Ryanair: EU 'Will Block' Aer Lingus Merger

Ryanair has said the European Commission (EC) intends to prohibit its proposed merger with smaller Irish rival Aer Lingus.

The budget airline said the decision is a political one that is not based on competition law.

The company said: "Ryanair ... was notified this (Tuesday) morning at a state-of-play meeting with the EU Commission, that the EU Commission intends to prohibit Ryanair's offer for Aer Lingus, despite the fact that Ryanair has met every competition concern raised in the EU's statement of objections and during the review process."

The EC said it would launch a detailed investigation into Ryanair's bid in August.

Ryanair, which currently owns just under 30% of Aer Lingus, has already attempted to gain control of Aer Lingus twice but ran into opposition from the EC and the Irish government on both occasions.

Last month it was told that it had one last chance to submit measures to ensure the proposed £591m merger did not reduce competition.

Ryanair's latest offer to the Commission included ceding 43 routes to Flybe and handing the routes operated by Aer Lingus from London's Gatwick Airport to British Airways.

A spokesman for EU competition chief Joaquin Almunia said: "The Commission will take a decision in this case at the end of February or the beginning of March."

He declined to comment further on the Ryanair statement.

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Bali: Lindsay Sandiford Fights Death Penalty

By Jonathan Samuels, Sky News Correspondent

A British woman has started an appeal against the death sentence she received in Indonesia for smuggling cocaine worth £1.6m into the resort island of Bali.

Lindsay Sandiford, a grandmother from Cheltenham. Gloucestershire, co-operated with the police and local authorities after her arrest last year, actions which led to other arrests being made.

Her lawyer, though, says this was not taken into account by the three judges sentencing her.

In the appeal filed to the Indonesian higher court, Sandiford's lawyer Fadillah Agus said: "She has acknowledged that she did that crime, but the punishment was not fair and out of proportion."

He said she had expressed regret and apologised and "her co-operation with the police led to the arrests of the other suspects".

Lindsay Sandiford claims she was forced to smuggle drugs by a criminal gang

Sandiford, 56, was arrested in May 2012 at Bali airport when customs officers found almost 5kg (10.6lb) of cocaine in her luggage. She claimed she had been forced to smuggle the drugs into Bali from Thailand by a criminal gang.

Prosecutors announced in December that they would be recommending a 15-year prison sentence after she agreed to co-operate in a sting operation in which police swooped on four other suspects alleged to be her accomplices, including Britons Rachel Dougall, Julian Pounder and Paul Beales.

However, in January she was sentenced to death by firing squad. Dougall, Pounder and Beales have all received sentences ranging from one to six years.

Sandiford, originally from Redcar, Teeside, claims she was forced to transport the drugs by gang members who were threatening to hurt her children.

Paul Beales, Rachell Dougall and Julian Ponder all received jail sentences

"However, her role as a justice collaborator was not taken into account by the district court," Mr Agus said. "Rather, she was sentenced to death while those masterminds and actual owners of the cocaine received lighter sentences."

The High Court in London last month dismissed a case Sandiford filed against the British Government, saying it did not act unlawfully when it refused to fund her appeal.

Indonesia has very strict anti-drug laws and most of the more than 40 foreigners on its death row were convicted of drug offences.

The country has not executed anyone since 2008, when 10 people were put to death, leaving 113 prisoners remaining on death row. Officials have said several executions are expected this year.

A response to Sandiford's appeal could take up to a month and a half.

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Shark Attacks Hit 10-Year High In US

Shark attacks in the US reached their highest level in a decade last year.

The University of Florida's International Shark Attack File revealed there were 53 incidents in 2012 - the most since 2000.

Florida led the table with 26 attacks, while Hawaii came in second with 10 attacks.

A warning to steer clear of the ocean off California last October

They were followed by California and South Carolina with five each, North Carolina with two and one each in Georgia, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon and Puerto Rico.

The only fatal attack was in California - which has seen 13 deaths since 1950.

A surfer suffered a massive bite to his upper torso in the waters off Vandenberg Air Force Base in October 2012.

The report says there were seven fatalities worldwide last year, which is lower than 2011 but higher than the yearly average of 4.4 from 2001 to 2010.

There were 80 unprovoked attacks globally, slightly more than 2011.

