoyed by Mr Farage and Mr Nuttall will certainly taste better than ever now.

But Mr Cameron and Mr Miliband will need a stiff drink after these two results. And their by-election hangover will last seven months, all the way to the General Election in May 2015.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

UKIP Claims First Elected MP: 'We're After You'

UKIP leader Nigel Farage has warned David Cameron and Ed Miliband "we're after you" after the party claimed its first elected MP by winning 12,404 votes in the Clacton by-election.

Elsewhere, the party slashed Labour's majority in Heywood and Middleton to just 617 votes, which Mr Farage hailed an "absolutely astonishing" result.

Former Conservative MP Douglas Carswell won a landslide victory in Clacton, Essex, by securing 21,113 of the 35,386 votes cast.

UKIP also forced a recount in Heywood and Middleton, where Labour's Liz McInnes narrowly defeated UKIP's John Bickley.

Mr Farage said: "What it shows is that UKIP is now a truly national party - indeed we are the only party that can challenge in solid Tory and Labour areas.

Video: Inside The UKIP Party's Party

"I've no doubt this morning we'll hear, 'it's just a protest vote'. It's nothing of the kind. People from across the spectrum are saying. 'we've had enough of career politics'. They want to have a proper voice in Westminster.

"From today with Douglas Carswell they have got one, and in a few weeks time I believe they will have another in the shape of Mark Reckless, with another by-election coming up in Rochester and Strood.

"What we saw last night was the biggest and best night in UKIP's history

1/15

1. Gallery: UKIP Surge In By-Election Results

   UKIP has its first elected MP after Douglas Carswell took almost 60% of the vote in the Clacton by-election.

2. Mr Carswell won the seat with a majority of 12,404 over the Tory candidate Giles Watling.

3. Liz McInnes won the seat for Labour in the Heywood and Middleton contest, but its majority of almost 6,000 in 2010 was slashed to just 617 votes.

4. On a turnout of just 36%, Ms McInnes won with 11,633 votes, defeating UKIP's John Bickley on 11,016.

5. Ed Miliband's party's majority had been almost 6,000 in 2010, but a UKIP surge saw a 17.65% swing to Nigel Farage's party.

6. A triumphant Mr Carswell said "there is nothing that we cannot achieve" after winning Clacton.

7. UKIP's first elected MP to Parliament forced the election after defecting from the Tories.

8. Mr Carswell was the favourite to win, but there were still nerves on the night.

9. Mr Carswell took almost 60% of the vote.

10. Mr Farage said: "Congratulations Douglas Carswell, a brave and honourable man who has a just reward."

11. Ms McInnes won with 11,633 votes in Heywood and Middleton, defeating Mr Bickley on 11,016.

12. Despite UKIP's loss in the Lancashire constituency, Mr Bickley told Sky News "the Labour vote had collapsed".

13. Mr Farage went on to tell Sky News: "We are ripping lumps out of the old Labour vote in the north of England. The truth of what has happened in the North today is that if you are anywhere north of Birmingham, if you vote Conservative you get Labour."

14. He added: "And the reason we haven't won up there, despite a fantastic campaign, is that too many people have stuck with the Conservatives, not recognising that UKIP is now the challenger to Labour in every urban seat in the north of England."

15. Turnout in Clacton was 51.2%, while in Heywood and Middleton it was just 36%.

"We will now take the people's army of UKIP to the Rochester and Strood, and we will give that absolutely everything we have got."

Mr Farage earlier told Sky's Faisal Islam the strong UKIP result showed the Eurosceptic party was "ripping lumps out of the old Labour vote in the north of England".

Asked if he had a message for Mr Cameron, who turned 48 yesterday, and Mr Miliband, he replied, "we're after you", adding: "Happy Birthday to David Cameron, and Ed Miliband, you have underestimated us."

Video: By-Election Highlights

Mr Miliband, who would not be drawn on the nailbiting recount at Heywood and Middleton, said: "There won't be a shred of complacency from us as we reach out to all of those voters who didn't vote Labour and those who didn't vote at all."

Mr Carswell, who triggered the Clacton by-election when he defected from the Tories, said UKIP's success revealed a "profound change in British politics".

Speaking after the result was announced, he said: "We must be a party for all Britain and all Britons: First and second generation as much as every other. Our strength must lie in our breadth. If we stay true to that there is nothing that we cannot achieve."

