KFC Widens Scarred Girl Probe Amid Hoax Claims

KFC has hired an investigator to look into claims a little girl with facial scars was asked to leave one of its restaurants.

The restaurant in Jackson, Mississippi, had already ordered an internal investigation following the allegations that three-year-old Victoria Wilcher was asked to leave because her scars were scaring other customers.

But KFC spokesman Rick Maynard says the company is concerned the restaurant's internal probe could not verify the incident.

An outside investigator will conduct an independent probe, he said.

The child was badly injured during an attack by a pitbull dog in April which left her with scars on her face and an eye patch.

The allegations were made earlier this month on the Facebook page Victoria's Victories, which follows the girl's recovery.

Victoria's grandmother Kelly Mullins claimed KFC asked them to leave

The story went viral, but the Laurel Leader-Call newspaper in Mississippi has since reported that the claims were a hoax.

The paper cites unnamed sources and suggests there were inconsistencies in the account.

Victoria's Victories - a site managed by Teri Rials Bates, the child's aunt - stood by its original allegations.

"I promise its (sic) not a hoax, I never thought any of this would blow up the way it has," said a posting on the page, denying any suggestions that the story might have been fabricated to elicit donations.

"The article circling the web calling this a hoax is untrue."

Mr Maynard said KFC's commitment of $30,000 to help with the child's medical bills will not be affected by the investigation's outcome.

The internal investigation is expected to report its conclusion on Friday. It is not clear when the independent investigation would report.

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Briton 'Strangled Wife To Death' In Caribbean

A British man has been charged with killing his wife after she was beaten and strangled in the Caribbean.

Nixiann Downes-Clack's body was found in a shallow grave in Grenada on Friday, four days after she was reported missing by relatives on the island.

She died of blunt force trauma and asphyxiation by strangulation, according to a post-mortem examination.

Her husband, Alexander Clack, is in custody on a charge of non-capital murder, meaning the death penalty cannot be considered if there is a conviction.

Police said the 32-year-old led investigators to his wife's remains in Mont Moritz, a village just north of the capital, St George's.

The 27-year-old woman was "suspected to have been the victim of domestic abuse and gender violence", said Delma Thomas, Grenada's minister of social development, housing and gender affairs.

A teenage girl detained with Clack on Friday has since been released from police custody.

Clack was born and raised in London, but lives in Grenada, a small country in the eastern Caribbean.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We were informed of the arrest of a British national on June 20 in Grenada.

"We are providing consular assistance."

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Golden Gate Bridge Suicide Net Plan Gets Boost

Officials say they have funds to build a suicide-prevention net at San Francisco Bay's Golden Gate Bridge where two jump to their deaths each month.

The bridge's board of directors will vote on Friday on the plan, which has been debated since the 1950s.

One of the obstacles - the price tag - fell away on Monday as officials announced they had $76m (£45m) for the project.

Most of the new money comes from federal transport programmes, while the rest will be paid out of the bridge's own reserves and state mental health funding.

The bridge district's plan calls for a net made of stainless steel cable extending 20ft below and 20ft from the side of the span. 

Anyone who jumps from the span might be injured but would probably survive the fall, say officials.

"For whatever reason, suicidal people don't want to hurt themselves," Dennis Mulligan, the bridge district's general manager, told KTVU-TV.

"At other locations where nets have been up no individual has jumped into the net."

More than 1,400 people have leapt to their deaths from the 4,200-ft suspension bridge since it opened in 1937. 

Every year, scores of people contemplating suicide are coaxed not to jump from the span.

On average, there are two suicides a month at the structure.

The Bridge Rail Foundation, which tracks fatalities on the span, said 46 people committed suicide there last year. 

Backers of the suicide net were boosted in 2012 when President Barack Obama signed a transportation bill allowing federal funds to flow to the project.

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Sudan's Meriam Ibrahim Arrested At Airport

A Sudanese woman freed from death row yesterday has reportedly been arrested with her husband as they tried to leave the country with their children.

A court ordered the release of Meriam Ibrahim on Monday after she was imprisoned for converting from Islam to Christianity.

The government said the 27-year-old was released after "unprecedented" international pressure.

A security source said Ms Ibrahim and her husband, Daniel Wani, were detained as they tried to board a plane at Khartoum airport.

"The National Security took her and Daniel," said the source.

He could not give more details except to say they were taken to a facility used by the powerful National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS).

Ms Ibrahim has refused to renounce her faith

"She has the right to leave the country," the source said.

The status of their two young children, one a newborn baby, was not immediately known.

Ms Ibrahim was convicted last month of apostasy and adultery and claimed she had always been a Christian, having been raised by her Ethiopian mother while her Muslim father had left when she was young.

She married Mr Wani in 2011 and has refused to renounce her faith.

Ms Ibrahim was forced to give birth to her second child, a daughter called Maya, in prison. Her son, Martin, also lived in prison with her.

Prime Minister David Cameron joined condemnation of the mother's plight, saying he was "absolutely appalled" by the case.