Australia has seen a multiple attacks off its western coast in recent years, including five in 2012.

Three out of the four attacks last year off South Africa were fatal - a fact blamed more on medical treatment and remote locations than the ferocity of the local sharks.

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Disabled Turtle Yu Given Prosthetic Flippers

A loggerhead turtle thought to have had her front limbs partly severed in a shark attack has been given a new pair of artificial flippers.

Yu, aged about 25, has been through 26 pairs of rubber limbs already - but all have proved too painful to keep.

The new ones are attached to a vest slipped over her head, said Naoki Kamezaki, curator at an aquarium near Kobe in western Japan, where Yu lives.

"We have worked hard to design the vest in a way that prevents the turtle from taking it off unwittingly," he said.

The vest with new rubber limbs attached is fitted to Yu

Yu, who weighs 96kg (212lbs) and has a shell 82cm (32ins) long, was pulled out of a fisherman's net and sent to the Suma Aqualife Park in mid-2008.

One third of her right limb and half of the left limb were gone following what Mr Kamezaki believes must have been a shark attack.

The aquarium started developing artificial limbs for Yu in late 2008 as she could swim only at about 60% of normal speed.

Earlier versions caused her difficulty because they were squeezed into the stumps.

Yu is a big draw at Suma Aqualife Park in Kobe, Japan

"Similar attempts have been made to attach artificial limbs to turtles around the world, but we have not heard if they went well," said Mr Kamezaki, an expert on sea turtles, whose surname coincidentally means "turtle cape" in Japanese.

"Ours may be the only case in which a turtle with artificial limbs is still swimming without a problem."

According to National Geographic, loggerhead turtles, which are on the endangered list, can live for 50 years and can move through water at up to 15 miles per hour.

In 2004, a dolphin at an aquarium in Okinawa, southern Japan, became the first in the world to be fitted with a rubber tail fin after losing its own tail due to illness.

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Austria: British Girl Killed In Skiing Accident

A 10-year-old British girl has died after ploughing into a tree during a family skiing holiday in Austria.

She is understood to have been out with her father and brother when she hurtled off the piste into some woods.

The girl was unable to stop and crashed into a tree at Mayrhofen, in the Tirol region, police said.

Police in Mayrhofen said the family was on the last run of the day, on Sunday afternoon, when the accident happened.

A spokesman said: "After the girl lost control, she began to gain speed. She went faster and faster and sped over the edge of the piste and into the woods.

"She then hit the tree and was very badly hurt.

Mayrhofen is in south-west Austria

"Her father and brother were behind and they went after her immediately and saw the accident."

She was given first aid by her family before being flown by helicopter to hospital in Innsbruck, where she died on Monday.

The girl, who has not been named, was apparently wearing a helmet.

Her mother had returned to the bottom of the mountain by cable car and did not witness the tragedy.

The slopes around Mayrhofen have been popular with British skiers since the 1970s.

The resort boasts almost 100 miles of pistes and latest snow reports suggest conditions are excellent.

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Algeria Siege: BP Names Fourth Man Killed

BP has released the name of the fourth worker killed during a terrorist attack on an Algerian gas plant last month.

Stephen Green, 47, from Fleet in Hampshire, died alongside three of his colleagues during the deadly terrorist attack on the In Amenas gas field, the oil firm said.

Colin Browning, a fellow BP employee, described Mr Green as "very professional and committed" to his role.

"Steve was a friendly and likeable guy, working well with everyone he met," he said.

Mr Green was based at the remote desert facility - part-operated by BP - as a health, safety, security and environment manager.

Weapons seized after the attack

He joined BP last year and had more than 23 years of experience on major international projects.

The other three BP workers killed were Seb John, Carlos Estrada and Gordon Rowan. They died when the plant was overrun by the heavily-armed group on January 16.

Bob Dudley, BP's chief executive, said: "These men were murdered while carrying out their jobs on a normal working day. It was a calculated and evil act.

"As BP mourns the loss of our colleagues, our thoughts are also with the families and friends of all of those who lost their lives in this terrible incident."

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Vatican: Pope Has Had Pacemaker For Years

The Vatican has admitted for the first time that Pope Benedict has had a heart pacemaker for several years.

The Pope, who is stepping down at the end of the month due to "deteriorating" health, had its battery replaced a few months ago in what was described as a "routine" procedure.

Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said the 85-year-old had the pacemaker fitted "a long time" before he became Pontiff in 2005.

The Italian daily newspaper Il Sole 24 said Benedict had the pacemaker procedure less than three months ago in a Rome hospital and did not miss any public appearances.

The Pope will bid his followers a final farewell in an audience in St Peter's Square, Rome, on February 27, the day before he officially steps down.

"The last general audience will be held in the square since a lot of people will come," Mr Lombardi said at a press briefing.

He also said the traditional Ash Wednesday mass on February 13 would be his last major religious ceremony as Pope together with other prelates.

The mass, which marks the start of a period of penitence before Easter for Christians, will be held in St Peter's Basilica instead of a smaller Rome church in order to accommodate large numbers of people expected because of the announcement.

"We suppose there will be a lot of people who will want to come and pray with the Holy Father and the cardinals and bishops," Mr Lombardi said.

"It is an important concelebration. It is will be the Holy Father's last major concelebration with the public present," he added.

Mr Lombardi said the Pope would also speak about his experiences during the reformist Second Vatican Council in the 1960s at an already scheduled meeting with parish priests from Rome on Thursday.

"This is an important moment, an embrace from the Pope," he said.

Meanwhile, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, said his brother will stay out of the public eye and lead a quiet life in the Vatican when he returns to being Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.

The priest , who lives in the southern German city of Regensburg and was ordained on the same day as the pope in 1951, said his brother has no plans to move back to his homeland.

"You don't transplant an old tree," said the 89-year-old.

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UN Meets After North Korea Nuclear Test

The UN Security Council has opened emergency talks on North Korea's nuclear test, as world powers made calls for swift action against Pyongyang.

The 15-nation council passed a resolution last month threatening "significant action" against North Korea in the event of a new nuclear test or missile launch.

The meeting comes after North Korea confirmed on Tuesday that it carried out a third nuclear test. Monitoring agencies had earlier reported an "unusual seismic event".

"A third nuclear test has been successfully staged," the North's state-run Korean Central News agency said.

"The nuclear test was conducted as part of measures to protect our national security and sovereignty against the reckless hostility of the United States that violated our republic's right for a peaceful satellite launch."

North Korea's ambassador to China was summoned to explain the nuclear test

At just before midday local time, an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.9 was detected just north of a site where Pyongyang conducted earlier nuclear tests.

The two previous tests, in 2006 and 2009, prompted quakes of 3.6 and 4.5 respectively.

The South Korean defence ministry, which raised its military alert level after the quake, said the blast had an explosive yield of between six and seven kilotons (kt) and was of "enormous destructive power".

In comparison, the nuclear weapons detonated above Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 carried estimated yields of 15kt and 22kt respectively.

An activist defaces a poster of Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol-ju

Prior to the Security Council meeting a spokesperson for the UN boss Ban Ki-moon said: "The Secretary-General condemns the underground nuclear weapon test conducted by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea today.

"It is a clear and grave violation of the relevant Security Council resolutions."

Tibor Toth, the executive secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO), said the event's location was "roughly congruent with" nuclear tests carried out by North Korea in 2006 and 2009.

"This act would constitute a clear threat to international peace and security, and challenge efforts made to strengthen global nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, in particular by ending nuclear testing," he added.

A Japanese seismic official shows where the blast occurred

China expressed its "firm opposition" to North Korea's nuclear test, saying its wayward ally had gone ahead with the blast "despite widespread opposition from the international community".

"We strongly urge the DPRK to honour its commitment to denuclearisation, and not to take any actions which might worsen the situation," the foreign ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

US President Barack Obama said the test posed a threat to international peace and security.

A North Korean soldier stands guard after the test

On Tuesday morning the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: "The UK will begin urgent consultations with Security Council partners calling for a robust response to this latest development."

Mr Obama said the US will "continue to take steps necessary to defend ourselves and our allies" and it will work with other nations "to pursue firm action".

He added that North Korea's action "warrants further swift and credible action by the international community".

Foreign Secretary William Hague said: "North Korea's development of its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities poses a threat to international and regional security.

Protesters in Seoul shout anti-North slogans

"Its repeated provocations only serve to increase regional tension, and hinder the prospects for lasting peace on the Korean peninsula."

