Paedophile Teacher 'One Of The Worst Predators'

Child Predator: Husband And 'Popular Teacher'

Updated: 11:44am UK, Thursday 24 April 2014

The serial child predator at the centre of an FBI investigation had a wife and two adult children and was a popular teacher among his students, officials have said.

William James Vahey travelled the world for four decades before his suicide in a Minnesota motel last March.

While teaching, he also served as coach on various school sports teams.

The FBI said he was a "popular and highly respected teacher".

"He had access to children because of his position of trust," said FBI special agent Patrick Fransen.

"He created a system that gave him the opportunity and the means to molest children."

The FBI says he may have carried out child molestation on an unprecedented scale, often drugging his victims.

Vahey told investigators he suffered molestation as a child and went on to prey on boys.

The New York native graduated from California State University, Long Beach, with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, according to a resume cited by the FBI.

He received a master's degree in curriculum development from Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont.

At the time of his death, he was 64, approximately 6ft (182cm) tall, and weighed about 190 pounds (86kg).

He was teaching ninth-grade world history and geography at the American Nicaraguan School in Managua.

Vahey maintained two residences, one in London, where he had taught at an elite school, and another on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, the FBI said.

In 1969, Vahey was arrested in California on six counts of child molestation.

He pled guilty to one count of child molestation and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, followed by five years' probation.

The conviction required Vahey to register with California's sex offender registry for the rest of his life.

However, Vahey eluded that requirement.

Officials said he had not renewed his registration as a sex offender since 1970. He went on to pursue his teaching career in Nicaragua, the UK, Venezuela, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Greece, Iran, Spain, and Lebanon.

His victims are believed to be multinational as many of those schools were attended by the children of American diplomats or military personnel stationed overseas.

Vahey coached boys on middle school, varsity boys' basketball, softball, flag football, and soccer, among other things.

He also served as activities director, student council adviser, cooking club adviser and forensics adviser. 

He often accompanied students on cultural studies or sports trips, the FBI said.

Vahey killed himself two days after agents in Houston sought a warrant to search a computer thumb drive belonging to him.

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South Korea Ferry: All 15 Crew In Custody

A prosecutor investigating the South Korean ferry sinking says all 15 crew members involved in the ship's navigation are now in custody after four more were arrested.

Yang Jung-jin, of the joint investigation team, said two helmsmen and two members of the steering crew were detained this morning.

Eleven other crew members, including the captain, were previously arrested.

All the crew are accused of negligence and of failing to help passengers in need as the ferry sank on April 16.

The captain initially told passengers to stay in their rooms and took half an hour to issue an evacuation order, by which time the ship was tilting too severely for many people to get out.

Meanwhile, officials said divers searching the submerged hull of the ferry found 48 bodies in a room designed to take 38.

Barack Obama and South Korean President Park Geun-Hye bow their heads

At least 35 rooms of the ferry's 111 rooms have been searched so far.

More than 80% of the 302 dead and missing are students from a single high school from the town of Ansan, south of Seoul.

The government has admitted some bodies had been misidentified and announced changes to prevent such mistakes from happening again.

There have been several reports in the South Korean media this week of bodies going to the wrong families, with the error sometimes being identified only after remains had been taken to a funeral home.

An "action plan" released by a government-wide emergency task force acknowledged that there had "been cases where the victims were wrongly transferred".

Divers have recovered 183 bodies so far, but 119 people remain missing feared dead in the dark rooms of the submerged vessel.

A woman at a memorial outside Danwon High School in Ansan

The ferry was on its way from the mainland to the resort island of Jeju when it went down.

President Barack Obama, who has been in South Korea as part of a state visit, offered his condolences for those who had lost their lives.

He presented President Park Geun-hye with an American flag that flew over the White House the day the ship sank.

He said: "So many were young students with their entire lives ahead of them. I can only imagine what the parents are going through at this point, the incredible heartache."

Accepting the flag, Ms Park drew a parallel between the way Americans pulled together after the 9/11 attacks and the resilience of South Koreans following one of the worst maritime disasters in their country's history.

"The Korean people draw great strength from your kindness," she said.

Prosecutors have raided and seized documents at the Korean Register of Shipping and the Korea Shipping Association, which regulates and oversees departures and arrivals of domestic passenger ships.

On Friday night, people in Ansan, where most of the victims came from, gathered to remember those who had died at a candle-lit vigil.

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British Teenager Dies After Tribal Drug Ritual

By Alex Watts, Online Producer

A British backpacker has died after taking a hallucinogenic drug during a tribal ritual in Colombia.

Henry Miller, 19, was in a remote rainforest area, near the town of Mocoa, with other tourists when he drank yage with a local tribe.

The psychedelic drink, also known as ayahuasca, is made from leaves and is used by native people in South America for healing and spiritual purposes.

Mr Miller took the drug on Sunday without any effects. He took it again on Tuesday and was found dead later.

Mr Miller took the drug in a rainforest outside Mocoa, southwest Colombia

Filip Goematre, owner of Casa del Rio hostel, where the teenager was staying, told Sky News: "Lots of people come to this area to take the yage drug, which is part of an indigenous ritual.

"But I am not a fan of it. I prefer people come here to enjoy the Amazon and look at the animals and nature.

"Henry came here last week and heard about the drug from other tourists and got motivated to do it.

"I'm not involved in the drug and do not promote it in anyway. But it's an indigenous ritual and involves drinking juice from a medicinal plant. One of the effects of it is to hallucinate.

"Henry stayed at the hostel for seven days. He did it (the drug) once on Sunday night, and on the Tuesday he was travelling on.

Yage brings on vivid hallucinations and supposedly spiritual experiences

"But he changed his mind at the last minute and decided to do the ritual. There is a police investigation going on and an autopsy is being carried out on his body, but it looks like the drink.

"It's an intoxicant, and hundreds of people do it and a couple of times people die. It's not considered dangerous, but it can happen."

Mr Miller, from Bristol, travelled with a group of eight people to land belonging to a local shaman, according to the Daily Mail.

After taking the drug, he reportedly started "lashing out with his hands and feet" and then "made weird animal noises, pig sounds and at one point he tried to fly".

The shaman's family told the other tourists they would look after him, but when they woke up in the morning Mr Miller was not there, the paper quoted one of the group as saying.

Police arrived and showed them a picture of Mr Miller's body, which was said to have been found by a dirt road.

The teenager had stayed at Casa del Rio hostel for seven days

A spokesman for the Foreign Office told Sky News: "We are aware of the death of a British national on April 23 in Colombia. We are providing consular assistance to the family at this very difficult time."

Henry Miller's parents Elizabeth and David, and brother Freddie issued a statement to the Bristol Post, saying: "In the last 48 hours we received the exceptionally sad news that our son Henry has died whilst travelling in Colombia.

"We are being informed of the circumstances through the Foreign Office. He was in the remote Putumayo region.

"We understand that he took part in a local tribal ritual recommended by the hostel that he was staying at.

"The ritual involves a drink made from local plant infusions. We are awaiting further information from the foreign office but it is likely that a reaction to this drink was the cause."

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Ukraine: 'Observers To Be Used As Human Shield'

It Is No Longer A Game For Separatist Militia

Updated: 12:32am UK, Saturday 26 April 2014

By Sam Kiley, Foreign Affairs Editor in Slavyansk

Their rifles were cocked. The safety catches off. Triggers were fingered. The car lurched to a stop.

