Ebola: UN Agency Admits It Botched Outbreak

By Thomas Moore, Health and Science Correspondent

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has admitted that it botched attempts to halt the ebola outbreak in West Africa.

The UN health agency has blamed factors including incompetent staff and a lack of information, according to a draft internal document obtained by The Associated Press.

"Nearly everyone involved in the outbreak response failed to see some fairly plain writing on the wall," the document says.

WHO admits it was "particularly alarming" that the head of its Guinea office refused to help get visas for an expert ebola team.

The organisation concedes it should have realised that traditional containment methods would not work in a region with porous borders and broken health systems.

Video: Questions Over Ebola Checks

Another factor was "politically motivated appointments" to WHO country offices in Africa.

Sky News Health and Science Correspondent Thomas Moore believes "simple infection control" would have stopped the virus spreading.

Here he takes a look at the mistakes that have contributed to a crisis that has killed at least 4,555 of the 9,216 people infected so far.

:: THE EPIDEMIC SMOULDERS

The epidemic started almost 10 months ago with the death in Guinea of a two-year-old boy called Emile.

For three months, the outbreak smouldered. Cases here and there, the virus spreading into neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia.

The cases were in rural areas, far from medical help; the deaths undiagnosed and unrecorded.

But then, suddenly, it flared up. The Health Ministry in Guinea reported a mysterious illness with a high fatality rate.

By the time ebola had been identified as the cause, there were 86 cases and 59 deaths in four districts of Guinea.

Video: Ebola Victims' Families Shunned

:: THE FIRST MISTAKE

By the end of March it had come to the attention of the World Health Organisation.

A team of ebola experts from the WHO and the US Centers for Disease Control reached the area.

Within weeks, cases dwindled and the medics moved on.

It was assumed it was just another rural outbreak, easily contained, just as the previous dozen or more outbreaks had been in Central Africa.

That was the first big mistake. The virus had already spread too far.

:: THE SECOND MISTAKE

Between the end of May and late July the virus reached the capitals of the three countries.

It was the first time that ebola cases had ever been reported in densely populated cities.

Video: Paying The Price For Ebola

Eradication now became far more challenging - it would be impossible to quarantine an entire capital.

Even though there were still only just over 1,000 cases, the seeds had been sown for an exponential rise in numbers.

Still, there was no international response.

:: THE THIRD MISTAKE

By now it was clear the health services in the three countries could not cope.

Years of civil war had left the countries on their knees.

Liberia had just 120 doctors to care for four million people.

There simply weren't enough doctors to quarantine infected patients and chase down their contacts.

But still it was only charities and missionary groups that were sending in medical teams and organising clinics.

Video: Spotting Ebola At Beijing Airport

:: THE FOURTH MISTAKE

All three countries were too slow to tackle risky cultural practices, the suspicion of health workers and the stigma of the disease.

Relatives washed the dead with their bare hands, putting themselves at risk.

Bodies were hidden by relatives for fear of being ostracised by the community.

And villagers chased away medical teams, believing they were spreading the virus.

Yet it was only in August that Sierra Leone's government began an awareness campaign to change attitudes.

:: THE FIFTH MISTAKE

It wasn't until September that world leaders really understood how serious the epidemic had become.

A cynic might say it was the repatriation of western health workers - and then the arrival of infected travellers - that was the game-changer.

Video: How Ebola Attacks The Human Body

The US has begun building 1,700 beds in Liberia, the UK is building 700 in Sierra Leone and France is co-ordinating efforts in Guinea.

But it's nowhere near enough. The WHO still has only a fraction of the resources it needs.

And, with every week of delay, the virus spreads further. Cases are doubling every month.

That means more beds, more medics and more money will be needed.

It's no wonder the WHO says the ebola epidemic has been a wake-up call for the world.

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Cameron Presses EU Leaders On Ebola Fund

David Cameron has called for European Union leaders to double their contribution to help tackle ebola, demanding a combined 1bn euro (£800m) pledge.

The Prime Minister has written to the other 26 leaders and European Council president Herman van Rompuy calling for agreement to an "ambitious package of support" at a Brussels summit next week.

He made clear his frustration that other countries are failing to shoulder their share of the burden of international efforts to deal with the epidemic in West Africa which has killed more than 4,500.

Britain has committed £125m to its contribution - the second highest sum after the US. Downing Street said the total contribution from the EU is 500m euros (£400m).

More money is needed to train at least 2,000 workers to go out to the affected regions, Mr Cameron suggested - appealing also for a "duty of care package" to be established for any that contracted ebola while working at a European-run or funded medical facility.

Video: Paying The Price For Ebola

In his letter, the Prime Minister said: "The rapid spread of the disease and recent cases outside the West African region demonstrate the magnitude of the task at hand.

"The World Health Organisation forecast 20,000 cases in West Africa by November 2014. I believe that much more must be done."

The demand comes after the head of the World Bank warned the battle against the ebola outbreak is being lost.

Speaking after the United Nations revealed it had received less than 40% of the nearly $1bn ($600m) it had requested to fight the deadly disease, World Bank chief Jim Yong Kim blamed a lack of international solidarity for the failure to stop its spread.

Video: No UK Checks On African Passengers

"We are losing the battle," he told reporters in Paris.

"Certain countries are only worried about their own borders," he told reporters in Paris. 

Meanwhile, President Obama moved to reassure the American public over ebola by revealing he hugged nurses treating patients with the virus.

"The only way that a person can contract the disease is by coming into direct contact with the bodily fluids of somebody who is already showing symptoms," he said.

Video: HMS Argus in More Detail

"I've met and hugged some of the doctors and nurses who've treated ebola patients. I've met with an ebola patient who recovered, right in the Oval Office. And I'm fine."

