Syria: Rebels Capture Key Military Base

Rebels have taken control of a key military base in northern Syria after weeks of fighting with Government forces.

Rebels were pictured celebrating inside Taftanaz airport, close to helicopters and tanks which had been used to attack them.

"The fighting at Taftanaz military airport ended at 11:00 am (0900 GMT) and the base is entirely in rebel hands," said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman.

Soon afterwards, it was raided by government jets, the Britain-based Observatory said.

"Warplanes are bombing Taftanaz military airport in an attempt to destroy it," a statement said.

Capturing the base is an important gain for the rebels who control vast swathes of Syria's north and east.

They are battling President Bashar al Assad's forces in most major cities and on the outskirts of Damascus.

"This is the largest airbase to be seized since the revolt began nearly 22 months ago," Abdel Rahman said.

The rebels had previously taken the relatively small Hamdan airport in Albu Kamal on the border with Iraq in the east.

They had also taken Marj al Sultan military airport in Damascus province.

The news came as UN-Arab League special envoy on Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, met Russian deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov and US undersecretary of state William Burns in Geneva.

After more than five hours of talks, Brahimi expressed an urgent need to end the conflict, but reported no major progress.

"We all stressed the need for a speedy end to the bloodshed and the destruction and all forms of violence in Syria," he told reporters.

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Man Gets Life For Burning Woman Alive In Lift

A handyman who burned a 73-year-old woman to death in a Brooklyn lift has been sentenced to a minimum of 50 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Jerome Isaac, 48, was sentenced for killing Deloris Gillespie inside her Brooklyn apartment building in December 2011.

Isaac had pleaded guilty to first degree murder charges in November, and a plea deal had called for a 50-year sentence.

The horrifying attack was captured on a security camera.

Isaac went to the fifth floor and lay in wait for his victim, who was returning home from shopping.

He is said to have first glued shut the locks on Ms Gillespie's apartment and then doused the lift door with accelerant.

As she opened it, Isaac sprayed her in the face, then covered her from head to toe in flammable liquid.

Ms Gillespie crouched down and threw her hands up to her face.

Having cornered the woman in the lift, he then ignited a Molotov cocktail - a wine bottle filled with accelerant with a rag stuffed in its neck.

The CCTV video went white as Ms Gillespie was set on fire using the bottle's wick.

Isaac then threw the bottle inside the lift, after crouching behind the door "as if he was anticipating an explosion", according to one policeman.

Isaac turned himself in the next day.

Police said Isaac attacked Ms Gillespie because he believed she owed him money.

Prosecutors said he told probation officials conducting a mental health evaluation that he acted on orders from the devil.

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Mali: French Air Strikes Drive Back Militants

Mali's army has driven back Islamist rebels from a strategic central town after France intervened with air strikes to stop militants controlling the country's desert north from advancing.

One French pilot has been killed in the military action and hundreds of French soldiers have been deployed in the West African country.

French President Francois Hollande took action at the request of interim President Dioncounda Traore, who has declared a state of emergency.

Western governments expressed alarm on Thursday after an al Qaeda-linked rebel alliance captured the town of Konna, a gateway towards the capital Bamako 600km (375 miles) south.

The Malian army has said it was attacking the "last pockets of resistance" by insurgents in Konna after they recaptured it with the help of the French.

Mr Hollande said the "terrorist groups, drug traffickers and extremists" in northern Mali "show a brutality that threatens us all." He vowed that the operation would last "as long as necessary".

The UN's Sahel envoy Romano Prodi, left, and President Dioncounda Traore

For the past nine months, the Islamic militants have controlled a large swathe of northern Mali, a lawless desert region where kidnapping has flourished.

Mr Hollande said the operation was aimed in part at protecting 6,000 French citizens in Mali, including seven who are being held captive.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Senegal and Nigeria also responded to an appeal from Mali's president for help to counter the militants.

Late last year, the 15 nations in West Africa, including Mali, agreed on a proposal for the military to take back the north, and sought backing from the UN.

The Security Council authorised the intervention but imposed certain conditions, including the training of Mali's military, which has been accused of serious human rights abuses since a military coup last year sent the nation into disarray.

Al Qaeda's affiliate in Africa has been a shadowy presence for years in the forests and deserts of poverty-stricken Mali.

Most Malians adhere to a moderate form of Islam, but in recent months the terrorist group and its allies have taken advantage of political instability, taking territory they use to stock weapons and train forces.

The Islamists have insisted they want to impose Sharia only in northern Mali, though there long have been fears they could push further south.

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Japan Unveils Huge Economic Stimulus Package

Japan Increases Defence Spending

Updated: 10:54am UK, Friday 11 January 2013

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

Japan has announced plans to increase its defence budget for the first time in a decade as tensions with China continue to increase.

As part of a broad stimulus package announced by Shinzo Abe, Japan's new prime minister, the military budget will be boosted by more than 100bn yen (£695m) from the 4.6trn yen (£30bn) budget in 2012.

A defence ministry spokesman said the funds were needed "to prepare for the changing security environment surrounding Japan".

