Cyprus Leaders Head To Brussels For Talks

Cyprus Bailout: Threat To Savings

Updated: 7:36am UK, Saturday 23 March 2013

By Ashish Joshi, Sky News Correspondent

Finally late into Friday night - an agreement on Plan B, meaning Cyprus has moved one giant step towards securing a Brussels bailout.

It includes a solidarity fund pooling together state assets and the granting of power to the Government to control bank capital.

The latter move is to prevent a run on the banks when their doors finally open on Tuesday.

There will also be a restructuring of the country's banks and a savings tax on Cypriot savers.

The details of the tax have still to be finalised, but the framework is in place.

It could mean savings over 100,000 euros held in Bank of Cyprus accounts being taxed up to 20%, according to one source close to the negotiations.

The same source said if that proposal is rejected there will be a plan to impose a tax of around 10% on all Cypriot bank accounts over 100,000 euros.

The threat of savers being hit hangs over the heads of people like Loizos Michael.

The 60-year-old tailor worked hard for 35 years, building up a good business.

He was looking forward to a wealthy retirement. Not anymore. Times are hard.

Speaking from his small tailor's shop in central Nicosia, Mr Michael said: "With the banks being closed, it is hard because I don't have a credit card and so cash flow is a problem.

"Even filling your car with petrol needs thinking about.

"Cypriots have always been workers by nature and nobody could have imagined that unemployment would be so high.

"This has hit us hard in the pockets."

Cyprus is weathering a storm - the likes of which this Mediterranean island has never faced in her young history.

Mr Michael said he knew things were getting bad, but expected solutions to be found to avoid ordinary people having to suffer.

"I expected something better. But now, it looks like the problem has been brewing for some time," he said.

"There used to be some people talking about the crisis, but now everyone's talking about it.

"I think things are harder now than just after the war. After the war of '74 people could still find work. Now, there is just no work so people have no money. What can we do?"

In the 1990s, Cyprus boasted a dynamic, booming economy, but it grew and unchecked.

An overbloated banking sector exposed to Greek debt has crippled the country's economy.

Now people like Loizos Michael must pay the price. He and the rest of Cyprus will soon find out exactly how much that is going to be.

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Obama Ends Mid East Tour With Petra Visit

Obama Beams On Mid East Trip

Updated: 11:49am UK, Saturday 23 March 2013

By Sam Kiley, Middle East Correspondent, Jerusalem

He beamed and Bibi-ed at every opportunity literally back slapping his way out of a sour relationship with Israel's Prime Minister.

Then Barack Obama shooed Benjamin Netanyahu into a cabin at Ben Gurion airport which was being swept with a khamsin sandstorm from the Sahara.

Inside the little room he stood over "Bibi" like the parent of a petulant child ordered to phone to apologise to an angry neighbour.

The call to Recep Erdogan, Turkey's Prime Minister, was to say sorry for the deaths of nine of his countrymen who were killed in a botched commando raid on the Mavi Marmaris in May 2010.

The raid was intended to stop the Marmaris from breaching the sea blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel.

It shattered relations with Turkey, until then an Israeli ally.

Obama told Netanyahu to fix it - and he dutifully got some diplomatic glue out and got to work.

After four days of his first tour of Israel and Palestine since he became US president, the Israel-Turkey break through was Mr Obama's only visible achievement.

The Palestinians expected nothing and got it from an administration which has, in their eyes, woefully neglected the region while illegal Jewish settlements continued to eat into Palestinian lands on the West Bank.

The Israeli public was charmed by a speech he gave to 600 university students in Jerusalem in which he quoted the Torah, dropped the occasional Hebrew phrase and celebrated the princes of modern Zionism, Theodor Herzl and David Ben-Gurion.

That speech was an effort to reach past Netanyahu and appeal directly to the Israeli people. He told them to campaign for change and peace directly and demand their politicians take risks to achieve a two-state solution.

Many in Israel believe that the "status quo" is acceptable. He told them that no wall was high enough, no anti-missile batteries too impregnable, that Israel could survive indefinitely without making peace with he Palestinians.

But he didn't demand a freeze on settlements, which he has in the past and which has been a pre-condition for the Palestinians to return to talks.

Obama was his usual captivating self when delivering a set-piece speech.

Off the cuff at press conferences he was as poor as a performer as Ronald Reagan. Not with gaffes but by appearing uncomfortable, halting and insecure when asked to provide solutions to the problems that he had eloquently identified.

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Tensions Rise In Lebanon As Premier Resigns

Lebanese president Michel Suleiman has formally accepted the resignation of prime minister Najib Makiti, who stepped down blaming government infighting.

On Friday, Mr Makiti announced his whole government was quitting because of arguments over elections and the extension to the term of office of an internal security chief.

Mr Makati has said he hoped the move would prompt leaders of the different factions to "shoulder their responsibilities".

Mr Suleiman asked Mr Mikati's government to assume a caretaking role while a new government is being formed.

Mr Mikati's unexpected resignation throws the country into uncertainty at a time when it is being hit by sporadic violence enflamed by the civil war in neighbouring Syria.

Lebanon has long been a tinderbox of inter-ethnic and religious rivalries and has only recently recovered from a devastating civil war.

The two main political groups in the country support different sides in the Syrian civil war, in which more than 70,000 have died.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati has resigned

Most Sunni Muslims in Lebanon support the uprising against Syria's leader Bashar al-Assad, who is from the Syria's Alawite minority.

But many Alawites also live in north Lebanon and sometimes the opposing groups clash violently.

It has led to fighting on the streets of Lebanon where tens of thousands of Syrian refugees have fled, with six killed and more than 20 wounded in Tripoli on Thursday.

Another 12 died in street battles in the northern city of Tripoli in December.

Mr Mikati has been prime minister since June 2011, heading a government dominated by the Shiite militant group Hezbollah and its allies, many of whom have a close relationship with Assad's regime.

But his relations with Hezbollah have never been smooth with Hezbollah frequently accusing him of loyalty to the pro-Western opposition.

He stepped down on Friday in part as a protest over Hezbollah's refusal to extend the tenure of the country's police chief, Maj Gen Ashraf Rifi, who at 58 is about to hit the mandatory retirement age for his rank.

Mr Rifi, like Mr Mikati, is a Sunni Muslim who is considered a foe by Hezbollah.

In his speech Friday, Mr Mikati said that if Mr Rifi was not allowed to stay on, his departure would send the police department into "a vacuum" at a time when a solid leader was needed.

As well as the outbreaks of violence, Lebanon has been accused by Syria of turning a blind eye to its citizens aiding rebels either by running weapons across the border or by actually taking part.

On Thursday a Lebanese citizen was captured by the Syrians after infiltrating the country to fight alongside rebel forces, state television said.

On Tuesday, President Michel Sleiman denounced as "unacceptable" a series of Syrian air raids a day earlier that targeted sites inside Lebanese territory. Syria denied launching the attack.

Israel fears that if Hezbollah gets the upper hand in Lebanon, it may use Syrian weapons smuggled across the border against its southern neighbour, which could then spark a new Middle Eastern war.