Video: Speech: Douglas Carswell MP

Ms McInnes gained 11,633 votes in Heywood and Middleton, where voter turnout fell to just 36%.

In her victory speech, Ms McInnes said the by-election result was a win for the NHS.

"The people gave their backing to Ed Miliband's plans for an NHS with the time to care," she said.

Video: Interview: Labour MP

"They have rejected a Tory government that is only standing up for the privileged few."

Analysts say Labour's vote was damaged by the low turnout. Voter turnout was higher in Clacton, where 51.2% of voters cast their ballot.

Sky's Jon Craig said the dramatic decline of Labour's majority in Heywood would trigger further debate about Ed Miliband's leadership.

Video: Results: Heywood & Middleton

"UKIP have done better here than even they thought they would. They've come within a whisker of pulling off a sensational by-election victory," he said.

Voters in Heywood cast their ballot for a new MP following the death of Labour's Jim Dobbin last month, who held the seat from 1997 and was returned in 2010 with a significant majority.

UKIP's next target is Rochester and Strood, where defector Mr Reckless is hoping to return to Parliament following his defection.

Video: Who's Winning? Labour or UKIP

The by-election there is expected to take place early next month.

:: Watch full coverage and reaction throughout the day on Sky News - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

US Expands Ebola Checks As Dallas Patient Dies

The US has announced an expansion of ebola testing at airports, as the first person to be diagnosed in the country has died.

 A suspected patient was rushed to hospital in Texas - a sheriff's deputy who entered the Dallas apartment of victim Thomas Eric Duncan, apparently without wearing protective clothing.

He was taken to an urgent care clinic in Frisco, a northern suburb of Dallas, and although he was not among 48 people being monitored closely, he was exhibiting enough symptoms of ebola to trigger a preliminary screening, Fire Chief Mark Piland said.

Pictures from Dallas showed the patient being helped from an ambulance by medics after he was transferred to the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, where Mr Duncan died on Wednesday morning.

Five major airports across the US will carry out extra ebola checks

Frisco's Mayor Maher Maso said the risk to the patient was considered to be "minimal", but officials were proceeding "with an abundance of caution".

From Saturday, the new checks at five major US airports will include taking the temperatures of hundreds of travellers arriving from West Africa.

Video: US To Take Passengers' Temperatures

An estimated 150 people per day will be checked with thermometers that do not need to touch the skin at New York's JFK, Newark in New Jersey, Washington Dulles, Chicago and Atlanta airports.

Barack Obama said the measures were "really just belt and suspenders" to support protections already in place.

Border Patrol agents and flight crews already look for people who are ill and notify the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention if necessary.

Speaking to mayors and local officials, the President said he was confident the US could prevent the virus from spreading.

Video: Ebola-Hit Areas Still In Need

But he warned: "As we saw in Dallas, we don't have a lot of margin for error. If we don't follow protocols and procedures that are put in place, then we're putting folks in our communities at risk."

Delays in diagnosing and treating Mr Duncan, as well as the infection of a nurse who treated an ebola patient in Spain, have raised fears that Western nations may not be able to prevent an outbreak of the disease, which has now killed 3,879, according to the World Health Organisation.

In Australia, a 57-year-old woman is being tested for ebola after returning from Sierra Leone.

Doctors failed to diagnose Liberian Mr Duncan the first time he went to an emergency room with fever and abdominal pain and said he had been in West Africa.

Video: Suiting Up In An Ebola Hotspot

His partner Louise Troh said: "I trust a thorough examination will take place regarding all aspects of his care.

"His suffering is over."

:: Watch Ebola Crisis: A Special Report tonight at 8.30pm on Sky News, featuring exclusive footage from Alex Crawford at the heart of the outbreak in Liberia.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Australian Woman Being Tested For Ebola

A 57-year-old woman is being tested for ebola after returning to Australia from Sierra Leone, health officials have confirmed.

The volunteer Red Cross aid worker arrived back in Australia at the weekend after spending a month working at an ebola hospital in the West African country.

The nurse followed health rules and has not mixed with anyone since Tuesday when she returned to her home in Cairns, Queensland.

Australian media has named her as Sue Ellen Kovack.

"This morning she rang up ... because she developed a low-grade fever of 37.6C," said Queensland chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young.

The Red Cross worker had been in Sierra Leone. Pic: Facebook

"We felt it important that she come into the Cairns hospital and be tested.

"We don't know whether she has that (ebola), but she's been exposed to people with the disease while working in Sierra Leone."

