Tonga Yacht: Cocaine And Body Found On Board

Police in the South Pacific are investigating how a yacht carrying a decomposed body and £78m worth of cocaine washed up on a deserted tropical island.

Australian detectives said international law agencies had been monitoring the 13m (42ft) vessel, called JeReVe, from when it left South America until they lost contact with it last month.

Two divers discovered the boat off Tonga's Vava'u island group and found a man's body when they went on board.

"Also located on board that vessel were 204, 1kg (2.2lb) blocks of cocaine destined for the Australian market," acting national manager for serious and organised crime David Sharpe told a news conference.

The yacht, which Tongan authorities were unable to search initially because of difficult tidal conditions and its remote location, was eventually found to be carrying the drugs in its hull.

Police and customs officials launched an investigation in August after being alerted that a vessel was en route from Ecuador to Australia.

They formed a special group with US authorities to examine vulnerabilities in the South Pacific being exploited by international organised crime syndicates.

"Vessels transiting through the Pacific into Australia have been identified as a high-risk area of drug smuggling," Mr Sharpe said.

In late 2010, Australian police said they had arrested four men in Sydney over a plot to smuggle almost 700kg (1,540lb) of cocaine into the country via Tonga.

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Ikea 'Regrets' Using Forced Prison Labour

Ikea says it "deeply regrets" use of forced prison labour by suppliers in communist East Germany more than two decades ago.

The Swedish furniture giant apologised after commissioning a report into claims political prisoners worked in factories making its products in the 1960s and 70s.

The company says it never condoned the use of forced labour but the report showed it failed to properly vet how its suppliers were operating.

The report concludes that Ikea managers "were aware of the possibility that political prisoners would be used in the production of Ikea products in the former GDR".

"We deeply regret that this could happen," said Jeanette Skjelmose, an Ikea manager.

"The use of political prisoners for manufacturing was at no point accepted by Ikea."

But she added: "At the time we didn't have the well-developed control system that we have today and we clearly did too little to prevent such production methods."

Ikea commissioned accountants Ernst & Young to look into claims aired by a Swedish TV documentary in June but first raised by a human rights group in 1982.

Rainer Wagner, chairman of the victims' group UOKG, said Ikea was just one of many companies that used forced prison labour in East Germany.

"Ikea is only the tip of the iceberg," he told The Associated Press in an interview earlier this week.

Wagner said he hoped that Ikea and others would consider compensating former prisoners, many of whom carry psychological and physical scars.

"Ikea has taken the lead on this, for which we are very grateful," he told a news conference in Berlin, where the report was presented.

Peter Betzel, the head of Ikea Germany, said the company would continue to support efforts to investigate the use of prisoners in East Germany in future.

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War Veteran 'Murdered By Drug Addict'

By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent

An elderly war veteran was murdered by a mother who took him "a plate of food" in a "brutal" and "violent assault", a court has heard.

William Davis, who had celebrated his 92nd birthday shortly before his death, was found in a pool of blood in his home in Willenhall, near Wolverhampton in April.

Charlotte Frazier-Doody, who lived opposite Mr Davis on Hobley Street, is accused of murdering him.

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that, on the afternoon of April 1, a lady who lived next door to Mr Davis heard "banging noises".

They "played on her mind" and, at 6pm, she and another woman, who had a key to Mr Davis' house, went to check on him.

Inside, in a downstairs back room, they found Mr Davis, who lived alone, "covered in blood and gravely injured, at that stage he was still alive".

Prosecuting, Peter Grieves-Smith QC, told the jury that the emergency services, who had been called, were unable to save Mr Davis, who had suffered "massive head injuries", including skull fractures and brain injuries. He died just after 7pm.

"Multiple blows had landed on his head and face with a relatively heavy weapon," said Mr Grieves-Smith.

The elderly man was "lying on the ground defenceless", he added.

Mr Grieves-Smith said Mr Davis, who did his own cooking and cleaning, but was frail, and moved around with the aid of a walking frame or stick, had CCTV installed so he could see on his TV who was at his front door.

"We suggest he must have known the person he let into his house and killed him," he said.

The prosecution said that, at the time of the murder, Frazier-Doody was not working and was a drug addict. They said the defendant admitted taking Mr Davis a meal, and claims she told a neighbour Mr Davis had shown her his war medals.

"We say she went inside and killed him," said Mr Grieves-Smith. He told the court the defendant's DNA was found in the house, along with a clump of her hair close to Mr Davis' body.

She denies rummaging through a neighbour's bin and telling him "she had done something really bad ... she said she had been in a fight and hit somebody, she said she had then put clothes in a bin".

Mr Grieves-Smith claimed Frazier-Doody had remarked after Mr Davis' death: "I was hoping he would have left me something in his will."

She was, he said, "connecting his death to the possibility of her financial benefit and it begs the question, why?".

He told the jury the murder weapon has never been found. Cash totalling £280 was found in Mr Davis' wallet. His son said all that was missing from his home was a set of saucepans.

Frazier-Doody denies murder. The trial continues.

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Hubble Space Telescope Snaps Oldest Galaxy

The Hubble Space Telescope has recorded what is believed to be the most distant object ever observed - a fuzzy cluster of stars 13.3 billion light years away.

Scientists think the galaxy, code-named MACSO647-JD, could be one of the building blocks of the early cosmos.