Tensions between Tokyo and Beijing are at their highest in decades over a small group of islands in the East China Sea.

Both countries claim the five islands and three reefs which are located due west of Okinawa and to the northeast of Taiwan.

American and British diplomatic sources have told Sky News they are very concerned about the tensions.

One source said an accidental clash between the two countries' militaries which are increasingly active in the region could spark conflict.

Known as the Senkaku Islands in Japan and as the Diaoyu Islands by China, the uninhabited outcrops were 'officially' bought by the government of Japan from their private Japanese owner last year.

It was an attempt by the Japanese government to prevent the nationalist and right-wing governor of Tokyo, Shintaro Ishihara, from buying them himself - a move which would have sparked even greater tensions.

However, the government purchase caused huge anger in China with protests at Japanese institutions across the country. An unofficial but widespread boycott of Japanese goods in China hit an already struggling Japanese economy.

The governments of both countries have been accused of stoking nationalism to ramp up tensions and deflect from their own domestic political struggles.

An increased military presence in the East China Sea, a vital international shipping lane, is also causing some concern in the region and beyond.

On Thursday, the Japanese media said Tokyo had scrambled fighter jets in response to a sighting of Chinese 'military' planes near the disputed islands.

The Chinese planes were not within Japanese airspace but were within a Japanese designated 'air defence identification zone'.

It is the second time in two months that Japan has scrambled jets in response to Chinese aerial activity.

In December, Japanese F-15 fighter jets were dispatched from an air base in Okinawa after a light-aircraft belonging to China's Maritime Surveillance Organisation was spotted over the islands.

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Batman Cinema Shootings Suspect To Face Trial

A judge has ordered that the man suspected of killing 12 people in a cinema shooting in Aurora, Colorado, should stand trial.

Judge William Sylvester found that prosecutors had established there was "probable cause" to believe James Holmes committed the crimes.

"Therefore the court orders that defendant shall be bound over for trial on all counts," he wrote in a 61-page ruling posted online.

The 25-year-old has been charged with 166 offences following the shooting during a showing of The Dark Knight Rises in July.

Holmes will be formally charged, alhough his lawyers have said he is not ready to enter a plea.

He could face the death penalty if convicted.

A promising neuroscience student, Holmes began to stock up on weapons, ammunition, explosives and combat gear in the spring of last year.

He began to see a university psychiatrist and then dropped out of his course.

The Aurora rampage was one of a number of mass shootings in the US last year, culminating with the killings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, which have raised the issue of gun control.

A review ordered by President Barack Obama is due to report back within weeks, but the gun lobby has signalled it will oppose new restrictions.

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Dreamliner Hit By Fifth Fault This Week

A fifth Boeing Dreamliner fault has been discovered in as many days, raising more fears over the aircraft's safety.

Oil was discovered leaking from the left engine of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight operated by All Nippon Airways (ANA) on Friday.

An ANA spokeswoman said the leak was found after the domestic flight landed safely at Miyazaki airport in southern Japan.

It came on the same day another Japanese 787 suffered a cracked cockpit window while in flight on a domestic route.

ANA said crew noticed a spider web-like crack in a window in front of the pilot's seat about 70 minutes into Friday's flight, which was close to its destination.

The Dreamliner, the world's first carbon-composite airliner, which has a list price of $207m (£128m), has been beset by problems this week.

Boston fire crews attend the JAL plane after it filled with smoke

According to Reuters, US transportation officials will hold a news conference at 2.30pm GMT to discuss issues related to recent problems on the new plane.

Other reports said aviation officials would review the engine systems and reliability on long-haul transocean routes.

The Dreamliner was designed to use power plants made by General Electric and Britain's Rolls-Royce.

On Wednesday, a domestic flight was halted by ANA because brake parts to the rear left undercarriage needed replacing, a spokesman at Yamaguchi Ube Airport said.

A Japan Air Lines (JAL) jet was also grounded at Boston Logan International airport in the US following an engine fuel leak.

About 40 gallons of fuel spilled from the jet that was supposed to be bound for Tokyo.

That event followed the first incident of the week, which also occurred at Boston, on Monday.

Emergency services had been called after another JAL 787 filled with smoke shortly after passengers and crew had disembarked.

An investigator in the US examines a Boeing 787

Firefighters used infrared cameras to locate the fire in a battery pack in the belly of a different Boeing 787 and extinguished the blaze within 20 minutes.

The 787 Dreamliner made its first commercial flight in late 2011, after a series of production delays put deliveries more than three years behind schedule.

By the end of last year, Boeing had sold 848 Dreamliners, and delivered 49. JAL and ANA operate 24 of the planes.

After the Boston events, British carriers including BA, Virgin Atlantic and Thomson Airways reaffirmed their plans to integrate 787s into fleets this year and next.

In India - where state-owned Air India has taken delivery of six Dreamliners and has more on order - a senior official at the aviation regulator said there was concern at the recent spate of 787 glitches.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has not ordered any Dreamliner checks for now, but is waiting for a safety report from the US National Transportation Safety Board, the official said.