Video: US Steps Up Ebola Airport Screening

Dr Young said the woman had been feeling well when she landed back in Australia and only started feeling sick today.

She is still at the Cairns hospital but her blood is being flown to Brisbane to confirm whether or not she has the deadly virus. Results are expected in the next few hours.

Reports say her flatmate is being monitored for symptoms of ebola.

Sky's Australia correspondent, Jonathan Samuels, said the nurse had been interviewed by broadcaster ABC before she left for Sierra Leone.

She told the ABC: "People put up their hands because they have an interest in their fellow man - that's why I'm going."

Peter Walton, from the Australian Red Cross, said the organisation was doing "everything we can to support her at this difficult time".

Video: Protests As 'Ebola Dog' Euthanised

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has assured his country that measures are in place to treat any ebola cases.

"What we're doing at the moment is we're carefully monitoring everyone coming to this country who's been in West Africa," he said.

"In every state, public hospitals have been prepared to deal with Ebola cases should we get any."

The tests come as pressure grows for screening of passengers at UK airports, ports and railway stations.

It is "entirely possible" that ebola - which has so far killed more than 3,800 people - could reach Britain, said Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

The US is ramping up its own response and will carry out extra screening at five major airports after the death of Thomas Eric Duncan, the first man diagnosed with ebola in America.

1/11

1. Gallery: The Desperate Fight To Contain The Ebola Outbreak

   A man rests outside the clinic.

2. A woman is comforted after medical officials remove her husband, who is suspected of having the disease.

3. Officials try to prevent themselves from spreading the disease.

4. A local who has just brought his brother to the centre. He had to rely on plastic bags tied around his hands to try to protect himself.

5. A man thought to be infected with ebola waits for treatment.

6. Patients wait to be seen by medical staff.

7. Workers try to decontaminate themselves.

8. A worker with a child who may have caught ebola.

9. A make-shift hand-washing station in Monrovia.

10. Decontaminated boots of medical staff.

11. The basic conditions make containing the disease very difficult.

Meanwhile, in Spain, dozens of animal right campaigners have scuffled with police in Madrid, trying to stop workers destroying Excalibur, the dog belonging to infected nurse Teresa Romero.

The dog was sedated, euthanised and incinerated, said officials.

Mrs Romero remains in a stable condition in the city's Carlos III hospital.

:: Watch Ebola Crisis: A Special Report tonight at 8.30pm on Sky News, featuring exclusive footage from Alex Crawford at the heart of the outbreak in Liberia.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola: Pressure Grows For UK Airport Checks

Pressure is growing for ministers to order ebola testing of travellers arriving in the UK to stop the disease from spreading.

The Government is being urged to follow the US, which unveiled extra airport screening as officials confirmed the death of the first patient diagnosed with the deadly virus in America.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has said it is "entirely possible" that ebola could come to Britain.

Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, called for screening at airports, ports and railway stations and for immigration officers to be trained to spot symptoms of the disease.

But Public Health England has stated truly effective testing of passengers would be impractical.

The health agency said it would involve screening "huge numbers of low risk people" who often do not fly direct from Africa, but change in Europe and arrive via indirect routes.

It said "robust, well-developed" plans were in place for any suspected cases.

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon told Sky News the UK was following World Health Organisation advice that screening is "best done on exit from a country ... rather than on entry".

Teresa Romero has been in quarantine in Madrid

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: "It is now entirely possible that someone with ebola will come to the UK by one route or another, but we have very, very good plans in place.

"The NHS has a proven track record of dealing with and helping people with ebola.

Video: UK Responds To Global Ebola Crisis

"Our ambulance services are equipped with the protective suits.

"But the most important thing we can do to protect the UK's population is to play our part in making sure that the disease is contained in west Africa."

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that the spread of the disease to Europe is "unavoidable".

Video: Could Ebola Reach British Shores?

Britain's decision to boost its military involvement in West Africa to 750 troops was announced after David Cameron chaired a meeting of the COBRA committee on Wednesday.

Medical ship RFA Argus will travel to Sierra Leone, along with three helicopters, aircrew and engineers to provide transport and support to doctors and aid workers.

Concern about the virus spreading across Europe has grown since Spain confirmed it was dealing with the first case transmitted outside West Africa.

Video: Protests As 'Ebola Dog' Euthanised

Scuffles broke out in Madrid as the infected woman's dog, Excalibur, was taken away to be put down.