It dates back to when the universe was just 3% of its present age of 13.7 billion years.

Light from the tiny embryonic galaxy began its journey to Earth 420 million years after the Big Bang that created the universe.

Now it has been pictured with the help of a natural "zoom lens" more powerful than any man-made telescope.

Gravity from a huge cluster of galaxies between the Earth and MACSO647-JD bent light rays from the object in a way that massively magnified its image.

The "gravitational lensing" effect allowed astronomers to photograph the galaxy using Hubble.

Dr Marc Postman, from the Space Telescope Science Institute in the US, led the Cluster Lensing And Supernova survey with Hubble (Clash) team.

The Hubble Space Telescope

He said: "The cluster does what no man-made telescope can do. Without the magnification, it would require a Herculean effort to observe this galaxy."

It is the second time this year that the record for the most distant object has been broken.

In April, Clash astronomers announced the discovery of a galaxy that existed when the universe was about 490 million years old, making it more remote than anything seen before.

The new galaxy is 70 million years older than this object.

MACS0637-JD is less than 600 light years across, making it a galactic microbe.

In comparison, the Milky Way is 150,000 light years wide. The baby galaxy has a mass roughly equivalent to between 0.1 and 1% that of all the stars in the Milky Way.

Dr Dan Coe, also from the Space Telescope Science Institute, said: "This object may be one of the many building blocks of a galaxy.

"Over the next 13 billion years, it may have dozens, hundreds or even thousands of merging events with other galaxies and galaxy fragments."

The team spent months confirming that the object really was a distant galaxy.

Some nearby objects such as red stars, brown dwarf stars and dusty star clusters can mimic the appearance of a very distant galaxy.

The Hubble telescope was used to observe three magnified images of MACS0637-JD produced by gravitational lensing.

To check the results, astronomers also studied images from the American space agency Nasa's Spitzer Space Telescope.

Galaxy distances are measured by looking at their "red shift" - the extent to which their light waves are stretched and made redder as the expanding universe carries them away from the Earth.

MACS0647-JD had a "red shift" of around 11, meaning that its light was so stretched it could only be seen through near-infrared filters.

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Dave Lee Travis Arrest 'Nothing To Do With Kids'

DJ Dave Lee Travis has denied any wrongdoing after being arrested by police investigating the Jimmy Savile sex abuse claims.

Speaking outside his home near Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, the 67-year-old protested his innocence and said he did not want his name associated with "bloody evil" child abuse.

He said: "This is nothing to do with kids, all right? That's the first thing. Because that to me is the most important thing in the world and I do not wish to have my name sullied around something that bloody evil, to be honest.

"The second thing I want is to say, yes, there's a complete denial there, but there's nothing else I can tell you because otherwise I might be stepping on the police's feet and I don't want to do that because it might affect their investigations."

Travis had previously denied allegations, made last month, that he groped two women while in BBC studios. One claimed he had put his hand up her skirt, while the other said he had "jiggled" her breasts.

The former radio One DJ told reporters today: "There's one very important point I want to get across here - when I read the papers this morning I could not believe it. It was like, you know, 'DLT caught in Savile probe' and all this.

"I'm going to make one thing extremely clear to you - the Savile probe is nothing to do with things I've been talking to the police about.

Burma's Aung San Suu Kyi used to listen to DLT's World Service show

"I was accused quote of squeezing the boobs of a couple of women. One, you know... and the other was somebody from 19... God knows, 67 or something, which is incredible.

"So the point I want to make here is that none of the things I've been talking to the police about, or have talked to them about, is to do with children."

He added: "I am and always have been completely abhorred by anything to do with children and anything to do with child molestation and anything like that.

"I don't really want to be in a headline where people look and see Savile's name and see my name and think 'Oh God, is he at it as well?'

"Not true, all right? You have a categorical denial about children. That is absolutely set in concrete, I promise you."

Travis said he had willingly spoken to police and would happily continue to help them.

His comments came after his weekend radio show was taken off air "with immediate effect" by Magic AM following his arrest on Thursday.

A spokeswoman for Bauer Media, which owns Magic AM, said: "Bauer Media has decided to take (Dave Lee Travis) off air with immediate effect from his Magic AM weekend shows, which broadcast across the north of England.

"We understand that the allegations about which he was questioned by police pre-date his time as a freelance contributor to Magic AM.

"While we can make no judgement on the matters under investigation, we believe it would be inappropriate for him to broadcast until they are resolved."

The Metropolitan Police have revealed they are now dealing with around 450 potential victims, the majority of whom claim they fell prey to Savile.

Officers are looking at three strands within their inquiry: claims against Savile, those against Savile and others, and those against others.

Most of the "others" allegations have been made against people associated with the entertainment industry.

Ex-glam rocker Gary Glitter, comedian Freddie Starr and a 73-year-old man have already been arrested and bailed in connection with the investigation.

A 1977 episode of Top Of The Pops featuring Travis was due to be shown on BBC4 last night but was pulled.

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Corby By-Election: Labour Takes Tory Seat

Labour's Andy Sawford has been elected MP for Corby and East Northampton, winning a key marginal seat from the Conservatives.

Mr Sawford secured a majority of nearly 8,000 in seizing the Commons seat from the Tories, comfortably defeating rival Christine Emmett.

The Liberal Democrats humiliatingly lost their deposit despite demanding a last-ditch recount.

