Ceasefire In Eastern Ukraine From Sunday

Al Jazeera Pair Go Free Before Retrial Starts

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 13 Februari 2015 | 20.18

Two Al Jazeera journalists have been allowed to leave prison in Egypt after spending more than a year locked up.

Baher Mohamed was freed hours after Mohamed Fahmy's release on bail following a ruling by a Cairo judge.

The men still face a retrial on charges that they supported the Muslim Brotherhood, whose leader Mohamed Morsi was ousted as president in 2013.

A third journalist for the broadcaster, Australian Peter Greste, was deported to his home country two weeks ago.

The brother of Egyptian national Baher Mohamed told the AFP news agency: "He is at home for the first time in more than a year."

Earlier on Friday, the brother of Egyptian-Canadian Mohamed Fahmy tweeted that he posted $33,000 bail following the decision to release them.

The men were initially detained in December 2013 and sentenced to between seven and 10 years.

The case further strained ties between Egypt and Qatar, where Al Jazeera is based, while human rights groups and several media outlets have described the arrests as politically motivated, saying the three were just doing their job.

Mr Greste was eventually freed under a hastily drawn-up law that gave President Abdel Fattah al Sisi the power to approve the deportation of foreign prisoners.

Mr al Sisi had previously acknowledged that the sentences had a "very negative" effect on Egypt's reputation and that he regretted that the trio had ever been put on trial.

Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, who spent more than 400 days behind bars, are due back in court on February 23 for the retrial, after a ruling that their original conviction was not supported by evidence.

Al Jazeera said the men's release was a "small step in the right direction" but that the "absurd" case should be dismissed.

While the retrial could see the case thrown out, it could also see the men convicted but sentenced to time served, or even face more prison time.

In Australia, Mr Greste said it was too soon for celebrations, adding: "The trial is ongoing, and nobody has yet been acquitted.

"I'm looking forward to the day when the court declares all of us innocent of the charges. Then the party will really begin."

20.18 | 0 komentar | Read More

Greek Crisis: Merkel Offers Olive Branch

Germany has relaxed its fierce opposition to an easing of the bailout demands faced by Greece, though there are no signs a new deal is imminent.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel offered an olive branch at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels after the country's biggest creditor had previously ruled out writing off debt or allowing a relaxation of austerity.

She told reporters: "Europe always has been geared towards finding compromises. Compromises are agreed when the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Germany is ready for this."

The new Greek government - led by prime minister Alexis Tsipras - rose to power on the back of anger at the rescue deal among Greeks that it was killing off any chance of economic recovery.

Its economy is around 25% smaller than it was before the crisis and poverty and unemployment have swelled, with the youth jobless rate above 60%.

Merkel has been the key cheerleader for austerity, fearing that any relaxation of the €240bn bailout's terms would send a signal to other heavily indebted nations that they could divert from reforms.

It was confirmed on Thursday that technical discussions had begun ahead of another meeting of eurozone finance ministers on Monday after talks broke down between them on Wednesday.

Hope that a deal can be reached to support Greek economic recovery and avoid the possibility of a default and exit from the single currency helped support Greek stocks on Thursday following days of volatility.

News of German support for compromise extended the rally on Friday, with some banks enjoying gains of more than 17%.

Tsipras expressed his hope that a "mutually acceptable" debt deal could be secured as early as next week.

He said: "The Greek delegation will take part in these meetings with crystal clear proposals and we will try and convince, not blackmail, our partners about our proposals.

"Our program will respect European rules .... we will keep balanced budget, respect the fiscal rules of the EU.

"We don't want to go back to era of deficits."

Tsipras said his government will propose a set of reforms particularly dealing with the "shortcomings of the Greek state" such as corruption and tax evasion.

The Greek government sees compromise as the way forward but it has ruled out extending the current bailout programme and its associated austerity.

It wants to negotiate a so-called bridge to tide Greece over for the summer until such time as a more permanent deal can be arranged.

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'American Sniper' Trial Shown Arrest Video

Police camera footage has revealed the moment officers confronted the former US Marine accused of murdering American Sniper author Chris Kyle.