Meanwhile, an Air India spokesman said the airline's debut Dreamliner flight from India to Paris on Thursday went without a hitch.

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Saudi Arabia Beheads Young Sri Lankan Maid

A young Sri Lankan housemaid has been beheaded in Saudi Arabia for killing a baby who was in her care.

Rizana Nafeek had denied strangling the four-month-old baby in 2005 and the execution came despite global appeals to call it off because she was only 17 at the time.

Rights groups said the death sentence was a violation of international codes governing the rights of minors.

Appeals by the Sri Lankan government were also rejected and Nafeek was executed in the town of Dawadmy, near the capital Riyadh, on Wednesday morning.

A Sri Lankan woman protesting against the death sentence

In a statement the Saudi interior ministry said she had been found guilty of smothering the infant to death after an argument with the child's mother, her employer.

Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, had made a series of personal appeals to try to stop the execution and grant a pardon to the maid.

Afterwards, the president said he and his government "deplored" the beheading.

Saudi households are highly dependent on housemaids from African and South Asian countries.

There have been reported cases of domestic abuse in which families mistreat their maids, who have then attacked the children of their employers.

Condemning the execution, Human Rights Watch senior women's rights researcher Nisha Varia said: "Saudi Arabia is one of just three countries that executes people for crimes they committed as children.

"In executing Rizana Nafeek, Saudi authorities demonstrated callous disregard for basic humanity as well as Saudi Arabia's international legal obligations."

Saudi is an absolute monarchy that follows the strict Wahhabi school of Islam and applies Sharia (Islamic) law. Judges base decisions on their own interpretation of Sharia rather than on a written legal code or on precedent.

In a statement Amnesty International said that it appeared Nafeek had had no access to lawyers either during her pre-trial interrogation or at her trial in 2007.

Hers was the second execution in Saudi Arabia this year after a Syrian man was beheaded on Tuesday for drug trafficking.

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Half Of All Food Produced Is 'Thrown Away'

As much as half of all the food produced in the world - two billion tonnes worth - ends up being thrown away, a new report claims.

The waste is caused by poor infrastructure and storage facilities, over-strict sell-by dates, "get-one-free" offers, and consumer fussiness, according to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Each year countries around the world produce some four billion tonnes of food.

But between 30% and 50% of this total, amounting to 1.2 to 2 billion tonnes, never gets eaten, says the report Global Food; Waste Not, Want Not.

In the UK, up to 30% of vegetable crops are not harvested because their physical appearance fails to meet the exacting demands of consumers.

Half the food purchased in Europe and the US is thrown away after it is bought, the report adds.

Vast quantities of water are also wasted in global food production, it is claimed.

Around 550 billion cubic metres of water is used to grow crops that never reach the consumer, according to the report.

Producing one kilogram of meat is also said to take 20 to 50 times more water than producing the same weight of vegetables.

The report hits out at supermarkets for encouraging over-buying

The demand for water in food production could reach 10 to 13 trillion cubic metres a year by 2050, the institution said.

This is up to 3.5 times greater than the total amount of fresh water used by humans today, raising the spectre of dangerous water shortages.

Dr Tim Fox, head of energy and environment at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, said: "The amount of food wasted and lost around the world is staggering.

"This is food that could be used to feed the world's growing population - as well as those in hunger today.

"It is also an unnecessary waste of the land, water and energy resources that were used in the production, processing and distribution of this food."

He blamed the situation on poor engineering and agricultural practices, inadequate transport and storage infrastructure, and supermarkets demanding cosmetically perfect foodstuffs and encouraging consumers to overbuy through buy-one-get-one free offers.

By 2075 the United Nations predicts that the world's population will reach around 9.5 billion, resulting in an extra three billion mouths to feed.

Added stresses on the ability of the world to feed itself include global warming and the growing popularity of meat, which requires around 10 times more resources than staple plant foods such as rice or potatoes.

Dr Fox called on governments, development agencies and organisations like the UN to "work together to help change people's mindsets on waste and discourage wasteful practices by farmers, food producers, supermarkets and consumers".

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India Gang Rape: Men 'Beaten For Confessions'

A lawyer for three of the men charged with murdering and gang-raping a student in Delhi has accused the police of brutality.

Speaking before a hearing at the city's Saket District Court, ML Sharma claimed the men had been beaten while in custody.

He said: "They (the police) have used the third degree to extract the statement that suits the evidence they have collected.

"My clients have been forced to confess to crimes that they did not commit."

A police spokesman refused to comment on the allegations.

Mr Sharma represents three of the five men accused of raping a 23-year-old medical student on a bus in Delhi on December 16.

She died in hospital in Singapore 13 days after the attack, which sparked mass protests across India.

Mr Sharma's clients are expected to plead not guilty to the charges they face.

All five men are due in court later, when the case is expected to be transferred to a fast-track trial court.

If convicted, they could face the death penalty.

A sixth accused, who is 17, will be tried in a separate court for juveniles.