It is the first time in 15 years Labour has taken a Tory seat in a by-election, giving a boost to Labour leader Ed Miliband.

The by-election in the Northamptonshire seat was forced by the resignation of Conservative MP Louise Mensch to spend more time with her family in the US.

Turnout was just under 45%, in stark contrast to the police and crime commissioner elections, which also took place on Thursday and saw as few as 10% of voters bothering to cast a ballot in some areas.

Victorious Mr Sawford suggested it had set the party on track for a successful general election in 2015, declaring: "The road to Downing Street runs through Corby."

He said the result was "a damning verdict on (David) Cameron's betrayal of the British people".

The election was triggered after Louise Mensch resigned

But the Prime Minister dismissed the outcome as "a classic mid-term result".

Following the result, Mrs Mensch said on her Twitter page: "Given circumstances, v strong performance indeed by Christine Emmett."

She added: "Didn't expect Lib Dems to lose deposit though. Meanwhile, wish @AndySawford the very best in representing #Corby."

Before the result was declared, Mrs Mensch said she would accept responsibility for an election loss.

Again on Twitter, she said: "Election result will not be a verdict on either Christine, or the Conservatives, but only on the decision I took to step down mid-term."

She added: "Though I had to resign to unite our family, there was large & entirely understandable local anger. I wish I had been able to see out my term."

Conservative Party co-chairman Grant Shapps took a swipe at Mrs Mensch, saying he believed MPs who stood for election "should stay there".

He told Sky News: "I saw a tweet from her saying that actually she understands why people would be miffed.

"I have been there and I've heard what people say on the doorstep - MPs should stay the course. I think it would be very helpful to stand for the full parliament."

The result came as Mr Cameron struggled to defend the Government's handling of the PCC elections.

The Prime Minister insisted the victorious candidates still had a mandate, arguing that turnout was always going to be low for new posts.

But the Electoral Commission announced that it will carry out an inquiry into the lack of public engagement, saying it had disagreed with "a number of decisions" taken by the coalition.

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Demoted Christian Wins Facebook Post Ruling

A Christian man demoted for posting his opposition to gay marriage on Facebook has won his breach of contract action against his employers.

Adrian Smith lost his managerial position, had his salary cut by 40%, and was given a final written warning by Trafford Housing Trust (THT) after writing gay weddings in churches were "an equality too far".

The comments were not visible to the general public, and were posted outside work time, but the trust claimed he broke its code of conduct by expressing religious or political views which might upset fellow workers.

Mr Smith brought breach of contract proceedings, saying the trust acted unlawfully in demoting him.

At London's High Court Mr Justice Briggs ruled in his favour, saying the trust did not have a right to demote Mr Smith as his Facebook postings did not amount to misconduct and was a breach of contract.

Justice Briggs concluded: "Mr Smith was taken to task for doing nothing wrong, suspended and subjected to a disciplinary procedure which wrongly found him guilty of gross misconduct.

"(He was) then demoted to a non-managerial post with an eventual 40% reduction in salary. The breach of contract which the Trust thereby committed was serious and repudiatory."

Mr Smith said in a statement: "I'm pleased to have won my case for breach of contract today. The judge exonerated me and made clear that my comments about marriage were in no way 'misconduct'.

"Britain is a free country where people have freedom of speech, and I am pleased that the judge's ruling underlines that important principle.

"But this sad case should never have got this far. Long ago, Trafford Housing Trust should have held their hands up and admitted they made a terrible mistake.

"Had they done this then my life would not have been turned upside down and my family and I would not have had to endure a living nightmare."

The Christian Institute, the group that paid for Mr Smith's legal case, welcomed the ruling.

Spokesman Mike Judge said: "This is a good day for free speech. But would Adrian have won his case if marriage had already been redefined? I don't think so. The Government should stop playing politics with marriage, because it's ordinary people like Adrian who'll get it in the neck."

Matthew Gardiner, chief executive at Trafford Housing Trust said: "We fully accept the court's decision and I have made a full and sincere apology to Adrian.

"At the time we believed we were taking the appropriate action following discussions with our employment solicitors and taking into account his previous disciplinary record.

"This case has highlighted the challenges that businesses face with the increased use of social media and we have reviewed our documentation and procedures to avoid a similar situation arising in the future. Adrian remains employed by the Trust and I am pleased this matter has now concluded."

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Jerusalem: Hamas Rocket Attack Targets City

Hamas said it has fired a long-range rocket at Jerusalem - the first time the holy city is thought to have been targeted by Gaza militants using such a weapon.

Israeli police said the rocket landed in an open area near Gush Ezion, a collection of Jewish settlements in the West Bank southeast of the city.

The rocket caused no damage or injuries, the Jewish state's army said.

But an attack on what Israelis call their capital marks an escalation by Gaza militants, both for its symbolism and its distance from the Palestinian territory.

Located about 50 miles away from the Gaza border, Jerusalem had been thought to be beyond the range of Gaza rocket squads.

Israel media reported that two rockets had landed outside the city.

The armed wing of Hamas, Al Qassam Brigades, said on Twitter: "Al Qassam Brigades launch two M75 homemade missiles towards occupied Jerusalem."

Twenty-two Palestinians - eight of whom were militants - have now been killed in the violence. Three Israelis were killed by a rocket on Thursday.