The video shows Eddie Routh being swarmed by officers next to the pick-up truck he had been driving, hours after Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield were shot dead at a Texas gun range.

Jurors saw dashcam footage showing one police car ramming the vehicle, but failing to stop him.

After a pursuit reaching speeds of up to 100mph, the pick-up - which belonged to Kyle - has mechanical problems and stops in the middle of a highway.

Officers are then filmed subduing the double murder suspect when he emerges from the truck with his hands up.

Another video presented to the jury on Thursday showed Routh sitting in the pick-up outside his home in Lancaster, near Dallas.

Filmed before the police chase, it shows officers trying to coax him into surrendering as he makes remarks such as "Anarchy has been killing the world", "I don't know if I'm going insane" and "Is this about hell walking on Earth right now?".

Routh, 27, is said to have driven to his sister's house after the shootings in February last year, telling his sister that "people were sucking his soul".

Police lieutenant Michael Smith told the court in Stephenville that Routh "told us he'd taken a couple of souls and he had more souls to take".

Routh is pleading not guilty to murder by reason of insanity, but prosecutors say he was a drug user who knew right from wrong regardless of any mental illness.

Ex-Navy SEAL Kyle, 38, had been asked by Routh's mother to help her son deal with personal problems that had seen him admitted to a psychiatric hospital. The small arms technician had served in Iraq before leaving the Marines in 2010.

Lawyers for Routh say he was under severe mental strain and believed Kyle and Littlefield, who had taken him to the rural shooting range in their efforts to give him support and friendship, planned to kill him.

The court heard Kyle and Littlefield were armed when they were shot, but their weapons apparently had not been removed from their holsters. Kyle was shot six times and Littlefield seven.

The case is drawing intense interest thanks largely to the popularity of the Oscar-nominated film based on Kyle's memoir, which details his tours of Iraq and his record as the deadliest sniper in US military history.

The film, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Bradley Cooper as Kyle, has become the highest grossing war film ever.

Routh faces life in prison without parole if convicted of capital murder.

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More Fighting In Ukraine After Peace Deal

At least 11 service personnel have been killed and dozens wounded in the last 24 hours in eastern Ukraine, officials have reported.

It comes despite the ceasefire agreement reached on Thursday, which is due to come into force this weekend.

"In the Donbass, this night was not a calm one. The enemy shelled positions of the 'anti-terrorist operation' forces with the same intensity as before," a statement by the military said.

It said fighting had been particularly intense around Debaltseve, a key railway junction linking the rebel strongholds of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Pro-Russia separatists had used rockets and artillery to attack government forces holding the town, the statement added.

Rebel authorities said three civilians had been killed and five wounded in shelling by government troops on Luhansk.

Another two civilians were killed and six injured on Friday morning when a shell fired by separatists hit a busy cafe in the nearby town of Shchastya, the Kiev-controlled regional administration said.

Russia has been warned sanctions will be stepped up if the truce to end the 10-month Ukraine conflict is not fully implemented.

The ceasefire, which comes into effect on Sunday, was agreed after 16 hours of talks between Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany in the Belarusian capital Minsk.

A previous truce was violated almost immediately by both sides and there are doubts the latest one will hold.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the deal provided "a glimmer of hope - no more, no less".

Russia has already been hit with financial and diplomatic sanctions for allegedly supplying the separatists with heavy weapons and fighters - which it denies.

Mrs Merkel warned: "We hold open the possibility, if these new agreements are not implemented, that we must take further measures."

European Council President Donald Tusk said previously-agreed sanctions against 19 Russian and Ukrainian individuals and nine entities would still come into force next week.

"Our trust in the goodwill of (Russian) President Putin is limited, this is why we have to maintain our decision on sanctions," he said.

The terms of the ceasefire include a withdrawal of heavy weapons, Ukraine taking control of its Russian border, the granting of special status to rebel regions and addressing the humanitarian crisis created by the fighting.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko admitted to having doubts, saying: "It was very difficult negotiation and we expect a not easy implementation process."