Australia is also examining a possible case after an ebola nurse returned to Queensland from Sierra Leone.

:: Watch Ebola Crisis: A Special Report tonight at 8.30pm on Sky News, featuring exclusive footage from Alex Crawford at the heart of the outbreak in Liberia.

Video: Anger Grows Over Spanish Ebola Case

Video: Woman In Australia Tested For Ebola

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Terror Arrests May Have Foiled Major Plot

Four men have been arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences in a series of raids, during which one suspect was tasered.

The men - all aged 20 or 21 - were detained by officers from the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command at addresses across London as part of an investigation into Islamist terror activities.

Officers believe the raids disrupted what could have been a "significant plot", according to a Whitehall source quoted by the Press Association.

The 21-year-old who was tasered during his arrest did not require medical treatment, Scotland Yard said. 

"SO15 officers were assisted in the execution of warrants at one of the addresses by officers from the Specialist Firearms Command (SCO19). No shots were fired," police said in a statement.

"A number of residential addresses and vehicles are being searched by specialist officers in west and central London as part of the investigation. The searches are ongoing.

"These arrests and searches are part of an ongoing investigation into Islamist-related terrorism."

All four suspects have been taken to police stations in central London and remain in custody.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hospitals On Standby For UK Ebola Outbreak

Four major hospitals are on standby to deal with a UK ebola outbreak as David Cameron prepares to chair an emergency meeting on the threat posed by the deadly virus.

The hospitals already have infectious disease units and have been lined up to provide "surge capacity" if the virus spreads to Britain.

Experts say the UK is the third most likely country outside Africa to report an ebola case.

Teresa Ramos, the Spanish nurse who has contracted ebola

Details of the plan emerged as doctors in Spain continued to treat a nurse who became the first person outside Africa to contract ebola  - with another four people quarantined in a Madrid hospital, two of whom have now tested negative.

London's Royal Free Hospital - where nurse William Pooley was successfully treated after contracting the virus - is currently the UK's only specialist High Level Isolation Unit, with two containment beds.

Video: Suiting Up In An Ebola Hotspot

Further specialist equipment would be transferred from the Royal Free to units in Sheffield, Newcastle and Liverpool in the event of a larger outbreak.

The NHS England operational update, issued in September, states: "A letter has now gone out to the chief executives of The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as part of a contingency plan to support national surge."

Ahead of today's meeting of the Government's COBRA contingencies committee, David Cameron spoke to the president of Sierra Leone, who said the situation in his country continues to be "very serious".

The British Army is sending more than 100 medics to the West African country to help tackle the crisis.

It comes as Public Health England said there were no plans to screen travellers from West Africa and chief medical officer Professor Dame Sally Davies issued a high alert to all NHS staff.

It urged "every clinician in England" to take a full travel history of those who presented with a fever.

Video: 56 Being Checked For Ebola In Spain

Dame Sally said: "It is unlikely but not impossible that people infected in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia could arrive in the UK while incubating the disease, and then develop symptoms after their return.

"Although the likelihood of imported cases is low, health care providers are reminded to remain vigilant."

Care minister Norman Lamb told Sky News the public health plan is sufficient and refused to be drawn on whether he agreed with Liberal Democrat colleague Norman Baker, who has suggested routine screening at UK airports.

In Spain, authorities said they had been in touch with a total of 22 people who are thought to have been in contact with the infected 40-year-old nurse, named by Spanish media as Teresa Romero.

She is being treated with a serum containing antibodies from another ebola patient.

Doctors are also monitoring around 30 other members of the team that treated one of two missionaries who died after returning to Spain from West Africa.

Video: The Spread Of Deadly Ebola Virus

EU countries have demanded an explanation from Spain's health minister about how the nurse caught the disease, despite precautions.

World Health Organisation European director Zsuzsanna Jakab has warned further infections in Europe are "unavoidable".

More than 3,400 people have died in the latest ebola outbreak, which has swept through West African countries Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

Burial workers in Sierra Leone have reportedly gone on strike over pay, leaving bodies abandoned in the streets.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola Dead Abandoned On Streets After Strike

Ebola victims are being left on Sierra Leone's streets because of a strike by burial teams, according to media in the country.

The workers, who arguably have one of the world's most dangerous jobs, complain they have not been paid.

The situation is "very embarrassing", said health ministry spokesman Sidie Yahya Tunis.

He promised money was available for the workers.