Shrill nervous orders were barked in Russian. Men in an assortment of camouflage uniforms lay spread eagled on the roadside glaring down their sights.

A quick search followed. Then a man with a new AK74, probably nicked from the local police station, squinted, his face covered with a balaclava, perhaps attempting a faceless smile.

"Sorry for any inconvenience," he said and waved the car through.

The mixed messages of their behaviour, both aggression and politeness, both bravado and fear, point to a wider conundrum - do they really understand what they're getting in to?

One of their comrades had been shot dead that morning about a mile away on the road out of Slavyansk by an Ukrainian army patrol - probably probing the outer defences of these pro-Russian separatist militants.

Four more, the government said, had been killed in other clashes around the town.

They stand accused of kidnapping the city's elected mayor.

They have taken over city hall and are sandbagging it against an attack and yet they often appear to be no more than young or old boys playing at soldiers.

Occasionally one comes across a trained soldier. Fit and quiet they slink in the background of the occupied buildings.

They may be Russian agents, or former Ukrainian police from the disbanded Berkut who were responsible for sniper attacks on revolutionaries in Kiev.

But the ordinary militants, who are led by local politicians and allegedly funded either by Moscow or allied oligarchs, are clearly being used.

They are the teaspoons the Kremlin is using to keep the east of Ukraine swirling with dark rumours of anti-Russian ethnic cleansing.

Allegations of persecution of pro-Russian groups are entirely false.

But while the militants swagger about the streets, take over government buildings and harass their political opponents, they face a crack down from Kiev.

The nervous men at the road block feared an Ukrainian government attack on the bases in Slavyansk.

They were also facing the reality that what may have felt like a nationalistic camping trip with the added spice of gun play, may no longer be a game.

They may fold under a professional attack by Ukrainian troops.

But if they do not, there will be blood.

And if it flows from Putin's local pawns then so may Russian troops pour in from the east.

He may win, but they will not be around to see his victory.

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Russia Wants World War Three, Says Ukraine

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has accused Russia of wanting to start "a third world war".

Mr Yatseniuk said that Russia wanted to occupy Ukraine "militarily and politically", creating a conflict that would spread to the rest of Europe.

A pro-Russian separatist fills sand bags at a checkpoint in Slavyansk

"The world has not yet forgotten World War Two, but Russia already wants to start World War Three," he said.

His comments came as Barack Obama said he would consult key European leaders later on the possibility of imposing new sanctions against Russia.

On the ground, Ukrainian special forces launched a second phase of their "anti-terrorism" operation, blockading the rebel-held city of Slavyansk, officials said.

Reports that pro-Russian snipers had shot at a Ukranian military helicopter in the eastern town of Kramatorsk have been treated cautiously. 

Barack Obama will consult European leaders about new sanctions

According to officials in Kiev, the helicopter exploded at a military base after being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade.

Its pilot managed to escape but was wounded, the official said. Kramatorsk is one of several under the control of pro-Kremlin gunmen.

Sky's foreign affairs editor, Sam Kiley, in Ukraine, said that the "bellicose" rhetoric between Russia and Ukraine was escalating more quickly than action on the ground.

"On the ground, there are incidents, but the level of violence has been relatively low and does not justify the type of rhetoric we have heard," Kiley said. 

Journalist Simon Ostrovsky has spoken of his capture

Meanwhile, US journalist Simon Ostrovsky, who was captured and released by pro-Russian militants, says he believes he was used as a "bargaining chip" with Kiev.

Writing for Vice magazine, he said: "On Monday night I was pulled out of a car at a checkpoint, then blindfolded, beaten, and tied up with tape.

"After spending hours alone on the floor of a damp cell with my hands tied behind my back and a hat pulled over my eyes, I was led into a room where I was accused of working for the CIA, FBI, and Right Sector, the Ukrainian ultra-nationalist group."

Earlier, US Secretary of State John Kerry accused Russia of "deception" and "destabilisation" in Ukraine and hinted at more sanctions.

John Kerry has warned Russia of 'grave' consequences

Mr Kerry warned Moscow time was running out for it to change course.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia face a choice," he said in unusually blunt language.

"If Russia chooses the path of de-escalation ... all of us will welcome it. But if Russia does not, the world will make sure that the costs for Russia will only grow."

Mr Kerry added this would be a "grave" and "expensive mistake".

He also said the Kremlin has not honoured an agreement aimed at defusing the crisis, echoing earlier comments by Mr Obama.

A checkpoint apparently set on fire by pro-Russian separatists

The Geneva accord between Russia, Ukraine, the US and EU compelled armed groups to put down their weapons and vacate official buildings.

The US says Moscow is stoking unrest and separatist sentiment in the east of Ukraine after its annexation of Crimea.

Russia accuses Washington of encouraging a pro-Western government to adopt anti-Russian policies.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon has warned the crisis is threatening to "spin out of control" and urged all sides to "refrain from violence".

A pro-Russian actvist has his head bandaged

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Ukraine No Longer A Game For Would-Be Soldiers

Their rifles were cocked. The safety catches off. Triggers were fingered. The car lurched to a stop.

Shrill nervous orders were barked in Russian. Men in an assortment of camouflage uniforms lay spread eagled on the roadside glaring down their sights.

A quick search followed. Then a man with a new AK74, probably nicked from the local police station, squinted, his face covered with a balaclava, perhaps attempting a faceless smile.

"Sorry for any inconvenience," he said and waved the car through.

The mixed messages of their behaviour, both aggression and politeness, both bravado and fear, point to a wider conundrum - do they really understand what they're getting in to?

One of their comrades had been shot dead that morning about a mile away on the road out of Slavyansk by an Ukrainian army patrol - probably probing the outer defences of these pro-Russian separatist militants.

Four more, the government said, had been killed in other clashes around the town.

They stand accused of kidnapping the city's elected mayor.

They have taken over city hall and are sandbagging it against an attack and yet they often appear to be no more than young or old boys playing at soldiers.

Occasionally one comes across a trained soldier. Fit and quiet they slink in the background of the occupied buildings.

They may be Russian agents, or former Ukrainian police from the disbanded Berkut who were responsible for sniper attacks on revolutionaries in Kiev.

But the ordinary militants, who are led by local politicians and allegedly funded either by Moscow or allied oligarchs, are clearly being used.

They are the teaspoons the Kremlin is using to keep the east of Ukraine swirling with dark rumours of anti-Russian ethnic cleansing.

Allegations of persecution of pro-Russian groups are entirely false.

But while the militants swagger about the streets, take over government buildings and harass their political opponents, they face a crack down from Kiev.

The nervous men at the road block feared an Ukrainian government attack on the bases in Slavyansk.

They were also facing the reality that what may have felt like a nationalistic camping trip with the added spice of gun play, may no longer be a game.

They may fold under a professional attack by Ukrainian troops.

But if they do not, there will be blood.

And if it flows from Putin's local pawns then so may Russian troops pour in from the east.

He may win, but they will not be around to see his victory.

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Four Paris Policemen Accused Of Raping Tourist

Four French police officers have been arrested after a Canadian woman claimed she was raped at the Paris police headquarters.

The alleged attack took place overnight Tuesday-Wednesday after the woman reportedly met the off-duty officers at an Irish pub in the city.

French media say the woman, 34, agreed to go with the men to their headquarters, which is widely known by its address - 36, Quai des Orfevres.

The woman, who was reportedly in the city during a two-week holiday, registered a criminal complaint several hours after the alleged attack.