International anxieties over the spread of ebola were highlighted as a cruise ship carrying a lab technician who worked with samples taken from an infected nurse in Dallas was stopped from docking in Belize and Mexico

"It is the first time that this has happened, and it was decided the ship should not dock as a preventative measure against Ebola," Erce Barron, port authority director in Quintana Roo, said.

As part of European efforts to stop the spread, France will start screening air passengers for ebola today.

Video: Ebola Victims' Families Shunned

Air France flight attendants have also called for a halt to all flights from Guinea, one of the three hardest-hit countries.

The US, Britain and Canada have already launched screenings at airports for passengers from ebola-hit areas.

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Nigeria Schoolgirls Could Be Free By Tuesday

Nigeria aims to have around 200 schoolgirls kidnapped by Islamist group Boko Haram freed by Tuesday, says a government source.

Authorities earlier said they had agreed a ceasefire with the militant group to make the release possible.

"I can confirm that FG (the federal government) is working hard to meet its own part of the agreement so that the release of the abductees can by effected either on Monday or latest Tuesday next week," the senior government source told Reuters.

Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 girls at gunpoint from a school in Chibok, northeastern Nigeria, on April 14.

Some of the girls managed to escape from the group in the aftermath of their kidnap or during fighting among militants, but the vast majority are still missing.

The group has demanded the release of detained extremists in exchange for the girls.

Sky's Special Correspondent Alex Crawford said Boko Haram had "assured Nigerian authorities that the Chibok schoolgirls are well and safe".

The country's leader, Goodluck Jonathan, has faced strong criticism over a deteriorating security situation in Nigeria, with areas in the northeast Borno state inaccessible due to the threat from Boko Haram.

More follows...

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Ebola Probe Expanded To Nurse's Earlier Flight

The Texas nurse being treated for ebola may have shown symptoms as early as last Friday - three days before being diagnosed.

A spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it is expanding its investigation to include passengers on a Friday flight from Dallas to Cleveland that Amber Vinson was on.

The 29-year-old was visiting family in the Akron area last weekend before flying on Monday from Cleveland back to Dallas before being diagnosed.

CDC officials are already trying to track down 132 passengers on the Monday flight.

A second nurse who contracted the disease at the same Dallas hospital is now being moved to a federal facility in Maryland.

Video: Ebola Nurse Speaks From Hospital

Officials have released a video showing Nina Pham speaking to her doctor, Gary Weinstein, from her hospital bed in the city's Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital before the move.

The footage shows an emotional Ms Pham sitting up in bed and joking that colleagues should join her in Maryland, before wiping away tears as she tells them: "I love you guys."

Fellow nurse, Brianna Aguirre, who had been helping to treat Ms Pham has spoken publicly about what she says were substandard safety procedures inside the Texas hospital.

"The most disturbing things I saw were breaching of basic infection control principles.

Video: Nurse Describes Chaotic Scenes

"I saw people who were supposed to be in charge, the CDC infection control department, telling nurses, telling doctors to do things that were not safe."

US officials are reviewing whether to issue a ban on travel from West Africa because of the ebola outbreak, as a congressional oversight panel called for such a measure.

Federal Aviation Administration chief Michael Huerta said: "We are all working together to assess this on a day-to-day basis."

On Capitol Hill, House Energy and Commerce subcommittee chairman Tim Murphy urged an "immediate ban" on nonessential travel from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Video: Why Is Ebola So Dangerous?

US House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Washington, urged a travel ban on Wednesday.

President Barack Obama has said he does not have a "philosophical objection" to imposing a travel ban from ebola-afflicted West Africa.

But he said experts tell him it is less effective than measures already in place, insisting a ban could result in people trying to hide where they are coming from and making them less likely to be screened.

Mr Obama also said he may appoint an additional person to lead the ebola response in the US.

Video: How Ebola Attacks The Human Body

Appearing before the congressional panel, CDC chief Tom Frieden said passenger screenings at US and West African airports were sufficient.

"One of the things I fear about ebola is that it could spread more widely in Africa," he said.

"If this were to happen, it could become a threat to our health system and the healthcare we give for a long time to come."

Meanwhile, President Barack Obama authorised a call-up of National Guard troops if needed to support the fight against ebola in West Africa.

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Brazil Serial Killer: Hospital Guard 'Kills 39'

By Karine Mayer, South America News Editor

A hospital worker killed 39 people in 10 months out of "anger at everything and everyone", police in Brazil have said.

Thiago Rocha, 26, is accused of embarking on a killing spree in the central state of Goias, where he worked as a guard at a maternity and infant hospital.

Following his arrest, Chief of Police Deusny Aparecido told a news conference Rocha was a "cold person" and "killed out of anger". 

"He had no link to any of his victims and chose them at random. It could have been me, you or your children," said Chief Aparecido.

"He felt anger at everything and everyone."

Rocha, who is said to have confessed to the murders, was detained on Tuesday and is awaiting a court hearing.

He reportedly tried to cut his wrists in his cell using a broken light bulb.

A motorcycle allegedly used during some killings. Pic: Policia Civil/Goias

The accused lives with his mother and had been picked up by police last year for stealing motorbike licence plates at a local supermarket.

After his arrest this week he said he was feeling anguished and had committed the murders to ease his suffering.

Images recorded on a snack bar CCTV helped police identify the alleged serial killer. 

It is claimed he tried to shoot a young woman outside the snack bar from his motorbike but the gun jammed.

He then kicked her in the mouth before speeding away, police said.

Police say the first victim was 14-year-old Barbara Luiza Ribeiro Costa, who was killed in January this year.

The latest victim was Ana Lidia Gomes, who was shot at a bus stop in a motorbike drive-by.

Chief Police Detective Joao Gorski said: "I believe he is a serial killer. In the beginning he killed at random, but by the end he had established a pattern."

Among the 39 victims were homeless people and homosexuals. All those killed were young.

Rocha's lawyer, Thiago Huascar, said he would await all charges and a full briefing with his client before making any comment.