The Russian foreign ministry said: "By implementing a new nuclear test, Pyongyang once again ignored the rules of international law and has shown disregard UN Security Council resolutions.

"There is an urgent need to create an effective system of regional peace, which would be based on the principle of undiminished security for all participants in accordance with multilateral commitments on denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula."

South Korean troops march along the demilitarised zone at the 38th parallel

Japan said the test was a "grave threat" that "cannot be tolerated".

After the blast took place a North Korean newsreader urged the Korean People's Army (KPA) to prepare for combat against its foes.

She stressed that if an order was given "the KPA should blow up the stronghold of aggression at a strike".

"And wipe out the brigandish US imperialists and South Korea puppet army to the last man and thus accomplish the historic cause of national reunification."

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Ex-LAPD Cop Hunt: Dorner Charged With Murder

By Greg Milam, US Correspondent

Fugitive ex-cop Christopher Dorner has been charged with the murder of a police officer under special circumstances that could bring the death penalty.

Dorner, who is suspected of killing three people and wounding two others last week, also faces an attempted murder charge over the shooting of another Riverside police officer.

The former LAPD cop, who remains on the run for a fifth day, declared "war" on his former colleagues in a threatening online manifesto.

Police say they are following up hundreds of new leads prompted by a $1m (£632,000) reward.

Police have battled snow in their search in the San Bernardino mountains

A spokesman for the Los Angeles police says they are investigating more than 600 new clues resulting from tips from members of the public.

They are also examining CCTV footage obtained by TMZ of Dorner in a sporting goods shop carrying oxygen tanks, two days before the alleged killing spree began.

The reward - made up of donations from local authorities, council officials, police organisations and anonymous donors - was offered at the weekend with the trail having seemingly gone cold.

Dorner seen on surveillance clip at an Orange County hotel in January

Police have been searching for Dorner since last week and are protecting the families of 50 officers who are considered targets.

The 33-year-old made clear in a Facebook rant that he holds many of his former colleagues responsible for his being sacked by the LAPD in 2009.

The search has sparked numerous false alarms. Police raced to a home improvement store at the weekend only to discover the reported sighting of Dorner was in fact a couple having an argument in the car park.

Dorner's pick-up truck was found torched

Officers also continue to scour the Big Bear area of the San Bernardino Mountains where Dorner's burned-out pick-up truck was found torched. There has been no confirmed sighting of him there.

The search - believed to the largest manhunt in Los Angeles history - has stretched the resources of city's police force. The department is on "tactical alert", meaning officers are staying on duty beyond their shifts.

Meanwhile, a lawyer representing a man whose pick-up was mistakenly peppered with bullets by police hunting Dorner says the officers were reckless.

Police mistakenly shot Mr Perdue's truck in Torrance

Surfer Dan Perdue was driving to the beach in Torrance on Thursday when he was stopped by officers guarding the home of a law enforcement official targeted by Dorner.

After driving away, his vehicle was hit by a squad car and, when it spun round, officers began shooting. Mr Perdue was not injured.

It happened just blocks away from another mistaken identity shooting. A mother and daughter delivering newspapers in a pick-up truck were wounded when police opened fire on them.

It has all added to the impression of a region on edge with no sign of Dorner and police convinced he has every intention of carrying out his threat to kill.

The LA police chief has said he will re-open the investigation into Dorner's dismissal from the force. He was fired after being found guilty of making false allegations against a colleague.

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Japan Train Crash: Passengers' Narrow Escape

More than 16 people on an express passenger train in Japan have been injured after the train hit a lorry at a level crossing and then crashed into a station platform.

The collision happened near Arai station on the Sanyo line in Takasago city, police in the Hyogo prefecture said.

A police spokesman said: "Sixteen people including the drivers of the truck and the train were injured.

"There is a possibility that the number of injured will increase."

A clean-up operation is under way

The driver was seriously injured but is not in a life-threatening condition.

There were about 70 passengers on the train, one report said.

The first and second carriages of the six-car train jumped the tracks, moving around 200 yards before coming to a halt at the end of a station platform.

"According to people in the neighbourhood, the trailer stalled at the crossing and the express train crashed into it," one report said.

Another said the trailer had been at the back of a queue of vehicles that had stopped for a red light.

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