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Lindsay Lohan Escapes Nightclub Fight Charges

Lindsay Lohan is not being charged in connection with an alleged fight at a nightclub in New York last November.

Lawyer Mark Heller said the actress would face no formal charges after prosecutors were unable to gather sufficient evidence to prove the case.

"She's totally clear and exonerated. She has nothing but smooth sailing ahead," he said.

Lohan last appeared in court in Los Angeles on Monday

A spokeswoman for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance declined to comment.

Lohan, 26, was arrested on November 29 on a charge of misdemeanour assault after an encounter with a woman at the Avenue club in New York's trendy Meatpacking District.

Lohan's accuser, Tiffany Mitchell, was "disappointed" that the District Attorney's office had decided not to prosecute, said her lawyer, Gloria Allred.

"Ms Mitchell is considering all of her legal options in the civil justice system because of what she suffered that night," she said.

The DA's decision was welcome news for Liz & Dick star Lohan, who accepted a plea deal on Monday in a car crash case in California.

She had been accused of lying to the police about who had been driving her Porsche when it was in collision with a dumper truck and violating the terms of her probation.

The Mean Girls actress was sentenced to five days in prison, but that time will be served in a locked-down rehabilitation facility rather than a jail.

The plea deal also includes 90 days in rehab, 30 days of community labour, 18 months of psychological counselling, a fine and restitution.

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China: President Xi In Russia On First Trip

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

The new Chinese president is in Russia for his inaugural foreign trip.

Xi Jinping will hold meetings with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin as part of a two day visit to Moscow.

President Xi, who was made Communist Party leader in November and installed as the country's president last week, will also hold meetings with the Russian Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev.

He will attend the opening celebrations to mark 'Chinese Tourism Year' in Russia and will deliver a speech at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.

A meeting has also been scheduled with officials from the Russian Defence Ministry.

Since November there has been plenty of speculation over which country would be chosen for the first foreign trip.

Russia and China are historically allied together in a union which has countered western global interests.

Vladimir Putin will meet the Chinese leader in Moscow

The two countries continue to share views on key global issues including Syria and Iran.

Moscow and Beijing both vetoed key UN resolutions on the Syrian crisis.

The two countries stand together, against the US-led stance on both Syria and Iran's disputed nuclear programme.

However, economics is the critical motivation for this trip.

Last year, just before his re-election to the presidency, Mr Putin said that he wanted to "catch the Chinese wind in our economic sail".

Russia is the world's largest energy producer. China is the world's largest user of energy and needs more of it.

Given the downturn in Europe, Russia needs a new customer. China wants to sign an agreement on a new natural gas pipeline with the Russians.

President Xi's wife Peng Liyuan is a well-known Chinese singer

"We will have some outcomes related to energy, investment and major projects of strategic importance. We expect some breakthrough on these pragmatic cooperation fields," Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping told a press conference in Beijing.

Geo-politically, America's so-called pivot to Asia may also have prompted the Russia trip.

According to the Chinese Xinhua state-run news agency, President Xi has said that China and Russia should "strengthen coordination in international and regional affairs to safeguard world peace, safety and stability".

Xinhua said the pivot, which will see America re-focus its attention and its military to the Asia-Pacific region, represented a "strategic mistrust" of China.

Chinese-US relations are tense with Washington accusing Beijing of industrial-level state-sponsored computer hacking.

Despite that though, the new Chinese premier Li Keqiang insisted at a press conference last weekend that both countries were committed to closer ties.

"China and the United States have their own distinctive cultures but we must learn from each other to maintain strong ties," Premier Li said.

One other issue is the source of significant anticipation. In a marked departure from the style of his predecessor Hu Jintao, President Xi's wife is expected to play an active role in the trip.

Peng Liyuan is a well-known and glamorous Chinese singer.

In a move which will position her as a Chinese "first lady", Peng is expected be photographed with her husband and attend engagements in the Russian capital.

On Sunday, President Xi will travel from Moscow to Tanzania, South Africa and Congo; a sign of the vital connection China has with the African continent.

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Burma: Sectarian Clashes Leave 25 People Dead

Buildings are on fire in the Burmese city of Meikhtila after fierce clashes between Buddhists and Muslims left several people dead and reduced communities to ashes.

Up to 25 people have been killed in three days of fighting that erupted after an argument between a Buddhist couple and the Muslim owners of a gold shop escalated into a riot involving hundreds of people.

Burma's president has declared a state of emergency in areas of the country affected by the violence.

Firemen battle to extinguish a burning building in Meikhtila

Meikhtila residents have been arming themselves with knives and sticks after rumours that violent agitators were heading for the city set its Muslim community on edge.

Hundreds of Muslims have reportedly now fled their homes to shelter in the city's sports stadium after complaints of too few police and reports of groups of Buddhists roaming the streets.

At least one mosque, an Islamic school, shops and a government office were set alight, according to a fire service official. Both Buddhist and Muslim homes were set on fire.

"I am really sad over what happened here because this is not just happening to one person. It's affecting all of us," said Maung Maung, a Buddhist ward leader in Meikhtila.

"Everyone is in shock here. We never expected this to happen," said a Muslim teacher in Mandalay.

A journalist saw the incinerated remains of two victims on a roadside, just one of several reports of bodies in the town, as flames raged from torched mosques and houses while other buildings smouldered unattended.

"The situation is getting worse," a local resident said. "People are destroying buildings. Many people have been killed. We are scared and trying to stay safe at home."

A group of reporters were stopped at knife-point by a gang of young men and monks and forced to hand over their camera memory cards, according to one of the journalists.

Muslims fearing for their safety flee to the city's sports stadium

The United Nations has warned the violence could endanger a fragile reform programme launched after Burma's quasi-civilian reformist government replaced 49 years of military dictatorship in 2011.

Political activists have since been released from prison and free elections have been held in the country's historic transition to democracy.

But the new government has faced criticism over its failure to contain simmering ethnic tensions which were suppressed and under-reported by years of military rule.

In 2012 pitched battles between Buddhists and Muslims escalated into orchestrated attacks on Muslim communities by organised gangs of ethnic Rakhine Buddhists.

Burma is a predominantly Buddhist country, but about 5% of its 60 million people are Muslims and there are large Muslim communities in Yangon and Mandalay, its two largest cities.

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Israel: Obama Declares Shared Vision Of Peace

Barack Obama has paid respects to victims of the Holocaust and reaffirmed Israel's right to exist at the end of a three-day visit to the country.

The US President laid wreaths at the graves of former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and modern-Zionism founder Theodor Herzl, a symbolic visit that acknowledged the rationale for Israel's existence rests with its historical ties to the region.

The President was accompanied by US Secretary of State, John Kerry

Mr Obama was criticised in 2009 for a speech he made in Cairo in which he gave the Holocaust as the reason for justifying Israel's existence.

The President donned a skullcap while paying a sombre visit to the Hall of Names chamber at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.

The circular room is lined with photographs documenting some 600 victims of the Holocaust. "Nothing could be more powerful," said the President.

Accompanied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres, Mr Obama declared the memorial illustrated the "depths to which humanity can sink".

But he also claimed the monument serves as a reminder of the "righteous among nations who refused to be bystanders."