Israeli police detain a Palestinian during clashes in Jerusalem's Old City

Earlier, there was a second rocket attack by Palestinian militants on Tel Aviv in 24 hours.

Air raid sirens went off in the centre of Israel's largest city on Friday afternoon and people were forced to scramble for cover. There were no reports of any injuries and it is believed to have landed in the sea.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said: "We believe it landed off the shores of Tel Aviv".

A witness told AFP that the rocket landed some "some 200 metres (yards)" from the beachfront US embassy.

The attack sparked panic among beachgoers, although several people tried to swim out to the point where the rocket landed, the witness said.

It was the second day in a row that a rocket from Gaza had reached the Tel Aviv area in what Israeli networks said was the first time rockets had been fired at the city since the 1991 Gulf War, when it was hit by Iraqi Scud missiles.

On Thursday, another rocket fell in the sea and the other landed in a Tel Aviv suburb, causing no damage or casualties. Israel responded with airstrikes.

The latest rocket came as the Israeli air force continued a major bombing campaign across Gaza Strip.

Senior Israeli cabinet minister Moshe Yaalon warned that Israel was considering a ground operation in order to stamp out rocket fire.

Hisham Kandil (L) and senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh during the visit

"We are preparing all the military options, including the possibility that forces will be ready to enter Gaza in the event that the firing doesn't stop," he wrote in a series of postings on his official Twitter account.

There were fresh exchanges of fire between Israel and Hamas militants earlier on Friday despite a temporary ceasefire in place for a visit by Egypt's prime minister to Gaza.

Several sites in southern Israel have been hit by rockets fired from inside the Gaza Strip, while a Hamas source said the Israeli air force attacked a Hamas commander's house which resulted in the death of two civilians, one a child.

But Israel's military strongly denied carrying out any attack from the time Mr Kandil entered Gaza, and accused Hamas of violating the three-hour deal.

During his three-hour visit, the Egypt prime minister Hisham Kandil condemned Israeli action against Gaza as "unacceptable aggression", saying his country will intensify efforts to secure a truce in the conflict.

"This tragedy cannot pass in silence and the world should take responsibility in stopping this aggression," he said at a news conference in Gaza City's Shifa hospital after seeing some victims from an airstrike.

"Egypt will not hesitate to intensify its efforts and make sacrifices to stop this aggression and achieve a lasting truce."

His visit comes as 16,000 Israeli army reservists have been called up and heavy artillery has been seen on the Gaza border, increasing the possibility of a ground attack.

Israel has given the green light to the call-up of up to 30,000 army reservists.

Overnight the Palestinian territory suffered a heavy bombardment, with Israeli warplanes hitting targets in and around Gaza City.

Meanwhile, European Union foreign policy chief Baroness Ashton said Israel had the right to protect its people against Gaza rocket attacks but urged it to stick to a "proportionate" response.

She also voiced hopes that the Egyptian prime minister "will be able to calm the situation".

And Britain's Foreign Secretary William Hague urged both Israel and the Palestinians to make efforts to halt the violence.

But Mr Hague made it clear that he believes Hamas bears the greatest responsibility for the current crisis, as well as the ability to bring it most swiftly to an end.

The conflict has been intensifying over recent weeks, but flared up dramatically in the wake of the Israeli strikes against senior Hamas figures.

Mr Netanyahu has warned that his country is prepared to extend its operation against Hamas, sparking fears of a repeat of the ground incursion four years ago in which hundreds died.

Israel's Iron Dome fires an interceptor rocket near Sderot in the south

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Lord Prescott Loses Out On Police Role

Lord Prescott has failed to become the police commissioner for Humberside after losing to Matthew Grove, according to Sky sources.

The former Deputy Prime Minister got the most votes in the first round but as the second preferences of the eliminated candidates were added up his lead looked less secure.

After the second votes from North Lincolnshire, North-East Lincolnshire and Hull were added to the candidates' first round totals, Lord Prescott was still around 2,000 votes ahead.

But the final area of East Riding Council had a larger than average turnout and is a solid Tory area, with Lord Prescott's team all but conceding defeat.

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Oil Rig Fire Leaves Two Missing Off US Coast

Two people are missing and nine others have been taken to hospital after an explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, a US Coast Guard spokesman confirmed.

Initial information from the Coast Guard saying two people had died in the fire was later retracted.

Coast Guard Seaman Drake Foret could not immediately confirm to Sky News the conditions of those airlifted to hospital. He said a search was underway for the two people missing.

He said the fire on the platform had been extinguished.

The explosion took place on a shallow-water production platform owned by Black Elk Energy about 20 miles (32 km) southeast of Grand Isle, Louisiana.

Seaman Foret said 26 people were believed to be aboard the rig. 

Coast Guard Captain Peter Gautier told WWL-TV the platform was not actively producing oil and it is not believed there is any chance for a major environmental disaster.

Capt Gautier said initial reports were that maintenance workers were cutting into a pipe and that oil may have escaped, causing the explosion. 

A spokesman for Black Elk Energy, an independent oil and gas company headquartered in Houston, Texas, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The company's website says it holds interests in properties in Texas and Louisiana waters, including 854 wells on 155 platforms.

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Girl Falls Into Deadly Snake Pit - And Survives

A Californian teenager has survived falling into a rattlesnake pit where she was bitten six times.