The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe has said it plans to send 350 of its observers to eastern Ukraine to ensure the terms of the truce are monitored.

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Gallery: Ukraine Crisis: Fighting Increases (February 11)

Local residents look at the remains of a rocket shell on a street in the town of Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine

Seven civilians have been killed and 26 wounded in rocket strikes on the town of Kramatorsk

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Ceasefire In Eastern Ukraine From Sunday

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 12 Februari 2015 | 20.18

Ceasefire In Eastern Ukraine From Sunday

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A ceasefire in eastern Ukraine has been agreed after all-night talks in Belarus involving the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany.

It will come into effect on 15 February and will be followed by the withdrawal of heavy weapons, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

"We have managed to agree on the main things," he told reporters after the talks, which began on Wednesday evening and lasted 16 hours.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said: "The main thing which has been achieved is that from Saturday into Sunday there should be declared without any conditions at all, a general ceasefire."

The truce was signed by the so-called "contact group", comprising pro-Russian separatist leaders, Russian and Ukrainian envoys and European mediators.

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Gallery: Ukraine Crisis: Fighting Increases (February 11)

Local residents look at the remains of a rocket shell on a street in the town of Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine

Seven civilians have been killed and 26 wounded in rocket strikes on the town of Kramatorsk

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The body of a woman killed by the recent shelling lies on a street in the town's residential sector

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Members of the Ukrainian armed forces ride on an armoured personnel carrier (APC) near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine

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A previous truce signed last September collapsed soon after.

The key points of the latest agreement are:

:: A general ceasefire to start on Sunday

:: Heavy weapons to be pulled back from a division line determined by both sides

:: Ukraine to take control of the border with Russia

:: The provision of special status for the rebel regions

:: Measures for addressing the humanitarian crisis affecting thousands of civilians caught up in the fighting

Mr Putin said there was still disagreement over Debaltseve, a key transport hub and the centre of fierce fighting.

He understood rebels had surrounded up to 8,000 Ukrainian troops and expected them to lay down arms ahead of the ceasefire, but Mr Poroshenko disputed this.

The ceasefire deal was welcomed by French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who led the discussions.

Mr Hollande said Mrs Merkel, Mr Poroshenko and himself would ask the European Union to back the agreement at a summit later on Thursday.

Mrs Merkel said it offered a "glimmer of hope" that the conflict, which has claimed over 5,300 lives since April, would come to an end.

However, she added that "concrete steps must of course be taken and there will still be big hurdles ahead".

Ukraine received an extra boost when the International Monetary Fund confirmed a $17.5bn aid package for the country, conditional on sweeping economic reforms.

Russia also benefited from the ceasefire agreement. Its main stock market rose 6% on the news amid hopes it would lead to an easing of western sanctions.

Before the deal was announced reports suggested little progress had been made at the summit, in the Belarusian capital Minsk.

Sky's Stuart Ramsay, in Minsk, said: "This has been quite a remarkable night where it looked like they weren't even going to come at one point.

"Then we had this huge marathon meeting where everyone was convinced it would come up with a plan, then everyone thought there was a plan and then suddenly there wasn't a plan.

"Our understanding from the Ukrainians is that the rebels aren't happy with the agreement and of course the Ukrainian government itself said they weren't happy with the agreement."

Fighting in eastern Ukraine intensified ahead of the talks and continued as they were taking place, with 10 civilians and two Ukrainian soldiers killed in the last 24 hours, officials said.

Kiev claims around 50 tanks and dozens of other heavy weapons entered Ukraine from Russia while the summit was being held.

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Written By Unknown on Rabu, 11 Februari 2015 | 20.18

A Belgian court has convicted the leader of an Islamist group and many of his followers for sending jihadists to Syria.

Fouad Belkacem, the chief of the now disbanded Sharia4Belgium group, was led into the court in handcuffs and smiled as he was jailed for 12 years.

Only eight of the 46 accused appeared in Antwerp's tightly secured courtroom during the five-month trial, with the remainder believed to be in Syria or to have died fighting.