Six hundred people have died from the virus in Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organisation, and more than 3,400 in total.

Video: Suiting Up In An Ebola Hotspot

The deadly virus has swept through West African countries Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

A Spanish nurse continues to be treated in a Madrid hospital after becoming the first person outside Africa to contract ebola.

Two of the four other people also quarantined at the hospital have tested negative.

Video: 56 Being Checked For Ebola In Spain

In Britain, David Cameron is to chair a meeting of the COBRA emergency committee as four hospitals stand by to handle any UK cases.

More follows...

Video: UK Ebola Risk 'Remains Low'

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nurse First To Contract Ebola Outside Africa

A Spanish nurse has become the first person to contract ebola outside of West Africa, amid an outbreak that has killed more than 3,400 people.

The woman was part of a medical team at Madrid's La Paz-Carlos III hospital that treated two missionaries, who died shortly after being repatriated from Africa with the disease.

It comes as US President Barack Obama said his administration was beefing up airport screening measures in the country to help identify people who might have the deadly virus.

Spain's health minister, Ana Mato, said an emergency protocol had been put in place and authorities were working to establish the source of the contagion at the Madrid hospital.

"We are working to guarantee the safety of all citizens," she said.

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

Spanish priest Miguel Pajares, 75, was infected with ebola in Liberia and died at the hospital on 12 August.

Another Spanish missionary, Manuel Garcia Viejo, 69, was repatriated from Sierra Leone and died at the hospital on 25 September.

Both were members of a Roman Catholic group that runs a charity working with ebola victims in Africa.

A Spanish health official said 30 medical staff who treated the two priests are being monitored.

The infected nurse began to feel ill on 30 September, but did not go to hospital until Sunday complaining of a fever.

The assistant nurse, who is married without children, is being treated in isolation at a hospital in a southern Madrid suburb.

Video: Filming In An Ebola Virus Hotspot

Health authorities are trying to track down all the people she may have come in contact with since she contracted the disease.

She is said to be in a stable condition.

Sky's Health and Science Correspondent Thomas Moore said it is the first time the virus has been transmitted outside West Africa during the current epidemic.

Meanwhile, Mr Obama announced tougher screening measures after meeting health and security officials who are involved in attempting to prevent an outbreak of the disease in the US.

He told reporters the chance of an outbreak in the US was "extraordinarily low", but that there was not a large margin for error.

The White House is not currently proposing a travel ban for West Africa, epicentre of the outbreak.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Cannabis Can Be As Hard To Quit As Heroin

Cannabis can be as hard to give up as heroin, according to one of the largest ever studies into its effects.

Depression, anxiety and insomnia are a massive struggle for some heavy, dependent users, addiction expert Professor Wayne Hall said in the study.

Even after treatment, less than half of those people can stay off the drug for six months.

One in six teenagers who use regularly cannabis will also become dependent and are twice as likely to quit school, the World Health Organisation adviser said.

Among adults, one in 10 become dependent and are more likely to try harder drugs.

Colorado legalised the production and sale of cannabis for recreational use

Cannabis was a Class C drug in the UK from 2004 to 2009, but was reclassified as a more harmful Class B substance five years ago.

Pro-cannabis campaigners argue it should be moved back to Class C, or even decriminalised and sold in regulated shops - as has happened in many American states, such as Colorado and Washington.

Video: June 22: Student On Cannabis Use

But the findings of the 20-year review appear to support the status quo.

It also found the risk of developing psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia - long associated with the drug - doubles with regular, long-term use.

And driving after smoking a joint doubles the chance of a crash.

Video: Class A Drugs In The Classroom

Professor Hall, a substance abuse expert at King's College London and the University of Queensland, looked at scientific evidence between 1993 and 2013.

"The perception that cannabis is a safe drug is a mistaken reaction to a past history of exaggeration of its health risks," Hall told Live Science.

But he also found the chance of taking a fatal dose of the drug was "extremely small" and found no recorded cases.

Video: Aug 2014: Cannabis For MS Patients

Professor Hall also admitted cannabis was "not as harmful as other illicit drugs such as amphetamine, cocaine and heroin, with which it is classified under the law in many countries".

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Deputy PM's Wife: 'I Just Want What Men Have'

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

High-flying lawyer Miriam Gonzalez Durantez has told Sky News that she does not want to "have it all" - she simply wants "what men have".

In an exclusive interview, she also admitted that the "most important decision" of her life was who she chose to have children with - which happens to be the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg.