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Sobbing Pistorius 'Should Get 10 Years In Jail'

Oscar Pistorius solemnly hugged his lawyer Barry Roux and then sat down alone in court as the defence and prosecutions teams finished their closing arguments.

The Paralympic athlete sobbed through parts of the final day as Mr Roux claimed the runner "lost everything" after shooting dead his girlfriend.

Pistorius has admitted killing Reeva Steenkamp and said he mistook her for an intruder, thinking he and the model were in danger.

Mr Roux said Pistorius had lost his sponsors, lost all his money and had not got enough to pay for legal expenses following the tragedy on Valentine's Day last year.

He argued the disabled runner should not be sent to prison but should be put under house arrest and have correctional supervision - community service.

However, prosecutor Gerrie Nel argued he should be jailed for a minimum of 10 years and called a house arrest sentence "shockingly disproportionate" to what Pistorius did.

Video: Prosecution Praises Reeva's Cousin

Judge Thokozile Masipa adjourned the court in Pretoria, South Africa, until next Tuesday when she is expected to hand down her punishment.

Mr Roux said Pistorius was an icon, in the eyes of South Africans, who had "lost everything", "has not earned a penny" since the shooting and "is broken".

He said his client sold his last asset - his car - to give money to the Steenkamp family.

The lawyer added he will have to live with "excruciating pain which will never go away" - that he killed his girlfriend.

Mr Roux criticised "wildest speculations" when he was first arrested on suspicion of pre-meditated murder.

He said the false claims included how Pistorius allegedly crushed her head with a cricket bat, had roid (steroid) rage, took acting lessons and pretended to have feelings for her.

Video: Pistorius Walks Ahead Of Sentence

Mr Roux said his client's actions when he killed her in his bathroom were "dominated by vulnerability and anxiety".

He said the double-amputee athlete was a "compromised person" when he opened fire on 29-year-old Ms Steenkamp.

Mr Roux told the court his client "did not consciously act unlawfully", though he admitted the runner had "acted excessively".

Mr Nel urged the judge to think about what happened to Ms Steenkamp, and losing a child was the "most devastating thing that can happen to a person".

He said society may lose their trust in court if Pistorius was not jailed for killing the model who died a "violent" and "horrific" death.

She had "nowhere to go, she was in a small cubicle" as she was hit by four bullets, he said.

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1. Gallery: Reeva Steenkamp's Life In Pictures

   Reeva Steenkamp, 29, was born in Cape Town and grew up in Port Elizabeth. She went to a convent school and studied law. She was a keen horse rider until she broke her back.

2. She moved to Johannesburg from Cape Town to model for Avon cosmetics. In 2012, Reeva was voted number 45 in the South African FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World poll.

3. She featured as a celebrity contestant on BBC Lifestyle show Baking Made Easy in 2012.

4. The model was a keen Twitter user, and had more than 34,000 followers. She used the site to promote women's rights and empowerment.

5. Her former fashion editor, Barbara Robertson, described the model as being "sweet, and down-to-earth" with the "it factor". She compared her to an "early Kate Moss".

6. Reeva Steenkamp on the set of reality TV show Tropika Island of Treasure (Pic: Stimulii)

He said "we were lucky" to hear in court the voice of the victim's cousin Kim Martin - which he called a voice representing society.

Mr Nel argued her "softly-spoken" remarks imploring the court to hand down a prison term "trounced any other noise referred to".

On Thursday, Ms Martin told the judge the alternative sentence of community service while under house arrest did not seem to fit the crime.

She said Pistorius needed "to pay for what he'd done" and warned a lenient sentence would send the wrong message out to society.

Pistorius, 27, could face a fine and a suspended jail sentence or up to 15 years in prison after he was found guilty of culpable homicide, the equivalent of manslaughter in the UK.

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Ebola: Mistakes In Fighting Deadly Virus

A man has been spotted helping a nurse in the US with ebola board a flight to a specialist unit - without wearing any protective equipment.

The man, who is carrying a clipboard, comes within feet of Amber Vinson, who is now being treated in isolation in Atlanta, Georgia.

He is seen handling items given to him by a person wearing protective clothing.

Ebola is contracted through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids, and it is not airborne.

But this incident is the latest to raise questions about the US response to the outbreak, which has killed more than 4,000 people in West Africa.

Video: Ebola Nurse Told She Could Fly

Other mistakes include:

:: Allowing Ms Vinson to travel on a commercial plane from Cleveland, Ohio, to Dallas, Texas, even though she was showing the early symptoms of ebola.

The nurse did tell officials she was running a temperature, and now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is trying to track down 132 other passengers who were on that plane.

Video: Why Is The Ebola Virus So Deadly?

:: Another nurse who contracted ebola did so after an "unspecified breach of protocol". Nina Pham, 26, had been wearing full protective gear when she was treating Thomas Eric Duncan, who died after catching ebola in Liberia.

:: Healthcare workers have inadvertently violated protocols by wearing too many protective layers, according to CDC director Thomas Frieden.

:: Mr Duncan was sent home from Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital with antibiotics, despite telling medical staff he had come from the West African nation. Staff mistakenly thought he was suffering from a "low-grade common viral disease".

Video: Speed of Ebola Spread Graph

:: Workers were seen not wearing any protective clothing while they cleaned the outside of his Dallas apartment.

:: A nursing union has alleged a litany of errors in the treatment of Mr Duncan, claiming that he was kept in a non-isolated area of the emergency department for several hours and that nurses treating him were also taking care of other patients.

However, one notable success in the fight against ebola involves Nigeria and Senegal, two countries where the outbreak has been largely contained.

Video: Hazmat Crews Board Plane In Boston

Nigeria had eight deaths but brought its outbreak under control by tracking 894 people who had been in contact with a man who brought the virus from Liberia, and visiting 18,500 more people to check for symptoms.

