Egypt: 'Concern' As Scores Killed In Protests

Egypt: Timeline Of Unrest

Updated: 3:52pm UK, Saturday 27 July 2013

Key developments in Egypt since the beginning of the Arab Spring.

:: 2011

January 25: Egyptians stage nationwide demonstrations against the rule of President Hosni Mubarak.

February 11: Mubarak steps down and turns power over to the military, which dissolves parliament and suspends the constitution.

November 28: Egypt holds mutiple-stage parliamentary elections and the Muslim Brotherhood wins nearly half the seats in the law-making lower house.

:: 2012

May 23: First round of voting in the presidential elections.

June 30: Mr Morsi, elected with 51.7% of the vote, is sworn and becomes Egypt's first civilian and Islamist president.

August 12: The new president scraps a constitutional document that gave sweeping powers to the military and sacks Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who ruled after Hosni Mubarak was ousted in February, 2011.

November 22: Mr Morsi announces sweeping new powers for himself.

November 30: Islamist-dominated constituent assembly adopts a draft constitution despite a boycott by liberals and Christians.

December 8: The president annuls the decree giving himself increased powers.

December 15 and 22: 64% of voters in a two-round referendum back the new constitution. Egypt plunges into political crisis, with demonstrations by Morsi supporters and opponents sometimes turning deadly.

:: 2013

January 24: There is violence between demonstrators and police on the eve of the second anniversary of the uprising that toppled Mubarak. Nearly 60 people die in a week.

April 5: Four Christians and a Muslim are killed in sectarian violence.

May 7: President Morsi's cabinet reshuffle falls short of opposition demands.

May 16: Gunmen kidnap three policemen and four soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula. They are freed on May 22.

June 2: Egypt's highest court invalidates the Islamist-dominated senate, which assumed a legislative role when parliament was dissolved, and a panel that drafted the constitution.

June 15: Mr Morsi announces "definitive" severing of ties with Syria.

June 21: Tens of thousands of Islamists gather ahead of planned opposition protests.

June 23: Defence Minister Abdel Fattah al Sisi warns the army will intervene if violence erupts.

June 28: The US says non-essential embassy staff can leave after an American is killed during the protests.

June 29: The Tamarod (Rebellion) campaign which called rallies for June 30 says more than 22 million have signed a petition demanding Mr Morsi's resignation and a snap election.

June 30: Tens of thousands of Egyptians take to the streets nationwide determined to oust the president on the anniversary of his turbulent first year in power. At least 16 people die in protests across the country.

July 1: The opposition gives President Morsi a day to quit or face civil disobedience. Egypt's armed forces warn they will intervene if the people's demands are not met within 48 hours.

July 2: The presidency rejects the army's ultimatum, saying it will pursue its own plans for national reconciliation.

July 3: Mr Morsi is overthrown late in the day as the country's most senior army official announces the suspension of the Islamist-tinged constitution and a "road map" for a return to democratic rule to stop the bloodshed.

July 4: As Mr Morsi is held by the army, Supreme Constitutional Court Chief Justice Adly Mansour is sworn in as Egypt's interim president.

July 6: Fierce street battles between supporters of Morsi and their opponents leave at least 36 people dead.

July 8: Some 35 people are shot dead in clashes between Morsi supporters and the Egyptian army outside the Republican Guard's headquarters in Cairo.

July 9: Mr Mansour appoints economist Hazem el-Beblawi as prime minister and opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei as vice president. A military announcement backs up the appointments.

July 26: Millions pour into the streets of Egypt in rival demonstrations after a call by the country's military chief for protesters to give him a mandate to stop "potential terrorism" by supporters of Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood. Five are killed in clashes. Prosecutors announce Morsi is under investigation for a host of allegations including murder and conspiracy with the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

July 27: Clashes in the early morning hours between security forces and Morsi supporters kill at least 120 protesters in Cairo.