"What I would take issue with is the have it all. I never understand what people mean when they say have it all. I personally have never wanted to have it all like a general aim. I just want to have what men have," she said.

"Lots of men have a successful professional life or what looks like success to them and they have put that together with a family.

"I think that it was Sheryl Sandberg (chief operating officer at Facebook) who said that the most important decision in your life is who you decide to have children with," she added.

Video: Clegg Backs 'Top-Down' Taxation

She was making the comments at a career "speed-dating" event, run by the charity Inspiring the Future, in which schoolgirls were given the opportunity to meet a range of successful career women.

Ms Gonzalez Durantez spoke to dozens of girls as part of the session that she hosted at a college 10 miles from the Glasgow conference centre where her husband was leading his party's conference.

She denied that she had put her life on pause for her husband, but added: "I think having a family and life is all about compromises. There is always a certain equilibrium and in my case we found it."

More and more families shared the responsibilities in the home, she said."There are lots of men now fully involved with raising the children."

But she admitted that it wasn't that way for lots of families. "I think if you look across society and across different countries... women still get a very big proportion of the chores at home."

She spoke of women who "have done half a day" of work before they leave home, and then after their daily job return to the "other half".

When asked if it was like that for her she said no, insisting that Mr Clegg still pulls his weight even when David Cameron is away and he is in charge of the country.

She said: "We tend to share it very naturally and we make the point of one of us being at home most evenings and I think on the whole we manage." She said there was no "given formula" for the perfect family.

She said that she gave her own three sons the same advice as the girls that they should always make the effort in education. But she has felt from meeting many girls through this charity that they lack some self confidence, which boys tend to have.

"We have made a lot of progress but there is still a little bit more progress to make," she said. Having successful women give over an hour of their time to inspire girls could make a big difference. She praised the Every day Sexism campaign, arguing that talking about discrimination was the way to tackle it."

She concluded: "I do think it is important to celebrate female achievement and aiming high that is part of the message that we want to give to the girls that aiming high is good. It is as good for girls as it is for boys."

:: Watch the rest of the interview on skynews.com and on the Sky News iPad app from 6am, and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202, Freeview 132.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Face-To-Face With The Dying In An Ebola Centre

By Garwen McLuckie, Sky News Cameraman

Before filming inside the high-risk zone, we were told that all or equipment would have to be either disinfected or incinerated.

I had prepared hard - bringing tailor-made plastic sealed containers for the small DSLR camera I would be using and rigging up microphones for Sky News Correspondent Alex Crawford to carry under her clothing, or in a waterproof "dry sack".

In the end, none of them worked, but we were saved by our DSLR camera mike, which provided astonishing sound quality despite being smothered in plastic.

On arrival at the unit, we were first taken to a wooden shed so we could change into medical scrubs.

The Sky News team prepares to film with a Liberian burial team

I felt confident, even excited about the challenge ahead as we moved to a small room be prepped for the high-risk area.

Each person was assigned a nurse to help us dress and to make sure we were properly covered.

First we had to put on large plastic socks which went up to our calves and white plastic boots.

Then there was a hairnet, followed by a plastic PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) onesie which zipped right up to my neck and had a double sticky seal down the zip.

Health workers secure protective body suits with duct tape

The first of three latex gloves went on and were sealed on to the onesie by duct tape round my wrist.

The onesie had its own hood which I pulled over my head, followed by a surgical mask over my mouth and nose.

I was then given another separate hood which went over my head and shoulders, covering my forehead, chin and neck. By this stage I was really feeling the heat and the humidity.

Alex Crawford with extra equipment used for filming in the virus zone

A huge yellow plastic apron was draped over me before my face was finally sealed by goggles. Not even a millimetre of my skin was exposed under these three layers of protection.

Almost immediately I was struggling with the heat and an extreme claustrophobic sensation which I had never experienced before - I wondered how long I would last.

Within a very short time, perspiration was filling my face mask, covering my nose and mouth and I could feel the bubbling of my own sweat as I kept trying to suck in air.

There didn't seem to be much of it.

Alex Crawford speaks to an ebola survivor in a quarantine area

At one stage while Alex was talking to one of the ebola victims I had to close my eyes whilst filming to try to calm myself.

I kept thinking: "I can't breathe, I can't breathe."

After filming for an hour, it took a painstaking 10 to 15 minutes to strip off each layer and be carefully disinfected each time.