Francisco Ferreira, the World Bank's chief economist for Africa, said the organisation was "incredibly impressed by the ability of Nigeria and Senegal to keep their epidemics contained".

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Ebola No Longer A Joke For Dallas Residents

By Mike McCarthy, News Correspondent in Dallas, Texas

In the leafy Dallas suburb where Amber Vinson lives the neighbour out walking his dog and the woman out jogging are still relaxed about the arrival of ebola in Texas.

But not as relaxed as they were a few days ago.

Both live within minutes of the apartment now vacated by the latest ebola victim.

As we talk the decontamination team are cleaning out Miss Vinson's rooms just yards away. 

"Last week it was kind of a joke," says Terry Van Der Heyden.

Video: Obama Warns Of Global Ebola Spread

"It was like 'hey, one of those cases got through here to the US'. Living right here ... that was, like, 12 blocks away.

"Then a few days ago the nurse gets it and that was, like, nine blocks that way. And then now this one yesterday ... this is right across the street."

Ebola - for many months an apparently distant threat - is visiting a real American neighbourhood.

It's not just confined to a hospital anymore. It's not about isolation units ... it's among the everyday people. Or that's how some in nurse Vinson's community see it.

Allison Prange isn't afraid to go out for her regular evening stroll. Why should she be?

You can't get ebola by passing someone in the street. You're safe to shake a stranger's hand.

Video: Dallas Turns To Brit Ebola Expert

Yet living so close to the block where the disease's latest patient lives plays strange tricks on the mind.

"It does make you think about what can I do, how do I keep myself safe?" says Allison.

"I did have the thought of maybe I shouldn't go to the local grocery store. Maybe I'll go to the one a couple of miles away ... just a little extra precaution here and there."

And so the fear factor begins to grow despite even President Obama himself reassuring an edgy American public by telling them he's hugged nurses at the Atlanta hospital treating ebola patients and he's OK.

And they believe him. But for how long?

Conflicting versions are emerging of what the protocol is in US hospitals and exactly what advice has been given to those who come into direct contact with ebola patients.

Questions are even being raised about whether some health officials have been entirely truthful in their accounts of how the disease has been handled in American hospitals.

The figures are still very much in favour of the US eradicating ebola on its soil in the not too distant future.

But if those odds even started to look less favourable it's unlikely that ordinary Americans would continue to feel relaxed about the threat of ebola.

The more cases there are - the closer it feels.

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Ebola Nurse Allowed To Fly Despite Having Fever

A nurse with ebola, who was able to board a flight in the US despite suffering from a fever, did tell officials she was running a temperature, it has emerged.

Amber Vinson was able to travel from Cleveland, Ohio, to Dallas, Texas, on a commercial plane even though she was showing the early symptoms of the killer disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now trying to track down 132 other passengers who were on the plane at the same time in case they too have been infected.

CDC director Dr Tom Frieden said Ms Vinson should not have been allowed to travel by plane, but added that "the level of risk to people around her would be extremely low".

However, the admission heaps further pressure on an organisation that has been criticised for the speed of its response to the ebola crisis, and raises questions about the readiness of the US to cope with the virus.

Video: Unprotected Man Helps Ebola Victim

It comes as British army medics are due to arrive in Sierra Leone to help in the fight against the virus, which has killed more than 4,000 people in West Africa.

France will start screening passengers for ebola at Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport on Saturday, while screening is expected to start at Heathrow airport's Terminal Three.

Ms Vinson, who is one of two nurses in the US to have contracted ebola, has since been transferred to a specialist unit in Atlanta, Georgia, where she will be treated in isolation and monitored.

Video: Why Is The Ebola Virus So Deadly?

CDC spokesman David Daigle said Ms Vinson, 29, reported that her temperature was below 100.4 degrees (38C) and had no symptoms. Ebola sufferers are not contagious until they show symptoms.

As a result, the nurse was told she could travel on Frontier Airlines Flight 1143 and the plane's crew said Ms Vinson did not exhibit any symptoms during Monday's flight.

Ms Vinson caught ebola after being one of several nurses to treat Thomas Eric Duncan, who came down with the virus and died after travelling to the US from Liberia.

Video: Obama Warns Of Global Ebola Spread

The other infected nurse, 26-year-old Nina Pham, remains in isolation at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas and is said to be in stable condition after receiving a plasma transfusion donated by ebola survivor Dr Kent Brantly.

President Barack Obama has cancelled a scheduled trip to Rhode Island and New York to remain at the White House to monitor the government's response.

A meeting of the UK Government's emergency committee, COBRA, is due to take place on Thursday.

Video: Dallas Turns To Brit Ebola Expert

A team of 91 British medics, including nurses, doctors and infectious disease consultants, will join 40 soldiers already in Sierra Leone to work at a UK-supported treatment centre, which has 12 out of 92 beds set aside for healthcare workers who risk infection while treating others.

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Apple And Facebook Pay To Freeze Staff Eggs

Facebook and Apple are giving female staff the opportunity to delay plans to start a family by paying for them to freeze their eggs.

The firms are covering up to $20,000 (£12,600) for the procedure and annual storage costs, according to reports.

The employment perk is expected to help the companies attract more women into the male-dominated sector, in the face of concerns over workforce diversity.

Experts warn freezing eggs is not a guarantee of motherhood. File pic

It is also set to be seen as a further sign of the so-called "perk arms race" as Silicon Valley firms battle to recruit and retain top talent.

Other benefits offered by companies to keep workers happy include free lunches, dry cleaning, yoga and massages.

Facebook recently began covering the costs of egg freezing and Apple will begin in January, NBC said.

In a statement, Apple said it "cares deeply about our employees and their families, and we are always looking at new ways our health programs can meet their needs".

It added: "We continue to expand our benefits for women, with a new extended maternity leave policy, along with cryopreservation and egg storage as part of our extensive support for infertility treatments.