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Militant Leader Vows To Stop PM 'Burning Iraq'

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent, in Irbil

A senior Iraqi Sunni leader has told Sky News that his men will continue to fight Iraqi government forces until the current Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki steps down.

"If Maliki stays in power Iraq will end," Sheikh Ali Al-Salman told us.

"We will never allow that to happen, whatever it costs us. He is using the same policies as Saddam. He is burning Iraq to stay in power."

Sheikh Al-Salman heads a militant group of fighters which now number in the thousands. His army is growing daily.

"I think Iraq is facing two choices: either a white civil war or a divided Iraq," he predicts.

"The international community is to blame. The US administration should not leave Iraq like this. They should not walk away from Iraq."

Nouri al-Maliki is accused of behaving like Saddam

His Military Council for the Revolutionary Tribes is based in Ramadi but controls large parts of Anbar Province to the west of Baghdad, the scene of recent insurgent fighting.

Al-Salman's men are currently fighting alongside ISIS against the Iraqi military.

But whilst they have a mutual cause, he warns that ISIS has no future in Iraq.

"ISIS came after our revolution and they tried to benefit from it. ISIS has tried to open Iraq up to international interference. Will we fight ISIS? Yes, but not for the time being."

Smoke rises from fighting near Taza Khormato, Iraq

Before ISIS captured headlines in Europe and America, Sheikh Al-Salman was the first person to take arms against Nouri Al-Maliki's government six months ago. They laid the ground for ISIS to join the fight.

Sheikh Al-Salman has been contacted by the US government but he hasn't held direct meetings with them although he told us he is willing to work with them to find a solution.

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Japan PM 'Sorry' Over Party Member's Sexism

The Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has apologised after a member of his party barracked a female politician with sexist taunts.

Tokyo city assembly member Akihiro Suzuki has also said sorry and resigned from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) after interrupting Ayaka Shiomura, telling her to "hurry up and get married", and shouting "can't you give birth?".

The incident has embarrassed Mr Abe's government, amid a major drive to increase the number of women in the workplace.

The admission by Mr Suzuki that he had shouted the comments followed days of denials.

Shortly after issuing the apology, his office was pelted with eggs and he faced a barrage of criticism on Facebook and Twitter.

Ms Shiomura, a member of the assembly, had been questioning senior figures in the Tokyo city administration on plans to help mothers when she had abuse shouted at her from the benches occupied by LDP members, which was captured on tape.

She has also said she wants to identify others who joined in with the jeering.

The incident has dominated the news agenda in Japan, which has one of the lowest rates of women in the workplace in the developed world.

A lack of childcare facilities, poor career support and entrenched sexism have been blamed for the situation.

The PM has stressed his wish to level the playing field for women and has made numerous speeches on the subject in recent months.

In his latest blog post, he wrote: "The government will actively support women, regardless of whether they are currently at work or home, to play more active roles."

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Nigeria Militants 'Kidnap More Boys And Girls'

Suspected Boko Haram militants have abducted 31 boys and 60 girls and women in northeast Nigeria, it has been claimed.

Four local residents were reportedly killed when the Islamic extremists took the hostages in several attacks in Borno state.

Aji Khalil, from a local anti-Boko Haram vigilante group in Kummabza, said the kidnappings took place there on Saturday.

Nigeria's defence headquarters in the capital, Abuja, said in a tweet that it had "yet to confirm the several reports on the abduction of girls in Borno as at now".

Some of the 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in April

The Nigerian government and military have widely criticised for their slow response to Boko Haram's abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls in April and kidnappings since then.

Boko Haram has been demanding the release of its detained members in exchange for hostages, but Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has said he will not consider a swap.

Steps to rescue the girls appear to have stalled, with Nigeria's military saying it knows where they are but fearful they will be killed if an attempt is launched to free them.

The abduction has also been dogged by politics, ahead of presidential elections next year, with the premier's wife and other supporters even claiming the kidnappings had been fabricated to discredit the President.

Claims of another mass kidnapping is set to fuel public frustration with the Government's failure to deal with Boko Haram's violent five-year campaign to create an Islamist state in the mainly Muslim north of the country.

The group, which has killed thousands in bomb and gun attacks, has increasingly targeted civilians.

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Al Jazeera Journalists: Al Sisi 'Will Not Act'

Egypt's newly elected president has said he will not intervene over the jailing of three Al Jazeera journalists despite international condemnation.

Australian Peter Greste, Canadian-Egyptian national Mohammed Fahmy and Egyptian Baher Mohamed were jailed for seven years each on Monday for spreading false news and supporting the Muslim Brotherhood.

Mr Mohamed received an additional three years on a separate charge involving possession of weapons.

World leaders, including Prime Minister David Cameron and Australian PM Tony Abbott, have called on Cairo to review the case, which has been widely seen as being politically motivated.

Egypt has faced international condemnation since the trio were sentenced

But in a televised speech at a military graduation ceremony, Egypt's new leader, Abdel Fattah al Sisi, said: "We will not interfere in judicial rulings.

"We must respect judicial rulings and not criticise them even if others do not understand this."