The doctor could see I was anxious to get everything off but it was essential to observe all the health protocols.

My upbringing means I always give way to women, letting them through doors first and so on.

But in this case I think I would have rugby-tackled Alex to the ground if she hadn't let me go through the disrobing procedure before her.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola Deaths Hidden As Fear Grips Liberia

By Alex Crawford, Special Correspondent, Monrovia

Liberia's few ebola treatment centres are overwhelmed with the sick and dying - with patients sharing beds and the dead laying near the desperately ill.

The country has accounted for more than half of the world's deaths from the latest ebola outbreak in West Africa and despite assurances from President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf that it is under control, evidence on the ground seen by Sky News appears to suggest otherwise.

Whole communities are gripped with fear about the virus - and terrified citizens prefer to die alone, unaided because of the stigma attached to admitting to the disease.

Dozens of ebola victims are dying in their homes in Monrovia, increasing the chances of the virus spreading.

And official numbers of victims are almost certainly unrepresentative of the real death count because of the lack of co-ordination and nationwide spread of the disease.

Video: Ebola Outbreak: On The Front Line

Small teams of about half a dozen workers set out daily to retrieve the ebola dead - most of whom have died after suffering in secret.

Their relatives are reluctant to admit ebola has caused the death, as this invariably invites ostracism from their communities and targets them as potential virus carriers.

The body recovery squads - still called "burial teams" despite government orders that all ebola victims be cremated - are doing one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.

They take extreme precautions, wearing multiple protective clothing layers along with goggles, boots, gloves and head coverings to try to stay safe.

Head of Team Three, Mark Korvoyan, told Sky News: "There's no day comes that people don't die in their house. Every day, every blessing day."

1/11

1. Gallery: The Desperate Fight To Contain The Ebola Outbreak

   A man rests outside the clinic.

2. A woman is comforted after medical officials remove her husband, who is suspected of having the disease.

3. Officials try to prevent themselves from spreading the disease.

4. A local who has just brought his brother to the centre. He had to rely on plastic bags tied around his hands to try to protect himself.

5. A man thought to be infected with ebola waits for treatment.

6. Patients wait to be seen by medical staff.

7. Workers try to decontaminate themselves.

8. A worker with a child who may have caught ebola.

9. A make-shift hand-washing station in Monrovia.

10. Decontaminated boots of medical staff.

11. The basic conditions make containing the disease very difficult.

There's simply too much work for the recovery teams to do, not enough hours in the day for them to track down the dead.

Even as they were picking up the latest corpses from the Elwa Treatment Centre, a young man was sobbing outside.

He cried: "Oh my God, I was just bringing a phone for my sister. Now they say she's died. What am I going to do? She has children..."

George Nyumah, like so many of Liberia's citizens, is frantically worried about catching the virus.

So the five children his sister cares for are left alone to fend for themselves in their one-room, corrugated iron shack home.

Video: Ebola: A Global Threat

The eldest is 16, the youngest just two and they all sleep on the dirty mattress which their sick mother lay on in the days before she was taken into the ebola centre.

Their chances of catching or carrying the virus must be very high.

For that reason, their uncle George - and the rest of the extended family - will keep well away for 21 days, just to see if they develop signs of the killer disease.

Even if they survive the virus, they'll have to fight poverty and the community's suspicions in the weeks and months ahead.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Shrien Dewani Tells Court He Is Bisexual

A British millionaire accused of murdering his wife on their honeymoon in South Africa has told a judge he is bisexual.

Shrien Dewani, 34, denies orchestrating his wife's death by hiring three men to kill the 28-year-old as they drove through Cape Town's Gugulethu Township on 13 November, 2010.

Appearing at Western Cape High Court in Cape Town, the care home owner denied charges of murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, kidnapping and defeating the ends of justice.

He told judge Jeanette Traverso: "I plead not guilty to all five counts, my lady."

Through his solicitor, he also told the court he was bisexual.

Anni Dewani's family, including her father Vinod Hindocha and mother Nilam, were among those in a packed courtroom on Monday.

Prosecutors claim Dewani conspired with Zola Tongo, Mziwamadoda Qwabe and Xolile Mngeni to kill his wife. All three are already serving jail terms in connection with Anni's murder.

He claims he and his wife were kidnapped at gunpoint as they drove through the township.

Dewani was released unharmed, but his wife's body was found in the abandoned taxi the following day with a gunshot wound.

More follows...

