Britons Told To Leave Kurdish Capital Irbil

Britons have been warned to leave Irbil, the capital of Kurdish Iraq, as Islamist fighters move towards the city.

The move comes as UK Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said Britain was offering help to the Americans in their efforts to provide humanitarian support to people trapped by the advance.

British Airways has suspended its flights over the war-torn region, after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a notice "restricting US operators" from flying over Iraqi airspace.

About 50,000 members of the Yazidi community, including many women and children, have been forced to flee into the Sinjar mountains in northwest Iraq following threats from fighters from Islamic State (IS) - previously known as ISIS or ISIL.

IS militants have moved across northern Iraq and are also said to be threatening Kurdish territory.

Christian refugees who have fled Irbil, which is now threatened by IS

The Foreign Office advised against all travel to areas hit by recent fighting and said Britons already in Kurdistan, including those in Irbil, should remove themselves from areas nearby.

A statement outlining the updated travel advice said: "The FCO advise against all travel to Anbar, Ninewah, Salah-ad-Din and Diyala provinces and all of the area south of Kirkuk City limits in Tam'mim province.

"The FCO also advise against all travel to those areas of the Kurdistan Region (Irbil, Suleymania and Dohuk provinces)."

Mr Fallon said the UK was ready to offer help to the US operation.

He told Sky News: "We welcome what the Americans are doing, in particular to bring humanitarian relief and to prevent any further suffering.

People gather at an anti-IS protest outside Downing Street in London

"But our focus is on assisting that humanitarian mission using our military in support of the Americans, in terms of refuelling and surveillance, to under pin their mission and to add to it with food drops of our own."

His comments came as it emerged that the US had carried out airstrikes to hit IS forces on the ground.

Earlier, David Cameron had insisted the world must help the Yazidi community in their "hour of desperate need".

The Prime Minister said he "utterly" condemned "the barbaric attacks", adding he was "especially concerned" for people trapped on Mount Sinjar.

He added that he fully backed President Obama's decision to press ahead with airstrikes, which he said had been requested by the Iraqi government.

Iraqi Ambassador to the UK Faik Nerwayi told Sky News that he had heard the the airstrikes had already brought a wave of optimism to some of the those who had been forced to flee.

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Nigel Farage 'Set To Stand As MP In Kent'

UKIP leader Nigel Farage is expected to stand as an MP for the South Thanet constituency in the General Election, Sky sources say.

Mr Farage is reportedly on a shortlist of candidates for the Kent seaside seat.

Recent polling has said there were two constituencies where his party could win.

One is Thurrock in Essex, where there is already a UKIP candidate, and the other is South Thanet, that includes the towns of Ramsgate and Broadstairs.

Mr Farage had already said he was planning to stand at next year's General Election, which prompted speculation about which constituency he could choose.

Sky's Political Correspondent Sophy Ridge said: "The reason that he has chosen the South Thanet seat is pretty simple.

"It's because he thinks this is his best chance of being elected to parliament."

The South Thanet constituency includes the town of Ramsgate

Rozanne Duncan, the secretary of the local branch, told the Financial Times: "It is the worst-kept secret in town. We now have two names on the list and one of them is Mr Farage.

"Whether he will get selected or not is another matter... although I'd be surprised if he doesn't."

Mr Farage has previously dropped heavy hints that he will seek election in South Thanet - where Tory incumbent Laura Sandys is standing down.

The UKIP leader, who is also an MEP, was born in Kent and lives there.

A party spokeswoman said: "The branch are starting to receive nominations from people interested in standing, but there's no shortlist of candidates yet.

"Even when there is a shortlist of candidates finalised for hustings, that list will be kept confidential. We are still a long way off announcing a candidate for Thanet South."

Mr Farage unsuccessfully challenged Commons Speaker John Bercow in his Buckingham seat in 2010.

However, since then UKIP has made some significant electoral advances - including coming top in European polls in May.

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Huge Supermoon To Accompany Meteor Shower

A huge "supermoon" will accompany this year's Perseid meteor shower, in one of the most dramatic astronomical events of the year.

More than 100 meteors an hour speed by during the annual display, which takes place on the second week of August.

The shower is due to reach its peak on Tuesday, but this year the display has a shining rival - the Moon.

On Sunday the Moon will become full as it reaches the point in its orbit that is closest to the Earth, known as perigee.

It will appear up to 14% bigger and 30% brighter than other full moons during the year.

The Perseids are an annual spectacle

It could mean that the meteor shower does not stand out as much as it would on a typical year.

Dr Bill Cooke from Nasa's Meteoroid Environment Office said: "Lunar glare wipes out the black-velvety backdrop required to see faint meteors, and sharply reduces counts."