Earlier Mr Greste's parents described his seven-year sentence as "a slap in the face and a kick in the groin".

Speaking at a press conference in Brisbane alongside his wife Lois, Juris Greste said: "We're not usually a family of superlatives, but I have to say ... my vocabulary fails to convey just how shattered we are.

"You can never prepare yourself for something as painful as this."

Sky News and the BBC were among the media organisations to call for the trio's release prior to the verdict.

A number of journalists held a silent protest over the court's decision outside New Broadcasting House in London on Tuesday at 9.41am - the time of the sentencing.

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Century-Old Mafia Murder Mystery May Be Solved

The mystery surrounding the murder of an anti-Mafia policeman in Sicily may have been solved after a century.

Italian-American New York police officer Lieutenant Giuseppe "Joe" Petrosino was killed in 1909.

He had been dispatched to Sicily to investigate the Mafia, then known in New York as the "Black Hand", and was shot dead in a Palermo square near the port almost immediately after his arrival.

A newspaper at the time. Pic: Lt Col Calogero Scibetta/Guardia Di Finanza

When Italian police this week arrested some 90 suspected mobsters in a series of raids, an unexpected link to Mr Petrosino's killing emerged.

Police revealed that during the investigation that led to the arrests, one of the suspects, Domenico Palazzotto, boasted his great-uncle had killed Mr Petrosino.

Palazzotto was heard saying his family had celebrated the 100-year anniversary of the policeman's death.

"We have been mobsters for 100 years," says Palazzotto, 33, according to a wiretap planted by police in his Audi A3.

"My father's uncle, whose name was Paolo Palazzotto... was the first to kill a cop in Palermo... Joe Petrosino, an American cop," he says.

Palazzotto shot Mr Petrosino on behalf of his boss, Don Vito Cascio Ferro, according to Domenico Palazzotto.

"The young Mafiosi see the criminal acts of their ancestors as a badge of honour," Palermo law enforcement official Calogero Scibetta said.

But police also noted that Paolo Palazzotto and the alleged mastermind were acquitted of Mr Petrosino's murder for lack of evidence.

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Kerry: Kurdish Forces Critical In Defeating ISIS

Timeline: How The Iraq Crisis Unfolded

Updated: 9:29am UK, Tuesday 24 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".

June 17: Britain announces it is reopening its Iranian embassy, with William Hague saying the "circumstances are right" as the West looks to improve relations to help tackle the crisis in Iraq.

Iraq's Shia leaders accuse Saudi Arabia of promoting "genocide" by backing Sunni militants.

June 18: Iraq's foreign minister asks the US to carry out airstrikes to help reverse the sweeping gains of Islamist militants in the country.

David Cameron warns that if Britain does not intervene in the Middle East crisis then terrorists will "hit the UK at home".

Insurgents are seen parading through the city of Baiji with captured vehicles after reports they have taken over three-quarters of Iraq's biggest oil refinery.

ISIS charts its brutality and tactics in annual reports called al-Naba - The Report, it emerges.

June 19: Iraqi authorities say government forces have retaken the Baiji oil refinery after fierce fighting.

Barck Obama says US troops will not return to combat in Iraq, but he would be prepared to take "targeted action".

The president also announces additional equipment and up to 300 additional military advisers could be provided to help fight the ISIS insurgency.

June 20: Iraq's senior Shia religious authority Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani calls for a new government for the country as it struggles to stop Sunni militants.

Barack Obama piles further pressure on Iraq's PM Nouri al Maliki, saying he needs to take urgent steps to heal the sectarian rift in the country, but stopping short of demanding he quit.

A video of British jihadists urging Western Muslims to join ISIS in Iraq and Syria emerges on social media.

June 21: The family of Naseer Muthana, 20, who appears in the ISIS recruitment video and younger brother Aseel, 17, who followed him to fight in the region say they are "devastated". 

The men's father Ahmed Muthana tells Sky News he believes his son Nasser was radicalised in a mosque in the United Kingdom.

In Iraq, dozens of Iraqi troops are killed as ISIS militants seize the crucial Qaim crossing into Syria.

A Shia preacher loyal to anti-US cleric Moqtada al Sadr warns that the 300 US military advisers en route to Iraq will be attacked.

June 22: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei comes out in opposition of US intervention in neighbouring Iraq.

President Barack Obama warns ISIS could grow in power, destabilise the region and pose a threat to the US.

The mother of one of two Britons filmed in a militants' video calling for Western Muslims to fight in Syria and Iraq, Reyaad Khan, pleads for him to come home in an emotional Sky News interview.

A former head of counter-terrorism at MI6 tells Sky's Murnaghan programme up to 300 Islamist fighters from Iraq and Syria may have returned to the UK and it would be "impossible" to keep track of all of them.

June 23: Barack Obama warns ISIS could pose a threat to the US, hours after the Islamist militants make dramatic gains by capturing four towns in western Iraq.

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrives in Baghdad for talks with Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki.

June 24: John Kerry arrives in Irbil for talks with Kurdistan's regional government President Massoud Barzani.

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