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Cannes: Jewels Stolen In Armed Hold-Up

An armed man has stolen jewels worth around 40m euros (£35m) from a hotel in the French Riviera resort of Cannes, police say.

Authorities said the hold-up took place during a jewellery exhibition at the Carlton Hotel in the city, which is best known for its annual film festival.

The lone gunman managed to evade security and escape with a briefcase containing the valuable stones.

A Cannes police spokesman said: "A full an urgent operation is underway to catch the culprit and recover these jewels. Thieves see Cannes as rich pickings."

It comes after a heist at the event last May that saw thieves make off with £910,000 worth of jewellery that was due to be loaned to movie stars from a local hotel.

That robbery took place in the hotel room of a female American employee of Swiss jeweller Chopard, while she was out for the evening.

Police said a strongbox containing jewels was ripped out of the wardrobe and carried off.

In a second theft during the festival, robbers stole a diamond necklace with an estimated value of £1.2m.

More follows...

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China: Video Shows Car Hit By Landslide

Video of a car almost being washed away by floods and a landslide in northwest China has been released.

The footage shows the driver trying to get away from the deluge, but changing his mind when he realises what is happening.

All the car's occupants escaped unhurt.

Almost a million people have been affected by flooding in the region since the start of July.

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Mali Elections Held As Voters Defy Threats

Malians are defying Islamist threats and voting in presidential elections - the first polls since last year's jihadist uprising and France's military intervention.

Voters have a choice of 27 candidates in the first election since a military coup upended one of the region's most stable democracies as Islamist militants hijacked a separatist uprising to seize a vast swathe in the desert north of the country.

A total of 6.8 million people have registered to vote in the West African nation of nearly 15 million.

People queue to vote in a school being used as a polling station

The president they elect is expected to usher in a new dawn of peace and stability in the conflict-scarred country.

The ballot opened at 8am local time (9am BST) under heavy security after one of the main Islamist armed groups in northern Mali said on Saturday it would "strike" polling stations.

"The polling stations and other voting places for what they are calling the elections will be targeted by mujahedeen strikes," the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) said in a statement carried by neighbouring Mauritania's ANI news agency.

Soldiers sit outside a polling station

It did not specify what form the attacks would take but the group warned Malian Muslims to "stay away from the polls".

In a polling station at a school in the capital Bamako, hundreds of voters had been queuing for more than an hour to cast their ballots.

"We are tired of bad governance. I'd urge the candidates to accept the results of our vote," said 56-year-old machine operator Kalifa Traore.

A ballot paper showing all the presidential candidates

The three-week election campaign ended on Friday. It played out without a major attack but continued violence in the north of the country has raised doubts over Mali's readiness to deliver a safe and credible election.

Critics at home and abroad have argued that Mali, under pressure from the international community, is rushing to the polls and risking a botched election that could do more harm than good.

But Louis Michel, the head of the European Union observation mission, sounded a note of optimism, saying conditions had been met for a credible first round.

A woman gets her finger marked with ink to cast her vote

"I believe that these elections can take place in a context and in conditions that are acceptable and do not allow for a distortion or an abuse of the result," he said.

Much of the worry ahead of the polls has been focused on Kidal, occupied for five months by Tuareg separatists until a ceasefire accord allowed the Malian army earlier this month to provide security.

Clashes between Tuaregs and black Africans in the run-up to the election left four people dead.

A man places his ballot in the box at a polling station in Timbuktu

And gunmen thought to be from the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) kidnapped five polling officials 200 kilometres (125 miles) north of Kidal.

Voting opened late in many parts of the town.

The ballot is the first since the military mutiny in March last year that toppled democratically elected president Amadou Toumani Toure.

The polls come after months of political turmoil

The ensuing confusion helped the MNLA, MUJAO and other groups allied to al Qaeda to seize northern Mali.

Haidara Aichata Cisse, the only woman in the race, goes head-to-head with 26 men, including past premiers Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Cheick Modibo Diarra, Modibo Sidibe and Soumana Sacko.

