Benghazi Attack: US Forces Capture Suspect

US forces have captured a suspected ringleader of the 2012 attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, says the Pentagon.

Ahmed Abu Khattala was snatched on the outskirts of Benghazi in a secret raid by American troops, working alongside the FBI, at the weekend.

He is the first alleged perpetrator apprehended in connection with the September 11, 2012 assault on the US diplomatic compound that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens.

Defence Department Press Secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said that Khatalla had been seized on Sunday. 

"He is in US custody in a secure location outside of Libya," said the statement. "There were no civilian casualties related to this operation, and all US personnel involved in the operation have safely departed Libya."

Fox News, which broke the story, reports that Khattala is en route back to the US on board a US Navy ship.

Libyan authorities said early on that Khattala had led the assault as a commander of Ansar al-Shariah, a Benghazi-based Islamist group.

But in media interviews shortly after the attack, Khattala has denied membership of the group or involvement in the attack.

The assault became a flashpoint in the 2012 US presidential campaign, amid conservative allegations that the White House had sought to play down the incident in order to avoid any backlash from voters.

Last month, Republicans launched a congressional committee to investigate Benghazi.

Potential 2016 White House candidate Hillary Clinton, who was Secretary of State at the time of the assault, is likely to face questions on the matter during an interview with Fox News to be screened on Tuesday night.

More follows...

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Picasso Portrait Of Mystery Man Revealed

A hidden painting has been found beneath one of Pablo Picasso's first masterpieces, The Blue Room.

Scientists and art experts have used infrared imagery to reveal a bow-tied man with his face resting on his hand, the Associated Press has reported.

They are now trying to work out who the man is that Picasso covered up in 1901 during his famous blue period.

It has taken a team from The Phillips Collection, National Gallery of Art, Cornell University and Delaware's Winterthur Museum to develop a clear image of the mystery picture.

"It's really one of those moments that really makes what you do special," said Patricia Favero, the conservator at The Phillips Collection.

Picasso died in 1973

"The second reaction was, 'well, who is it?' We're still working on answering that question."

Conservators have long suspected there might be something under the surface of The Blue Room.

Brushstrokes on the piece clearly don't match the composition that depicts a woman bathing in Picasso's studio.

A conservator noted the odd brushstrokes in a 1954 letter, but it wasn't until the 1990s that an x-ray of the painting first revealed a fuzzy image of something under the picture. It was not clear, though, that it was a portrait.

Scholars have ruled out the possibility that it was a self-portrait.

One possible figure it could be is the Paris art dealer Ambrose Villard who hosted Picasso's first show in 1901.

But there is no documentation and no clues left on the canvas, so the research continues.

Picasso may have reused his canvasses because they were very expensive at the time and he could not afford a new one every time he tried out a new idea.

Hidden pictures have been found under other important Picasso paintings.

A technical analysis of La Vie at the Cleveland Museum of Art revealed Picasso significantly reworked the painting's composition.

Conservators also found a portrait of a moustached man beneath Picasso's painting Woman Ironing at the Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Kidnapped Teens: Israel Will 'Paralyse' Hamas

Hunting Hamas: Israel's Dangerous Game

Updated: 2:38pm UK, Monday 16 June 2014

By Tom Rayner, Middle East Reporter, Jerusalem

In the intense hunt for three kidnapped teenagers, Israel has spared nothing, rounding up more than 150 Palestinians in a wave of night raids and deploying hundreds of troops across the West Bank.

But it is playing a dangerous game.

Prime Minister Netanyahu says he knows 'for a fact' that the Gaza-based Hamas are behind the kidnapping of 16 year-olds Naftali Frankel, Gilad Shaar and 19 year-old Eyal Yifrach.

The operation to find the teenagers has taken on a deeply political character - with leaders and members of Hamas making up the majority of those so far detained.

For Mr Netanyahu, this incident is proof of the error made by the West in its readiness to accept the recently-announced Palestinian unity government, which saw the Hamas back an effort by President Abbas' Fatah faction to end the rift between the West Bank and Gaza.