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Australia Wildfires Rage On As Temperatures Ease

More than 100 bushfires are still raging across southeastern Australia, following a heatwave that saw the region scorched by record temperatures.

Cooler weather has now brought some relief - but highs of 50C are forecast for the weekend.

Meteorologists have been forced to readjust their scales to accommodate the unprecedented heat.

A NASA satellite image of the fires burning in southeastern Australia

After facing one of the highest-risk fire days in its history on Tuesday, residents in hard-hit New South Wales woke to shifting winds that caused temperatures to drop significantly.

While the mercury topped 42C in Sydney on Tuesday, it was forecast to peak at just 25C today, while the Victorian capital Melbourne was down to 20C.

The ratings on many bushfires were downgraded with none now at the "catastrophic" level which signifies fires will be uncontrollable, unpredictable and fast-moving, and evacuation the only safe option.

But NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons warned against complacency, with new fronts breaking out despite the colder weather and a total fire ban still in place.

Speaking from Bookham, a small village in Yass Shire west of Canberra where a fire has so far burnt out 16,000 hectares, he said: "It is far from over when it comes to the threat to New South Wales.

"We need to sustain the vigilance today. We are not out of the woods yet, the risk is very real and there's a long day ahead and a forecast for a return to hot conditions toward the weekend and into next week."

About 30 fires in New South Wales are out of control

More than 2,000 firefighters worked through the night tackling more than 140 blazes across New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, with 30 of those uncontained.

New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell said an estimated 10,000 sheep had perished in the Yass area alone.

The state of Victoria has also been experiencing extreme conditions with four homes destroyed and six people treated for minor burns or smoke inhalation in a bushfire in the farming community of Carngham, which was evacuated.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said the federal and state governments were working together in the recovery effort and to support victims.

"Firstly, it's all hands on deck fighting the fires, dealing with the emergency, and then we move into the recovery phase," she said.

Bathers at Lake Conjola watch as smoke billows from a bushfire at Deans Gap

No deaths have so far been reported.

While it was initially believed as many as 100 people could be missing in the southern island of Tasmania after wildfires razed more than 100 homes over the weekend, police said there was confusion about movements during the crisis.

"We know there have been no significant injuries, which is amazing, and we are encouraged that we haven't found any human remains at this stage," Tasmanian acting police commissioner Scott Tilyard told Sky News.

Wildfires are a fact of life in arid parts of Australia. Some 173 people perished in the 2009 Black Saturday firestorm, the nation's worst natural disaster of modern times.

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Boeing 787 Dreamliner Brake Problem Scare

A brake problem has forced an All Nippon Airways flight to be cancelled in Japan - the third glitch in as many days involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

It was scheduled to fly from the Yamaguchi prefecture in western Japan to Tokyo's Haneda Airport.

But the domestic flight was grounded by Japan's ANA because brake parts to the rear left undercarriage needed replacing, a spokesman at Yamaguchi Ube Airport said.

An ANA spokeswoman said: "In the cockpit, an error message related to its brake system was displayed.

"The exact nature and the cause of the error message is not clear yet."

All 98 passengers on board were switched to another flight for Tokyo.

On Tuesday, a Japan Airlines jet was grounded at Boston Logan International Airport in the US following a fuel leak, a day after another plane of the same type suffered a fire.

About 40 gallons (150 litres) of fuel spilled from the jet that was supposed to be bound for Tokyo from Boston last night.

On Monday, smoke was spotted in the cabin and cockpit of a JAL Boeing 787

Massachusetts Port Authority spokesman Richard Walsh said the plane had 178 passengers and 11 crew members on board.

The plane was evaluated and departed the same afternoon. JAL said the crew had reported a "mechanical issue."

On Monday, a fire broke out in a battery pack in the belly of a different Boeing 787 operated by JAL at the same airport.

Just minutes after all 173 passengers and 11 crew disembarked, the aircraft's cabin and cockpit filled with smoke.

It had just landed at Boston, following a non-stop flight from Tokyo.

The blaze, which was extinguished within 20 minutes, is being investigated by US aviation officials.

Both episodes have added to growing concerns about the aircraft, which has been beset with problems.

Electrical faults have affected flights and delayed deliveries of the new jet to operators.

The inside of a Boeing 787 is examined At Boston Logan International.

The model, originally planned for launch in 2009, was first delivered late in 2011 because of technical problems.

The latest episode comes after the Federal Aviation Administration - the US aviation watchdog - had already launched a probe and discovered fuel line assembly errors.

It said that the faults could result in fire risk from leaks dripping on hot engine parts or causing the aircraft to run out of fuel.

Japan Airlines said it had no plans to change placed orders of 38 Boeing 787 Dreamliners following the two incidents.

The company has ordered 45 in total, seven of which it is already operating.

A spokesman said six were currently in use, the other at Boston Logan International Airport.

All Nippon Airways, which has placed orders for 66 Dreamliner aircraft, including 17 already in use, also said it had no plans to change its orders.