Keita is seen as the main frontrunner alongside Soumaila Cisse, a former chairman of the Commission of the West African Monetary Union.

Polls close at 6pm local time (7pm BST) and results are expected within five days.

A UN peacekeeping mission, which took control from an African mission at the beginning of the month, has allowed France to start withdrawing most of the 4,500 troops it sent to Mali in January to stop the Islamists from advancing towards Bamako.

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North Korea: Kim Jong-Un Attends Huge Parade

North And South: A Quick History

Updated: 2:23pm UK, Thursday 25 July 2013

By Mark Stone, Asia Corespondent, in Pyongyang

On the Korean Peninsula there are two versions of history. The version people learn depends on whether they are North Korean or South Korean.

Either way though, understanding both versions is key to understanding this most unusual of countries: its quirks, its people, its politics and its government's ability to survive against the odds.

There is no logical reason why the land that makes up the Korean Peninsula should be split into two countries.

The people either side of the border speak the same language and have the same ancestors.

But since 1945, it has been two countries: the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea).

From 1910 until the end of World War Two, the Korean Peninsula was Japanese territory.

With Japan's defeat, America and the Soviet Union took control of the peninsula.

They decided to split it in two: America didn't want the communist administration in Moscow to control the whole thing. Moscow felt the same about total American control.

And an agreement was reached between Washington and Moscow and an arbitrary line was simply drawn across the middle.

The North became The Democratic People's Republic of Korea. It adopted the communist ideology of its Soviet masters.

A young war hero called Kim Il-Sung became its prime minister.

The South adopted American-style democracy and became the Republic of Korea.

Just five years later though in 1950, Kim Il-Sung and his new army, backed by communist China and Russia, invaded the South.

Within months North Korean forces controlled almost the entire peninsula.

An American-led United Nations force fought back and the Korean War had begun.

Three years of fighting left well over a million people dead. Among them were soldiers from both Koreas, America, China, Russia and Britain.

But no side could claim victory. The border remained where it had been at the start - across the 38th Parallel - and to this day it is a heavily guarded and mined demilitarised zone.

In the decades that followed, the Soviet Union and China continued to prop up the North.

Inside the closed country, Kim Il-Sung's government controlled information and adopted their own version of history which states that the US-backed South Koreans invaded the North.

In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed. North Korea had lost its main communist ally and trading partner.

The 1990s were dominated by a catastrophic famine in which millions died. A once strong country began to crumble.

And yet the country remained cut off, shunning most Western offers of help.

Kim Il-Sung, at his death in 1994, was declared Eternal President.

His son Kim Jong-Il ensured continuity and - on his death in 2011 - the leadership was assumed by his son, Kim Jong-Un.

And so through extreme control and isolation spanning 65 years, the Kim dynasty has cemented its cult of personality through which the state is still run.

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China: Toddler Pulled From Pram And 'Murdered'

A two-year-old girl who was thrown to the ground by a man during a row over a parking space in Beijing has died, state media say.

A witness told the Beijing Times that the man, identified only by his surname Han, wanted to park by a bus stop in Beijing.

But the toddler's mother, who was on foot, would not move out of his way as she tending to her daughter at the time.

Han got out of his car and allegedly hit the woman before taking the girl out of her pram, holding her up and throwing her "forcefully" to the ground, said the witness, a street-stall owner surnamed Zhou.

"The baby made no noises after being dropped, not even a cry of pain," the newspaper quoted Zhou as saying.

Another man came out of the car and also beat the mother before the pair drove away, it added.

The woman was waiting by a bus stop on Beijings Keji road

Police reportedly found Han, who was released from prison this year after serving a sentence for theft, in a hot spring bathhouse and detained him.

"Han was put in criminal detention on suspicion of intentional homicide on Thursday afternoon," state news agency Xinhua said, citing the Beijing Security Bureau.