But while Israel's military insist the operation is focused on the 'task at hand' - finding those who've been kidnapped - it is clear the Israeli government sees this as a political opportunity too.

By taking out the Hamas leadership, through arrests in the West Bank, and through airstrikes in Gaza, they are pursuing two goals.

The first, to strike a blow at the organisation's ability to operate and emphasise its 'terrorist' character by the de-facto criminalisation of its detained members.

The second, to pre-empt the potential for the missing teenagers being used as bargaining chips in negotiations to release Palestinian prisoners - every arrest made during the operation, dilutes the impact of a prisoner exchange.

But with the first Palestinian deaths connected to the search operation occurring overnight, during unrest sparked by Israeli raids in Ramallah and Jenin, the tensions and the stakes are rising.

If, as the Israeli authorities have claimed, they have a track record of foiling such kidnap attempts in the past – then it seems the number of arrests made so far either represents a gross intelligence failure, or a form of collective punishment.

Making Hamas pay for a crime they've been accused of may make sense in the Israeli mind-set, but unleashing a military operation inevitably impacts the lives of civilians living in and around them.

In Hebron, the most populous Palestinian city in the West Bank if you do not include East Jerusalem, road blocks and checkpoints have blocked and restricted all access in and out..

Given the Palestinian security apparatus is in fact co-operating with the search effort, the sense that those representing them are party to the repression will only fuel the sense of disenfranchisement and push normal Palestinians towards extreme positions.

Equally, the rhetoric being used by Netanyahu may fulfil his need to show strength, but it also risks inciting retribution by Jewish extremists.

In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the kindling is always there.

With the resentment, fear and anger that is building up on both sides, it would take very little to spark something much more dangerous.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Gunmen 'Kill 15' In Second Kenya Attack

Islamist gunmen have killed at least 15 people in a night-time raid on Kenya's coast just 24 hours after an attack left at least 50 dead, police have said.

Somalia-based militant group Al Shabaab claimed responsibility, claiming it had killed as many as 20 people.

Police spokespeople said the militants attacked the villages of Majembeni and Poromoko in Lamu County at about 1am local time.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Ole Lenku said: "These attacks are unfortunate and the perpetrators must be held accountable.

"We condemn yesterday's killings and the latest attack today where about 15 other people were killed and houses burnt."

Majembeni and Mpeketoni are in Lamu County, Kenya, close to Somalia

The area is close to Mpeketoni, on the coast between Mombasa and the Somali border, where the extremists murdered dozens of people in a raid on Sunday night.

It is thought that the two attacks were carried out by the same group.

Al Shabaab military operations spokesman Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab threatened the onslaught would continue and said: "We raided villages around Mpeketoni again last night. Our operations in Kenya will continue."

The official government figure for the number killed in Sunday night's attack was 48, but Sky sources in the area counted 50 bodies.

A group of gunmen entered Mpeketoni on minibuses and started "shooting people around in town", a spokesman for the interior ministry said.

People watching a World Cup game were among those targeted, and three hotels, a bank and a petrol station were also hit.

Al Shabaab, an al Qaeda-linked group which carried out an attack on a shopping mall in Nairobi last year, said the first attack was a revenge for attacks inside Somalia by Kenyan forces. Foreign tourists were warned to stay out of Kenya.

Lamu had previously been popular with foreign visitors, but tourism has been suffering in recent years because of increasing violence.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pilot Forced To Jump As Skydiver Damages Plane

A pilot who had to take his first jump as his skydiving plane was spiralling out of control has recounted the shaky moment he leapt out of the aircraft.

Shawn Kinmartin was flying four clients of Fly Free Skydiving out of an airport in Missouri's Crystal City when he suddenly had to fight to control his Cessna 182 after the last jumper's parachute damaged the aircraft's tail.

The 21-year-old, who has been flying skydivers for years, managed to steer the plane away from a populated farmland and then decided to bail.

"I thought, 'What am I doing?' But I knew it was the right decision," Mr Kinmartin told the AP news agency.

"I know things were getting bad, and I felt the controls getting less and less responsive," he said.

"At that point, (my boss) was recommending bailing out."

He was already wearing a parachute, as his employer requires of his pilots on such flights.

