Blair Blames Inquiry For Iraq Report Delay

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

Tony Blair has told Sky News that "the people who run the inquiry" are to blame for a delay in the publication of the Chilcot report.

The Iraq Inquiry, to give it its official name, was launched almost four-and-a-half years ago.

The inquiry, headed by Sir John Chilcot, was originally supposed to report its findings two years ago, but it has been repeatedly delayed and there is still no set publication date.

The inquiry's remit, as defined on its website, is to examine "the UK's involvement in Iraq, including the way decisions were made and actions taken, to establish, as accurately as possible, what happened and to identify the lessons that can be learned".

It has been delayed because of disagreements over what can and can't be published.

Tony Blair, who has faced heavy criticism over Iraq, gave evidence

The committee wants the option to include transcripts of conversations between Mr Blair and then US president George W Bush, and also minutes from Cabinet meetings at the time.

This is being resisted by the Cabinet Office and some believe that is partly on the instruction of Mr Blair.

Writing in the Daily Mirror, former Labour MP and attorney general in Blair's government, Lord Morris, describes the delay in publication as a "national scandal", and called for it to be published "immediately".

But Mr Blair has repeatedly defended his involvement, and played down his influence.

He said: "I've made it absolutely clear, when the report is published is entirely up to them, it's not my decision at all."

When pressed by Sky News Presenter Sarah Hewson over who was responsible for the hold-up, he replied: "It is the responsibility of the people who run the inquiry."

The American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 continues to divide opinion

It will take many months at best before the report can be published.

First, a deal has to be reached between the Cabinet Office and inquiry committee.

Once that happens, the Maxwellisation process will begin.

This is the confidential exercice of allowing anyone facing criticism in the report to make representations to the inquiry, if they disagree with parts of the document.

That is expected to take some time.

It will then be presented to the Prime Minister before final publication.

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Samuel L Jackson Says Man Up Over Male Cancer

Samuel L Jackson is urging men to "get themselves checked out" as part of a new fundraising campaign to raise awareness of male cancer.

The Captain America star has tweeted a video to his millions of followers with advice, including seeing a doctor if symptoms occur.

"By not getting checked you could lose those balls. Hell - you could lose your life! So boys, don't be dumb. If you've really got balls, show them to your doctor," he says.

Jackson has been supporting the One For The Boys campaign which has teamed up with the crowdfunding website MyGoodness.com to run an online raffle to raise money.

He says: "Fact: 30% cent more men die of cancer than women. Whaaat? Get outta here! That's right: 30%. Why? Because they don't get themselves checked out early enough.

Jackson stars in Captain America with Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson

"They don't want to hear or talk about it, because it ain't the manly thing to do. They're too macho."

Entrants will have the chance to hang-out with the Hollywood actor in London for a day as one of many "money can't buy" experiences.

"Hanging out with Samuel L Jackson for a day certainly constitutes a 'money-can't-buy' experience in my book," says MyGoodness.com co-founder Nathalie Verrando.

Co-founder Severine Balick added: "It's fantastic that someone of Samuel's status is prepared to give his valuable time for such a great cause in this way.

"The lucky winner will no doubt dine out on this experience for years to come!"

On Saturday Jackson tweeted a picture of himself with West Ham footballer Dylan Tombides who died of testicular cancer aged just 20.

The pair met at a cancer awareness event in London in November.

"Gone too soon Dylan Tombides. It was a pleasure to have met you. My thoughts are with your family," he wrote.

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Divers Smashing Ferry Walls To Recover Bodies

S Korea Ferry: Final Contact From Doomed Vessel

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

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

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

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

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

It reads:

8.55am

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

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

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

8.56am

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

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

Jeju VTS: Yes, we got it.

8.58am

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

8.59am

Sewol: Harbour affairs Jeju, this is Sewol.

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

9.00am

Jeju VTS: Sewol, this is harbour affairs Jeju.

Sewol: Jeju, Sewol here.

Jeju VTS: What's the current situation?

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

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

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

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

Sewol: It's hard for people to move.

Jeju VTS: Yes, got it.

9.05am

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

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

Sewol: What's going on with the coastguard?

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

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

9.24am

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

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

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

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

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Missing Plane: Material Washes Ashore In Oz

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

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

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

Relatives are urging governments not to give up the search

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Relatives are asking Mr Hussein to investigate old media reports

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

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

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

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

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

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Moyes Breaks Cover On Manchester United Exit

David Moyes has spoken out on his sacking by Manchester United, saying he is "proud" to have managed the club but frustrated about the team's results.

While he expressed gratitude to Sir Alex Ferguson and the club's fans and coaching staff, a reference to United's players was conspicuous by its absence.

"To have been appointed as manager of Manchester United, one of the biggest football clubs in the world, was and remains something of which I will always be incredibly proud," said a written statement.

"I remain proud to have led the team to the quarter finals of this year's Champions League."

But the League Managers Association, which issued the statement on his behalf, said it was "very disappointed" and "sad" about the way Moyes was axed.