British Airways has ordered 24 Dreamliners from Boeing and is still expecting its first 787 in May, with a further three due for delivery before the end of 2013.

Virgin Atlantic has 16 jets on order and told Sky News it still expects its first delivery in 2014.

Thomson Airways has also placed orders for the hi-tech long-haul Boeing plane, which has been marketed as being more comfortable and environmentally friendly than other aircraft.

A spokeswoman for Thomson told Sky News: "Our first Thomson Dreamliner is still on track to be delivered early this year. Boeing has reassured us that they are taking action to rectify the issues highlighted to them."

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Four Children Die In Georgia House Fire

Four children, including a baby, have been killed in a house fire in the Atlanta area.

The other victims were aged 3, 5 and 7.

The fire broke out late on Tuesday night on the second floor of a duplex in Conyers, Georgia.

 Police Major Mike Waters told Atlanta television station WAGA-TV that the children's mother rushed upstairs but was only able to save her 5-year-old son by throwing him out of a window.

The boy suffered a broken collar bone and was transported to a local hospital.

The mother who suffered 40% burns, also jumped out of the window.

A grandmother managed to get out of the building unharmed.

The fire broke out at a home on Pinedale Circle, Conyers. Pic: WSB-TV

Major Waters told reporters that a neighbour tried to help.

"There was one neighbour that tried his best to get in a rear window but the flames were too strong, and there was no way he could get in," he said.

Police officers arrived on the scene quickly after the fire was reported. 

Flames were already coming down the stairs, as they tried unsuccessfully to put it out with handheld fire extinguishers.

The cause of the fire is being investigated.

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Illinois Lottery Winner Urooj Khan Poisoned

A man who died after winning $1m (£620,000) in the Illinois Lottery was poisoned with cyanide, a medical examiner has ruled.

Urooj Khan, who scooped the bumper prize in the summer, was initially found to have died of natural causes but a full toxicology test, demanded by a relative, has now revealed he had ingested a deadly amount of cyanide.

A murder investigation has been launched by the Chicago Police Department, and it is likely that the lottery winner's body will be exhumed as part of the inquiry.

Cook County medical examiner Stephen Cina said such cases of cyanide poisoning were "pretty unusual".

"I've had one, maybe two cases out of 4,500 autopsies I've done," he added.

The next step in the probe could be to exhume Mr Kahn's body

Mr Khan died on July 20, 2012, a day after the $425,000 (£264,000) cheque from his lottery win was issued.

Instead of taking the full amount in instalments, Mr Khan opted for a lump sum of just over $600,000 (£372,000). After taxes, the winnings amounted to about $425,000 (£264,000).

Mr Khan's cheque was cashed on August 15. If a lottery winner dies, the money normally goes to his or her estate.

The 46-year-old, who owned a number of dry cleaners, bought the winning scratchcard at a 7-Eleven shop near his home in West Rogers Park, Chicago.

He recalled the win days later at a ceremony in which Illinois Lottery officials presented him with the cheque, explaining how he jumped up and down and repeatedly shouted: "I hit a million!"

The 7-Eleven store where Mr Khan purchased his winning ticket

He said he was so overjoyed he ran back into the store and tipped the sales assistant $100 (£62).

"Winning the lottery means everything to me," Mr Khan added at the ceremony in June, which was also attended by his wife, their daughter, and several friends.

He said he would put some of his winnings into his businesses and donate some to a children's hospital.

At the time of Mr Khan's death, no signs of trauma were found and a post mortem was not carried out because they were not automatically performed by the Cook County medical examiner on those aged 45 and older unless the death was suspicious.

The cut-off age has since been raised to 50.

A basic toxicology screening for opiates, cocaine and carbon monoxide came back negative, and the death was ruled to be a result of the narrowing and hardening of coronary arteries.

But a family member, who has not been identified, came forward and asked the authorities to look into the case further.

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Australian Bushfires: 'Catastrophic' Conditions

The Australian state of New South Wales is experiencing one of the highest-risk fire days in its history, with temperatures climbing above 40C.

Firefighters are battling over 100 wildfires raging across the southeast of the country, with more than 20 deemed out of control.

Officials have evacuated national parks, warning that blistering temperatures and high winds are causing "catastrophic" fire conditions in some areas.

All state forests and national parks have been closed as a precaution and total fire bans are in place with temperatures expected to reach as high as 45C in some places.

Strong winds are also forecast, which could fan the flames in unpredictable directions.

There are warnings across New South Wales

Thousands of firefighters are on standby across the nation's most populous state of New South Wales.

NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said: "We are shaping up for one of the worst fire danger days on record.

"You don't get conditions worse than this. We are at the catastrophic level and clearly in those areas leaving early is your safest option."

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard urged people to stay safe as she warned the nation to prepare for possibly its worst day of bushfires.

She told Australian television: "This is a very dangerous day.

The Boomer Bay area was devastated by flames earlier in the week

"We of course are very concerned about these extreme weather conditions in New South Wales. The word catastrophic is being used for very good reason, So it is very important that people keep themselves safe."