Vera Oliphant, 16, inadvertently fell into the nest, in a rural area just outside San Diego, while searching for reception to phone her mother.

One adult and six baby rattlers bit her and their venom immediately took hold of her body.

She managed to make it to her uncle's house nearby and he immediately drove her to hospital.

Speaking for the first time since the incident, she told ABC News she felt lucky to be alive.

"I was feeling numb and paralysed. I had black vision and I saw bubbles," she said.

"It felt like needles were stabbing me… it burned so hard and it felt like a bomb just exploded in me. It's really hard to describe."

Vera went into anaphylactic shock twice and lost consciousness four times during the ordeal.

She says the fast reactions of her uncle and staff at the Sharp Grossmont Hospital in La Mesa saved her life.

Doctors there administered 24 does of anti-venom and kept her in intensive care for four days.

David Oliphant, the teenager's father and also an occupational nurse, told ABC News: "I am used to dealing with patients, but when it's your own daughter it's different".

Vera is planning to return to school next week. She said the next time she has reception problems she will learn from this mistake.

"Be careful where you step," she said. "If you don't need to, just wait until you are somewhere that you can call people."

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April Jones: Police Stop Searching River

Police looking for missing five-year-old April Jones have switched the focus of their search to a forest, the police officer in charge of the operation has said.

Superintendent Ian John, of Dyfed-Powys Police, said officers had stopped combing the river, which had previously been at the centre of the search, and were instead looking at the land around it.

He said they still had 150 officers working on finding April at any one time in a continued effort to find her, more than six weeks after she went missing.

April was last seen on October 1, getting into a vehicle after playing near her home on the Bryn y Gog estate in the town of Machynlleth, Powys.

Her disappearance sparked the biggest search operation ever undertaken by the Dyfed-Powys Police force, covering 23 square miles.

Seventeen specialist teams continue to work on the case and are investigating all lines of enquiry.

Officers and coastguards had concentrated their efforts on the River Dyfi but are now focusing on the 6,000 hectares of surrounding forest land.

Search teams scouring the River Dyfi

Supt John said: "We've still got a number of search areas to investigate, but at the moment teams are primarily working in the Dyfi Forest.

"We are not searching the river actively now. The coastguard have stopped doing that, they have adequately searched the water as much as they can.

"Instead, it's primarily the woodland areas, the old slate quarries and the fields which are the main focus of the operation now."

Hundreds of members of the public joined in the search for April and they continue to raise money to help fund the search.

Supt John said: "I can't truly express how hard going the work is, the guys have been out there in the pouring rain day after day and still they continue.

"We are not searching weekends anymore because they officers all need to rest, but we are still working at an intensive level."

Mark Bridger, 46, a former abattoir worker, has been charged with April's murder and is due to appear in court on January 11.

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Taser Death: Police Branded 'Thuggish'

Police who tackled and tasered a Brazilian student on LSD could face further action after a damning report on the man's death.

An Australian coroner said officers acted like schoolboys in "Lord Of The Flies" when they crash-tackled Roberto Laudisio Curti and shocked him with 50,000 volts.

New South Wales coroner Mary Jerram said she could not determine what caused the 21-year-old's death but added that it was "impossible to believe that he would have died but for the actions of police".

All of her recommendations were accepted by police, including that five officers involved be referred to an independent watchdog and there be an immediate review of the criteria for use of taser stun guns.

Police have accepted their officers were in the wrong

But Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione, who admitted the coroner's report was "quite scathing", said tasers would continue to be used.

"These weapons save lives," he said.

Officers pursued a shirtless Curti - who had become paranoid and was acting erratically after sharing an LSD tab with two friends - in the mistaken belief that he had committed an armed robbery on a Sydney convenience store.

In shocking him at least 14 times, tackling him to the ground and blasting him with pepper spray, the actions of a number of police officers were "reckless, careless, dangerous, and excessively forceful", Ms Jerram said.

"They were an abuse of police powers, in some instances even thuggish."

She said one probationary constable used his stun gun in a "wild and uncontrolled" manner on the Brazilian, who issued terrible screams and groans as police piled on top of him while he lay on a city street.

"A few of the other constables seem to have thrown themselves into a melee with an ungoverned pack mentality, like the schoolboys in 'Lord of the Flies'," she said, referring to the novel and film about boys who turn savage after being stranded on an island.

A coroner said the actions of the police were "thuggish"

Ms Jerram said many of the police had "no idea what the problem was, or what threat or crime was supposedly to be averted, or concern for the value of life".

Police said Curti had shown a "superhuman" strength as he struggled against them, but the coroner said evidence from cameras on the tasers showed he was quickly handcuffed after being thrown to the ground.

A family spokesman said further action should be taken against the police

She said one officer lay across his back, another knelt on him and others held his arms and legs as he was then repeatedly tasered by two officers while another sprayed pepper spray in his face.

Minutes later he was seen to be unresponsive and could not be revived.

Curti's family members welcomed the findings but said they would still be pushing for those responsible to be held accountable.

"Whilst nothing will ever bring Beto back, we continue to push for those responsible to face the consequences of their appalling behaviour on that night," family spokesman Michael Reynolds told journalists.

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Solar Eclipse Watched By Thousands In Oz

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

Thousands of tourists, star gazers, scientists and amateur astronomers gathered in Australia to watch one of nature's biggest spectacles - a total solar eclipse.