Ryan Giggs, 40, is manager until the end of the season

The Scot was sacked on Tuesday after a series of defeats left the team with no hope of qualifying for the Champions League next season, and languishing in seventh place in the Premier League.

"Performances and results have not been what Manchester United and its fans are used to or expect, and I both understand and share their frustration," says Moyes.

The 50-year-old admits the job was "immense" and a "significant challenge" but that he "never had a second thought about taking (it) on".

Moyes' side lost 2-0 at his former club Everton at the weekend

His failure to say thank you to the players comes after a series of rumours during the season of disquiet among some of the club's top talent over his tactics and training methods.

The League Managers Association made no bones about its views on the sacking.

Chief Executive Richard Bevan said: "The LMA is very disappointed with the nature of David's departure from Manchester United and to read extensive reports in the press, confirming David's sacking, before David himself had been spoken to officially by the club.  

"(Moyes) has conducted himself with integrity and professionalism ... It is therefore sad to see the end of David's tenure at United being handled in an unprofessional manner."

Moyes was hand-picked by outgoing boss Sir Alex Ferguson after 11 years at Everton, where he guided the team to five top-six finishes.

Carlo Ancelotti is one of the favourites to take over at Old Trafford

But the burden of expectation seems to have weighed heavy and the team have lost 11 league games this season - including six losses at home and lacklustre defeats to bitter rivals Manchester City and Liverpool.

Moyes signed a six-year contract but is now set for a pay-off of around £4m - a year's salary - after less than a year in charge.

United legend Ryan Giggs has taken the reins until for the last few games of the season but Louis van Gaal, manager of the Dutch national side, is the bookies' favourite to land the full-time job.

Real Madrid's Carlo Ancelotti is also tipped as one of the leading contenders.

Manchester United's American owners, the Glazer family, are thought to be ready to bankroll a summer spending spree of £150m or more as the club pushes for a swift return to the top of the game.

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Astronauts Laugh And Joke After Swift Repair Job

Two astronauts had time for a laugh and a joke after they completed essential repairs at the International Space Station (ISS) quicker than expected.

American astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steve Swanson spent around an hour on the spacewalk to remove and replace a computer, known as a multiplexer/demultiplexer (MDM).

The 10-year-old MDM, one of 45 on board the ISS, broke down after a routine restart operation last month.

"Excellent work, gentlemen," Mission Control radioed.

The astronauts will spend 2.5 hours away from the ISS

With their mission accomplished in plenty of time, the pair exchanged jokes and laughs as they got ready to go inside.

"My arms are too short for a selfie," Mr Mastracchio said while pointing his camera at himself.

Engineers do not know why the critical backup failed.

Along with the primary computer, it controls the movement of the robot-arm rail cart, as well as the pointing of the solar wings and radiators.

Nasa feared that if the primary computer went down the entire space station would be in jeopardy.

The spacewalk, which was streamed live by the US space agency, is the 179th from the orbiting laboratory.

Just before the walk, a Russian cargo capsule Progress 53 undocked from the ISS for a two-day test of a new system which enables it to reattach itself automatically.

The unmanned spacecraft will travel around 311 miles (500km) away from the ISS.

"It will return back to the Zvezda docking port Friday morning after Russian flight controllers have tested its new Kurs automated rendezvous system," Nasa said.

A similar operation was carried out in 2012 when another Progress cargo freighter pulled away from the station and redocked.

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Mother Held As Three 'Disabled' Children Dead

A mother has been arrested on suspicion of murdering three young children at a house in southwest London.

Tania Clarence, 42, cared full-time for the three children, who are understood to have suffered from a life-limiting genetic condition.

Officers discovered the bodies when they were called to a large, semi-detached home in Thetford Road, New Malden, at around 9.30pm on Tuesday.

Sky sources say the three children - a four-year-old girl and two three-year-old boys - were disabled and had "life-limiting genetic conditions".

Gary Clarence and his sons, and their Victorian house in Thetford Road

Ms Clarence was initially taken to hospital with minor injuries and later discharged. She is in custody at a south London police station.

Chief Superintendent Glenn Tunstall told a news conference on Wednesday afternoon officers are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.

He said specialist detectives are providing support to the family.

Sky's Joe Tidy, at the scene, said the couple moved into the house with their four children around six months ago.

They moved in after the £1.2m property was redeveloped with mobility equipment, including a lift.

Mr Clarence, a director at Investec Bank, and his eldest child were abroad, and are travelling back today.

Flowers and toys have been left outside the house

His company said in a statement: "Gary Clarence is a valued colleague and has worked with us for many years.

"We do not know the facts at this time but our thoughts are with the Clarence family.  We are doing all that we can to help Gary and his eldest child and ask that their privacy is respected."

Officers removed evidence bags from the property this morning. It is unclear whether the children's bodies are still inside the house.

Post-mortem examinations are to take place later.

Neighbour Michele Bacchus, 38, said two "very, very upset" women had asked to use her toilet last night, an hour after four police cars and an ambulance arrived.