"We also offer an adoption assistance program, where Apple reimburses eligible expenses associated with the legal adoption of a child."

Shelley Correll, a sociology professor and director of the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University said: "Anything that gives women more control over the timing of fertility is going to be helpful to professional women.

"It potentially addresses the conflicts between the biological clock and the clockwork of women's careers."

However, experts point out freezing eggs is a relatively new procedure that does not guarantee a successful pregnancy.

Corey Whelan, of the American Fertility Association, said: "It's really, really important for women to know it's not a guarantee of motherhood.

"Some women consider it an iron-clad insurance policy. It's not."

The procedure is gaining popularity as more women put motherhood on hold.

A post on the online forum eggsurance.com says: "Women today are at a cultural and generational crossroads. We have the same career expectations and demands as men.

"As our biological clocks tick away, we must establish ourselves in the workplace, find the right mate and become financially secure enough to establish a family."

Microsoft reported earlier this month that only 29% of its staff were women, while at Google it was 30%.

Some 31% of Facebook employees are women, but just 15% are in technical jobs.

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Hong Kong Police Officers 'Assault' Protester

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent

Six Hong Kong police officers have been suspended after a video appearing to show a protester being taken to a dark corner and beaten was aired on a local news channel.

The apparent attack came as police arrested 45 people during a night of clashes between authorities and pro-democracy protesters.

Trouble broke out on Hong Kong Island at 3am after dozens of protesters had occupied an underpass near the government headquarters.

Police in riot gear used pepper spray to move the crowds.

The man the man in the video, which was first shown on TVB but quickly spread on social media, was identified as Ken Tsang Kin-Chiu, a member of the Civic Party in Hong Kong.

Ken Tsang Kin-Chiu, who is said to have been beaten by police

The footage appears to show officers repeatedly kicking and punching Mr Tsang as he curls up in a ball. 

The Civic Party released a photograph of Mr Tsang with a bruised face and circular marks on his back.

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1. Gallery: Hong Kong Police Remove Barricades

   Police officers remove barricades of pro-democracy protestors in the Admiralty district in Hong Kong

2. Pro-democracy supporters continue to occupy the streets surrounding Hong Kong's Financial district after talks break down with the government

3. The protesters are calling for open elections and the resignation of Hong Kong's Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying. Continue through for more pictures

Speaking at the Legislative Council, the Civic Party leader Alan Leong said: "From what we have seen, Tsang was already handcuffed with plastic handcuffs ... and taken to a dark corner and beaten up.

"This use of power and police force is a blatant abuse of power, and from the look of it, the [officer] should at least be investigated on assault to [induce] actual bodily harm."

Mabel Au, director of Amnesty International Hong Kong, said: "This appears to be a vicious attack against a detained man who posed no threat to the police.

"It is stomach-churning to think there are Hong Kong police officers that feel they are above the law."

The protesters, believed to be a mixture of students and members of the Occupy Central movement, moved into the underpass on Lung Wo Road just hours after authorities had removed their barricades at protest sites around the city.

Video: HK Protest Barriers Dismantled

A police spokesperson said the arrests were made for "illegal assembly" and that force was only used after repeated warnings that the road must be cleared.

Ed Chin, an Occupy Central organiser, told Sky News: "The international community and the human rights groups internationally have to condemn the Hong Kong government.

"I'm even more concerned. Is this the Beijing government? Is it the Communist Party? And do they have a plan B? We have to look into the source of this craziness."

The clashes overnight follow two weeks of defiant protests on Hong Kong's streets. Authorities had chosen not to move on the protesters who numbered tens of thousands at times.

But the city's Chief Executive, CY Leung, has refused the protesters' demands to resign.

Video: October: 'Fighting For Our Future'

At the weekend, he said there was "zero" chance that the authorities in Beijing would change their minds over voting rights in the territory.

The protesters have been demanding the right to choose their leader in the 2017 elections. The Chinese government has said they can only choose from candidates selected by Beijing.

Meanwhile, in mainland China, a front-page editorial in the Communist Party's People's Daily newspaper condemned the protests and said: "They are doomed to fail".

"Stability is bliss, and turmoil brings havoc," it said.

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Pistorius: Anything But Jail Term 'Shocking'

Anything but a prison sentence for Oscar Pistorius for shooting dead his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp would be "shockingly inappropriate", prosecutor Gerrie Nel has said.

He resumed his relentless cross examination of probation officer Annette Vergeer, a defence witness, who on Tuesday told the athlete's sentencing hearing that Pistorius would be "broken as a person" if he was jailed.

Mr Nel said to place the runner under house arrest and sentence him to community work for three years as she had recommended would be "too light" a punishment.

The prosecutor also raised the prospect of a public backlash if the sentence for the double-amputee Olympian was not harsh enough, saying the court had to guard against people "taking the law into their own hands".

"Our courts and society value human life," he told Ms Vergeer, and asked her: "Don't you think society wants a heavy punishment?"

"You're recommending house arrest... but the accused could be allowed to pursue his athletics, train, find a job and go to work and return to his house..."

Video: No Jail Term Would Be 'Too Light'

"That this accused be sentenced to three years correctional supervision, with 16 hours a month correctional duties is shockingly inappropriate. It cannot even be considered," Mr Nel said.

The 27-year-old was convicted last month for killing Ms Steenkamp on Valentine's Day, 2013.

Ms Vergeer, who was paid by the defence to produce her report, said Pistorius would be vulnerable to violence and placed in highly stressful situations because of his disability.

"The death of the deceased and the period since have been a far bigger punishment than incarceration," she said.

Mr Nel said people in wheelchairs in prison were more vulnerable than those with prosthetics, and accused Ms Vergeer, who insisted she had almost three decades of experience, of being "irresponsible" for coming to court and not being as knowledgeable as he said she should be.