Weather forecasters had predicted cloud, but right on cue the skies cleared as the eclipse began and there was a clear view of the sun, moon and Earth aligned.

As the last glimpse of the sun's rays disappeared, there were cheers from people who had gathered on beaches in the state of Queensland.

The tropical region was then plunged into darkness for two minutes. 

Star gazers on the beach set up their telescopes

"Immediately before, I was thinking, 'Are we gonna see this?' And we just had a fantastic display - it was just beautiful," said Terry Cuttle of the Astronomical Association of Queensland, who has seen a dozen total solar eclipses over the years.

"And right after it finished, the clouds came back again. It really adds to the drama of it."

"Wow, insects and birds gone quiet," one tourist, Geoff Scott, tweeted. Another, Stuart Clark, said: "This is it. Totality now. Utterly beautiful."

The beaches darken as the eclipse casts its shadow

Totality was at 6.38am local time (8.38pm GMT on Tuesday), with eclipse watchers donning special glasses to protect their eyes. One local man improvised, bringing a welder's helmet.

"Day into night, unbelievable, goosebumps, speechless, amazing," said Palm Cove eclipse watcher Simon Crerar.

The eclipse cast its 95-mile (150km) shadow in Australia's Northern Territory, crossed the northeast tip of the country and was swooping east across the South Pacific, where no islands are in its direct path.

A cruise ship off Port Douglas as passengers watch

A partial eclipse was visible from east Indonesia, the eastern half of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and southern parts of Chile and Argentina.

Hank Harper, 61, and his two children Harrison, 10, and Reilly, 12, flew from Los Angeles just to see the phenomenon.

The family hopped on board a hot air balloon with other eager tourists and staff from Hot Air Balloon Cairns, crossed their fingers, and were rewarded with a perfect view.

"We gambled everything - drove through the rain and didn't even know if the balloon was going to go up," he said.

The skies cleared in time to give a clear view of the eclipse

Speaking by phone from the hot air balloon as they watched the sun's rays re-emerge from behind the moon while kangaroos hopped on the ground below, he added: "It was everything I could have hoped for."

On a dive boat drifting along the blue waters of the Great Barrier Reef, a cheer of relief erupted as the clouds moved away at the moment of total eclipse, followed by a hush as darkness fell across the water.

One scuba diver floated on his back in the sea, watching it unfold as he bobbed in the waves.

Onlookers protected their eyes with special glasses

Scientists were studying how animals respond to the eclipse, with underwater cameras capturing the effects of sudden darkness on the creatures of the Reef.

Some Queensland hotels have been booked up for more than three years and more than 50,000 people flooded into the region to watch the spectacle, according to local tourism authorities.

The next total eclipse will not be until March 2015, and even then will only be visible from a few remote locations in the North Atlantic.

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Anti-Austerity Strikes: Protests Grip Europe

A wave of anti-austerity anger is sweeping across Europe with general strikes in Spain and Portugal and walkouts in Greece and Italy - grounding flights, closing schools and shutting down transport.

Millions of workers are taking part in the dozens of co-ordinated protests in a so-called European Day of Action and Solidarity against spending cuts and tax hikes.

Italian media reported that six police officers were injured, including one seriously, as clashes broke out with protesters at demonstrations in Milan and Turin.

Around 20 activists allegedly beat an officer with a stick and baseball bats in Turin, while five officers were hurt during running street battles in central Milan.

In Spain - the fourth-biggest eurozone economy - activists and unions will be staging an evening rally outside the parliament in the Madrid.

Protests got underway early in Madrid and Barcelona, with protesters clashing with police as they attempted to blockade buses and cause disruption at food markets.

Spanish police used night-sticks to quell unrest on picket lines

Riot police fired rubber bullets at hundreds of protesters in Madrid's Cibeles Square and used night-sticks to quell picket line disturbances as more than 80 people were arrested.

:: Live: Follow the protests across Europe as they happen

Airlines operating in the country including Iberia, Iberia Express, Air Nostrum, Vueling, Air Europa and easyJet cut more than 600 flights including some 250 international routes.

Heathrow said that of its normal 1,300 daily services, 39 flights - nearly all involving Spain or Portugal - had been cancelled.

Hospitals in Spain will fully staff emergency and surgery rooms but non-essential care will be scaled back.

Spain, where one in four workers is unemployed, is now teetering on the brink of calling for a European bailout, with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy trying to put off a rescue that could require even more EU-mandated budget cuts.

Parts of Rome were at a standstill as protesters clashed with police

Italy's biggest trade union CGIL called strikes in dozens of cities - and thousands of workers took to the streets calling for more safeguards for jobs and pensions and protesting against Prime Minister Mario Monti's government.

Student Mario Nobile, 23, said: "Europe is waking up today - from Rome to Madrid to Athens."

Protests are also being called in 40 towns and cities across bailed-out Portugal, including Lisbon and Porto.

Portuguese airline TAP said it was grounding more than 160 flights, most of them international.

Greece, struggling to satisfy international lenders that it has cut spending sufficiently to qualify for bailout funds and to avoid default, has called a three-hour walkout and a rally in Athens.

The European Trade Union Confederation said it was the first time that it had appealed for a day of action that includes simultaneous strike action in four countries.