Han could face the death penalty if he is convicted of murder.

The incident sparked outrage on Chinese social media as weibo users vilified the attackers and expressed grief over the toddler's fate.

"When you come back in another life, dear baby, be sure to be born in another country," one user wrote.

Another weibo user called the attackers "perverse animals" and a third called for the death penalty as punishment.

"For this kind of murderer with an evil nature, the death penalty should be carried out immediately," the post said.

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Egypt: 'Dozens Killed' As Rallies Turn Violent

At least 70 people have been killed after security forces attacked a protest by supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsi in Cairo, according to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Doctors at a field hospital said another 1,000 people had been wounded in clashes on the road to Cairo's international airport.

"They are not shooting to wound, they are shooting to kill," Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad El-Haddad said, adding that demonstrators had been hit by gunshot in the head and chest.

He said the shooting started just before pre-dawn prayers at a round-the-clock sit-in staged by Morsi supporters at Rabaa al-Adawiya in east Cairo.

Protesters set off flares in a mass protest in support of the army in Cairo

Activists rushed blood-spattered casualties to the makeshift hospital, some carried on planks or blankets. Many had fatal head wounds.

A Reuters reporter at the scene counted 36 bodies at an improvised morgue.

Amid claims that rooftop snipers had opened fire on the vigil, Egypt's interior minister blamed the Brotherhood for the violence.

An Apache helicopter flies over Tahrir Square during the protests

Speaking at a news conference, Mohamed Ibrahim said the security forces would act "in a legal fashion" to disperse the protesters "as soon as possible".

The MENA state news agency, quoting an unnamed security official, reported that nine people had been killed in the violence and at least 200 wounded.

Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement that he was "deeply concerned" by the violence.

Protesters stand on power lines near Cairo's presidential palace

He said: "I am deeply concerned by recent events in Egypt, and condemn the use of force against protesters which has led to the loss of lives."

The violence broke out as rival rallies were held across Egypt for and against the overthrow of Mr Morsi, who is under investigation for murder.

Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians heeded a call by army chief General Abdel Fattah al Sisi to take to the streets, while the Muslim Brotherhood mounted counter-demonstrations in Cairo.

Lasers are pointed at an army helicopter near the palace

A spokeswoman for the pro-Morsi camp said eight Brotherhood supporters had died in a clash near the Cairo vigil alone, and another said rooftop snipers had opened fire.

At least 10 people have also been killed in Egypt's second city of Alexandria, where hundreds of people fought pitched battles, with birdshot fired and men on rooftops throwing stones at crowds below.

Several of those killed were stabbed, hospital officials said, and at least one was shot in the head.

The investigation into Mr Morsi over his 2011 escape from jail has signalled a clear escalation in the military's confrontation with the deposed leader and his Islamist movement.

MENA said Mr Morsi, who has been held at an undisclosed military facility since his overthrow, had been ordered detained for 15 days pending the inquiry.

Egypt's army-installed interior minister, Mohamed Ibrahim, said month-old Cairo vigils by Mr Morsi's supporters would be "brought to an end, soon and in a legal manner".

An army official said the military had given the party a Saturday deadline to end its resistance and join a military-set roadmap to fresh elections.

But the Brotherhood says it wants nothing to do with the army's transition plan and called its own crowds out for counter-demonstrations in a "day to remove the coup".

Mr Morsi has been in military detention at an undisclosed location since he was overthrown.

UN leader Ban Ki-moon has called on the military to free Mr Morsi and other Islamic Brotherhood leaders, said deputy UN spokesman Eduardo del Buey.

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Train Crash Driver Held For 'Reckless Homicide'

The driver of a speeding train that hurtled off the rails killing 78 people in Spain has been detained for "reckless homicide", according to the country's Interior Minister.

Speaking at a news conference in the northwestern city of Santiago de Compostela where the accident happened, Jorge Fernandez Diaz said: "He has been detained since 7:40pm on Thursday for the alleged crimes of reckless homicide."