Video: 'Blood Money' Paid to Steenkamps

Sky's Alex Crawford, at the hearing at the High Court in Pretoria, said: "The prosecutor appears to be trying to portray Ms Vergeer as a slapdash ignoramus with unreliable and biased conclusions."

The court also heard yesterday that Pistorius paid 6,000 rand (£350) per month to the Steenkamps.

He also offered Ms Steenkamp's family 375,000 rand (£21,305) as compensation after already making a number of monthly payments to them.

Mr Nel said the Steenkamps rejected the lump sum - which they called "blood money" - and had decided to hand back the other monthly payments to help them with their rent and living expenses.

Referring to a statement released today through the family lawyer, defence lawyer Barry Roux told the court the Steenkamps intended to pay back Pistorius "every cent" of the monthly payments, and also confirmed they would not be pursuing a civil claim against Pistorius for killing their daughter.

Video: Oscar Pistorius Witness Challenged

Pistorius was back in court on Wednesday for the third day of his sentencing hearing after being found guilty of culpable homicide, the equivalent of manslaughter in the UK.

He could receive a fine and a suspended jail sentence or up to 15 years in prison.

More follows...

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Pistorius' Tears 'Appeared To Be Genuine'

Oscar Pistorius' tears and anxiety following the killing of his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp appeared to be genuine, his probation officer has said.

On the second day of the athlete's sentencing hearing in Pretoria, watched by his father Henke and Ms Steenkamp's mother June, Annette Vergeer said Pistorius was sorry and heartbroken at what had happened.

He had accepted responsibility for the death of Ms Steenkamp, she said, highlighting his apology to her family. Prison "would not assist him but break him" she said, adding that "a broken person would be introduced back into society".

The athlete arrived without his usual phalanx of police and minders

Ms Vergeer, at times fanning herself while in the witness box, said Pistorius would "carry a heavy load for the rest of his life" as a result of the killing and that he did not appear to be "such a danger to society that he needs to be removed" with a prison sentence.

However, Pistorius was also portrayed as a "poor victim" by prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who attempted to pull apart the body of charitable works presented by the runner's agent Peet Van Zyl the day before.

The athlete arrived at the North Gauteng High Court without his usual phalanx of police or family minders, while Judge Thokozile Masipa appeared in court flanked by six armed guards, a move described as highly unusual by legal commentators.

A proponent of the death penalty brandishes a noose outside court

Pistorius, 27, was cleared of murdering his former girlfriend but found guilty of culpable homicide - the equivalent of manslaughter in the UK.

He was also found guilty of discharging a firearm in public, an offence relating to him firing a gun in a restaurant.

The double-amputee Olympian could receive a fine and a suspended jail sentence or as many as 15 years in prison for the convictions.

The prosecution are pushing for him to serve a prison sentence for the killing, while his defence team submit he should serve no more than house arrest or community service.

How South Africa's papers are covering the hearing

Reporting from outside court, Sky's Alex Crawford said: "Yesterday was very much the defence day and his team spent the whole day trying to paint a picture of a man who had spent a huge amount of his time doing charity work and that prison was not the place for him.

"His agent said he wanted to give something back to society if he was allowed to and the social worker for the Correctional Services Department suggested that community service would be a good punishment."

There is a suggestion some of Ms Steenkamp's friends, including a possible former girlfriend, may also be called upon to testify, this time for the prosecution.

More follows...

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Ebola Crisis: UN Worker Dies In Germany

A United Nations employee infected with ebola while working in West Africa has died in a German hospital.

The aid worker was taken to Germany after contracting the disease in Liberia and was being treated in hospital in Leipzig.

The man had tested positive for ebola on 6 October and was put into a special isolation unit when he arrived in Germany three days later. Last week it was reported that he was a Sudanese doctor.

In a statement the hospital said: "The patient sick with ebola fever died during the night in St Georg Clinic in Leipzig. Despite intensive medical measures and maximum efforts by the medical team, the 56-year-old UN employee succumbed to the serious infectious disease."

The UN worker died while being treated in Leipzig

He was the third ebola patient to be taken to Germany. One of the others, a Senegalese expert, has been released from hospital in Hamburg and the other, a Ugandan doctor, is still receiving treatment in Frankfurt.  

The latest ebola outbreak has so far killed more than 4,000 people, mainly in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has called it the "most severe acute health emergency in modern times". It is spread through close contact with bodily fluids.

The death in Germany comes as a battalion of 800 Sierra Leone soldiers awaiting deployment as peacekeepers in Somalia was placed in quarantine after one of them tested positive for ebola.   

Meanwhile, the UK has begun screening passengers for the virus at airports and a plane travelling from Dubai to Boston was quarantined after fears that some sick passengers had ebola.

Video: Ebola Checks Begin At Heathrow

Ebola screening has already been taking place at airports in the US where health officials have been on heightened alert after a nurse in Texas contracted ebola while treating a dying patient.

Nina Pham's case marked the first transmission of the deadly virus on American soil.

US and UN leaders have called for "more robust" international efforts to tackle the ebola crisis. 

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1. Gallery: Red Cross Ebola Training In Germany

   A volunteer doctor who will travel to West Africa to help care for Ebola patients puts on an isolation suit during training offered by the German Red Cross

2. A volunteer doctor who will travel to West Africa to help care for Ebola patients puts on an isolation suit

3. Over 1,200 people across Germany have responded to a DRK call for volunteers, while the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr, has also asked for volunteers from its own ranks

4. Countries around the world are taking increasing precautions and committing resources in the battle against the deadly virus as the number of victims continues to climb. Continue through for more images

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US Nurse Receives Blood From Ebola Survivor

By Sky News US Team

An American nurse who contracted ebola while treating a dying patient has received a plasma transfusion donated by a doctor who beat the virus.

The healthcare worker, identified as 26-year-old Nina Pham, has been in isolation at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas since Friday.

She is reported to be in a stable condition.