Judge Luc Potargent said: "Belkacem is responsible for the radicalisation of young men to prepare them for Salafist combat, which has at its core no place for democratic values.

"Sharia4Belgium recruited these young men for armed combat and organised their departure for Syria."

Belgium has more jihadist fighters per head of population than any other European country, with authorities estimating 350 Belgians have left for Syria, and the sentence comes with the country on high alert after a plot to kill police was uncovered last month.

Belkacem, 32, a Moroccan-born car engineer, is already serving a two-year sentence for inciting hatred against non-Muslims.

He is known for his street sermons and was a leading figure in persuading young Belgians to fight in Syria, despite never having been there himself.

The aim of his group of radicals was to establish Sharia law in Belgium, an intention he expressed in a series of YouTube videos.

Public prosecutor Ann Fransen told reporters: "Belkacem's words can only be interpreted as a call to violence and jihad."

One of the young men Belkacem was accused of radicalising is 20-year-old Jejoen Bontinck, who was charged with belonging to Sharia4Belgium.

Bontinck later became a key prosecution witness and was given a 40-month suspended sentence.

The teenager claimed he had travelled to Syria to help victims of the conflict, but his father, Dimitri, who brought him home, said he knew his son was being indoctrinated.

The other members of the group were sentenced to between three and five years in prison, with some of the sentences being suspended.

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TransAsia Offers Â£307,000 To Crash Families

Taiwan's TransAsia Airways will pay nearly half a million US dollars in compensation to relatives of each victim following a plane crash earlier this month.

The offer of $14.9m Taiwanese New Dollars (£307,000) for each family comes seven months after the airline made a similar payout to the families of 48 passengers killed in another crash last July.

TransAsia Airways Flight GE235 crashed last Wednesday just minutes after taking off from Taipei's Songshan airport.

There were 53 passengers and five crew on board and at least 42 of these were killed.

Dramatic footage captured by a bystander showed the plane hitting a road and cart-wheeling into the Keelung River.

The compensation deal comes after private discussions held in Taipei between the airline and representatives of some of the families affected.

A spokesman for the airline said the amount was offered as compensation for each person who died in the accident, adding: "We hope to reach a settlement with the families.

"We can fully understand that it would be hard for the families to accept it immediately. Still we hope the representatives could take the proposal back and take it into consideration."

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Gallery: Survivors Of TransAsia Plane Crash

Rescuers are working to help survivors. Click through for more photos

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Man Arrested Over Muslim Family's Murder

A man has reportedly been arrested on three counts of first-degree murder following a shooting in North Carolina.

Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, is being held in Durham County jail following the killings of three members of the same family in Chapel Hill.

Local media say the victims have been identified as Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his wife Yusor Abu-Salha, 21, and her sister, Razan Abu-Salha, 19, of Raleigh.

Mr Barakat is believed to have been a dental student at the University of North Carolina and volunteered with a charity providing emergency dental care to children in Palestine.

Hicks reportedly turned himself in after the shooting on Tuesday afternoon.

At the moment, police in Chapel Hill are not sure what the motive was.

Hicks reportedly described himself as an atheist on his Facebook page and regularly posted images and text condemning religion.

Some people on social media have claimed that the Muslim family were murdered "execution style", but that has not been confirmed.

In a statement police confirmed the three deaths and said the department is "questioning a person of interest in the crime and has reason to believe that there is no ongoing threat to the public".

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Over 300 Migrants Missing In Mediterranean

More than 300 migrants are missing after their boats sank in the Mediterranean, according to international agencies.

The information has come from nine survivors who arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa on Wednesday.

They were among more than 300 who had left Libya on Saturday in two rubber dinghies, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said.

"Nine were saved after four days at sea. The other 203 were swallowed by the waves," a UN refugee agency spokeswoman said on Twitter.

The IOM said the surviving migrants spoke French, so probably came from west African nations such as Ivory Coast and Senegal.