The driver, named by local media as 52-year-old Francisco Jose Garzon Amo, was arrested in the hospital where he was recovering after one of Europe's worst rail disasters.

Police said he refused to answer their questions on Friday from his hospital bed and the case has been passed to the courts.

The wrecked train at the site of the crash near Santiago de Compostela

The driver will be questioned by a judge on Sunday, the interior minister added.

Under Spanish law, a suspect can be detained for a maximum of 72 hours before being heard by a judge.

"There are reasonable grounds to consider that he may have been responsible for what happened, which must be established by a judge and the investigation which has been opened," Mr Fernandez Diaz said.

Although the court hearing will be closed, it will give hints about the status of the investigation. The judge will decide whether to jail the driver as an official suspect, release him on bail, or release him without charges. If a judge finds sufficient evidence for a criminal trial, the suspect will be charged and a trial date set.

Some 78 people were killed in one of the worst crashes in Spain's history

The eight-carriage train, packed with 218 passengers, was said to have been travelling at more than twice the speed limit on a curve when it hurtled off the rails and slammed into a concrete wall, with one carriage leaping up onto a siding.

The grey-haired driver, who reportedly boasted of his love for speed online, has been under police surveillance in hospital since the accident on Wednesday evening but he was discharged today and taken to a police station.

He reportedly suffered head injuries in the accident that required stitches. Pictures showed him being led away from the scene with blood covering the right side of his head.

While Garzon's official explanation for the crash is awaited, blame has increasingly fallen on the driver, with Spain's railway agency saying it was his responsibility to brake before going into the high-risk curve where the train tumbled off the rails and smashed into a wall.

A man lights a candle in memory of the victims of the rail disaster

But it is still not clear whether the brakes failed or were never used.

The president of Adif, the Spanish rail agency, said that the driver should have started slowing the train 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) before the dangerous bend. He said signs clearly marked this point when the driver must begin to slow.

Meanwhile, doctors are continuing to try to identify the last three bodies of the 78 passengers killed in the catastrophe.

A memorial service for the victims will be held on Monday in the cathedral at Santiago de Compostela, the city just outside which the rail disaster occurred and a destination for Catholic pilgrims from around the world.  

Some 130 people were also injured in the crash.  

The Alvia 730 series train was travelling from Madrid to the port city of Ferrol when it derailed at about 8.40pm local time - 7.40pm UK time - on Wednesday.

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Egypt: Army And Morsi Camp Showdown Looms

A deeply polarised Egypt is braced for bloodshed ahead of rival mass rallies called by the army and Islamists who back the ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

Army chief General Abdel Fattah al Sisi has summoned Egyptians to the streets in an intended turning point in its confrontation with followers of Mr Morsi, the elected leader the military removed on July 3.

Mr Sisi said he wanted Egyptians to give the military a "mandate" to take the necessary measures against "violence and terrorism".

It comes as the country's state news agency reported Mr Morsi had been detained over accusations he killed soldiers and conspired with the Palestinian group Hamas.

Mr Sisi delivered his call in full military uniform and dark sunglasses

The claims were dismissed as "ridiculous" by his Muslim Brotherhood party, which has been camped out at street vigils calling for his reinstatement.

An army official said the military has given the party a Saturday deadline to end its resistance and join a military-set roadmap to fresh elections.

But the Brotherhood says it wants nothing to do with the army's transition plan and has called its own crowds out for counter-demonstrations in a "day to remove the coup".

Mr Morsi has been in military detention at an undisclosed location since he was overthrown.

UN leader Ban Ki-moon has called on the military to free Mr Morsi and other Islamic Brotherhood leaders, said deputy UN spokesman Eduardo del Buey.

Mr Ban also says he "urges all sides to act with maximum restraint" during the demonstrations.