The officers, who worked for a gang crime unit, can be held for up to 48 hours before they must be brought before a judge or released.

France's police inspectorate is also looking into the claims, in parallel with the criminal probe.

Interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve has vowed to take "all the necessary measures" if there is substance to the claims.

"I want the justice system and the police inspectorate to complete their investigations so that the truth can be established," Mr Cazeneuve said in a speech to police in Marseille.

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Missing Malaysia Flight MH370 Search To Widen

The seabed search for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet that vanished on March 8 is due to widen as a sonar scan of the most likely crash site nears its end.

A robotic submarine has scanned 95% of a 120-square-mile (310-square-kilometres) area since last week but has found nothing that might give a clue about what happened to the plane, organisers of the search in Australia said.

Up to eight military aircraft and 10 ships took part in the search for missing flight MH370 on Frida which had 239 people onboard when it disappeared.

The planned search area Pic: Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA)

The US Navy's Bluefin 21 sub is creating a three-dimensional sonar map of the ocean floor near where signals consistent with aircraft black boxes were heard earlier this month.

The search area is a circle with a six-mile radius, 2.8 miles deep off the west Australian coast in the Indian Ocean, and is scheduled to be completed within days.

"If no contacts of interest are made, Bluefin 21 will continue to examine the areas adjacent to the 10-kilometre radius," the Perth-based co-ordination centre said in a statement.

"We are currently consulting very closely with our international partners on the best way to continue the search into the future," it added, referring to Malaysia, the US and China.

A robotic submarine has been scanning the seabed Pic: AMSA

A senior defence official, who did not want to be named, told Reuters the search could last "years".

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has said his government will release a preliminary report on the plane's disappearance next week.

The report has already been sent to the UN's International Civil Aviation Organisation, but has yet to be made available to the public, according to CNN.

No wreckage has been found from the jet so far Pic: AMSA

The Malaysian government, which has primary responsibility for the investigation, has been accused of mismanaging the search, concealing information about the tragedy and of being too slow to update families of the missing on developments.

Meanwhile in Beijing, about 50 relatives of Chinese passengers who were on the flight have continued a sit-in protest outside the Malaysian embassy after officials failed to show up to update them on the search.

"We keep on waiting because we want the news," said Steve Wang, whose parents were on the flight and who has served as a representative for the relatives.

"What we are concerned about is where is the plane, and where are our loved ones," he added.

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Gazprom Turns Up Heat On Kiev With $11bn Bill

Russia Has Best Hand In Ukraine Poker Game

Updated: 6:58pm UK, Tuesday 22 April 2014

By By Sam Kiley, Foreign Affairs Editor in Donetsk

If the Ukrainian crisis was a poker game, Russia holds a royal flush, the Kiev government and her allies not much more than a pair. And that's for every hand played, for now.

Since the annexation of Crimea it has been Vladimir Putin's choice as to whether to fold or call or raise and with every round his pot appears to be getting richer.

In the long term, though, Russia knows it could lose heavily.

The question is: When will the Kremlin decide to cash in its winnings and celebrate a return as a world power with a hearty round of chilled vodka at the bar?

US Vice President Joe Biden, on a visit to Kiev, said "time is short" for Russia to make progress on its commitment at Geneva last week to help defuse the crisis in Ukraine by signalling to its proxy militia (and the Russian commandos alongside them) to evacuate the buildings they have seized across the east of the country.

That isn't the view from Moscow - or from the sandbagged municipal centres, where the men in balaclavas, known locally as "the green men", are reinforcing their defences, not tearing them down.

Sure, Russia faces an increase in sanctions from Europe which may bite into an economy already suffering capital flight, inflation and reduced growth.

But Mr Putin knows that more sanctions are going to cut into Europe too - possibly slowing growth and the recovery from recession that in any case is looking fragile.

Individual countries in the 28-member European Union have been conducting analyses of how damaging broad sanctions against Russia would be.

The City of London will be anxious indeed - it runs on the fuel of  "few questions asked" capital injections from oligarchs who have gouged the countries of the former Soviet Union.

"Stop talking and start acting" said the US vice president.

In Donetsk the "meh" from the Kremlin was almost audible.

"No nation should threaten its neighbours by amassing troops along the border. We call on Russia to pull these forces," he said after meeting Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk.

"We have been clear that more provocative behaviour by Russia will lead to more costs and to greater isolation."

In Moscow, once senior officials had figured out who this "Mr Biden" was - a man without portfolio - minds have already been focussed on how to face down the European sanctions which have been threatened now for weeks.

Dmitry Medvedev, the Prime Minister who channels Mr Putin as his avatar, said Russia was already looking for diversified markets for its gas, namely China, and that sanctions threats were a "bluff".

Mr Putin's popularity is soaring up to and over 90% since he grabbed Crimea amid red-faced blustering from the international community.

His generals have harnessed some of the finest chess minds in a game that has left his opponents gasping. The government now enjoys untrammelled authoritarian power.

In Russia the opposition press was silenced before the Crimean operations.

Now the media there and in the east of Ukraine pumps out lies about neo-Nazis running the Ukrainian government in league with the CIA - convincing enough people that backing the pro-Russian separatists, who now only admit to being "federalists", is an existential necessity.

Mr Yatseniuk said Russian special forces are operating in eastern Ukraine to undermine a presidential election due on May 25 and he called on Moscow to pull them out.

"Everything that is now happening in the east and which Russia is supporting is aimed at wrecking the presidential election," Mr Yatseniuk said.

And that is the Kremlin's ace.

In a month's time Ukraine will not be able to hold legitimate elections in the east of the country because the separatists and their Russian sponsors will not let them.

Instead they are threatening to hold referenda in the middle of May - just as in Crimea - which one can confidently predict will result in a huge pro-Russian majority for independence or annexation into the Russian Motherland.

By the end of the month the Kremlin will be able to step up the chaos and divisions - probably even revving the engines of tanks and mobile artillery on the borders to signal that it may rush to the "aid" of "persecuted" ethnic Russians in Ukrainian territory.

This is the point at which it will be in Russia's interests to cash in on the game it has been playing by forcing its own agenda on Kiev, and getting the West to turn its face away from Ukraine's flirtation with formal association with Nato and the EU.

The alternative will be a return to cold war and economic embargo. Ordinary Russian's won't like that – they have got used to Armani.

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Giant Antarctica Iceberg Puts Nasa On Alert

An iceberg bigger than Chicago is being monitored by Nasa after breaking into the ocean off Antarctica.

The sheet, known as B31, is one of the biggest on the planet at 255 square miles (660 sq km).

NASA has been monitoring Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier since a crack was spotted in 2011, amid fears any iceberg could contribute to rising sea levels.

B31, which is about a third of a mile (500m) thick, is not currently on any major shipping routes.

However, with winter approaching in the area, it could become difficult to track.

"The iceberg is now well out of Pine Island Bay and will soon join the more general flow in the Southern Ocean," Grant Bigg, from the University of Sheffield, said in the NASA statement.

The iceberg before breaking into the ocean

"We are doing some research on local ocean currents to try to explain the motion properly. It has been surprising how there have been periods of almost no motion, interspersed with rapid flow."

An iceberg this big could take a year or more to melt, Robert Marsh, a scientist at the University of Southampton, said in an interview last year.

The largest iceberg ever recorded was called B15 and had an area of 4,250 square miles (11,000 square kilometres) - about the size of Jamaica.

It broke off Antarctica's Ross Ice Shelf in March 2000 and still exists in several parts around the Antarctic.