As the President approached Herzl's resting place he bowed his head before turning briefly to ask Mr Netanyahu where to place a small stone in the Jewish custom, before laying the stone atop the grave.

The Hall of Names chamber documents some 600 victims of the Holocaust

"It is humbling and inspiring to visit and remember the visionary who began the remarkable establishment of the State of Israel," Mr Obama wrote in the Mount Herzl guestbook.

"May our two countries possess the same vision and will to secure peace and prosperity for future generations."

Mr Obama leaves a wreath at the grave of former PM Yitzhak Rabin

At Yad Vashem, Mr Obama donned a skull cap and was accompanied by Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, a survivor of the Buchenwald Concentration camp who lost both parents in the Holocaust.

At Yitzhak Rabin's grave he was greeted by members of Rabin's family. In a symbolic gesture, the stone he placed on Rabin's grave was from the grounds of the Martin Luther King memorial in Washington.

Rabin, Mr Obama told family members, was "a great man."

The President will later travel to Jordan for talks with King Abdullah II. The Syrian civil war and Jordan's struggle to cope with the influx of half-a-million Syrian refugees will be among the topics discussed.

Palestinian leaders have accused Mr Obama of letting Israel ride rough-shod over their dream of statehood and King Abdullah has voiced fears that extremists could create a regional base in Jordan.

Before leaving for Jordan the President was to tour the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

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China's First Lady Peng Liyuan Steals Limelight

Chinese Leader's First Foreign Trip

Updated: 9:26am UK, Friday 22 March 2013

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

The new Chinese president is in Russia for his inaugural foreign trip.

Xi Jinping will hold meetings with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin as part of a two day visit to Moscow.

President Xi, who was made Communist Party leader in November and installed as the country's president last week, will also hold meetings with the Russian Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev.

He will attend the opening celebrations to mark 'Chinese Tourism Year' in Russia and will deliver a speech at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.

A meeting has also been scheduled with officials from the Russian Defence Ministry.

Since November there has been plenty of speculation over which country would be chosen for the first foreign trip.

Russia and China are historically allied together in a union which has countered western global interests.

The two countries continue to share views on key global issues including Syria and Iran.

Moscow and Beijing both vetoed key UN resolutions on the Syrian crisis.

The two countries stand together, against the US-led stance on both Syria and Iran's disputed nuclear programme.

However, economics is the critical motivation for this trip.

Last year, just before his re-election to the presidency, Mr Putin said that he wanted to "catch the Chinese wind in our economic sail".

Russia is the world's largest energy producer. China is the world's largest user of energy and needs more of it.

Given the downturn in Europe, Russia needs a new customer. China wants to sign an agreement on a new natural gas pipeline with the Russians.

"We will have some outcomes related to energy, investment and major projects of strategic importance. We expect some breakthrough on these pragmatic cooperation fields," Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping told a press conference in Beijing.

Geo-politically, America's so-called pivot to Asia may also have prompted the Russia trip.

According to the Chinese Xinhua state-run news agency, President Xi has said that China and Russia should "strengthen coordination in international and regional affairs to safeguard world peace, safety and stability".

Xinhua said the pivot, which will see America re-focus its attention and its military to the Asia-Pacific region, represented a "strategic mistrust" of China.

Chinese-US relations are tense with Washington accusing Beijing of industrial-level state-sponsored computer hacking.

Despite that though, the new Chinese premier Li Keqiang insisted at a press conference last weekend that both countries were committed to closer ties.

"China and the United States have their own distinctive cultures but we must learn from each other to maintain strong ties," Premier Li said.

One other issue is the source of significant anticipation. In a marked departure from the style of his predecessor Hu Jintao, President Xi's wife is expected to play an active role in the trip.

Peng Liyuan is a well-known and glamorous Chinese singer.

In a move which will position her as a Chinese "first lady", Peng is expected be photographed with her husband and attend engagements in the Russian capital.

On Sunday, President Xi will travel from Moscow to Tanzania, South Africa and Congo; a sign of the vital connection China has with the African continent.

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Israel: Obama Meets Abbas After Rocket Blast

President Barack Obama has told Palestinians they deserve an "independent and sovereign" state during his visit to the West Bank.

Mr Obama arrived in Ramallah hours after Palestinian militants fired two rockets into southern Israel.

He held talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and told a news conference that the US is "deeply committed" to a two-state solution, but the only way to achieve it is through negotiation.

Mr Obama said that Israel's ongoing settlement building was unhelpful to the pursuit of peace but urged the Palestinians not to make halting the policy a precondition for negotiations.

He said: "We do not consider continued settlement activity to be constructive, to be appropriate, to be something that can advance the cause of peace."

President Abbas said that peace with Israel should not be achieved through violence, occupation, settlements, arrests or denial or refugee rights.

There have been angry protests ahead of Mr Obama's Ramallah visit

The rockets fired from Gaza, a reminder of heightened tensions in the region, caused damage to land around a house but there were no injuries.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said: "One exploded in the back yard of a house in Sderot, causing damage, and the second landed in a field."

Military officials cited by army radio said they believed the attack was timed deliberately to coincide with Mr Obama's visit.

Israel pointed the finger for the attacks at Islamist movement Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, although there was no direct claim of responsibility.

President Obama - who visited the town where the rockets landed as a presidential candidate in 2008 - was miles away in Jerusalem at the time, preparing to visit the Israel Museum.

A police expert clears the remains of a rocket from outside a Sderot house

There were protesters outside the Palestinian Authority headquarters in Ramallah ahead of his arrival for talks with Palestinian leaders, who have accused him of riding roughshod over their hopes of statehood.

Sky News Middle East Correspondent Sam Kiley said settlements and the controversial "right of return" for Palestinians to their former lands in Israel would be on the agenda.

He added: "The crucial thing is for President Obama to get back into the peace process."

Code Red sirens wailed in Sderot shortly after the rockets hit at 7am, forcing commuters and schoolchildren to run to bomb shelters.

Yossi Haziza, a Sderot resident in whose courtyard the first rocket exploded, was looking at the walls of his home sprayed with shrapnel and shattered windows.

Mr Obama reaffirmed US support for Israel during talks in Jerusalem

He said: "I wish this was merely damage to property but my eight-year-old daughter and my wife are terrified. We just want to live in peace. We don't want to keep having to run to bomb shelters."

Mr Obama, on the first foreign trip of his second term, says he has come to the Holy Land simply "to listen" to the parties about how to resume peace talks frozen for two-and-a-half years.

He said he decided against coming with a comprehensive peace plan that might not be fit for current political conditions.

The US President's new approach was in stark contrast to early in his first term, when he declared Israeli settlement building to be illegitimate and promised to dedicate himself to peace.

Meanwhile, Palestinian activists set up a protest camp on West Bank land east of Jerusalem where Israel has announced controversial plans to build, demanding an end to Obama's "bias and support for Israel".

Israel's plan to build thousands of new settler homes in an area called E1 has sparked a major international backlash, with experts saying it could wipe out hopes for a viable Palestinian state.

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North Korea Issues Fresh Threat To America

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent

North Korea has threatened to attack American airbases on the Japanese island of Okinawa and the Pacific island of Guam.