A Morsi supporter (C) is chased by those backing the army earlier this week

Both the army and the Muslim Brotherhood dramatically escalated rhetoric in the lead-up to the rallies, following a month of clashes in which about 200 people, mainly supporters of Mr Morsi, have died.

The army has threatened to "turn its guns" on those who use violence.

In a Facebook post, the army said it will not "turn its guns against its people, but it will turn them against black violence and terrorism which has no religion or nation".

An army official told Reuters: "We will not initiate any move, but will definitely react harshly against any calls for violence or black terrorism from Brotherhood leaders or their supporters."

The main anti-Morsi youth protest group, which has backed the army, said it would go to the streets to "cleanse Egypt".

Thousands have been holding vigils calling for Mr Morsi's reinstatement

The Muslim Brotherhood accused the army of pushing the nation towards civil war and committing a crime worse than destroying Islam's holiest site.

The Brotherhood also claims the authorities have been stirring up the violence to justify their crackdown.

The rallies are expected to peak after the evening prayer marking the end of the day's Ramadan fast.

Police said they were planning large-scale reinforcements and the Interior Ministry said it would undertake "unprecedented measures to protect citizens and their property".

The head of the army, Mr Sisi, was appointed by Mr Morsi in a bid by the president to rein in Egypt's all-powerful military.

Anti-Morsi protesters with a poster of Mr Sisi

But Mr Sisi turned against him after a year in which the Egyptian economy floundered and support for Mr Morsi slumped.

Posters of the general have since appeared in shops and stalls across Cairo.

The US - which has close ties with Egypt's military - said it was "very concerned" by Mr Sisi's call for mass rallies.

After Mr Sisi's comments, the US announced it would suspend a delivery of F-16 warplanes.

The country remains deeply split over Mr Morsi's ousting.

The Brotherhood accuses the army of ejecting a democratically elected leader in a long-planned coup, while its opponents say the army responded to the will of the people.

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'Reckless' Train Crash Driver Held By Police

Police have formally detained the driver of a train that derailed in northwestern Spain, killing at least 78 passengers and injuring another 130.

The National Police Chief for the Galicia region, Jaime Iglesias, said driver Francisco Jose Garzon Amo was arrested in the hospital where he is recovering.

Mr Iglesias said Garzon would be questioned "as a suspect for a crime linked to the cause of the accident".

Asked at a news conference in Santiago de Compostela why the driver was being detained, Mr Iglesias added: "For recklessness".

The 52-year-old driver is being guarded by police and cannot yet testify because of his medical condition, the police chief said. He did not have any further details of his state of health but said that it could delay his statement.

Mr Garzon boasted about speeding on his Facebook page

Sky News understands Garzon's condition is not serious. Pictures and video footage have emerged of him being led away from the crash scene with his head covered in blood while other images show the engine cabin was largely intact compared to the rest of the train.

Police also said the number of dead, yesterday thought to be 80, has been reduced to 78 as forensic science units continue to identify remains.

The train's black box recorder has been retrieved from the wreckage. Early indications suggested the train may have been travelling at more than twice the speed limit at the time of the crash on Wednesday night.

The eight-carriage train came off the tracks on a bend, hit a wall and caught fire just outside the pilgrimage destination Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain.

The train entered the bend at 190 km per hour (120mph), according to local media reports. The speed limit on the curve was 80km per hour (50mph).

An official inspects the train's engine

As the investigation turned its focus more and more towards human error, the Spanish press revealed that immediately after the derailment Garzon allegedly said to officials at the railway station 3km from the crash: "I ***** up, I want to die. So many people dead, so many people dead."

Witnesses are also reported to have heard the driver shout into a phone: "I've derailed! What do I do?"

And as his country mourned, it emerged that Garzon is thought to have boasted on his Facebook page about how fast he was driving a train in March last year.

The driver posted a picture of a train speedometer at 200kph (124mph) on the social networking site. His Facebook page has since been blocked.