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UK School Confirms US Paedophile Abused Pupils

A prolific paedophile who taught at a London school was a "very popular" teacher who never showed any hint of wrongdoing, the school's chair of governors has told Sky News.

Sir Chris Woodhead confirmed pupils were abused by William James Vahey, who killed himself last month.

British detectives are helping an international investigation into Vahey, an American who abused at least 90 known victims around the world.

The 64-year-old killed himself in a Minnesota motel room on March 21 - two days after FBI agents filed for a warrant to search a computer thumb drive containing child abuse images featuring at least 90 children aged from 12-14.

Sir Chris told Sky News he discovered children at the Southbank International School had been targeted after receiving information from the Met Police, who in turn were informed by the FBI.

He said: "When we appointed him we had a criminal records bureau investigation done, as is standard procedure.

Vahey taught at Southbank International School. Pic: Joe Tidy

"We had another CRB check three years later; we requested interviews from his previous schools covering 17 years of his previous professional employment. The references were immaculate."

Vahey worked at the school from 2009-2013, teaching history and geography to pupils aged 11-16.

Specific safeguarding children checks showed "nothing untoward" and there were never any complaints against him, added Sir Chris.

Some parents had even written to the school to say they were sad when he decided to leave.

"He was a very popular member of staff with both parents and students - which is perhaps an index of his sophistication and cleverness as a deceitful man who abused children," said Sir Chris, a former chief inspector of schools.

Police broke the news to staff at the £25,000 a year school this morning and a letter is being to parents this afternoon.

The victims on Vahey's computer drive appeared drugged and unconscious in the images dating back to 2008.

However, FBI agents believe he may have abused children on an unprecedented scale during his 40-year teaching career in at least 10 countries.

The thumb drive was handed to the US Embassy by one of Vahey's co-workers at the American Nicaraguan School in Managua after it was discovered by one of his domestic staff, who first raised the alarm.

In a statement on its website the FBI said: "When confronted about the images by a school administrator, Vahey confessed that he was molested as a child and had preyed on boys his entire life, giving them sleeping pills prior to the molestation."

The FBI is appealing for public help to identify potential victims, who appear to have been abused during overnight field trips led by the US citizen.

Parents have been showing "considerable concern" after receiving confirmation that Vahey took part in several field trips while working at the London school.

One couple said Vahey was their 13-year-old son's teacher last year - they found out about his crimes last night.

The mother said: "I couldn't sleep for worrying about it and I had to sit my son down and ask him if anything had ever happened in school.

"Mr Vahey also took my son on a field trip abroad and this is a big concern for us.

"My son is fine though and I would have expected his behaviour to change if anything happened so I don't think anything did.

"I know there are pictures that police have of boys but if my son is on the list, I don't want to know and I don't want him to know."

Another parent told Sky News: "It's massively worrying."

Families at the school are to be offered psychological counselling.

The FBI said Vahey was jailed for child molestation in California in 1969, but the conviction does not appear to have shown up when checked by schools.

FBI special agent Patrick Fransen said some of the alleged victims may not know they were abused.

He said: "He created a system that gave him the opportunity and the means to molest children.

"The manner in which he committed these acts - while the boys were unconscious - may have inhibited them from knowing what happened, making it impossible for them to come forward at the time."

He added: "I've never seen another case where an individual may have molested this many children over such a long period of time."

A Met Police spokesman said: "Officers from the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Investigation Team are assessing and evaluating intelligence passed to the MPS by US authorities, and actively seeking any evidence whilst working with partner agencies to ensure that potential victims are supported."

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Putin: Ukraine 'Crime' Will Have Consequences

Vladimir Putin has warned there will be "consequences" if Ukraine has used its army against pro-Russian activists.

Ukraine's interior ministry said "up to five terrorists" have been killed in clashes during an operation to clear three checkpoints in the eastern town of Slavyansk.

In response Russian troops have begun military exercises near the border with Ukraine.

"If Kiev really began to use the army against the country's population... that is a very serious crime against its own people," said Mr Putin, the Russian President.

"That is simply a punitive measure that will without question have consequences... including for our inter-governmental relations."

Vladimir Putin has warned of consequences

There were reports of at least 10 Ukrainian armoured vehicles just north of Slavyansk, while two helicopters were seen circling the area.

There remains a heavy rebel presence in the city.

One activist, Stella Khorosheva, told The Associated Press: "We will defend ourselves to our last drop of blood. We are ready to repeat Stalingrad."

Reuters is reporting Ukrainian forces have withdrawn from the city, which is 160 kilometres (100 miles) west of Russia.

Ukraine has re-launched a campaign against pro-Russia insurgents occupying government buildings.

Ukrainian troops enter Slavyansk

The military liberated a town hall in eastern Mariupol without any casualties, according to interior minister Arsen Avakov on Facebook.

He also claimed 70 people led by Russian soldiers raided a Ukrainian base at Artemivsk, wounding one soldier.

With tensions rising, all sides have ramped up their rhetoric.

Russia's Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, accused the West of instigating a "revolution" in Ukraine, culminating in the ousting of pro-Kremlin president Viktor Yanukovych, as part of a "geopolitical game" against Moscow.

Sergei Lavrov says the West is behind the Ukraine crisis

"Our Western partners, first and foremost the United States, tried to behave as winners in the Cold War and pretend one can ignore Russia in European affairs," the Interfax news agency quoted Mr Lavrov as saying.

US President Barack Obama accused the Kremlin of not honouring an agreement aimed at defusing the Ukraine crisis.

The Geneva accord between Russia, Ukraine, the US and EU compelled armed groups to surrender weapons and leave official buildings.

Mr Obama said further sanctions were "teed up".

"We continue to see malicious, armed men taking over buildings, harassing folks who are disagreeing with them, destabilising the region, and we haven't seen Russia step out and discourage it," said Mr Obama.

Barack Obama issued a warning to Russia during a trip to Japan

The West has already issued asset freezes and visa bans targeting Russian officials but has ruled out military action.

Mr Putin admitted sanctions were hurting Russia - but claimed the West would also suffer.

"Overall they are causing (damage), because ratings are being reviewed, loans could become more expensive and so forth. But this is of no critical character," he said.

"They are harmful for everyone, they destroy the global economy and are dishonourable on the part of those who use those types of tools."

To add to the tensions, Russia's Gazprom has sent an $11.4bn (£6.7bn) gas bill to Ukraine energy firm Naftogaz - five times the original amount.

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Battle For Control Of Net Kicks Off In Brazil

The battle for control of the internet enters a new phase today when 850 experts thrash out its future in Brazil.

Last month, the US announced it plans to give up oversight of the way net addresses are distributed.

Now hundreds of government officials, technical experts and academics are meeting at the NetMundial conference in Sao Paulo to discuss who should oversee the worldwide web in future.

China and Russia want the United Nations to have some say over how the internet is controlled, while the US and parts of Europe say it should be at arm's length from government control.

A draft outcome document has been drawn up for discussion, but the final text will not be binding.

The US currently oversees the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann), but is willing to relinquish control by September 2015.

Officials from countries including China, the US and Great Britain will attend the two-day conference, which was due to be opened by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.

Organisers say every attendee - from academics to government officials - will have an equal voice.

The goal is to agree on principles that could form the basis of later internet governance discussions.

It is expected that despite the non-binding nature of the discussions, an accord will be hard to reach.