Nobody was injured

Ultimately, the plane slammed harmlessly into a corn field, while Mr Kinmartin landed safely, and no one was injured.

Even in the scary circumstances he said he felt the "rush of skydiving".

"I saw the aircraft spiralling underneath me, and once I knew no one was going to be harmed, at that point it was a relief.

"I had some fun, even if it was short," he said.

"I can't wait to get back up there. This is what I'm born to do. This won't stop me."

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Rare Twin Tornadoes Leave Two Dead In Nebraska

A storm packing rare dual tornadoes has torn through farming communities in Nebraska, killing two people, including a little girl, and injuring almost 20 others.

The hardest hit town was Pilger, about 100 miles (160km) northwest of Omaha, a small community just several blocks wide that is home to roughly 350 people.

"More than half of the town is gone - absolutely gone," Stanton County Commissioner Jerry Weatherholt said.

The tornadoes have caused widespread damage. Pic: stormchasingvideo.com

"The co-op is gone, the grain bins are gone, and it looks like almost every house in town has some damage.

"It's a complete mess."

Debris and crashed vehicles were strewn where homes and other buildings once stood.

A five-year-old child was killed in Pilger, and another person died in neighbouring Cuming County. At least 19 people were taken to hospitals in the area.

The tornadoes struck several farming communities

All residents were evacuated from Pilger. They were expected to be allowed back on Tuesday to survey the damage and gather any immediate valuables.

The Stanton County Sheriff's Office said law enforcement would escort residents back to their properties.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said at least two tornadoes touched down within a mile of each other. 

The town of Pilger was devastated

Stanton County Sheriff Mike Unger said up to 75% of the town was heavily damaged and the local school was beyond repair.

"It's total devastation," he said.

A state of emergency has been declared and the National Guard was preparing to deploy to the area.

Tornadoes have also caused damaged in Cuming and Wyoming counties and the NWS has been tracking another twister near Burwell in central Nebraska.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Schumacher 'In Great Hands' At Swiss Hospital

Staff at the Swiss hospital where former Formula One champion Michael Schumacher is now being treated have said he is "in great hands".

The 45-year-old left the French hospital where he was being looked after since his skiing accident in December on Monday, and was transferred to Lausanne University Hospital, close to his family's home in Switzerland.

According to his manager, Sabine Kehm, Schumacher is no longer in a coma but gave no further details of his condition or medical outlook, saying only that he would "continue his long phase of rehabilitation".

But it is being reported in the German media that he is responding to his wife's voice.

A member of staff at Lausanne University Hospital said: "Hopefully he will get better. I don't know. I don't have any prognosis. He is in great hands and let's hope he will get better."

The racing legend has been taken to Lausanne University Hospital

Another employee said: "I think he needs to be alone with his his family, and to cure (heal) and to take some energy to be himself again."

One staff member thought he had been taken to Lausanne because it is close to his home.

Schumacher's accident happened on a family holiday while he was skiing with his 14-year-old son at the Meribel ski resort in the French Alps.

The seven-times F1 champion was reportedly travelling at speeds of up to 60mph when he fell and hit his head on a rock.

He is thought to have been saved by his skiing helmet, which split on impact.

Schumacher suffered a serious head injury in the skiing accident

However, the racing legend's chief doctor said in March that it was unlikely he would ever fully recover from the accident.

Doctor Gary Hartstein wrote on his blog: "As time goes on, it becomes less and less likely that Michael will emerge to any significant extent."

In recent months, little information has been released on Schumacher's condition.

Monday's announcement he was no longer in a coma, was the first substantial update since early April, when Ms Kehm said Schumacher "shows moments of consciousness and awakening".

The German, who won a record 91 Grand Prix victories, left motor racing in 2013 after a disappointing three-year comeback.

Schumacher, his wife Corinna and two children live in the Swiss town of Gland.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Baghdad Braced For Return To Sectarian War

Timeline: How The Iraq Crisis Unfolded

Updated: 2:12pm UK, Tuesday 17 June 2014

A look back at the main events in the Iraq crisis, which has seen Sunni insurgents from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terror group move to within 50 miles of the capital Baghdad.