"What a blast it would be to go parallel with the Guardia Civil (Spanish police) and go past them triggering the radar. Haha what a fine for Renfe (Spanish rail operator) haha," he wrote on what is believed to be his Facebook page.

Staff from a hospital treating the injured hold a minute's silence

There was a second driver on the train, but it is believed Mr Garzon was the only driver at the time. He is understood to have taken control of the train from a second driver about 65 miles (104km) south of Santiago de Compostela.

According to reports, one of the drivers realised what was about to happen before the crash and made a desperate call to Renfe ahead of the bend, saying: "I'm going at 190kmh, I'm going to derail."

In a second call to Renfe after the accident, the driver explained that he was trapped in the train.

"We are human, we are human," he is reported to have said. "I hope there are no dead because they would fall on my conscience."

Two investigations are being carried out into the catastrophe - one to look into possible failings by the driver and the other to examine the train's in-built speed regulation systems and see if it was a technical malfunction that meant the driver was not warned of the reduced speed limit around the bend.

An aerial view of the carnage caused by the derailment

Many questions remain unanswered about what went wrong, with some experts claiming that high speed alone would not explain the crash and speculation that the train's braking systems might have failed.

Reporting from the scene, Sky News Europe Correspondent Robert Nisbet said investigators would be focusing on the statements made by the driver immediately after the derailment.

Nisbet pointed to further reports from Spanish media suggesting the driver had told officials at Santiago de Compostela train station that an electronic warning signal was flashing inside the driver's cabin to indicate he was going too fast.

"He is said to have pressed a button to acknowledge the warning but still apparently did not slow down," Nisbet said.

State train company Renfe said Garzon had been at the firm for 30 years and he had been driving trains for more than a decade. He became an assistant driver in 2000 and a fully qualified driver in 2003.

The impact was so huge one carriage flew several metres into the air

Garzon is understood to have been on the Madrid to Ferrol service, on which the crash happened, for a year, after receiving training specific to that line.

Meanwhile, with 72 of the 78 dead so far identified, medical experts are continuing to try to identify the six remaining victims as distraught families continue to wait for news about their loved ones.

DNA tests are expected to be carried out on those with catastrophic injuries, with results available in the coming days.

The victims of the crash included a US citizen and a Mexican. At least one British citizen and four children were among the 130 people injured. Just over 30 of those in hospital are still critically ill.

Video footage from a security camera showed the train, which had 247 people on board, hurtling into a concrete wall at the side of the track.

Relatives of passengers on the train wait for news of their loved ones

The impact was so huge one carriage flew several metres into the air and landed on the other side of a concrete barrier.

The Alvia 730 series train was travelling from Madrid to the port city of Ferrol when it crashed about 8.40pm local time - 7.40pm UK time - on Wednesday.

The crash occurred on the eve of a major Christian religious festival honouring St James, the disciple of Jesus whose remains are said to rest in a shrine.

Many of the dead or injured were believed to be Catholic pilgrims converging on the city.

Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who was born in Santiago de Compostela, visited the scene of the crash on Thursday and declared three days of official mourning across the country. King Juan Carlos also visited one of the hospitals where many passengers are being treated.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy visits the scene of the crash

Local reaction to the crash has been such that an appeal for blood donations resulted in hospitals having to turn people away because they could not cope with the demand. Many local hotels are also offering free rooms to relatives of those involved.

Wednesday's train crash is the worst Spain has experienced since a three-train accident in a tunnel in the northern Leon province in 1944.

Due to heavy censorship at the time, the exact death toll for the Torre del Bierzo disaster has never been established.

The official figure was given as 78 dead, but it is thought that as many as 250 could have been killed.

There was another serious accident in Spain in 1972 when a Madrid to Cadiz express collided head-on with a local train on the outskirts of Seville. A total of 77 people died, with more than 100 injured.

The latest crash - one of the worst ever in Europe - comes less than two weeks after six people were killed and scores injured in a train crash just south of Paris.

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