One of the worst uncontained fires on Tuesday was around Cooma, about 100km (62 miles) south of the capital city Canberra.

The fire danger in the state of Victoria is also high. The main concern is about a blaze in the southwest, which has already burnt out more than 7,000 hectares of bushland.

No deaths had been reported, although officials in Tasmania were still trying to find around 100 residents who have been missing since a fire tore through the small town of Dunalley, east of the state capital of Hobart, last week, destroying around 90 homes. No bodies were found during preliminary checks of the ruined houses.

Wildfires have scorched 20,000 hectares of forests and farmland across southern Tasmania since Friday.

Bushfires are common during the Australian summer. In February 2009, hundreds of fires across Victoria killed 173 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes.

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British Soldier Shot Dead In Afghanistan

A British soldier has been shot dead by a man wearing an Afghan army uniform, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

The soldier from 28 Engineer Regiment, attached to 21 Engineer Regiment, was killed at Patrol Base Hazrat in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province on Monday evening.

Major Martyn Crighton, a spokesman for the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), told Sky News the soldier died after "an individual wearing an Afghan National Army uniform turned his weapon against both Afghan National Army soldiers and Isaf troops".

He added: "During the engagement the attacker was killed and there were some other folks who were wounded. They were subsequently taken to an Isaf medical facility to be treated."

The soldier's family have been informed of the death.

Spokesman for Task Force Helmand, Major Laurence Roche, said: "This is an extremely sad day for the Corps of Royal Engineers and everyone serving with Task Force Helmand. Our thoughts are with the soldier's family and friends at this time."

The Taliban said it carried out the attack, naming the killer as Mohammed Qasim Faroq.

Spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi said in an email that "an infiltrator" staged the attack and managed to escape from the scene but was later shot and killed after opening fire on a checkpoint.

The Taliban often claims such attacks, but Isaf officials say most stem from personal grudges and cultural misunderstandings.

More than 60 personnel with Isaf, which is led by Nato, were killed in 47 attacks by members of the Afghan security forces last year, eroding trust between Afghan soldiers and their foreign counterparts.

A total of 439 British servicemen and women have died in Afghanistan since 2001.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said: "These are clearly very, very serious incidents.

"The military always keep force protection measures under review."

The international force is currently planning to withdraw most of its troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014. The patrol base where the latest attack happened was due to be handed over to Afghan control soon.

Afghan forces already take the lead on security for 87% of the population ahead of the withdrawal.

The killing came as US President Barack Obama prepared to host his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on Friday to discuss long-term US military and civilian support for Afghanistan.

Insider attacks are likely to be high on the agenda, as is the issue of a continued US military presence in Afghanistan beyond 2014.

Reports citing the US Defence Department suggest between 3,000 and 9,000 troops could remain to focus on preventing al Qaeda from regaining a foothold.

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Costa Concordia: 'Stupid' Tourists Rescued

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

Coastguards have criticised five German cruise ship passengers who hired an inflatable boat to get a close-up look of the wrecked Costa Concordia liner.

The group, including two children, had to be rescued after their tiny boat was swamped by waves, whipped up by storm force winds. All were suffering from the effects of the cold.

Officials said the party were holidaymakers from the Costa Magica, a cruise liner from the same Costa Cruises fleet as the ill-fated Concordia, which struck rocks last year leaving 32 people dead off the Italian island of Giglio.

The Germans had arrived at Civitavecchia and made their way to Porto Santo Stefano where they hired the boat so they could take a look at the stricken Concordia which is still lying on rocks just outside the entrance to Giglio harbour.

Although they managed to sail the 10 miles from Porto Santo Stefano without any problem, on the return leg the weather suddenly changed and the boat got into difficulties.

But it managed to stay afloat and they were picked up by a coastguard vessel which took them back to the mainland.

The Concordia continues to lie on its side off the Italian coast

Once on dry land, they were given hot drinks and wrapped in thermal blankets and after being given the all-clear by paramedics they were taken back to Civitavecchia where they resumed their cruise ship holiday.

A coastguard spokesman in Porto Santo Stefano said: ''It was a pretty stupid thing to do. They were lucky that it ended as it did - they could have quite easily sank.

"The strong wind created high waves and they were having trouble controlling their inflatable boat. They were all cold and wet but grateful for the fact we were on hand.

"They suffered no lasting effects but we did tell them not to try anything similar in the future.''

Since it crashed into the rocks last year, the Costa Concordia has turned into a macabre tourist attraction with hundreds of sightseers catching a ferry from Porto Santo Stefano to Giglio so they can look at the 300ft ship and take pictures before returning to the mainland.

The ship had just left Civitavecchia and was on a seven-day cruise with more than 4,000 passengers and crew on board when captain Francesco Schettino is said to have altered the course so he could carry out a sail-by salute of Giglio to show off to passengers and islanders.

He is now facing charges of multiple manslaughter as well as abandoning his ship while passengers and crew were still on board and needing to be rescued.