December 2011: US troops complete their withdrawal after the 2003 invasion which led to the removal of Saddam Hussein.

August 2013: More than 70 people are killed in attacks at the end of Ramadan. ISIS claim responsibility.

January 2-4, 2014: ISIS declares itself in control of the western city of Fallujah and parts of Ramadi following clashes sparked by the clearing of a Sunni-Arab protest camp.

February: al Qaeda formally disowns ISIS, which was at one time an affiliate, because of its extreme methods.

April: Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki wins the most seats in a general election.

June 10: ISIS seizes all of Nineveh province in the north, including the capital Mosul - Iraq's second city. Mr Maliki asks parliament to declare a state of emergency.

June 11: The militants launch a wave of attacks further south, taking Tikrit and freeing hundreds of prisoners in Baiji. An assault on Samarra, 70 miles (110km) north of Baghdad, is repelled by security forces.

June 12: Iraq's air force strikes fighters' positions near Mosul and Tikrit.

US President Barack Obama says he is looking at "all the options" to help the government, which fails to secure authorisation for a state of emergency.

The army abandons its bases in Kirkuk, leaving Kurdish Peshmerga troops to take control.

June 13: A top Shia cleric issues a call to arms, telling the population to take up arms and defend their country.

Mr Maliki claims government forces have started to clear cities of "terrorists" and implements an emergency plan to protect Baghdad.

President Obama rules out sending back troops to fight ISIS.

The rebels move into the towns of Saadiyah and Jalawla in eastern province of Diyala.

June 14: Iran offers to work with the US to tackle the crisis, as Britain pledges an initial £3m in emergency aid to help refugees fleeing the violence.

The Iraqi army's fightback continues, with forces retaking the towns of Ishaqi, al-Mutasim and Duluiyah in Salaheddin province.

Troops also regain much of Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's home town.

US aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush is ordered to the Persian Gulf.

June 15: Photos emerge appearing to show an ISIS massacre of 1,700 captured government soldiers. Baghdad says number is exaggerated.

Reports say militants have overrun Tal Afar, the largest town in Nineveh province.

A bombing in central Baghdad leaves 15 people dead and dozens injured.

Former PM Tony Blair tells Sky News that critics who believe the violence is the result of the 2003 invasion are "profoundly mistaken".

June 16: Video footage purporting to show an ISIS fighter questioning and killing unarmed Iraqi soldiers draws condemnation.

ISIS takes control of Tal Afar and the al Adhim area of Diyala province.

US Secretary of State John Kerry says Washington is "open to discussions with Iran".

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

Iraq Accuses Saudi Arabia Of Promoting 'Genocide'

Iraq's Shia leaders have accused neighbours Saudi Arabia of promoting "genocide" by backing Sunni militants, as Baghdad battles insurgents who have seized swathes of territory.

Defying calls from the West to reach out and defuse the crisis, a government statement said: "We hold them responsible for supporting these groups financially and morally, and for the outcome of that - which includes crimes that may qualify as genocide: the spilling of Iraqi blood, the destruction of Iraqi state institutions and historic and religious sites."

Riyadh denies backing fighters from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and said on Monday that sectarianism in Iraq was fuelling the violence.

Areas of Iraq controlled by ISIS and the locations of the latest fighting

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has warned there is a "real risk" of sectarian violence on a "massive scale" as a result of the conflict.

And Prime Minister David Cameron said insurgency by religious extremists in Syria and Iraq is the most serious threat Britain faces today, with the prospect of battle-hardened militants returning to the UK.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, Mr Cameron said: "The number of foreign fighters in that area, the number of foreign fighters including those from the UK who could try to return to the UK this is a real threat to our country.

One of the burnt-out vehicles in Mosul (Pic: BFMTV)

"We will do absolutely everything we can to keep our people safe. That means stopping people from going, it means arresting people who are involved in plots, it means focusing our security, our policing, our intelligence effort on to that area of the world, on to those people."

Footage from inside one of the first cities in Iraq to be seized by the insurgents appears to show men queuing to join an offensive that has brought the terror group to within 50 miles of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.