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Missing Plane: Material Washes Ashore In Oz

Officials searching for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane say material has washed ashore off the coast of Western Australia.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is now examining photographs of the objects, which have been secured by police in the region, to establish whether they are linked to flight MH370.

Authorities said the images had also been passed to investigators in Malaysia.

Relatives are urging governments not to give up the search

The development came after Australia pledged to keep searching for the plane despite no sign of wreckage after almost seven weeks.

Bad weather is continuing to hamper the search with aircraft grounded for the second day due to heavy rain, low clouds and rough seas.

An undersea drone is nearing the end of its first full mission and Australian PM Tony Abbott says the search strategy may change if seabed scans taken by the US Navy drone fails to find a trace of MH370, which vanished on March 8 with 239 people on board.

The deep search covers an area where sonar equipment picked up a signal

"We may well re-think the search but we will not rest until we have done everything we can to solve this mystery," he said.

"The only way we can get to the bottom of this is to keep searching the probable impact zone until we find something or until we have searched it as thoroughly as human ingenuity allows at this time."

The Bluefin-21 drone is a key component in the search after the detection of audio signals, or "pings", believed to be from the plane's black box flight .

Relatives are asking Mr Hussein to investigate old media reports

The search co-ordination centre said the robotic submarine had so far covered more than 80% of the 120 square mile (310 square kilometres) seabed search zone off the Australian west coast, creating a three-dimensional sonar map of the ocean floor, but failing to find anything of interest.

The 2.8 mile (4.5-kilometre) deep search area is a circle 12 miles (20 km) wide around an area where sonar equipment picked up a signal on April 8 consistent with a plane's black boxes. The batteries powering those signals are now dead.

Both Australia and Malaysia are under growing pressure to show what lengths they are prepared to go to in order to give closure to the grieving families of those on board.

In a sign of the families' growing desperation for answers, a group purporting to be relatives of the missing flight's passengers wrote a letter to Malaysian defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein, urging the government to investigate old media reports that the plane landed in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

"It is high time that the government should start thinking out of the box by exploring and re-examining all leads, new and old," said the letter, published on Facebook on Wednesday.

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Airport Security Codes Lost Before Obama Visit

Security codes for Tokyo's main airport had to be changed just days before President Obama arrived, after an employee dropped a memo containing the top-secret details.

The Skymark Airlines employee mislaid the list of every security code on the departure lobby floor of Haneda Airport, an official revealed.

While the details were only missing for 30 minutes, it was deemed a big enough security threat that electronic security codes were changed.

The incident took place on Sunday evening, and was revealed by Japan's transport ministry.

Security in the capital was ramped up ahead of Mr Obama's visit, with 16,000 police officers deployed.

Japanese media said additional security cameras had been installed, and bins and public lockers swept for explosives then sealed.

Mr Obama touched down just before 8pm local time, marking the beginning of the first state visit by a US president for two decades.

Access to the airport's observation deck was restricted as Air Force One landed.

The president will hold a summit with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, among other events.

He will leave Tokyo for South Korea on Friday morning.

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Divers Smashing Ferry Walls To Recover Bodies

S Korea Ferry: Final Contact From Doomed Vessel

Updated: 11:11am UK, Sunday 20 April 2014

A transcript of communications between the stricken Sewol ferry and the coastguard has lifted the lid on the final minutes before the order was given to abandon ship.

The conversations show panic setting in on board the vessel, with officers asking for help to "please come quickly" as it began to tilt to the left, three hours from its destination of Jeju Island.

The transcript also appears to back up claims that the evacuation order may have come too late for some passengers as officers said the ship was tilting so much it was "impossible to move" to check on them.

The communication, which begins with the first distress call made by the ferry on Wednesday morning, has been translated by The Associated Press.

It reads:

8.55am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, do you have reception of The Sewol?

Jeju Vessel Traffic Services Centre (VTS): Yes, Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju.

Sewol: Please notify the coastguard. Our ship is in danger. It's listing right now.

8.56am

Jeju VTS: Where's your ship? Yes, got it. We will notify the coastguard.

Sewol: This ship has listed a lot. Can't move. Please come quickly. We're next to Byeongpung Island.

Jeju VTS: Yes, we got it.

8.58am

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju. Do you have reception? Sewol, harbour affairs Jeju.

8.59am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, this is Sewol.

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju. Channel 21, please.

9.00am

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju.

Sewol: Jeju, Sewol here.

Jeju VTS: What's the current situation?

Sewol: Currently the body of the ship has listed to the left. The containers have listed as well.

Jeju VTS: OK. Any damage of the human life?

Sewol: It's impossible to check right now. The body of the ship has tilted, and it's impossible to move.

Jeju VTS: Yes, OK. Please wear life jackets and prepare as the people might have to abandon ship. 

Sewol: It's hard for people to move.

Jeju VTS: Yes, got it.

9.05am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, do you have reception of Sewol?

Jeju VTS: Yes, this is harbour affairs Jeju, Sewol.

Sewol: What's going on with the coastguard?

Jeju VTS: Yes, we have notified the coastguard. Currently we are calling Jindo VTS and Wando VTS. Please hold for a moment.

After this, Jeju VTS notified other ships and Wando VTS.

9.24am

Sewol: If this ferry evacuates passengers, will they be rescued right away?

Jeju VTS Even if it's impossible to broadcast, please go out and let the passengers wear life jackets and put on more clothing. The rescue of human lives of Sewol ferry... the captain should make your own decision and evacuate them. We don't know the situation very well. The captain should make the final decision and decide whether you're going to evacuate passengers or not.

Sewol: I'm not talking about that. I asked, if they evacuate now, can they be rescued right away?

Jeju VTS then said patrol boats would arrive in 10 minutes, but did not mention another civilian ship had already arrived near the scene.

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Biden: 'Ukraine Must Remain One Country'

Vice President Joe Biden has reiterated US support for a unified Ukraine during a meeting with MPs in Kiev.

Mr Biden addressed politicians at the Ukraine parliament in a show of support for the interim government and announced new technical support measures for the government on energy and economic reforms.

He also warned Russia against further provocative action after an agreement in Geneva last week.

"There are some who are trying to pull Ukraine apart. Ukraine is in a struggle for its very future," he said.

"Ukraine is and must remain one country - one united Ukraine.

Mr Biden also met with interim president Oleksander Turchynov

"No nation has the right to simply grab land from another nation. We will never recognise Russia's illegal occupation of Crimea and neither will the world.

"More provocative behaviour by Russia will lead to more costs and greater isolation."

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said Russian special forces were operating in eastern Ukraine and urged Russia to withdraw troops in Crimea to "turn this shameful page".

Among the new support measures was an additional $50m (£39m) for political and economic reforms, and another $8m (£4.75m) for non-lethal aid to Ukraine including vehicles and radios.

US experts will also work on reducing Ukraine's dependence on Russian gas as well as fighting corruption.

A pro-Russian separatist guards the security service building in Slovyansk

Mr Biden also called on Russia to withdraw troops from its borders with Ukraine and to "stop talking and start acting" on the surrender of militants in the east of the country.

His visit comes as pro-Russian separatists show no sign of surrendering government buildings seized in the predominantly Russian speaking east.

US and EU officials have said they will impose new economic sanctions on Moscow if the separatists do not leave the premises seized during the last two weeks.

British Prime Minister David Cameron will discuss the Ukraine crisis and EU reform during a meeting with European Council President Herman Van Rompuy later on Tuesday.