"By sowing austerity, we are reaping recession, rising poverty and social anxiety," its general secretary Bernadette Segol said in an online statement.

"In some countries, people's exasperation is reaching a peak. We need urgent solutions to get the economy back on track, not stifle it with austerity. Europe's leaders are wrong not to listen to the anger of the people who are taking to the streets."

Union-led rallies are also being called across France and in Poland, while high-speed Thalys rail services between Belgium and Germany have been cancelled for the day.

Just 20% of Spain's long-distance trains and a third of its commuter trains are expected to run, while Lisbon's Metro will be shut completely with only 10% of rail services in action.

Tensions have been rising in Spain since last Friday when a woman jumped from her apartment to her death as bailiffs tried to evict her from her home in the country's second apparent suicide linked to evictions.

On Monday, the country's largest banks agreed to halt repossessions for the most vulnerable for two years.

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McAfee 'Keeping On The Move' After Killing

John McAfee says he is moving every four hours to avoid police who want to question him about the murder of his neighbour.

The anti-virus software pioneer denies killing American Gregory Faull, 52, who was found dead in a pool of blood at his home on Sunday.

Three people who worked for Mr McAfee, 67, are under interrogation, said Belize police.

Mr McAfee, who has amassed a $100m (£63m) fortune, told CNBC television he had been "accused of something I didn't do".

He said he was keeping on the move out of fear for his safety, worried that police want to "shake him down" and extort money from him.

A police report said that Mr Faull was shot in the back of the head. It said there were no signs of a break-in, and a laptop and cell phone were missing.

"We are looking for Mr McAfee to interrogate him," police spokesman Raphael Martinez said, adding he was "not suspected of murder".

Police raided Mr McAfee's mansion on Ambergris Caye, an island off the northeastern coast of Belize, on Sunday to question him about the murder.

Earlier in the year, police searched the property for weapons and drugs, and detained him for several hours.

Mr McAfee claimed afterwards he had been arrested because he refused to make a donation to a local politician's campaign.

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Baby Died After 'Serious Failures' At Hospital

By Lisa Dowd, Midlands Correspondent

A baby died at Birmingham Children's Hospital after "serious failures", a coroner has ruled.

Hayley Fullerton suffered heart failure following corrective surgery in November 2009, one month after her first birthday.

Recording a narrative verdict following an inquest into Hayley's death, Aidan Cotter, coroner for Birmingham and Solihull, said: "The failures by a number of the staff at Birmingham Children's Hospital were serious but not gross."

He said he could only make a finding of neglect if there had been a "gross" failure to provide medical attention .

Paula Stevenson holding her daughter Hayley.

Following the verdict, Hayley's mother, Paula Stevenson, said that she planned to sue the NHS over her daughter's "preventable and predictable" death. 

She said: "Today is Hayley's day - I have been waiting three years to speak up.

"Hayley died like an abandoned animal - nobody listened to me while Hayley was dying and nobody listened to me when Hayley was dead."

Ms Stevenson, who flew to the UK from Australia to attend the hearing with Hayley's father Bobby Fullerton, added: "Our entire family has been completely devastated by what happened and continue to grieve for Hayley.

"I still cannot understand how trained medics could ignore the fact that she was slowly deteriorating before their eyes.

"They had seven days to spot that something was seriously wrong but all those precious opportunities were missed."

Hayley was born with a condition that restricted blood getting from her heart to her lungs.

After an operation at another hospital, she was sent to Birmingham for corrective heart surgery.

Hayley Fullerton suffered a collapsed lung after heart surgery.

The operation was a success, but complications set in when Hayley's right lung collapsed.

Ms Stevenson, told the coroner's court earlier this year: "I was hoping she would be put in intensive care.

"I was waiting and waiting for someone to come so I was very aware and alert. I was telling her sorry I could not get help."

She also claimed that her child had been failed "abominably" and said her experience at the hands of some staff has been "brutal".

Ms Stevenson, who is originally from Northern Ireland but now lives in Australia, went on to allege that she gave a nurse a £100 gift voucher in an effort to secure better care for Hayley.

"I truly believe if the medical teams had listened to me and my parents, Hayley would still be alive today. They turned their back on her. She was overlooked and neglected," she said.

In an internal review of Hayley's death, the NHS found that a "hierarchy" among medics deterred junior staff from referring Hayley back to a paediatric intensive care unit in the days before her death on November 11.

In a statement issued after the coroner's verdict, the Birmingham Children's Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said: "When Hayley died we recognised that some of her care fell below our usual high standards and for this we offer a heartfelt apology for the distress that has been caused.

"We've taken all the steps possible to learn from this."

Ms Stevenson has now set up a website, heal-trust.org, which campaigns for the NHS to use Rapid Response Teams, which families, friends or patients can call if they feel their concerns over treatment aren't being heeded.

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Train Guard Found Guilty Of Girl's Death

A railway guard accused of causing the death of a teenager who fell under a train has been convicted of manslaughter.

Christopher McGee, 45, gave the signal for the driver to depart as Georgia Varley, 16, was leaning against a carriage.

The sixth-form college student, who had been drinking on a night out in Liverpool with friends, fell between the train and the platform at the city's James Street station in October last year.

McGee, who had denied the charge, appeared to blink away tears as the jury at Liverpool Crown Court returned their verdict of manslaughter by gross negligence following three hours and five minutes of deliberations.