"Because of the bad weather conditions, the two dinghies collapsed and the people fell at sea. Many drowned," IOM official Flavio Di Giacomo said.

He said the migrants had left with another dinghy carrying a group of Africans, 29 of whom died from exposure.

The tragedy is the latest in a whole series involving migrants trying to get to Italy from North Africa.

The crossing is short but perilous and the vessels used are often overcrowded and in poor condition.

Earlier this week, the Italian coastguard said at least 29 people had died from hypothermia while travelling from North Africa to Italy's coast.

In late December the coastguard said they narrowly averted a "massacre" after a cargo ship was abandoned off the southern coast of Italy with more than 900 Syrian refugees on board.

Officers said the Blue Sky M's engines had been locked and its steering set on a course which would have seen it run aground in Italy's Puglia region.

A few days later another cargo ship was found abandoned by its crew off Italy with over 300 migrants on board, mostly from Syria.

The Italian navy took control of the ageing Sierra Leone-flagged ship, the Ezadeen, and steered it to the port of Corigliano Calabro.

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Russia Looks With Envy At China's Economy

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 10 Februari 2015 | 20.18

By Katie Stallard, Moscow Correspondent, in Blagoveshchensk

Blagoveshchensk translates as the "city of good news", but there has been precious little of that for the Russian economy lately.

The value of the rouble has plummeted and the country is heading into recession, hit by the falling oil price and Western sanctions.

Russia's sovereign credit rating has been downgraded to one notch above junk level.

The government says inflation could reach 17% this year, but people we spoke to on the streets of Blagoveshchensk in the Russian Far East said prices in shops were already spiralling.

"The prices have really jumped here," said 75-year-old Valentina Kirrilova.

"It's awful, horrible. I can come to a shop with 1,000 roubles (approximately £10) and it's not enough to buy anything."

An elderly couple said prices were rising "for everything".

From the riverside in Blagoveshchensk, they can look across to the gleaming towers of Heihe City in China.

The two great powers are separated by just a few hundred metres, the breadth of the frozen Amur River.

There were plans to build a bridge to make this a trade gateway between Russia and China.

But, as with so much of the Russian economy, the promised development has so far failed to materialise.

Instead, you take an old bus over a temporary pontoon bridge - in summer everything has to go by boat.

This time last year Russians found shopping on the Chinese side cheap, but now it's the other way around - the rouble buys you half as much.

Lubov Pikolova moved here from Russia five years ago. She works in one of Heihe's hotels and sees better prospects in China.

"We have non-stop crises in Russia," she explained.

"We always have to pay for this or for that. It's not easy economically to live in Russia, so many people are trying to leave it."

Others are coming for health care. In a Chinese dental clinic we found a number of Russian patients.

"Many Russians are coming here for dentistry because it's high quality," patient Inna Sergienko said.

"The prices are low and they are excellent doctors."

Back on the Russian side, we met businessman Dmitry Gudzovskiy, who runs two Chinese restaurants in Blagoveschensk.

He outlined the problems of doing business in Russia - the endless battle with bureaucracy, and to stay on the right side of the many laws.

"Not a single businessman will tell you on camera that he is paying bribes, but you should guess yourself," he said.

"You cannot do everything correctly in business, it's just impossible. If you will act as it is written in law you should stop your business right now and just go home.

"I think that the biggest problem of the Russian economy is that there is no dialogue between the Russian government and businessmen, they don't talk to us, they treat us as vassals."

Down by the Amur River, a bronze Soviet border guard stands to attention, a monument to a lost empire.

While the oil price was high, it was easy to believe President Vladimir Putin was rebuilding that power, reclaiming Russia's place in the world, but it doesn't feel so convincing here now.

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Topless Protesters Climb On Strauss-Kahn's Car

Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been confronted by topless protesters outside a courthouse in France before taking the stand at his "aggravated pimping" trial.

The economist was ambushed as his car approached the building, with Femen activists climbing on to the roof and shouting insults.

Many of the women had "guilty" scrawled on their half-naked bodies, amid allegations that Strauss-Kahn was involved in a prostitution ring.