Nina Pham became ill after treating the first ebola patient on US soil

She has received a plasma donation from Kent Brantly, the first American to return to the US from Liberia to be treated for ebola. 

Experts have been considering giving the blood of survivors to ebola patients as a way to kick-start their immune system.

Video: Ebola Due To 'Breach In Protocol'

Dr Brantly has also donated blood to American cameraman Ashoka Mukpo, who continues to improve at Nebraska Medical Center and tweeted: "Feeling like I'm on the road to good health."

Ms Pham was one of about 70 caregivers who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian national who succumbed to ebola on 8 October.

Dr Tom Frieden, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on Monday that health officials remain uncertain on exactly how she contracted the deadly virus.

Ms Pham, who had been wearing full protective gear, most likely became infected because of a breach of care protocol, the director previously said.

On Monday, he offered an apology to healthcare workers who complained that it sounded like he was blaming the nurse instead of questioning whether the protocols and training she received were sufficient.

Video: World Bank: Ebola Response Too Slow

"I feel awful that a hospital worker became infected taking care of an ebola patient," Dr Frieden said.

"We have to rethink the way we address ebola infection control because even a single infection is unacceptable," he said.

Dr Frieden's comments came ahead of a meeting between top health officials and President Barack Obama.

The White House said the President wants an update on steps under way to ensure the national health system is prepared to deal with the disease, which has killed more than 4,000 people in West Africa.

The US has already implemented enhanced screening measures for flights arriving from ebola-stricken countries, including hardest-hit Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

Video: Ebola Crisis: On The Front Line

Meanwhile, a waste disposal facility in Louisiana has refused to accept the ashes generated by the incinerated belongings of Mr Duncan.

Chemical Waste Management Inc-Lake Charles said although it was permitted to accept such material, the company would not do so until state officials agreed it would pose no threat to the public.

The facility issued the statement after Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell announced his plans to seek a court order blocking the transport of the waste across state lines from Texas.

A scare at Boston's Logan International Airport caused emergency crews in protective gear to remove five passengers with flu-like symptoms from Emirates flight 237 from Dubai, but officials said later there was no ebola threat.

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Ebola Crisis: Alex Crawford's Special Report

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

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

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

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

Video: Africa Ebola Crisis: Special Report

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Ebola: Nurse Is First To Contract Disease In US

Tests are being carried out on another suspected ebola sufferer in the US - hours after a female nurse was confirmed to have contracted the disease from a patient.

The man was put into isolation in Boston, Massachusetts, after recently returning from Liberia - one of the countries worst affected by the outbreak.

It follows the death of 42-year-old Thomas Eric Duncan at a hospital in Dallas, Texas, the first from ebola on US soil.

A nurse who was treating Mr Duncan at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital was confirmed on Sunday to have been the first to contract the disease in the US.

The unnamed woman, who had been wearing full protective gear, reported having a "low-grade fever" on Friday and was then isolated, officials said.

Video: UK's Response To Ebola Threat

Dr Thomas Frieden, from the Centres for Disease Control, said the hospital worker caught the disease because of a breach of care protocol during Mr Duncan's treatment.

A further 18 workers could also have been exposed, he said, and are being monitored.

The male suspected ebola victim who recently returned from Liberia is being evaluated at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre in Boston.

He presented himself to a hospital in Braintree, Massachusetts, complaining of a headache and muscle aches, before being transferred.

Video: Ebola Due To 'Breach In Protocol'

It is expected to take between 24 and 48 hours to discover if he is suffering from ebola.

More than 4,000 people have died in the latest outbreak, mostly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea in West Africa.

The US started screening people travelling from those countries to its busiest international airports on Saturday to limit the spread of the disease.

An exercise also took place in the UK over the weekend to ensure emergency authorities were prepared for the possible spread of ebola.

Video: World Bank: Ebola Response Too Slow

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has now announced calls to the NHS' non-emergency 111 phone line are to be screened for possible cases of ebola.

Anyone ringing up with possible symptoms of the disease will be questioned to see if they have been to West Africa.

It has been reported there are fears hundreds of students returning to UK universities after a summer break in West Africa could be at risk of inadvertently bringing the disease to Britain.

Mr Hunt said the UK had "robust and well-tested systems for dealing with any imported case of ebola", but added: "However, we keep the need for further measures under review and will never be complacent - and so I asked for additional steps to be taken by NHS 111."

Video: US To Screen Travellers For Ebola

Britain is also planning enhanced screening at Heathrow and Gatwick airports and at Eurostar rail terminals.

The UK's chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies, said the country should expect a "handful" of ebola cases in the coming months.

The British expert in charge of the United Nations' response to ebola, Dr David Nabarro, said he hoped the spread of the killer virus would be "under control" within three months.

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Pistorius A 'Broken Man' After Killing Model

Oscar Pistorius is a "broken man" after killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp and "flashbacks of the shooting will be mental images he always carries with him", a court has heard.

The double-amputee athlete is in court for sentencing - and could make a personal plea to the judge in an effort to avoid jail.

He was cleared of murdering the 29-year-old model, but was found guilty by Judge Thokozile Masipa of culpable homicide - the equivalent of manslaughter in the UK.

Pistorius, 27, was also found guilty of discharging a firearm in public, an offence relating to him firing a gun in a restaurant.

The sentencing process is likely to take a week, both the defence and prosecution teams told the court in Pretoria.

Prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who is looking for a lengthy jail term for Pistorius, having failed to secure a murder conviction, said he would call two witnesses.

Video: Pistorius 'Diagnosed With PTSD'

Pistorius' lawyer Barry Roux said he would call three witnesses, plus one from the correctional services department.

The first of these, psychologist Dr Lore Hartzenberg, told the court how Pistorius was referred to her for grief therapy.

He had been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after shooting Ms Steenkamp, and the sessions sometimes had to be abandoned "due to retching", she said.