A statement by Kim Yong Chul, the spokesman of the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army warned of "military actions".

"The US should not forget that the Anderson Air Force Base on Guam where B-52 bombers take off and naval bases in Japan and Okinawa where nuclear-powered submarines are launched are within the striking range of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) precision strike means," the statement read.

"Now that the US started open nuclear blackmail and threat, the DPRK, too, will move to take corresponding military actions."

The words mark the latest escalation in a lengthy stand-off as North Korea defies calls from the rest of the world to halt its dual nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

North Korea has threatened an attack over B-52 drills

The American government has not yet responded to the threat.

British diplomatic sources speaking to Sky News from Seoul have said the UK Government "takes any threats seriously and there is some concern over the more harsh rhetoric coming from the DPRK".

However, the source insisted that there was no panic or alarm among diplomatic circles and that UK travel advice to South Korea remains unchanged.

The latest threat from North Korea is a direct response to a series of joint military exercises involving the US and South Korea.

On Tuesday, the US Air Force deployed its giant B-52 bombers from their base on Guam. The planes, which are capable of carrying and deploying nuclear bombs, flew sorties over the Korean peninsula as part of the military exercise.

The Pentagon in Washington confirmed the B-52 deployment. Spokesman George Little said the US wanted to underline its commitment and capacity to defend South Korea against an attack from the North.

Military guard posts of South Korea (front) and North Korea (far)

However, the flights were condemned by Pyongyang as "an unpardonable provocation".

"The US is introducing a strategic nuclear strike means to the Korean peninsula at a time when its situation is inching close to the brink of war," the North Korean statement added.

The North Korean military does have rockets capable of reaching both Okinawa and Guam.

The surprisingly successful rocket launch in December followed a trajectory similar to that which any strike against Okinawa would take.

The Pentagon has confirmed the B-52 deployment

Okinawa is 600 miles due south of the Korean peninsula. Guam is further away, to the east of the Philippines.

While Pyongyang has proved it has the range capability, it is not clear whether or not their missiles are accurate enough to hit a specific target. And the country does not yet have the ability to carry out a nuclear strike at this range.

Earlier this month, the UN imposed the toughest sanctions yet on North Korea.

Kim Jong-Un reacted with anger, threatening to attack America, South Korea and Japan. The young and unpredictable leader toured military units calling for them to prepare for 'all out war'.

Computers are seen down at the main office of broadcaster YTN in Seoul

Meanwhile, Wednesday's unusually large cyberattack in South Korea, which brought down banks and broadcasters for one hour, has been traced to China.

Experts in Seoul claim the simultaneous attacks all bore the same IP address which was traced to the Chinese mainland.

Many of North Korea's internet and computing operations are tied to China. There is no suggestion that the Chinese government had any involvement.

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Australia: Julia Gillard Challenge Called Off

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has retained the leadership of the Labor party just hours after she was urged to hold a ballot.

Ms Gillard ensured she will lead the party into elections in September after her main rival Kevin Rudd admitted he did not have enough support to defeat her.

The prime minister called the vote after a senior MP said the issue was "killing" the party and needed to be resolved.

The vote was scheduled for 16:30 (05:30 GMT), but minutes before it was due to take place Mr Rudd pulled out, meaning Ms Gillard was elected unopposed, with no actual vote called.

She said: "Today the leadership of our political party, the Labor Party, has been settled and settled in the most conclusive fashion possible.

"The whole business is completely at an end. It has ended now."

Mr Rudd said he was honouring a pledge not to challenge for the top job made after a previous failed bid in 2012.

He said: "I believe in honouring my word... others take such commitments lightly, I do not.

"I have also said that the only circumstances under which I would consider a return to leadership would be if there was an overwhelming majority of the parliamentary party requesting such a return, drafting me to return and the position was vacant.

"I am here to inform you that those circumstances do not exist."

Polls suggest Mr Rudd has more public support than Ms Gillard, who is on course to lose the election to Liberal Party candidate Tony Abbott.

The latest crisis is the third time the prime minister has defeated Mr Rudd for the leadership, but she now faces a tough job to unify a deeply-divided party and turn around public support over the next six months.

"I think they're terminal. There is no way out of this," political analyst Nick Economou told Reuters.

Ms Gillard's leadership has been threatened for most of the past two years as her minority government lumbered from one crisis to another, despite an economy that avoided recession after the 2008 global crisis and has seen 21 years of continuous growth.

She first replaced Mr Rudd in a party coup in June 2010 but the move to oust an elected prime minister angered many voters, who have found it difficult to forgive her for the way she became leader.

Ms Gillard defeated Mr Rudd in a second leadership vote in February 2012, prompting her rival to promise that he would only take on the leadership again with the overwhelming support of his party.

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Two Helicopters Crash In Berlin Police Exercise

Two helicopters have crashed near Berlin's Olympic Stadium during a police exercise to thwart hooliganism, German authorities have said.

It is believed one pilot died, following the accident at 10.30am local time.

Onlookers described how one aircraft ended up on its side and how the rotors of both helicopters were destroyed.

One helicopter appeared to be a blue police Puma aircraft while the other appeared to be a military model.

Police were taking part in an exercise against football violence

Bild newspaper said four people were hurt in the snowy weather crash, with two of those listed as seriously injured.

An injured officer was seen walking with blood streaming from facial wounds.

One eyewitness told N-TV: "It was a real snowstorm, suddenly we heard a bang and someone shouted, 'Everybody down'.

Berlin has been hit by snowstorms in recent days

"Then there was blood everywhere. Next to me was a huge puddle of blood."

According to AP, some 400 federal police officers were conducting a training exercise on dealing with football violence.

It is understood around half of the officers in the exercise were pretending to be football hooligans.

Federal Police spokesman Frank Brochert confirmed there "was an incident during an exercise" and that emergency crews were on the scene.

Interior minister Hans-Peter Friedrich visited the crash site and said: "Our thoughts are with the families of the victims."

Bild said it appeared one pilot had become disorientated in the snowy Berlin conditions and crashed into the other helicopter.

The helicopters collided at low altitude, shortly after they passed over the affluent Charlottenburg residential area in the west of the city.

The crash occurred further west in an area known as Maifeld, which is adjacent to the historic sporting stadium.

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David Beckham: China Tour Will Boost Game

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

David Beckham has arrived in Beijing as China's first global football ambassador.

The Paris Saint-Germain midfielder, who is as big a star here as he is anywhere else, is spending four days on a whistle-stop tour across the country.

Beckham's role will involve helping to promote the Chinese Super League (CSL) to the world, raising the profile of the game within China itself and to restore its image after recent match-fixing scandals.

The star said: "This is a significant year in Chinese football history as we usher in 20 years of developing this sport professionally and mark the 10-year milestone of the Chinese Super League - which today reaches 300 million television viewers and 4.49 million spectators annually."

A group of fans wait to welcome Beckham to Beijing (Pic:@Stone_SkyNews)

Beckham arrived to an unusual scene in the Chinese capital: thick snow and blue skies with no hint of the smog that has blanketed the city for so many days this year.