On Monday, a spokeswoman for US Secretary of State John Kerry said: "If they don't take steps in the coming days, there'll be consequences.

"Obviously, we would have to make a decision in the matter of if there are going to be consequences for inaction."

Jen Psaki also called for "separatists to vacate illegal buildings and checkpoints, accept amnesty and address their grievances politically".

But Russia hit back, with foreign minister Sergei Lavrov calling for the US to "pressure Kiev to stop hotheads from provoking a bloody conflict and to encourage the Ukrainian authorities to strictly fulfil their obligations".

Visa bans and asset freezes on key Russian figures have already been imposed after Moscow's action in Ukraine last month.

On Easter Sunday, at least three people were killed at a checkpoint manned by armed separatists, with Russia blaming Ukrainian nationalist group Right Sector.

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has deployed around 100 mediators in Ukraine to monitor the situation in the east of the country.

So far the separatists have refused to relinquish control of buildings.

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Ferry Disaster: Boy Was First To Raise Alarm

The first person to raise the alarm about the sinking South Korean ferry was a child who called a fire station three minutes after the boat made its final turn.

The boy's call was forwarded to the coastguard two minutes later and was followed by another 20 messages from children on board.

A fire official said the caller's voice sounded shaky and it took a while to identify the ship as the Sewol as the boy was panicking.

"Save us! We're on a ship and I think it's sinking," Yonhap news agency quoted him as saying.

The boy who made the call is among the missing. 

Nearly 200 people are still missing

The fire station official asked him to switch the phone to the captain, and the boy replied: "Do you mean teacher?"

The pronunciation of the words for "captain" and "teacher" is similar in Korean.

Officials say the confirmed death toll has reached 104, with nearly 200 people still missing.

Of the 476 passengers and crew on board, 339 were children and teachers on a school outing to the resort island of Jeju.

Meanwhile, one of the crew members arrested over the disaster said they had tried to launch the lifeboats, but could not due to the tilt of the ship.

Lee seen in a promotional video in 2010

Media reports have also claimed crew members tried to contact officers on the bridge around half an hour after the ferry began listing to ask if they should give the order to abandon ship - but there was no reply.

Public broadcaster KBS quoted one as saying: "At the time, we could not confirm what the situation was on the bridge.

"We kept trying to find out but ... since there was no instruction coming from the bridge, the crew on the third floor followed the instructions on the manual and kept making 'stay where you are' announcements - at least three times."

South Korean President Park Geun-Hye has said the captain and some crew members of the sunken ferry committed "unforgivable, murderous acts" in the disaster.

Lee was arrested on Saturday along with a helmsman and the ship's relatively inexperienced third officer, who was in charge of the bridge when disaster struck.

He has been charged with negligence and failing to secure the safety of the passengers.

Senior prosecutor Ahn Sang-don has said four more crew members - two first mates, one second mate and a chief engineer - have been detained on allegations of failing to protect passengers and abandoning ship.

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Abu Hamza: '9/11 Made Everybody Happy'

Islamic preacher Abu Hamza said the September 11 attacks left "everybody happy", according to a tape played at his terrorism trial in New York.

In the tape, Hamza can be heard speaking casually of the attacks in the undated interview with a Canadian broadcaster.

"Everybody was happy when the planes hit the World Trade Center," he said.

"Anybody who tell you he was not happy, they are hypocrites."

At another point he says: "All Muslims are happy, even non-Muslims are happy."

He said the World Trade Center was a legitimate target because "it's the centre of evil … political and financial evil for the whole world".

Hamza likened what al Qaeda did to a hero in an American movie.

"This is what you teach your people in cowboy films when you see the aggressors being, doing bad things, and then the hero comes and gives him a couple of punches in his face," he said during the interview.

The tape was played in a Manhattan federal court after Judge Katherine Forrest turned down a request by defence lawyers to exclude it from trial on the grounds that it would unfairly prejudice their client.

Abu Hamza praying at the Finsbury Park Mosque in London in 2004

"Expressing clear and unequivocal support for terrorism is no doubt prejudicial," the judge said.

"However, the defendant is charged with just those sorts of crimes."

Hamza is accused of conspiring to support al Qaeda by trying to set up a terrorist training camp in 1999 in Oregon.

He is also accused of helping to abduct two American tourists and 14 others in Yemen in 1998. Four hostages died.

The Egyptian-born cleric, 55, has pleaded not guilty.

His lawyers have argued that Hamza, known for his fiery sermons in London, is responsible only for using inflammatory words, not for any overt criminal acts.

Hamza, who was indicted under the name Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, was extradited from the UK in 2012 at the end of a protracted legal battle.

He is expected to testify in his own defence during the trial, which began last week and is expected to last about a month.

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William and Kate Go Walkabout At Uluru

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have arrived at world famous Australian landmark Uluru, previously known as Ayers Rock.

The latest stop on the Royal couple's tour also saw them visit the nearby National Indigenous Training Academy, where they gave out certificates to students.

The Royals gave out certificates at an indigenous training academy

Kate described Uluru as "absolutely stunning" from the air, before she and William met people from the local Aboriginal community and watched some traditional song and dance.

Prince William was also given a spear as a gift.

The Royal couple then took a walk around the base of the ancient sandstone rock with two local guides.

A photo taken of the Duke and Duchess at the rock is reminiscent of the image of Prince Charles and the Princess of Wales, who visited the site in 1983.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited Uluru in 1983

Prince George stayed in Canberra with his nanny while his parents made the short flight to the Northern Territory.

The Royal couple are on a 19-day tour Down Under and have already visited Sydney and toured New Zealand.

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South Korea Ferry Tragedy 'A Murderous Act'

Timeline Of Doomed Ferry's Journey

Updated: 8:49am UK, Sunday 20 April 2014

The Sewol ferry sank in the East China Sea less than three hours after the first distress call was made to land.

Here is a timeline of the ship's voyage from Incheon:

April 15, 9pm

The Sewol leaves port in Incheon at around 9pm with 475 people and 150 vehicles on board, heading for Jeju Island.

April 16, 8.55am

First contact between vessel and land is made, with officer telling Jeju Vessel Traffic Services Centre (VTS) "our ship is in danger".

Survivors say passengers were told to remain in cabins.

April 16, 9am

Officer tells Jeju VTS ship is listing to the left and adds "it's impossible to move". Coastguard tells vessel to "wear life jackets and prepare as the people might have to abandon ship".

April 16, 9.05am

Other vessels notified as ferry continues to tilt to the side.

April 16, 9.30am

The coastguard, helicopters and other ships begin to arrive at the scene and rescue passengers who have escaped from the ferry.

April 16, 10am

Rescuers start to search for people in the overturned hull of the Sewol.

April 16, 11.20am

The ferry sinks in the East China Sea.

April 17

Text messages from people on board the ferry reveal passengers were ordered to remain in their seats and cabins as ship began listing.

Crew member Oh Yong-Seok reveals the captain waited 30 minutes before ordering the evacuation as officers tried to stabilise the vessel. By that time, the crew were unable to reach passengers because the ship was titled at such an acute angle.

April 18

Investigators reveal the ship's captain, Lee Joon-Seok, was not at the helm when the Sewol began to list. They are also examining why the ship's third mate ordered an abrupt turn around three hours before the vessel was due to arrive at Jeju Island.

Mr Lee, along with two more of the ship's crew, are arrested.

Vice-principal of Danwon High School, Kang Min-Kyu, is found dead on Jindo island. In a note found in his wallet, he described his rescue as "too painful while 200 remain unaccounted for".