He is expected to be sentenced on Thursday.

Some gasped in the public gallery from where the defendant's supporters and the victims' family had followed proceedings.

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Woman 'Refused' Abortion In Ireland Dies

By David Blevins, Ireland Correspondent

Investigations have been launched after a pregnant woman died in hospital in Ireland after allegedly being refused an abortion.

Savita Halappanavar, 31, suffered a miscarriage and septicaemia. Her husband Praveen claims doctors refused to carry out a termination for religious reasons.

Mrs Halappanavar, who was from India, was 17 weeks pregnant when admitted to Galway University Hospital.

She was suffering from agonising pain and, according to her husband, made several requests for an abortion.

Mr Halappanavar, 34, said doctors had refused to terminate the pregnancy because there was a foetal heartbeat and told his wife: "This is a Catholic country."

The young woman, who had been practising as a dentist in the Republic of Ireland for some time, died on October 28 after developing septicaemia - an infection in the blood.

Her death is expected to spark a backlash against the Irish government, criticised by left-wing members of parliament for failing to introduce new laws to permit abortion in life-threatening circumstances.

Clare Daly, a Socialist Party member of parliament, said: "A woman has died because Galway University Hospital refused to perform an abortion needed to prevent serious risk to her life.

"We were told this situation would never arise. An unviable foetus - she was having a miscarriage - was given priority over the woman, who unfortunately and predictably, developed septicaemia and died."

Galway Roscommon University Hospitals Group and the state's health officials have launched an investigation.

The family will be interviewed as part of that review and results are expected within three months.

The Galway hospital said doctors have carried out all standard practices in notifying the death to the coroner, informing the Health Service Executive and completing a maternal death notification.

"It is standard practice to review unexpected deaths in line with the HSE's national incident management policy," it said.

"The family of the deceased is consulted on the terms of reference, interviewed by the review team and given a copy of the final report."

A spokesman added: "The Galway Roscommon University Hospitals Group wishes to extend its sympathy to the husband, family and friends of Ms Halappanavar."

The Department of Health also expressed its condolences but said it would wait for the two investigations to be completed before commenting further.

Abortion remains illegal in the Republic unless it occurs as the result of medical intervention to save the mother's life.

There is, however, no agreed method for determining such circumstances.

Abortion is legal in Northern Ireland but only if there is an immediate threat to the mother's life or a long-term threat to her physical or mental health.

The first private abortion clinic on the island opened in Belfast last month.

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Gaza: Hamas' Jaabari Killed In Israeli Attacks

Israeli airstrikes have hit a series of targets across Gaza City, after one killed the commander of Hamas' military wing.

Palestinian officials say the attacks have killed a total of nine people so far - including a seven-year-old girl - and injured 20.

Two of the Hamas' training facilities were among the sites hit by the bombings in Gaza City, Khan Younis and Rafah.

Israel says the airstrikes are the beginning of a broader operation, launched in response to days of heavy rocket fire from Gaza.

They say the killing Hamas military commander Ahmed al Jaabari is "the beginning".

Israel military spokeswoman Avital Liebovich said: "After the rocket fire of recent days, the chief of staff has decided to authorise the targetting of terrorist organisations in the Gaza Strip -- Hamas, Islamic Jihad and others. This is the beginning."

Mr Jaabari's car was travelling through Gaza City when it was hit

Another spokesman, Brigadier-General Yoav Mordechai told Channel 2 TV said the ensuing conflict could "prove protracted", adding that "the homefront must brace itself resiliently".

The Israeli Defence Force says the number of cross-border rocket launches from Gaza has risen from 310 in 2009 to 1,200 in 2012.

The attacks mark the biggest escalation between Israel and Gaza militants since a 2008-2009 conflict - and came despite signs on Tuesday that neighbouring Egypt had managed to broker a truce in the enclave after a five day surge of violence.

Immediate calls for revenge were broadcast over Hamas radio.

"The occupation has opened the doors of hell," Hamas's armed wing said.

Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor Tim Marshall said the anticipated rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza could have major consequences.

"Every missile fired carries the risk of triggering the ground attack because if there is a single Israeli civilian fatality caused by rocket fire, the IDF will probably go in," he said.

Hamas said Mr Jaabari, who ran the organisation's armed wing, the Izz el Deen al Qassam, died along with a passenger after their car was hit by an Israeli missile in Gaza City.

Mr Jabaari oversaw the release of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in October 2011, in exchange for 1,027 prisoners in Israeli jails.

Israel's Shin Bet domestic intelligence service confirmed it had carried out the attack, saying it had killed Jaabri because of his "decade-long terrorist activity". He has long topped Israel's most-wanted list.

It marks a dramatic resumption of Israel's policy of assassinating Palestinian militant leaders.

A tweet posted by the British Foreign Office said: "We continue to call on all sides to exercise restraint to prevent a dangerous escalation that would be in no one's interests."

Mr Jaabari becomes the most senior Hamas official to be killed since an Israeli invasion of Gaza four years ago.

Crowds of people and security personnel rushed to the scene of the strike, trying to put out the fire that had engulfed the car and left it a charred shell.

Hamas police cordoned off the area around a hospital where at least one body from the strike was taken.

Israeli officials had said in recent days that they were considering assassinating top Hamas officials following a wave of heavy rocket fire from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, triggering Israeli airstrikes.

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