Under cross-examination, Mr Nel asked her about the Steenkamp family, saying: "Haven't they suffered?"

Video: Oscar 'Should Face House Arrest'

She agreed: "I have no doubt they are a broken family."

Mr Nel said he would bring evidence that Ms Steenkamp's father Barry suffered a stroke because of his daughter's death.

Dr Hartzenberg said "Mr Pistorius' remorse was unabated during the therapy sessions" and concern for Ms Steenkamp's parents was an "unremitting theme".

"What we are left with is a broken man who has lost everything, his relationship with Reeva Steenkamp, his moral and professional reputation, his career and therefore his earnings," she said.

Video: Pistorius: The Full Story

She said "flashbacks of the shooting will be mental images he always carries with him" and it is "unlikely that he will ever recover from the shooting incident that happened on the 14 February 2014."

Pistorius shot Ms Steenkamp on Valentine's Day last year, but Judge Masipa concluded he had not intended to kill her.

He was negligent when he raced down the corridor towards his bathroom armed with a gun - then fired four bullets through the locked toilet door, she said.

If he is sent to jail, the maximum sentence Judge Masipa is expected to hand out would be 15 years.

Video: Pistorius Bailed Following Verdict

Joel Maringa, a social worker for the Office of Correctional Services, recommended Pistorius be held under house arrest for three years.

He said the runner could stay at his uncle's house in Pretoria because his behaviour was "socially acceptable", while doing 16 hours a month of cleaning at a local hospital.

However, Mr Nel said house arrest was "shockingly inappropriate" and questioned whether Mr Maringa had thought about the impact on Ms Steenkamp's family.

The hearing continues.

Video: Pistorius Verdict: Families React

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Ebola Crisis: Alex Crawford's Special Report

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

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

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

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

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

Video: Africa Ebola Crisis: Special Report

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Ebola Virus Screenings Begin At US Airports

John F Kennedy airport in New York has begun strict new health screenings for travellers arriving from West African countries hit by the ebola outbreak.

JFK was the first of five airports to introduce the measures, brought in to give a layer of protection after the death of the first patient diagnosed with ebola on US soil.

The four other airports - Newark, Chicago's O'Hare, Washington Dulles and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International - are due to begin the checks next week.

Together, the five airports account for 94% of all travellers coming into the US from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, the countries worst hit by the epidemic that has killed more than 4,000 people.

Passengers arriving at any of the airports from those countries will have their temperature taken, be assessed for signs of illness and answer questions about their health and any exposure to the disease. 

Video: Ebola Drill Tests UK Readiness

Anyone with a fever or other symptoms could be barred from travelling further or be referred to nearby treatment centres if necessary.

Officials say the screenings are not expected to cause any great inconvenience or delays as they will only involve around 150 passengers a day.

The measures were put in place after Liberian Thomas Eric Duncan died in a Texas hospital on Wednesday.

Video: World Bank: Ebola Response Too Slow

Mr Duncan's family say they still have not been informed of his death officially.

His nephew, Josephus Weeks, said: "To date no one has called from the hospital. No one has told my mom, my grandma and myself that Eric passed. We heard it from the news." 

Mr Duncan, 42, was originally sent home from hospital despite showing symptoms of ebola, and was only re-admitted when his condition deteriorated.

Video: US To Screen Travellers For Ebola

His case sparked panic about the possible spread of the virus in the US despite assurances from President Barack Obama the chances of that happening were "extraordinarily low."

Meanwhile, the British expert in charge of the UN's response to ebola has said he hopes the spread of the disease will be "under control" in three months.

Dr David Nabarro said the number of cases in west Africa were increasing week-on-week.

Video: Is Britain Ready To Handle Ebola?

But systems now put in place, along with help from nations including Britain, could help turn the tide and reduce the number of cases significantly.

Dr Nabarro told the BBC: "As a result of the sensitisation programme last month I think we have got a much better community involvement, which leads me to believe that getting it under control within the next three months is a reasonable target."

His comments come after the UK's chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies, said the country should expect a "handful" of Ebola cases in the coming months.

Video: UN: Ebola Needs 'Global Movement'

According to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, a nationwide exercise on Saturday to test Britain's readiness for any cases showed plans were "robust".

Like the US, Britain is to bring in enhanced screening for the virus at Heathrow and Gatwick airports and Eurostar rail terminals. Details are expected in the next few days.

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Cyclone Hudhud Kills Three As It Hits India

A powerful cyclone has swept through the Bay of Bengal and made landfall in south-eastern India, with three people already killed by the force of the storm.

Hundreds of thousands of people had been evacuated in anticipation of Cyclone Hudhud, which boasts wind speeds of 120mph.

Heavy rains and gusts were reported as the "very severe storm" ripped through Visakhapatnam, the largest city in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The neighbouring state of Orissa is also on high alert.

One of those confirmed dead from the cyclone was killed by a wall collapse, while two others were crushed by falling trees.

Villagers in the state of Andhra Pradesh before being evacuated

Authorities have set up 370 relief camps to house evacuees.

Officials in Orissa are desperately trying to convince members of an ancient tribe to leave their homes in the Bonda Hills, which is expected to face the brunt of the storm.

Video: India Cyclone: Trail Of Destruction

"The identified 2,000 tribal people, who must move, have never come down the hills in their lifetime," a local politician said.

Officials said four naval ships and nine air force helicopters are on standby for relief and rescue operations, while soldiers and federal rescue workers are also on hand.

The Indian Ocean is a cyclone hotspot.

Of the 35 deadliest storms in recorded history, 27 have come through the Bay of Bengal - and have landed in either India or Bangladesh.

In 1999, a cyclone devastated Orissa's coastline and killed at least 10,000 people.

While India has a poor record of response to natural calamities, it managed last October to safely evacuate nearly a million people out of the path of Cyclone Phailin, the strongest tropical storm to hit India in more than a decade.

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