April 19

Mr Lee issues a public apology for causing a "disturbance" and says he delayed the evacuation of the ferry because he thought the sea water was too cold.

Investigators reveal the third mate was steering the ship in difficult waters for the first time and in foggy conditions.

Divers trying to gain access to the ferry describe seeing bodies through its windows as the death toll officially climbs above 30.

April 20

Angry relatives clash with police on Jindo island over the speed of the recovery operation.

Divers break windows on the ferry to get inside the vessel and find more bodies, with the death toll confirmed above 50.

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Boston Marathon Returns One Year After Blasts

Tens of thousands of runners are preparing to take part in the Boston Marathon a year after twin bombings at the finish line killed three people and shocked the city.

The race is being held under increased police presence and new tighter security regulations.

In a show of support for the event, 36,000 of runners have registered - the second-largest field in the history of the race, which is the world's oldest annual marathon.

The cap of 27,000 was expanded to make room for more than 5,000 runners who were still on the course at the time of the explosions, for friends and relatives of the victims and scores of others.

One million people are expected to line the route.

Last year, a pair of homemade pressure-cooker bombs turned the event into a tragedy. In addition to the three people who were killed, another 260 were wounded.

On Tuesday, tributes marked the anniversary of last year's bombings

On Tuesday, the city marked the first anniversary with a day of tributes to the victims and to first responders who rushed to the scene.

But memories of last year's attack were stirred after the memorial service when a shoeless man in a black veil, shouting "Boston Strong", dropped a backpack on the street near the finish line.

The pack contained a rice cooker and the man was arrested and charged with possession of a hoax device.

The restrictions imposed on this year's event - the 118th anniversary of the race - include a ban on backpacks, bags and bulky outfits.

Unregistered runners, known as "bandits", who traditionally jump into the race at various points along the course, will be strictly prohibited this year.

More police tactical units and undercover operatives will be stationed along the 26.2-mile (42.2km) race.

The site of last year's blast off Boylston Street

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick said there was an effort to provide adequate security while retaining the race's traditional atmosphere so that it does not become "a race through a militarised zone".

"So it's about striking a balance, and I think we have struck that balance," he told CBS's Face the Nation.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 20, is awaiting trial and faces the possibility of the death penalty on 30 federal charges, including using a weapon of mass destruction.

His brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, died following a gun battle with police several days after the marathon.

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Russia Accuses Kiev Of 'Violating' Geneva Deal

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused Ukraine of breaking an agreement aimed at defusing tensions in the country.

He said: "Steps are being taken - above all by those who seized power in Kiev - not only that do not fulfil, but that crudely violate the Geneva agreement."

It came as pro-Russian separatists claimed they came under attack in the eastern city of Slavyansk.

A shootout in Slavyansk threatens fragile moves to de-escalate the crisis

Mr Lavrov said the deadly firefight, which reportedly left at least three dead and others wounded, showed Kiev did not want to control "extremists".

He said: "The authorities are doing nothing, not even lifting a finger, to address the causes behind this deep internal crisis in Ukraine."

The self-declared mayor of Slavyansk has appealed to Russia's President Vladimir Putin to help residents by sending in troops.

US Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Kiev for an official visit

This will fuel fears in the West, which accuses Moscow of stoking unrest, that the violence will be used as an excuse for Russia to seize more Ukrainian territory, in a repeat of the annexation of Crimea.

Russia also has tens of thousands of troops based along Ukraine's eastern border.

And concerns will only be heightened after Mr Putin signed a law making it easier for Russian speakers across the former Soviet Union to get citizenship.

An armoured personnel carrier flying a Russian flag in Slavyansk

US Vice President Joe Biden has arrived in Kiev for an official visit, where he is set to criticise Moscow.

The shootout, the cause of which is fiercely disputed, threatens to derail already shaky efforts to de-escalate the continuing crisis.

The deal reached between Russia, Ukraine, the US and European Union, demanded an immediate end to violence.

The Geneva accord called for illegal armed groups to disband, and for protesters to leave occupied government buildings.

Vladimir Putin has made it easier for Russian speakers to get citizenship

But pro-Russian separatists, who have seized offices across eastern Ukraine, have shown no signs of moving on.

Western powers have warned Moscow of further sanctions if it fails to bring its influence to bear on pro-Russian activists.

Mr Lavrov pointed out the authorities in Kiev had failed to remove protesters camped out in the capital.

He said: "Buildings in Kiev that were violently seized at the beginning of the Ukrainian events have not been vacated. Streets have not been cleared.

"This is absolutely unacceptable."

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Leopard Bites Terrified Man On Bottom

A leopard hid in the roof of a house in western India before launching an attack on petrified residents.

Footage shows the cat emerge through the roof tiles after being spotted by locals in Ballarpur, Maharashtra.

The villagers made a hasty retreat - but one man wasn't quite quick enough and felt a set of teeth in his backside.

Another was attacked as people tried to corner the beast, which looked as scared as those fleeing.

The animal had been hiding inside a roof

However, no serious injuries were reported.

At the end of the 45-second video, filmed from a nearby rooftop, the leopard can be seen trying to find refuge.

Eventually it settles in a bathroom, peering out to see that no one approaches.

India's Forestry Department has caught the animal and plans to release it into the wild.

The leopard peers out of a bathroom

Such scenes are becoming more common in India as illegal deforestation reduces animals' habitat and forces them to wander around in search of food.

Logging, earth-cutting and the extension of residential settlements and farmland into reserved forests and hillocks have also contributed.

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South Korean Ferry Families Clash With Police

S Korea Ferry: Final Contact From Doomed Vessel

Updated: 11:11am UK, Sunday 20 April 2014

A transcript of communications between the stricken Sewol ferry and the coastguard has lifted the lid on the final minutes before the order was given to abandon ship.

The conversations show panic setting in on board the vessel, with officers asking for help to "please come quickly" as it began to tilt to the left, three hours from its destination of Jeju Island.

The transcript also appears to back up claims that the evacuation order may have come too late for some passengers as officers said the ship was tilting so much it was "impossible to move" to check on them.

The communication, which begins with the first distress call made by the ferry on Wednesday morning, has been translated by The Associated Press.

It reads:

8.55am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, do you have reception of The Sewol?

Jeju Vessel Traffic Services Centre (VTS): Yes, Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju.

Sewol: Please notify the coastguard. Our ship is in danger. It's listing right now.

8.56am

Jeju VTS: Where's your ship? Yes, got it. We will notify the coastguard.

Sewol: This ship has listed a lot. Can't move. Please come quickly. We're next to Byeongpung Island.

Jeju VTS: Yes, we got it.

8.58am

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju. Do you have reception? Sewol, harbour affairs Jeju.

8.59am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, this is Sewol.

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju. Channel 21, please.

9.00am

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju.

Sewol: Jeju, Sewol here.

Jeju VTS: What's the current situation?

Sewol: Currently the body of the ship has listed to the left. The containers have listed as well.

Jeju VTS: OK. Any damage of the human life?

Sewol: It's impossible to check right now. The body of the ship has tilted, and it's impossible to move.

Jeju VTS: Yes, OK. Please wear life jackets and prepare as the people might have to abandon ship. 

Sewol: It's hard for people to move.

Jeju VTS: Yes, got it.

9.05am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, do you have reception of Sewol?

Jeju VTS: Yes, this is harbour affairs Jeju, Sewol.

Sewol: What's going on with the coastguard?