Day one of his trip included visits to two schools in the city as well as a kick-around with children. He hosted a news conference at one of the schools explaining his motivation for the visit.

Professional football in China is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Nicolas Anelka and Didier Drogba and coaches Marcello Lippi and Sergio Batista are among the high profile names to move to China. Drogba and Anelka lasted just one season.

However, the game in China has been tainted by corruption. The Chinese Football Association found 58 people guilty of involvement in match fixing.

Beckham says he's excited about promoting the game to Chinese sports fans

Beckham will spend two days in Beijing visiting the Workers Stadium, home to Beijing Guo'an Football Club. He will meet players and fans and tour the stadium.

He will then travel south to the coastal city of Qingdao, home to Qingdao Jonoon Football Club. His visit there will follow the same format as the Beijing leg: visiting schools and promoting the game at the grassroots level.

From Qingdao he will fly to the central Chinese city of Wuhan, the home of Wuhan Zall Football Club.

"The guy is a huge, huge brand. To say that the trip isn't some sort of publicity stunt would be a very, very silly thing to say," Pete Davis, China Correspondent for Goal Asia, told Sky News.

A fan of the football star with a book to sign (Pic:@Stone_SkyNews)

"Having said that, Chinese football does need the boost that Beckham can provide and it can only be good, I think. Him coming over is not going to create a massive improvement in terms of grassroots football ... but Beckham can brand the league and bring the right kind of notoriety to it," he said.

Late last year,  before his move to Paris, there was significant speculation that Beckham might sign with a Chinese team. Pete Davis believes there is still a chance he could move there.

"His contract with Paris Saint-Germain is only five months long - that nicely coincides with the middle of the Chinese season when Chinese teams are allowed to sign people, so it may be that we see him for a short six-month spell like we did Drogba and Anelka and in that time he may be able to work wonders. We don't know yet," he said.

Officials at all levels, including the new President Xi Jinping - said to be a big football fan - are hoping that Brand Beckham will significantly boost the game and clean up its image.

"Corruption has tarnished the image of Chinese football but what happened was 10 years ago," continued Mr Davis.

David Beckham making his debut for Paris Saint-Germain last month

"The goalkeeper of Shanghai Shenhua is a highly rated guy called Wang Dalei and he would have been 14 years old when this match fixing happened. Yes it's current news, but actually it's old news in terms of Chinese football. It's just that the punishment has only just occurred."

Beckham is being paid for the trip - it's not clear who the funding is coming from. His management company IMG said that it was not a significant amount.

"This is not about money, this is about a guy that loves football," Jeff Slack, IMG's vice president is quoted by the South China Morning Post as saying.

Victoria Beckham is not joining her husband on the trip

The newspaper claimed that he was being paid by Chinese Central Television (CCTV) which is giving significant coverage to the trip.

Victoria Beckham is not accompanying her husband. Her previous visits to the country, though, have generated significant interest.

"She came all the way through China and she developed quite a large following and had some very nice things to say about Chinese girls and their fashion sense and that is a whole different way of looking at it." said Mr Davis.

"It can be good for both of them to get involved in China. It's a huge market with a lot of money involved and if Victoria and David can benefit from it then what's the harm in a six-month stay here," he added.

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South Korea: North Suspected Of Cyber Attack

An investigation is under way into the simultaneous shutdown of computer networks at several major broadcasters and banks in South Korea, with suspicion falling on North Korea.

The shutdown came days after North Korea blamed the South and the US for cyber attacks that temporarily closed websites in Pyongyang.

While the cause was not immediately clear, there has been speculation of a possible North Korean cyber attack.

Officials at the two South Korean public broadcasters KBS and MBC said that all computers at their companies blacked out - but did not cause any damage to their daily TV broadcasts.

YTN cable news channel reported that the company's internal computer network was completely paralysed.

The servers of YTN were brought down

Local TV showed workers staring at blank computer screens, and at one coffee shop employees asked for cash, saying their credit card machine was not working.

The state-run Korea Information Security Agency confirmed that computers at at least five South Korean companies were down. The agency was investigating what caused the outage.

Shinhan Bank, a lender of South Korea's fourth-largest banking group, said the bank's system, including online banking and cash machines, had stopped working.

The company was unable to conduct any transactions with customers at bank windows, including retail banking and corporate banking.

Tensions between the neighbouring countries are high following North Korea's recent nuclear test and the UN sanctions that followed.

Accusations of cyber attacks on the Korean Peninsula are not new. Seoul believes Pyongyang was behind at least two cyber attacks on its companies in 2011 and 2012.

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Colorado Prisons Chief Shot Dead At Home

The head of the Colorado Department of Corrections has been shot and killed on his own doorstep.

Authorities in Monument, north of Colorado Springs, are warning that the gunman is still on the loose.

Sheriff's Lt. Jeff Kramer said Tom Clements was shot at around 8.30pm on Tuesday night when he answered his front door.

A family member called the emergency services to report the shooting.

Officers then found the 58-year-old dead in his home.

Search dogs were brought in to search a surrounding wooded area, while police went house-to-house trying to find out what neighbours knew about the shooting.

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper appointed Mr Clements in 2011.

"I can hardly believe it, let alone write words to describe it," he said in a statement to corrections department staff early on Wednesday.

"As your Executive Director, he helped change and improve DOC in two years more than most people could do in eight years. He was unfailingly kind and thoughtful, and sought the "good" in any situation," he added.

Prior to his move to Colorado, Mr Clements served for more than three decades in the Missouri Department of Corrections.

He is survived by his wife, Lisa, their two daughters and their family.

Flags will fly at half-mast at all public buildings statewide until the day after his funeral.

The shooting came just hours before Governor Hickenlooper was due to sign new gun laws for Colorado.

They are aimed at limiting ammunition magazines and expanding background checks, in light of the Aurora movie theatre massacre last July.

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Lazio Fans Raided Over Spurs Attacks In Rome

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

Police in Rome have made a series of dawn raids as they continue their investigations into an attack on a city centre pub that left several Tottenham Hotspur fans injured.

Nine addresses were targeted in the operation, which is part of the ongoing probe into violence that erupted in The Drunken Ship, where Spurs fans had gathered ahead of a Europa League match against Lazio last November.

Officials said they were focusing on nine men, aged between 22 and 40 years old, who were described as "Lazio fans, known for their radical links".

Police said they had been traced after tracking telephone data between the men, which showed they had been in close contact with each other in the area of the Drunken Ship both before and after the attack.

Officers believe the men had probably been acting as "spotters for the main group" which attacked the pub.

All the men will have samples of DNA taken to compare them with traces found on weapons seized outside the pub following the attack.

The men held were all automatically given stadium banning orders of three years.

Last month, nine other homes were raided while two men have already been charged with wounding.

Police said 20 people are currently under investigation in connection with the attack.

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Teen Guilty Of Irish Student Murder In Tokyo

A Japanese court has found an American teenager guilty of the murder of Irish student Nicola Furlong in Tokyo last year.

The 21-year-old Dublin CIty University exchange student was found strangled in an upmarket hotel early on May 24, 2012, after attending a hip-hop concert.