Shot by the French news channel BFMTV, the video shows burnt-out vehicles littering the streets of Mosul, one of a number of towns and cities they now control in northern Iraq.

The packed central square in Mosul (Pic: BFMTV)

Clashes overnight in Baquba, less than 40 miles from Baghdad, left scores dead.

The Baiji oil refinery north of Baghdad has been shut down and foreign workers evacuated by helicopter, although officials say government troops still hold the compound.

With the refinery shut, Iraq will find it difficult generating electricity and pumping water to sustain its cities this summer.

A comparison between the Iraqi army and ISIS

Queues for fuel have already been reported in the north.

Police said another militant attack, in a northern village called Basher, nine miles south of Kirkuk, has been repelled.

On state television the Iraqi army said it had killed a top militant, Abu Abdul Rahman al Muhajir, in Mosul.

Security in Baghdad has been stepped up

In response to the crisis, US President Barack Obama announced on Monday that up to 275 troops could be sent to Iraq to provide security for US personnel and the US Embassy in Baghdad.

The White House is also considering sending special forces to train and advise Iraqi troops.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More

China Talks Secure £14bn In Trade Deals

Commercial deals worth £14bn have been signed between the UK and China after David Cameron held Downing St talks with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.

Speaking at a news conference following the talks, Mr Cameron hailed the strong trade links between the two countries, saying they were "central" to Britain's economic future.

"Today we have signed deals worth more than £14bn, securing jobs and long-term economic growth for the British and Chinese people," Mr Cameron said.

"Ours is truly a partnership for growth, reform and innovation."

Anti- China protests have been held in Whitehall

The Chinese leader has been accompanied by a delegation of more than 150 business leaders and top level Communist Party officials for his UK visit.

The visit is the first by a Chinese leader in more than three years.

Mr Li was given a guard of  honour and an audience with the Queen at Windsor Castle in a move which angered critics of China's record on Human Rights and political freedoms.

Campaign group Free Tibet had written to Buckingham Palace requesting the meeting with the Queen be cancelled.

Britain's Deputy Prime Minister also used unusually direct language and risky timing to describe China's people as being "politically shackled to a doctrine which is a one party state, a communist state".

Mr Li met the Queen ahead of talks with Mr Cameron

"Of course we can't agree on large scale and systematic human rights abuses which still continue in China to this day: the many journalists who are persecuted, the very widespread use of the death penalty," Nick Clegg said at his weekly press conference on Monday.

Mr Clegg added that despite these concerns, he hoped to have "very productive discussions" with the Chinese leadership.

His comments were said by members of the Government to be "not very helpful".

The commercial deals, which Sky News understands have been under negotiation right up until the last minute, were expected to cover trade and investment across a variety of sectors including energy, transport, finance, health and education.

Mr Li during his visit to Windsor Castle

China's sovereign wealth funds could help to finance major British infrastructure projects including the HS2 high speed rail link and the next generation of nuclear power stations. China is understood to be putting its largest share of European investment into the UK.

Britain's two biggest oil companies are unveiling deals - with BP confirming a Sky News exclusive of a contract to supply liquefied natural gas, saying it would be worth £12bn over 20 years.

An arm of the World Bank is to list the first "green bond" denominated in China's currency in London.

Britain has also announced a new streamlined visa service for Chinese travellers.

The UK is not part of the visa agreement which allow overseas visitors to travel to twenty six countries in Europe which means that 90% of Chinese tour operators say they leave the UK off their itinerary every year.

The visit is Li Keqiang's first to the UK since he became China's Premier

The visa application process will now be simplified, allowing tourists to apply using the same form as other European countries. Chinese visitors will also be able to use an Irish visa to travel to the UK.

China's growing middle class and the rebalancing of its economy from export to domestic consumption also presents Britain with huge opportunities.

British fashion giant Burberry opened its largest Asian store in Shanghai in April. The company's China strategy has helped boost global revenues.

In the automotive sector, Jaguar Land Rover has seen staggering success across China with 130 dealerships in 90 cities. The company is now Indian-owned, but the cars are made in the UK.

23.13 | 0 komentar | Read More