Police handcuffed the demonstrators and forcibly removed them from the scene, throwing coats over the women's exposed chests.

Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, faces 10 years behind bars and a £1.1m fine if he is found guilty of organising prostitutes to attend sex parties with him in luxury hotels around the world.

In court, the 65-year-old denied any wrongdoing and insisted that his attendance at sex parties was rare.

The one-time presidential hopeful is expected to say that engaging in orgies with consenting adults is within his rights, and that he was unaware that the women giving him attention were prostitutes.

In 2011, a maid accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault at a luxury hotel in New York. That case was eventually settled in a civil suit.

His lawyer, Henri Leclerc, said at the time: "In these circumstances one isn't always clothed, and I challenge you to tell the difference between a prostitute naked and any other woman naked."

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Charles Urged To Address Human Rights In Saudi

Prince Charles is under pressure to raise humanitarian concerns when he meets Saudi Arabia's new king, Salman.

The Prince of Wales will be arriving in Riyadh on the latest leg of a six-day tour of Middle East countries which border areas dominated by Islamic State militants.

He has been asked to raise the case of jailed Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, who faces 1,000 lashes and at least ten years in jail after he was convicted of insulting Islam.

Kate Allen, Amnesty International UK director, said: "We don't expect Prince Charles to give up the red carpets and state banquets and become a human rights campaigner, but as a man who knows the Middle East well we hope that he will use this visit to pass on a few well-chosen words to his royal hosts.

"We know that freedom of religion is an issue close to the Prince's heart, and in Saudi Arabia he will surely want to raise the outrageous case of Raif Badawi. We still need the UK government to do more on Raif's case, but Charles' diplomatic intercession could help secure this man's freedom."

Amnesty has also called on the Prince to highlight the plight of foreign workers employed to build the infrastructure of the 2022 World Cup when he goes to Qatar.

Charles, and Prime Minister David Cameron, were criticised last month after visiting Saudi Arabia to pay respects following the death of the nation's 90-year-old King Abdullah.

The decision following the King's death to fly flags at half-mast on key public buildings in London, including Downing Street, drew sharp criticism from prominent politicians.

They highlighted claims of Saudi Arabia's abuses of free speech, women's rights and the country's role as a cradle of Islamist extremism.

Charles began his trip to the region by warning about radicalisation among young Muslims in the UK.

It is an issue he is likely to raise when holding talks with Crown Prince Muqrin and other senior Saudi government figures.

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Don't Arm Ukraine, Russia Tells The West

Moscow has hit out at calls for the West to arm Ukraine in the fight against rebels in the east of the country.

A Kremlin spokesman said it would be regarded as an attempt to destabilise the situation - as would the extension of sanctions against Russia.

The warning came ahead of further talks on Wednesday aimed at ending the Ukraine conflict, which has cost more than 5,300 lives since April.

The planned meeting, in the Belarussian capital Minsk, follows last week's discussions between Russian president Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko, led by Germany and France.

Representatives of Ukraine, Russia, separatists and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe are meeting later to lay the groundwork for Wednesday's negotiations.

Details of last week's talks have not been revealed although a French diplomatic official said they included the setting up of a demilitarised zone between Ukraine and Russia, which remained a sticking point.

US President Barack Obama has come under increasing pressure to provide military aid to Ukraine amid claims Russia has been arming the rebels - claims denied by Moscow.

After meeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Washington on Monday, Mr Obama said he had ordered his team to see "whether there are additional things we can do to help Ukraine bolster its defences in the face of Russian aggression".

However, Ms Merkel is firmly opposed to arming the Ukrainian military, saying it will hinder attempts to find a solution to the violence. "It has always proved to be right to try again and again to sort such a conflict," she said through a translator.

A peace deal was reached last Autumn but it has been repeatedly been violated by both sides, and bloodshed has increased significantly in the past two weeks.

On Tuesday, the Ukrainian national guard reportedly launched an offensive against pro-Russian separatists near the strategic south-eastern port city of Mariupol.