Police are investigating the incident in New Malden

The women, one in her 30s and the other in her 50s, said they were relatives of the Clarence family and had come from Cobham, Surrey.

One had a South African accent and the other was too upset to speak, she said.

Another neighbour, retired nurse Joy Devis, 86, said she had been in the house "once or twice" and described the Clarences as a "delightful couple".

"They'd got every kind of equipment they could possibly get for those children," she told Sky News.

"One I never saw out of a wheelchair; she was in her buggy. The other two were moving about with difficulty."

She said the family had help from a nanny and a maid.

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Camilla's Brother Suffers 'Serious Head Injury'

The Duchess of Cornwall's brother Mark Shand is in hospital in New York after suffering a "serious head injury" during a fall.

A statement from Clarence House said: "The Duchess of Cornwall's brother, Mark Shand, has been taken to a New York hospital after falling and sustaining a serious head injury.

"The Duchess, her family and The Prince of Wales are clearly deeply concerned and are being kept closely informed."

The 62-year-old reportedly slipped outside an after-party for a charity event while lighting a cigarette.

Mr Shand, a travel writer known for his conservation work, was in New York for an auction at Sotheby's in aid of a charity for underprivileged children and the Elephant Family.

The charity, which Mr Shand is the chairman of, aims to save the endangered Asian elephant from extinction in the wild.

The auction was the finale for the month-long Big Egg Hunt NYC by Faberge, in which egg sculptures were sold to the highest bidder.

It raised £950,000 ($1.6m).

More follows...

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Madeleine Police Probe Five New Assault Cases

By Rachel Younger, Sky News Correspondent

British police are looking at five new cases in which young British girls were sexually abused during holiday home break-ins by an intruder in the Algarve.

One of these assaults took place on a 10-year-old girl in Praia da Luz, from where Madeleine McCann vanished two years later.

These new cases are similar to some of the originally identified twelve offences where a male intruder gained access to holiday villas occupied by British families in the Western Algarve.

Scotland Yard recently made an appeal to trace the intruder which lead to 500 people contacting them with new information.

Madeleine disappeared from her bed in Praia da Luz in 2007

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Redwood said today: "We have now identified a further five sexual assaults and one near miss. None of those six matters we were aware of prior to our appeal.

"In this new tranche of information we have got one crime which is very clearly in the heart of Praia da Luz in 2005, on a young, white, 10-year-old girl.

"Clearly the fact that we've now got an assault that is in the heart of Praia da Luz, very close to where a previous matter had been reported, means that we are even more interested in this as part of the inquiry."

In four of these incidents the man sexually assaulted five white girls, aged between seven and 10, while they were in their beds.

Although Portuguese police have turned down requests for a joint investigation, British police added they are poised to begin operations in Portugal following an official agreement from Portuguese police later this week.

Police are still keen to trace a man seen near Madeleine's appartment

Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Martin Hewitt said he is "cautiously optimistic" Portuguese and British officers can act soon.

"I am cautiously optimistic that in the not-too-distant future we are going to start to see activity," he said.

Officers have so far identified a series of 18 crimes committed between 2004 and 2010 where a male intruder entered villas occupied by UK families on holiday in the Western Algarve.

Twelve of these are assaults which took place between 2004 and 2010, although the vast majority happened before Madelaine's disappearance. All involved girls aged between 6 and 12 years old.

Police believe the suspect may have been in the villas for some time before being disturbed by parents or a child waking up - and he remained calm even when interrupted.

The noise of a bin collection lorry was heard nearby on two occasions.

The suspect is described as having tanned skin with short, dark, unkempt hair.

Police are still hunting a man seen carrying a girl fitting Madeleine's description on the night of her disappearance.

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RAF Jet Chases Russian Planes Away From UK

Two Russian surveillance planes which flew close to UK airspace have been chased away by an RAF jet fighter.

The aircraft, believed to be Tupolev 95s, were spotted off the coast of northeast Scotland.

They turned away from Britain when an RAF Typhoon was scrambled from Leuchars airbase, near Dundee, where crews are on standby to intercept unidentified aircraft at a moment's notice.

It comes amid heightened international tensions over the situation in Ukraine, following the annexation of Crimea by Russia last month.

An RAF Typhoon escorts a Tupolev 95 over the Atlantic in 2007. Pic: MoD

Sky's Defence Correspondent Alistair Bunkall said foreign planes often fly close to UK airspace, with eight similar incidents reported in 2013.

"The RAF Typhoon is one of Britain's quick reaction aircraft and would have gone up, made contact with the Russian planes and ensured they did not plan to fly into British airspace," he said.

"These sorts of events happen quite regularly and that maybe surprising for some people.

"It's all about testing defences and seeing exactly what your 'enemy' is capable of."

The two Russian planes - turboprop-powered bombers which also conduct airborne surveillance - flew off towards Scandinavia.

Also known as 'Bears', the aircraft have been used for more than 50 years.

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