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

British Teacher Held Hostage In Libya Freed

A British teacher who was being held hostage by militants in Libya has been released and reunited with his family.

David Bolam, who worked at the International School in Benghazi, was abducted earlier this year.

His kidnapping had not been reported at the request of his family and the Foreign Office.

Although it has not been officially confirmed who his captors were, a group calling itself the Army of Islam, a faction in Libya, released an online video of Mr Bolam dated 28 August pleading for his release.

The 53-second video showed him sitting in a room wearing a white T-shirt.

In it, he said: "My name is David Richard Bolam. I am a British citizen. I am a teacher.

"My health is good at the moment. I have been here a very long time."

He went on to plead for Britain to arrange a prisoner exchange or other diplomatic initiative to secure his release.

The Foreign Office said: "We are glad that David Bolam is safe and well after his ordeal, and that he has been reunited with his family.

"We have been supporting his family since he was taken.

"We do not comment on the detail of hostage cases. The family have asked for privacy."

There are unconfirmed reports a ransom was paid through "unofficial channels" in exchange for Mr Bolam's release.

The Foreign Office confirmed the Government had paid no money, saying: "HMG never pays ransoms. It is illegal to pay ransoms to a terrorist group."

While several Western governments have paid money to secure the release of hostages held by militants, the UK and US governments have a policy of refusing demands for ransoms.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alice Murder: Body To Be Removed From Park

A body believed to be that of the man wanted for the murder of 14-year-old Alice Gross is to be removed from a park in west London.

It is understood Arnis Zalkalns' corpse was found hanging in woods at Boston Manor Park - just a mile from where the schoolgirl's body was hidden.

The convicted killer vanished from his flat in Ealing on September 4 - a week after Alice is thought to have been abducted and murdered while walking home along a canal towpath in Hanwell.

Alice was found dead in the River Brent on Tuesday after a five-week search.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: "Although no formal identification has been made early indications suggest the body may be that of Arnis Zalkalns.

"We have updated his partner and a Family Liaison Officer (FLO) is supporting her.

Video: Alice's Movements Reconstructed

"Due to the nature of the surrounding area specialist resources will be required to assist with the recovery of the body."

Some people living near the park have voiced their alarm at the discovery.

A 57-year-old called Zahra said: "I used to like this park, but now I feel it's not a safe place. I have been very upset about Alice Gross, I couldn't sleep when the body was found."

Zalkalns was filmed cycling along the same route behind Alice on the day she vanished on 28 August.

He reportedly sent his family a goodbye text the next day, saying: "I love you all."

The Latvian labourer worked at a building site in Isleworth, west London, and is thought to have come to the UK in 2007.

Video: CCTV Footage Shows Alice Suspect

Authorities are facing criticism for apparently holding no record of his conviction for bludgeoning and stabbing his wife Rudite to death in Latvia.

It also emerged Zalkalns was arrested in London on suspicion of indecent assaulting a 14-year-old girl in 2009, but was never charged.

A post-mortem examination on Alice was inconclusive and further tests are to be carried out to find out how she died.

Police said "significant efforts" were taken to conceal her body in the water.

Zalkalns had not accessed his bank account or used his mobile phone since September 3, nor had he returned home to his partner and young child in Ealing. He also left behind his passport.

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

F1 Driver Taken To Hospital After Crash

Formula One driver Jules Bianchi has been taken to hospital unconscious after being injured in a crash at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Bianchi's Marussia car was reportedly in a collision with a JCB that was on the scene recovering driver Adrian Sutil's vehicle which had earlier come off the circuit.

Frenchman Bianchi was transferred to hospital in Nagoya by ambulance because the medical helicopter could not fly amid bad weather due to Typhoon Phanfone.

Jules Bianchi was unconscious as he was taken to hospital

FIA head of communications Matteo Bonciani told reporters: "The driver is not conscious and has been sent to the hospital by the ambulance because the helicopter cannot fly in these conditions.

"Further updates will follow but for the moment we cannot say anything. I will keep you updated as fast as I can."

Bianci was transferred to hospital by road as the helicopter could not fly

The race had needed two starts behind the safety car and ended on the 47th of 53 laps due to the crash.

The grand prix was won by Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton with team-mate Nico Rosberg second.

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel, who was third, tweeted: "Our thoughts and prayers are with @Jules_Bianchi... We hope to hear some positive news soon."

More follows...

16.08 | 0 komentar | Read More