A trial is expected to start later this year and the operation to remove the vessel is not expected to be completed until the summer - 18 months after the disaster.

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Shanghai Market Fire Kills Six People

Six people have been killed after a fire tore through a wholesale market in Shanghai.

The blaze broke out at around 8.30pm on Sunday, but firefighters were unable to control it for several hours.

Rescuers are still searching for casualties inside the gutted market, located in the city's Pudong district.

People injured in the blaze were being treated at Changhai Hospital in Shanghai, many with severe burns.

Among those in hospital was a nine-year-old girl.

The Shanghai agricultural products market is the city's largest wholesale market for farm produce.

An investigation has been launched into the cause of the blaze.

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India Gang Rape: Five Appear In Delhi Court

An Indian court hearing the case of five men accused of gang-raping and murdering a 23-year-old student was cleared as chaotic scenes forced the hearing to be held behind closed doors.

The suspects were being presented for the first time since the attack which took place on a bus on December 16, sparking protests in India and abroad about violence against women.

But the court was closed after noisy protests from lawyers objecting to the suspects being given defence counsels, and a crush of local and foreign journalists straining to hear proceedings in the tiny room.

"People who have assembled and are present in the court not connected with the case have been asked to wait outside," magistrate Namrita Aggarwal said in a written order to reporters.

"It has become completely impossible for the courtroom proceedings to proceed."

Two of the accused, hiding their identity

The five men, aged 19 to 35 and mostly residents of Delhi slums, were later produced before the magistrate, police officers said outside the courtroom.

Earlier, several blue Delhi Police buses believed to be holding the men were seen driving into the Saket court complex in south Delhi after jail authorities confirmed the suspects had been sent for their hearing.

The accused, who could face the death penalty if convicted, are charged with kidnap, robbery and conspiracy over the attack. A sixth accused, who is 17, is to be tried in a separate court for juveniles.

Though gang rapes are commonplace in India, the case has touched a nerve, leading to three weeks of sweeping introspection on India's attitudes to women, its often insensitive police force and dysfunctional justice system.

It normally takes months for the prosecution to assemble such a case, but the fast-tracked legal proceedings are getting under way barely a week after the victim died of her injuries in a Singapore hospital.

Protests have spread across India since the rape and murder of the woman

She had been out to watch a film with her boyfriend when they were lured onto a bus where the gang are accused of repeatedly raping and violating her with an iron bar, causing horrific internal damage.

The defendants have been named as Ram Singh, Mukesh Singh, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur and Pawan Gupta.

Police have pledged "maximum security" during the hearing at the court amid fears for the defendants' safety. A man was arrested last week as he allegedly tried to plant a crude bomb near the home of one of the men.

In the order clearing the court room on Monday, the magistrate said there was "apprehension" about the safety of the accused.

Lawyers at the Saket court complex have decided to refuse to defend the accused and a group of them staged noisy protests against two Supreme Court advocates who have offered to serve as defence counsels.

"No person should be hanged without a proper trial," said one of the Supreme Court lawyers present.

Legal experts say the magistrate Namrita Aggarwal will likely transfer the case to a higher court.

Outlining their case on Saturday, prosecutors said there was DNA evidence to tie the defendants to the crime scene, as well as testimony from the boyfriend who witnessed the assault.

"The blood of the victim tallied with the stains found on the clothes of the accused," said Rajiv Mohan, part of the prosecution team.

There have been widespread calls for the attackers to be hanged, including from the victim's family.

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South Africa: Women Drinking To Harm Babies

By Alex Crawford in Port Elizabeth, Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape

Mothers in one of South Africa's poorest areas are drinking heavily to deliberately damage their unborn babies - just so they can claim disability benefit.

Life is so tough with unemployment high and crime rampant in South Africa's Eastern Cape, that a newborn baby represents a form of income for the mothers.

State benefits mean 250 South African rand (£20) per child per month for an impoverished family. But disability allowance is a far more lucrative 1200 rand a month (£85).

It has led to a spike in the numbers of babies born with disabilities.

Mothers who drink heavily during pregnancy run a far higher risk of giving birth to a child born with what is known as Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). The condition is usually irreversible and can mean speech problems, physical deformities, learning difficulties and behavioural issues.

More than three-quarters of the children at the Miracle Kids Centre in Helenvale suffer from FASD.

South Africa has the highest prevalence of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

The centre manager Genevieve Hendricks says the children struggle at school, end up dropping out and then many turn to crime to get by.

"It's so sad to see," she says cradling one of her young charges. "But we need to educate these mothers to know they are causing a lifetime of difficulties."

The Eastern Cape Liquor Board has now been prompted to launch a campaign to educate young mothers about the dangers of drinking heavily whilst pregnant.

South Africa has had the highest number of FASD cases in the world since 2002, according to the World Health Organisation.

Many of the problems link back to the prevalence of illegal shebeens, or drinking houses, where homemade, highly addictive and damaging alcohol is sold cheaply. For about two rand (14p), you can buy a litre of kah-kah as the locals call it.