Richard Hinds, of Memphis, Tennessee, stood silently as he was found guilty of what the presiding judge called a "vicious" attack.

The court ruled that he had strangled the exchange student with a towel or tank top in the Keio Plaza hotel in the city's Shinjuku district.

The 19-year-old was ordered to serve to a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 10 years.

Hinds and another American were accused of taking Ms Furlong and one of her friends to the hotel after they had passed out in a bar.

The Tokyo District Court ruled that Hinds strangled Ms Furlong when she regained consciousness to keep her quiet.

Nicola Furlong's family leaving court

The other man, James Blackston, a 23-year-old dancer from Los Angeles, was seen with Hinds bringing Ms Furlong and her unnamed friend unconscious into the hotel on CCTV footage which was played to the court.

He was convicted last week of sexually assaulting the second girl and sentenced to three years in jail.

The judge said Hinds had shown no sign of remorse and had tainted Ms Furlong's honour.

Regarded as a minor under Japanese law, a 10-year sentence was the maximum Hinds could receive.

But outside the court, Ms Furlong's family expressed anger, saying they had wanted a heavier punishment.

Her mother Angela said: "Nicola's life was worth more than that."

She added: "It's good that they (judges) cleared her name. Nicola has done nothing wrong. It was all him and his lies that brought us out here.

"We still don't know the truth of what happened in that room but we know Nicola did nothing wrong, we knew that coming out anyway."

Her sister Andrea said: "I'm so angry and I'm so hurt. We had so much faith in the Japanese doing justice for us, and I don't feel we got it. I'm disgusted."

The defence had maintained Hinds' innocence, arguing that Ms Furlong died after a cocktail of alcohol and drugs.

Ms Furlong had been studying and living about 62 miles (100km) north of Tokyo, at Takasaki City University of Economics as part of an exchange programme.

According to evidence in both trials, Ms Furlong and her friend, who is also Irish but whose name was withheld in court, went to the city to see a concert by US rapper Nicki Minaj.

After the concert, the two met Hinds and Blackston and went with them to a bar. At some point both of the women passed out.

Prosecutors suggested they were drugged.

Security camera footage presented as evidence showed Blackston sexually assaulting Ms Furlong's friend in a taxi on the way to the hotel, where the men borrowed wheelchairs to get the unconscious women to the rooms.

After the verdict, Hinds, a Christian musician, said a brief farewell to his family before he was escorted away to prison.

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Syria Accuses Opposition Of Chemical Attack

Syria's state media has accused opposition fighters of firing a chemical weapon in the north of the country, killing at least 16 people.

The opposition quickly denied the report and claimed regime forces had fired the weapon.

Neither of the accusations could immediately be verified.

The report by the official SANA news agency marks the first time the government has accused forces seeking to topple President Bashar al Assad of using chemical weapons.

It said "terrorists" fired a rocket "containing chemical materials" into the Khan al Assal area in the northern province of Aleppo on Tuesday. The regime regularly uses the term terrorists to refer to rebels fighting Mr Assad's forces.

It quoted the government's information minister Omran al Zoabi as saying the attack was a "dangerous escalation" in the violent conflict.

A Free Syrian Army member jumps off a destroyed military tank

He said the firing of the weapon is the "first act" by the opposition interim government announced in Istanbul.

Mr Zoabi added that Turkey and Qatar, which have supported rebels fighting to overthrow President Assad, bore "legal, moral and political responsibility" for the attack, state television reported.

An activist in the area said the opposition had recently seized much of Khan al Assal, including a facility that housed a military academy.

The Aleppo Media Centre, affiliated with the opposition, said there were cases of "suffocation and poison" among civilians in Khan al Assal after a surface-to-surface missile was fired at the area.

It said in a statement the cases were "most likely" caused by regime forces' use of "poisonous gases".

SANA said around 16 people, most of them civilians, were killed and up to 86 more wounded.

An activist in Aleppo province who identified himself as Yassin Abu Raed, not his real name, confirmed the attack and said there were at least 40 cases of suffocation in the area and several deaths.

But he said no details were available as casualties were being taken to a government-controlled area in Aleppo.

President Assad, fighting a two-year uprising against his rule, is widely believed to have a chemical arsenal.

Syrian officials have neither confirmed nor denied having a chemical weapons capability but have said that if it existed it would be used to defend against foreign aggression, not against Syrians.

Western nations have warned Damascus against any use of chemical weapons and have also expressed concern about stockpiles falling into the hands of militant groups.

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Pope Francis To Embrace Poor As Papacy Begins

Pope Francis has vowed to embrace the world's "weakest and poorest" and called on world leaders to shun "destruction" at his inaugural mass in St Peter's Square.

Francis was interrupted by applause several times during his homily, including when he spoke of the need to serve one another with love and tenderness and not allow " hatred, envy and pride to defile our lives".

The Pope must "open his arms to protect all of God's people and embrace with tender affection the whole of humanity, especially the poorest, the weakest, the least important," Francis, the first Jesuit pope, said.

"He must be inspired by lowly, concrete and faithful service," said Francis, who as a Jesuit has taken a vow of poverty.

Francis is the world's first Jesuit pope

"I would like to ask all those who have positions of responsibility in economic, political and social life ... Let us not allow omens of destruction and death to accompany the advance of this world.

"It means respecting each of God's creatures and respecting the environment in which we live.

"It means protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about."

The Fisherman's Ring

The new pontiff officially began his ministry as the 266th pope and leader of the world's 1.2bn Roman Catholics when he earlier received the ring and pallium symbolising his new papal powers at the Vatican.

The pallium is a strip of lambswool that represents the Pope's role as a shepherd and the Fisherman's Ring is named in honour of the first pope St Peter, a fisherman by trade.

The grand ceremony started at 8.30am GMT in a sun-drenched St Peter's Square before about 200,000 people, including royalty, political and religious leaders.

The biggest delegation came from Argentina, led by President Cristina Kirchner, who held a private meeting with Pope Francis on Monday.

Britain was represented by the Duke of Gloucester, Kenneth Clarke MP and Baroness Warsi. The Queen and Prime Minister David Cameron did not attend.

Controversial Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe also made the journey to Rome in defiance of an EU travel ban, which does allow him to attend events within the Vatican state boundary. 

The Pope kissed several babies as he toured the square

Before the proceedings began, Francis toured a crammed St Peter's Square, kissing babies and blessing a disabled man.

In another sign of the informality that is already a mark of his papacy, Francis abandoned the bullet-proof popemobile frequently used by his more formal predecessor Benedict, to tour the square.

Francis wore a plain white papal cassock and black shoes in contrast to the luxurious red loafers that attracted attention under Benedict.

"Go Francis! We Will Be With You Wherever You Go!" read a sign held up by a group of Brazilian nuns in St Peter's Square.

Sister Rosa, an elderly Italian nun, said she expected the pope would be "another St Francis on Earth for love, goodness, poverty and humility".

Crowds had been pouring into the square and surrounding streets since before dawn.

The crowds had begun gathering from the early morning

The former archbishop of Buenos Aires, Jorge Mario Bergoglio was the surprise choice at a conclave of cardinals to find a successor to 85-year-old Benedict, who last month brought a sudden end to a papacy, saying he was too old to carry on.