The day before, a powerful explosion rocked a chemical plant in the rebel stronghold of Donetsk after shelling by government forces.

According to the Ukraine military, seven of its soldiers have been killed and 23 wounded in fighting with rebels in the past 24 hours.

A spokesman said fighting was particularly intense around the town of Debaltseve, a major rail and road junction northeast of Donetsk.

Meanwhile, about 2,000 Russian reconnaissance troops have started month-long exercises in southern Russia, Interfax news agency has reported.

Another news agency, RIA, said more than 600 were in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in March.

On Monday, Kiev said about 1,500 Russian troops had crossed the border into Ukraine via rebel-controlled border posts over the weekend.

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Gallery: Ukraine Fighting: Latest Pictures

Ukrainian servicemen unload Grad rockets from a truck before launching them towards pro-Russian separatist forces outside Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine

At least nine Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and 26 wounded in fighting with Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine's eastern regions in the past 24 hours

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Plight Of Refugees Fleeing Terror Of Boko Haram

Written By Unknown on Senin, 09 Februari 2015 | 20.18

By Alex Crawford, Sky's special correspondent in Manoua, northern Cameroon

The terror of Boko Haram has forced a six-week delay for Nigeria's presidential elections - but few Nigerians who have escaped the extremists believe their power will be curbed in that time.

Safety has come at a heavy price for tens of thousands of Nigerians who have run away from the Islamic militant group and are now sheltering in neighbouring Cameroon.

They scratch around for food and complain bitterly at the shortage of water in the huge refugee camp north of Maroua which is now their home.

There are rows and rows of tents made of plastic sheeting supplied by the UN refugee agency UNHCR which now house families - but there are also large numbers of fragile one-room stick homes.

Halima Adam and her five children live in one of them.

Tears roll down her cheeks as she tells Sky News how the militant fighters murdered her husband and she fled for her life, over the border to Cameroon.

A free and fair election in her homeland is not her first priority right now. Surviving is.

"I'm hungry," cries her 12-year-old daughter Aisha. Her three-year-old sister asks her mother: "Maybe they've come to give us food or water?" She's talking about the foreigners in their shack - us.

But along with the tens of thousands like her, she will not be able to vote in the upcoming Nigerian elections.

The polls have been delayed for six weeks until March 28 in the hope that the danger of Boko Haram can be more adequately contained.

But few believe that is the sole reason for the vote delay or that the militants who have grown increasingly powerful in northern Nigeria, can be cowed in that time.

Many sceptics believe the set-back to the voting could have more to do with the increasingly close race between the current President Goodluck Jonathan, who is seeking re-election, and his rival, Muhammedu Buhari.

Certainly many of the refugees we spoke to in the huge camp (31,222 registered refugees but locals say the more accurate figure is 47,000+) insist they feel let down by their government and the Nigerian army.

"The military have sold us to the Boko Haram fighters," said Yohanna Ayamesi, one of the refugees.

"They're just playing with Boko Haram. There were 30 of us and the militants killed 27. I'm just one of three who survived. The powerful Nigerian army can't take on Boko Haram. They are working with them. They have sold out the poor of Nigeria."

His view is replicated through much of the camp and in northern Nigeria.

The attacks by Boko Haram appear to be every more frequent and deadly.

The extremist group wants to create its own caliphate across Western Africa much like Islamic State in Syria and Iraq - and the violence is spilling more and more often across the Nigerian borders and into her neighbours' backyards.

Cameroon and Niger have both suffered Boko Haram attacks within the past week alone. Niger had two attacks within three days.

The decision by the five West African nations of Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger, Benin and Chad have agreed to pool resources and deploy a combined force of 8,750 troops into the area by probably as early as next month.

But the idea that they will be able to curb the militant group's activities within the next six weeks before the new election date, is seen as hopelessly optimistic by most civilians.

20.18 | 0 komentar | Read More

Gunman Knocked Down In Attempted Car-Jacking

Footage has been revealed of an armed man trying to escape a high-speed police chase by hijacking a car on a busy motorway.