"If I don't drink this, I'm like someone who is sick," Ruth tells us swigging from a transparent bottle containing kah-kah. "I can't sleep, and I cant think straight but when I have this then I am better and I can do anything."

Within two sips Ruth (not her real name) was slurring and dribbling. She staggered up to the door to try to change her baby's nappy before plonking the child on her lap, letting the baby breastfeed while she carried on drinking the toxic liquid.

She told me she drank about "five or six bottles a day" and that this started from "about nine o'clock" in the morning.

"I don't drink through the day because I have things to do," she said.

I'm afraid to say I didn't believe her and when we dropped by her house the following morning, her eight-year-old twins were at home alone with her 15-year-old daughter.

"She's at the shebeen," we were told.

Homemade alcohol is available in illegal drinking houses

The police continually conduct raids on the shebeens, closing them down and throwing away the illegal alcohol. But no sooner one is shut down, another springs up.

"It's cheap to produce and this represents an income to these people," Colonel Abdoerahgmaan Humphries told Sky News.

We are with the Gelvendale police team as they raid one of the shebeens.

The filthy shed is packed full of people, including at least two women cuddling tiny babies. Most appeared intoxicated.

The police move onto what appears to be a small concrete room opposite. Against the wall is a brown wooden panel and when the police pull it down, it reveals a small hole, just big enough for an adult to crawl through. It opens out into another room which is the brewery. There are three barrels half filled with a milky brown liquid - the kah-kah. There are also numerous crates of bottles - all filled and ready to be sold.

"Asse blief  bass (please boss)!" the man pleads. He wants to at least finish his own drink. Most of the brewers are themselves addicts.

The police take the crates out and pour the liquid away in front of the assembled residents, many of whom are drunk and now angry.

"Leave them! Leave us! It makes us happy," one of the women screams at them.

There are several attempts to try to snatch bottles before they are poured on the wasteground.

The police move off to attend to a shooting elsewhere in the area.

"They'll be back brewing some more right now," one says to me as we speed off.

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Gerard Depardieu Receives Russian Passport

The French actor received his passport after being granted Russian citizenship, saying he was leaving France to avoid proposed tax increases.

"There was a short meeting and Depardieu was handed his passport," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

But the Russian leader did not personally hand over the document when the two met at Putin's residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

Russians reportedly reacted with amusement to news of their new citizen

The actor is opposing proposed tax increases for French citizens earning more than €1m (£818,000).

President Putin surprised many at his end-of-year news conference in December by saying he was ready to offer the 64-year-old a Russian passport to resolve the row.

The Cyrano de Bergerac and Green Card star has become a frequent face on the Moscow celebrity circuit and is well known after appearing in a number of advertising campaigns.

He worked in the country in 2011 on a film about the eccentric Russian monk Grigory Rasputin.

But French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault has called Depardieu unpatriotic at a time when the French are being asked to pay higher taxes to reduce a large national debt.

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Syrian President Assad Gives Live TV Address

Syria's president has blamed "outside forces" for orchestrating the conflict in his country in a rare public address to the nation.

The embattled leader, who appeared before cheering crowds in the capital Damascus, struck a defiant tone and was frequently interrupted by supporters chanting: "With our soul with our blood we sacrifice ourselves for you O Bashar."

With insurgents fighting their way closer to the seat of his power, President Bashar al Assad spoke about the latest developments and "suffering" in Syria.

He said the conflict was not between the state and opposition, but the "nation and its enemies".

"We are now in a state of war in every sense of the word," he said.

"This war targets Syria using a handful of Syrians and many foreigners. Thus, this is a war to defend the nation."

"We meet today and suffering is overwhelming Syrian land. There is no place for joy while security and stability are absent on the streets of our country.

"The nation is for all, and we must all protect it," he said to rapturous applause inside a packed House of Arts and Culture.

"There are those who seek to partition Syria and weaken it. But Syria is stronger ... and will remain sovereign ... and this is what upsets the West."

Mr Assad called for a "full national mobilisation" to fight against the rebels, whom he branded "terrorists" and "murderous criminals".

While outlining proposals for what he described as a peace plan including a new constitution and amnesty, there was no suggestion of him relinquishing his power.

He asserted the government and army would continue military operations against opposItion groups.

Mr Assad said change must come through constitutional means and appealed for dialogue once the fighting had ended.

"Regional and international countries must stop funding the armed men to allow those displaced to return to their homes ... right after that our military operations will cease," he said.

They were his first public comments since he dismissed suggestions that he might go into exile to end the civil war, telling Russian television in November that he would "live and die" in Syria.

According to Sky sources, the internet in Damascus was shut down during his address - at the end of which Mr Assad needed to be ushered away by security officials when he appeared to be mobbed by jubilant supporters.

The hour-long live broadcast came as fighting between Syrian rebels and government forces continued to rage across the country.

Mr Assad's appeals for a reconciliation are likely to be rejected by opposition forces and rebels, who insist he must step down.

The 21-month uprising against Assad has become a civil war that the United Nations says has killed 60,000 people.

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