After the Mass, Pope Francis met many of the world leaders, including Mr Mugabe, before having lunch.

Leaders of the Eastern Catholic Rite were also at the ceremony, including Bartholomew I, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

Bartholomew I became the first patriarch from the Istanbul-based church to attend a papal investiture since the two branches of Christianity split nearly 1,000 years ago.

Also attending for the first time was the chief rabbi of Rome.

Francis abandoned the bullet-proof popemobile

Their presence underscores the hopes for ecumenical and interfaith dialogue in this new papacy given Francis' own work for improved relations and his namesake St Francis of Assisi.

In a gesture to Christians in the East, the pope prayed with Eastern rite Catholic patriarchs and archbishops before the tomb of St Peter and the Gospel was chanted in Greek rather than the traditional Latin.

On Wednesday and Thursday, Francis will hold meetings at the Vatican before he holds a face-to-face meeting with Benedict at Castel Gandolfo, just outside Rome, on Saturday.

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Brit Injured 'Escaping Sex Assault' In India

By Alex Rossi, Sky News Asia Correspondent

A British woman is recovering from injuries to her legs after jumping out of her hotel window to escape an alleged sex attack in Agra in India - the home of the iconic Taj Mahal.

According to police, the incident happened in the Cantonment area of the city about four o'clock on Tuesday morning.

Deputy Superintendent Simranjit Kaur told Sky News that the 31-year-old woman escaped from the second floor window of her room after the hotel owner tried to enter "demanding" a massage.

"The woman became scared and leapt from the balcony. We have arrested the owner and may cancel the licence of the hotel depending on our investigations," she said.

The victim was taken to hospital by a rickshaw driver and was treated for muscle damage to her legs.

She has also given a statement to officers and is now "safely" in another hotel under police protection.

The police said she will be flying home to the UK shortly, even though she was planning to visit China after touring India.

The Foreign Office said it was "urgently" investigating the reports.

A spokesman said: "We are aware of the reports and we are urgently looking into it. We are in contact with our colleagues in India."

The FCO has changed its advice to female travellers visiting India in the last forty eight hours following the gang rape of a Swiss cycle tourist in Madhya Pradesh on Friday night.

British female tourists are now being advised to"exercise caution" in India, even when travelling as part of a group.

Advice on the FCO website states: "Reported cases of sexual assault against women and young girls are increasing; recent sexual attacks against female visitors in tourist areas and cities show that foreign women are also at risk.

"British women have been the victims of sexual assault in Goa, Delhi, Bangalore and Rajasthan and women travellers often receive unwanted attention in the form of verbal and physical harassment by individuals or groups of men."

Women travelling through the country are advised to respect local dress codes and customs and avoid visiting isolated areas, including beaches, alone, at any time of day.

The FCO also warns women against travelling alone on public transport, in taxis or auto-rickshaws, especially at night.

The Swiss woman was camping in a forested area with her husband when they were attacked by men brandishing sticks. She was repeatedly raped according to local police.

That attack came just a few days after the man accused of leading the fatal gang rape of a student on a New Delhi bus was found hanged in his prison cell.

India has seen anger and public protests against rapes and sexual attacks on women since the gang-rape in New Delhi in December.

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Colorado Approves Historic New Gun Laws

By Greg Milam, US Correspondent

The US state of Colorado - the scene of two of the worst shooting massacres in the country's history - has passed historic new laws which could prove a model for gun control measures across the country.

Politicians were prompted into action by the shooting spree at a cinema in Aurora near Denver last summer which claimed 12 lives. The killings at Newtown in Connecticut in December added renewed impetus.

So while the national effort at new restrictions appears to be stalling, Colorado's legislature has passed a ban on high capacity ammunition magazines and tightened requirements for background checks on people buying a gun.

It is seen as a remarkable success for the gun control movement in a 'frontier' state famous for its love of hunting and liberty.

Even though there is no ban on military-style assault weapons, the new restrictions are enough to anger gun enthusiasts in the state.

George Horne, owner of The Gun Room in Denver

George Horne, who owns Denver's oldest gun shop The Gun Room, told Sky News that gun owners were being unfairly targeted.

He said: "There's plenty of ways to create violence and inflict harm on other people other than firearms, so I think the emotion of firearms is being used. They're not addressing the problem which is the person, but the firearm which is just the tool.

"I always tell people it is not the arrow, it is the Indian."

One of his customers put it more bluntly. Mike Rosenthal said: "I think they are violating our constitution and I think they're all traitors."

He said that if authorities try to remove guns from owners the result "won't be pretty".

Daniel Mauser, a victim of the Columbine High School massacre in 1999

He said the Second Amendment to the US constitution, guaranteeing the right to bear arms, should allow people to own a bomb "if they could afford it".

Colorado has followed New York in being the first to put in place new restrictions as politicians and lobbyists in Washington continue to lock horns on a national framework.

Tom Mauser, whose son Daniel was killed in the shooting spree at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, in 1999, has long campaigned for tighter controls.

He says he is proud of what the state has done and hopes others will follow.

Tom Mauser wears his son Daniel's trainers to gun control events

"Two weeks before he died my son said to me 'Dad, do you know there are loopholes in the Brady law', the law that requires background checks, and then he was killed with a gun that was purchased through one of those loopholes.

"That is what has driven me. I have wanted to close those loopholes for him and for the sake of others."

Mr Mauser wears his son's trainers when attending gun control events. "I literally walk in his shoes," he said.

The scale of the task facing him is perhaps illustrated by the popularity of a website called gunsforeveryone.com

Its founder Edgar Antillon said it started out as a joke but had now taken on an activist role.

He said: "We don't think any new restrictions are the answer. Law abiding gun owners don't carry out massacres. If they put new laws in place, we will simply not follow them."

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Five 'Confess' To Tourist Gang-Rape In India

Five villagers in India have confessed to the gang-rape of a Swiss tourist, according to police.

The woman was on a cycling holiday with her husband in Madhya Pradesh state when they were attacked.

Investigators said as many as eight men were involved in the assault on Friday night.

"We have detained five men and they have confessed to gang-raping the woman and attacking her husband," local police official M S Dhodee told the AFP news agency.

A sixth man allegedly involved in the crime is also being hunted by police, Mr Dhodee added.

The alleged rapists live in a village near the forested area where the couple had stopped to camp for the night.

They were en route to the popular tourist destination of Agra in northern India.

"They were passing by, noticed the couple putting up their tent and saw an opportunity to attack and rape the woman," Mr Dhodee said.

He added that the five detainees would be arrested shortly, pending formalities.

The woman, who is thought to be around 39, was treated in hospital but released on Saturday and the couple are now in Delhi.

The Swiss embassy said it was in touch with local authorities in Madhya Pradesh and has urged a "swift investigation and for justice to be done".

The attack comes just a few days after the man accused of leading the fatal gang rape of a student on a New Delhi bus was found hanged in his prison cell.

Police say Ram Singh took his own life in the high-security Tihar jail, where he had been on suicide watch in an isolated cell.