Two men had been tracked by police from Queensland, Australia, on a 93-mile (150km) police chase from near Brisbane through to New South Wales.

Police halted the blue Mitsubishi Lancer with road spikes at Tweed Heads before one of the men fired his semi-automatic handgun at police.

He then tried to shoot at a passing car, forcing it to stop suddenly and the car behind it to plough into its back, sending belongings across the busy Pacific Motorway.

Both drivers appeared unhurt.

Apparently trying to hijack another car, the 32-year-old pointed his gun at another vehicle, which struck him, knocking the gun from his hand.

Lying by the roadside, the man was then arrested by police, who had been following the pair while dodging bullets.

The other man, aged 20, was also arrested by police.

New South Wales Police said the men have been charged with intent to murder, discharging a firearm to avoid arrest, attempted car-jacking and Skye's law.

Skye's law is aimed at greater punishment for people who lead police on dangerous high-speed chases and is named after 19-month-old Skye Sassine, who was killed when two alleged thieves crashed into her parents' car in Sydney.

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Kremlin: Don't Issue Ultimatums To Putin

Vladimir Putin will not be spoken to in the language of ultimatums, a Russian radio station has quoted the Kremlin as saying.

Reports suggest German Chancellor Angela Merkel had given him until Wednesday to agree a peace plan over Ukraine or face new sanctions.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Govorit Moskva radio: "Nobody has ever talked to the president in the tone of an ultimatum - and could not do so even if they wanted to."

The leaders of Ukraine, Germany, France and Russia are preparing for a summit in the Belarussian capital of Minsk on Wednesday, aiming to end the 10-month conflict in eastern Ukraine, which has killed more than 5,000 people.

Putin hosted Merkel and the French leader Francois Hollande for talks in the Kremlin on Friday and the Wall Street Journal had reported that Merkel had given Putin until Wednesday to agree to a Franco-German peace plan.

Meanwhile, the European Union has approved new visa bans and asset freezes on more Ukrainian separatists and Russians but has suspended the new sanctions until 16 February to give peace talks a chance, according to French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

He said: "The principle of the sanctions will be kept but their implementation will depend on the situation on the ground.

"We will assess the situation again next Monday."

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Hooded Gunmen Fire On Police In Marseille

Hooded gunmen have fired on police in the French city of Marseille where the Prime Minister Manuel Valls had been due to visit.

An armed gang of up to 10 people targeted a police car with Kalashnikov rifles on the notorious La Castellane housing estate on Monday morning.

Some 7,000 residents in the area were put lockdown and ordered not to go outside.

A creche was also evacuated as police special forces were sent into the sealed-off estate, which is plagued by drug gangs and violence.

A helicopter circled overhead.

Local politician Samia Ghali tweeted that La Castellane is in a "state of siege", adding it is was her "worst nightmare".

She later told BFMTV: "It's got everything - prostitution, drugs trafficking, violence.

"It's a dangerous cocktail and we saw evidence of that today."

French journalist Stefan De Vries told Sky News: "The area is sealed now and heavily armed squad teams are in the area.

"There is a very high murder rate but almost all the murders are gang-related. Very few victims are civilians."

Sky's Foreign Editor Sam Kiley said: "The gap between organised crime and terrorists is quite blurred because of the access to weapons."

Mr Valls had been due in the city to hail the "excellent" results of a crime crackdown in France's second largest city.

France has been on high alert in the wake of recent terror attacks in Paris that left 20 people dead, including the gunmen.

Last week, two soldiers protecting a Jewish centre were wounded in a knife attack in the city of Nice.

The shooting in Marseille comes as a senior French official said the country was stepping up its efforts to combat extremism.

In response to the threat posed by returning jihadists, Elisabeth Guigou, president of the French National Assembly's Committee on Foreign Affairs, said France is ramping up security.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, she said the measures included reinforcing border inspection and setting up hotlines.

"We estimate that about 1,300 French people or residents in France have been concerned by going back and forth to Syria or to Iraq, so that's quite a lot of people to keep an eye on," said Ms Guigou.

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