Jeju VTS: Yes, we have notified the coastguard. Currently we are calling Jindo VTS and Wando VTS. Please hold for a moment.

After this, Jeju VTS notified other ships and Wando VTS.

9.24am

Sewol: If this ferry evacuates passengers, will they be rescued right away?

Jeju VTS Even if it's impossible to broadcast, please go out and let the passengers wear life jackets and put on more clothing. The rescue of human lives of Sewol ferry... the captain should make your own decision and evacuate them. We don't know the situation very well. The captain should make the final decision and decide whether you're going to evacuate passengers or not.

Sewol: I'm not talking about that. I asked, if they evacuate now, can they be rescued right away?

Jeju VTS then said patrol boats would arrive in 10 minutes, but did not mention another civilian ship had already arrived near the scene.

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Farage 'Slandered' Front National, Le Pen Claims

The leader of the French Front National has claimed Nigel Farage slandered her party by calling it "anti-semitic".

Marine Le Pen, 45, told The Sunday Times Mr Farage had made "defamatory" and "extremely disagreeable" statements about her party.

Mr Farage has refused to join Ms Le Pen's right-wing alliance in the European parliament, siding with Nicolas Dupont-Aignan - a member of the EU Democrats party.

He claimed "anti-semitism is still embedded" in the FN and last week referred to the party's "compromising historic baggage", the newspaper reported.

Farage has sided UKIP with the EU Democrats led by Nicolas Dupont-Aignan

But Ms Le Pen has hit back, saying: "He is often reproached for the behaviour and comments of... his members.

"Slandering your neighbour to try and make yourself look whiter than white, it's not correct. He's doing it simply for electoral purposes."

Ms Le Pen was joined by UKIP founder Dr Alan Sked, who described Mr Farage as "alcoholic, dim and racist" in an interview with the think-tank Parliament Street.

He said: "He's got no idea. He can repeat things about how nasty the European Union is and how it's a threat to the working class but that's about it.

"Anything sophisticated is beyond his grasp."

It comes after two opinion polls showed UKIP was gaining ground ahead of European Parliament elections in May.

A poll for The Sunday Telegraph puts the party in second place in next month's European Parliament elections, three percentage points behind Labour on 30% and, crucially, pushing the Conservatives into third place.

Another, reported in The Mail On Sunday, reveals Nigel Farage could be on track to win a seat in the House of Commons. According to Survation, UKIP polled 32% in the Hampshire constituency of Eastleigh - four points ahead of the Conservatives - where the party narrowly lost out on winning in a by-election last year.

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Prince George Goes Walkabout With Bilbies

Prince George made his first walkabout on the Australian leg of the royal tour when he met some indigenous animals at a zoo.

The youngster looked fascinated as he was shown a bilby - a rabbit-like type of marsupial.

At one point, as he was held by his father Prince William, he held out his hand to attempt to touch the creature which was being fed by a keeper who has named the animal George in his honour.

George, dressed in a blue and white striped collared t-shirt and royal blue shorts, looked a little frustrated and waved his arms as he was unable to reach the animal, which was about a third of his size when standing on its hind legs.

Just before he was brought out for the cameras, the Royal family had been shown round the nocturnal house where several of Australia's animals who are awake during darkness are housed.

Staff said George coped well and was interested in what he saw, reaching out to a feather tailed glider and staring intently at some hopping mice and an echidna.

He was later given a soft bilby toy, which he promptly threw on the floor.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who was wearing a lemon yellow Stella McCartney skater dress, were visiting Taronga Zoo in Sydney where the new bilby enclosure will be named after their son.

The Royal couple went on, without their son, to be shown a few of the zoo koalas.

The zoo keeper who showed them round the enclosure, Paul Davies, said afterwards about George: "He was brilliant. He was regal. It was amazing how he coped with the dark environment of the nocturnal house.

"They seemed comfortable feeding (the bilby). Kate let him get really close. At one point he tried to grab the bilby by the ears.

"He was like any other child. He had a short attention span and wanted to go and look at something else. It was just like meeting any family."

Earlier, thousands of well-wishers turned out to see the Duke and Duchess mark Easter Sunday by attending a traditional church service in Sydney.

The couple arrived at St Andrew's Cathedral in the centre of the city and were greeted - as they have been throughout their tour of Australia - by officials and cheering crowds.

Kate looked elegant in a stylish dove grey Alexander McQueen coat and Jane Taylor hat, while William was in a smart suit.

If a Sunday falls within a Royal tour, visiting members of the monarchy usually attend a church service joining local parishioners.

At the cathedral's steps, the Royal couple were met by the Most Reverend Dr Glenn Davies, Archbishop of Sydney, and the Very Reverend Phillip Jensen, Dean of Sydney, and chatted to the senior clerics before the service began.

The Easter service was private and the large group of media covering the event were not allowed inside.

A bilby is an endangered desert-dwelling marsupial, the name of which comes from an aboriginal language from New South Wales meaning long-nosed rat. There are only about 10,000 left in the wild.

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Ukraine: 'Five Killed At Separatist Checkpoint'

A gunbattle at a checkpoint manned by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine has left five dead, it has been claimed.

Russia's state-run Rossiya 24 news station said the five died when gunmen attacked the post near the Ukrainian city of Slavyansk, which is under separatist control.

A separatist interviewed by Reuters at the scene said three of the dead were with the pro-Russian militia. He added that the attack had happened at 2am local time.

"We had three dead, four wounded," a fighters called Vladimir told Reuters at the checkpoint, where there were two burned-out jeeps.

Sky's Katie Stallard who has been to the scene says there are inconsistencies in the separatists' accounts and there is no coherent evidence to back up what they are saying.

Reuters TV footage of the scene showed two bodies, one of whom appeared to have gunshot wounds to the head and face.

Kiev's Interior Ministry said one person had been killed and three injured in an armed clash. It said police were trying to establish more details of what happened.

The separatists claimed the attackers were members of Right Sector, a hard-right fringe group that was part of the anti-Russia movement whose protests in Kiev and western Ukraine forced the former president to leave office. 

Right Sector denied being involved, instead blaming Russian special forces in an indication of the claim and counter claim that has been rife during the crisis.

A map showing the location of Slavyansk

The event prompted the self-declared leader of the pro-Russian faction in Slavyansk to appeal to Moscow to send in peacekeeping troops.

Ukraine and many in the West fear reports of clashes could provide a pretext for Russia to seize more Ukrainian territory.

Russia's foreign ministry said it was outraged by the shootout, describing it as a "provocation".

Pro-Russia Separatist gunmen maintain a firm grip over a string of towns across eastern Ukraine despite an international deal signed last week demanding they leave state buildings they are occupying.

On Sunday afternoon they declared a curfew in Slavyansk.

Russia, the US, the European Union and Ukraine struck a deal on Thursday aiming at de-escalating the crisis, part of which involves the separatists agreeing to lay down their arms.

Authorities in Kiev, who vowed to remove the separatists, said they have suspended military operations against the rebels until after Easter to give the militia time to comply with the agreement.

The deadline runs out on Monday, after which the US and the EU have said they will consider further sanctions against Russia, which is viewed as having influence over the pro-Russian militia operating in eastern Ukraine.

Earlier, Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk accused the Russian President of Soviet Union ambitions by saying Vladimir Putin has "a dream to restore the Soviet Union".

Meanwhile, the heads of the Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox churches traded barbs over the crisis in the country as believers flocked to church for Easter services.

More follows...

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