The case made headlines around the world and raised the issue of sexual violence against women in India.

The student's internal injuries were so horrific she died two weeks later in a hospital in Singapore despite surgery to try to save her.

Four other men and a juvenile are on trial for that attack.

One woman is raped every 20 minutes in India, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.

But police estimate only four out of 10 rapes are reported, largely due to victims' fear of being shamed by their families and communities.

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Cyprus Postpones Vote On Savings Raid Bailout

Cyprus has delayed a vote on whether savers will have to pay a levy on their bank deposits as part of an EU bailout.

The island's parliament had been due to decide whether to back the radical move later on Sunday but has pushed back the vote until Monday.

The delay came as Britain promised any UK government and military personnel would be compensated if their personal accounts were hit.

Chancellor George Osborne told the BBC's Andrew Marr show: "People who are doing their duty for our country in Cyprus will be protected from this Cypriot bank tax."

Around 3,500 British military personnel are based in Cyprus.

George Osborne promises British troops will be protected

But there are tens of thousands more British residents in the country who do not fall into that category and will end up out of pocket.

Under the terms of the 10bn euro (£8.6bn) bailout by the eurozone, savers in Cyprus have to hand over up to 10% of their deposits.

The one-off levy has sparked anger in the eastern Mediterranean island, with queues at cash machines battling to withdraw their money.

Electronic transfers were blocked and the country's cooperative banks had to shut their doors after seeing a rush of savers keen to protect their money.

Christos Demetriades, 58, who was outside a shut Nicosia co-operative bank branch, said: "Politicians and senior bank bosses have covered each other's backs for years, now it's ordinary people who are paying the price and are being punished."

One disgruntled customer at a branch in the southern coastal town of Limassol briefly parked his tractor in front of its shut doors in a show of frustration.

The move marks the first time the 17 eurozone countries and the IMF have dipped into people's savings to finance a bailout.

An informal meeting earlier this morning for parties in the 56-member chamber to discuss the bank levy was also postponed by newly-elected Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades.

He has said refusing the bailout would lead to the collapse of the island's two largest banks, badly burnt by their exposure to bailed out neighbour Greece.

Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades with Angela Merkel in Brussels

The tax on deposits in Cyprus, which accounts for only 0.2% of the eurozone's economy, is expected to raise up to 6bn euros (£5bn).

Those affected will include rich Russians with deposits in Cyprus and Europeans who have retired to the island as well as Cypriots themselves.

The size of foreign deposits in Cyprus - estimated at 37% of the total - was one reason the eurozone agreed to the tax on savings, to take effect when banks reopen on Tuesday.

It will apply to all deposits held in banks within Cyprus, including an estimated 2bn euros (£1.75bn) of British money, according to the European Central Bank.

It will not affect deposits held in the UK branches of Cypriot banks, such as Bank of Cyprus, whose UK subsidiary is regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

However, Laiki Bank UK said on its website: "Your eligible deposits with Laiki Bank UK are protected up to a total of 100,000 euro (£87.000) by the Cyprus Deposit Protection Scheme and are not protected by the UK Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

"Any deposits you hold above the 100,000 euro limit are not covered."

Cyprus was badly hit by the Greek financial crisis because of its close links to the country.

Its two largest banks saw combined losses of 4.5bn euros (£3.8bn) - equal to a quarter of the island's gross domestic product.

The rescue package was agreed after 10 hours of talks in Brussels and was significantly less than the 17bn euros (£14.7bn) asked for.

As part of the deal, the government will also have to hike corporate tax to 12.5% from 10% and sell off state assets to help balance the public finances.

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Pope Francis Ad Libs During His First Angelus

Pope Francis has broken with tradition while delivering the first Angelus of his papacy.

As he made his first Sunday window appearance from the balcony of a papal apartment high above St Peter's Square, he delivered off-the-cuff remarks about God's power to forgive instead of reading from a written speech.

And the 100,000-strong crowd gathered down below roared with delight.

Dozens of flags from his native Argentina were waving in the packed piazza as the former Buenos Aires archbishop began his first Angelus.

Tens of thousands packed into St Peter's Square for the Angelus

"Thank you for your welcome, and for your prayers," said the first pope from Latin America. "Pray for me," he added.

The occasion is traditionally used to comment on international issues, but Francis instead used the moment to emphasise his Italian roots.

The former cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, whose parents hailed from Italy's northwestern Piedmont region, said he chose to name himself after St Francis of Assisi because of his "spiritual ties with this land".

Flags from other Latin American nations including Colombia, Peru, Paraguay and Mexico, could also be seen in the crowd.

One banner read: "Francis, You Are the Springtime of the Church", reflecting a groundswell of hope that the choice of a humble outsider has inspired in many Catholics weary of Vatican scandal and dysfunction.

Gabriel Solis, 33, an Argentine pilgrim, said: "He will bring much peace because he seems more humble, more spontaneous. He seems closer to the people. We didn't feel that with the pope we had before."

Earlier on Sunday, Francis made an impromptu appearance to the public from a side gate of the Vatican before celebrating Mass.

Pope Francis greeting crowds earlier on Sunday

Dressed only in a white cassock, he waved to the crowd in the street outside St Anna's Gate before entering the church.

The Pope grabbed the opportunity to shake hands with well-wishers, and kissed their babies, plunging into crowds pushing against barricades as security men and Swiss Guards stood nervously by.

Chanting "Viva Il Papa" and calling his names, the faithful jostled to greet the new pontiff, who has projected a common touch by breaking with many formal traditions since his surprise election to lead the world's 1.2bn Catholics on Wednesday.

Francis then went over to the chief of his security detail and appeared to indicate he wanted to greet two priests in the crowd, who approached and embraced him.

One said: "I think he is very different to what we are accustomed to. He has a different style, he is from the south. More natural. He is not so Vatican."

Some young American tourists said: "This is history in the making. It's great to be part of it and really exciting for us."

Soon after the Angelus, Francis sent his first tweet. It read: "Dear Friends I thank you from my heart and I ask you to continue to pray for me."

The first tweet from the new pope

The 76-year-old has displayed an informal style that contrasts sharply with that of his more academic predecessor Benedict XVI.

Hours after his appointment, he shunned the papal limousine for a shuttle bus with other cardinals to return to a residence inside the Vatican for a formal supper.

He also showed his humorous side during the meal. As Francis toasted the cardinals, he said to them: "May God forgive you." It brought the house down, according to US cardinal Timothy Dolan

The official car was dropped again on his first full day in office when he slipped out the Vatican for private morning prayers at Santa Maria Maggiore. The priest at the ancient Rome basilica was given just 10 minutes' notice of his arrival.

On leaving the place of worship, he insisted on settling his bill at the hotel he stayed in before the start of last week's conclave.

Pope Francis has a busy week ahead. On Monday, he will meet the President of Argentina Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, one of the many world leaders who are flying into Rome for the Pontiff's Inaugural Mass on Tuesday.

On Wednesday and Thursday, he holds meetings at the Vatican, and then on Saturday he will fly by helicopter to the papal retreat at Castel Gandolfo on the outskirts of Rome for an unprecedented meeting with Benedict who resigned last month.

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