But he said that the Perseids were "rich in fireballs as bright as Jupiter or Venus" that would remain visible despite the Moon's glare.

Tony Markham, director of the Society for Popular Astronomy's meteor section, said skywatchers should stay optimistic.

"The Perseids are rich in bright meteors and so many Perseids will still be seen despite the moonlit sky background," he said.

Supermoons appear brighter and larger than normal

"If possible, keep the Moon hidden behind trees or a nearby building."

The best time to see the meteors is between Saturday and Wednesday, with activity peaking on Tuesday.

At perigee, the Moon is around 31,000 miles closer than when it is furthest away from the Earth.

Supermoons occur every 13 months and 18 days, but are not always noticed because of clouds or poor weather.

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Glasgow Flying Palestinian Flag Prompts Row

Glasgow's council has provoked controversy by flying the flag of the Palestinian people from the City Hall.

The council said it had decided to fly the flag - a green, white and black tricolour with a red triangle at one end - as a mark of support for those affected by the violence in Gaza.

The banner was erected on one of the flag poles outside Glasgow City Hall on Friday morning.

It came about after the mayor of Bethlehem, which in twinned with Glasgow, wrote to the city's Lord Provost, asking Glasgow to show solidarity.

Although Bethlehem is in the West Bank, the city council said it felt it was necessary to fly the flag to support all the people in the Palestinian Territories.

It has prompted outrage from Jewish groups, who say it will not achieve anything.

Deputy Leader of Glasgow City Council Archie Graham

Jewish Representative Council president Paul Morron told Sky News: "Flying the Palestinian flag achieves nothing.

"It's the worst form of politics. It's not going to change views and minds. Glasgow council should also be flying the Israeli flag."

A letter sent to the Mayor of Bethlehem from Glasgow's Lord Provost, Councillor Sadie Docherty, said: "I offer heartfelt sympathy to the people of Gaza who are suffering during this most recent outbreak of violence.

"Glasgow is home to many friends of Palestine and this is a deeply distressing time for them.

"They represent a variety of ethnicities, political persuasions, faiths and none. However, they are united by a common desire to support the Palestinian people.

The flag is being flown outside Glasgow City Hall

"In solidarity with Bethlehem and Palestine, Glasgow City Council will raise the Palestinian flag on Friday August 8."

Councillor Archie Graham, deputy leader of Glasgow City Council, said the council had had a lot of emails from residents asking for them to show their support for the people of Gaza

He told Sky News: "If any of our twin cities find themselves in difficulties, then we jump to help, of course we do.

"We met with people from the Jewish Representative Council ... The last thing we want to do is offend anyone and we absolutely condemn any anti-Semitism anywhere and we feel for the victims of the conflict no matter which side they are on.

"We are working with the Jewish Representative Council to try and allay any fears they might have but we feel absolutely that we have to show solidarity with the victims of this conflict, many of whom are innocent children."

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Man Dies After E-Cigarette Explodes Into Flames

A 62-year-old man has died after his e-cigarette exploded and ignited a home oxygen machine he is believed to have been using.

The unnamed victim's body was found in the living room of a property in Wallasey, Merseyside.

An investigation by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service found an e-cigarette that had been charging caught fire and ignited an oxygen concentrator, which may have been in use by the man.

There was a small amount of smoke damage to the property, but the fire was out by the time firefighters arrived.

An inquest will be held to determine the cause of death.

It is the ninth fire involving e-cigarettes on Merseyside alone this year, fire chiefs said.

Area manager Myles Platt, from MFRS, said: "The investigation into the cause of this fire is continuing but at this stage it is thought that the charging device being used at the time may not have been the one supplied with the e-cigarette.

"We urge people to always use electrical equipment in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and guidance, always ensure that no electrical items are left charging overnight or left unattended for a long period when being charged and do not mix parts from different e-cigarettes.

"Only use the original charger or electrical cables supplied and ensure you purchase electrical items from a reputable source."

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Ukraine: 15 Die In Battle To Free Soldiers

Fifteen Ukrainian soldiers and border guards have been killed during an operation to free army units who were trapped by pro-Russian rebels on the border.

Government forces opened up an escape corridor and the units were able to force their way out after being effectively encircled by separatists south of Luhansk and east of Donetsk.

"Seven service staff and eight border guards were killed and 79 injured," Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said.

Pro-Kiev troops say they are making gains in the east of the country as they battle heavily-armed separatists in a conflict which began in April and has claimed more than 1,100 lives.

A building apparently damaged by Ukrainian forces

At least three civilians were reportedly killed and 10 others were wounded in overnight shelling of the main rebel stronghold of Donetsk.

The pro-Russian city council said four apartment buildings in the southern were damaged by artillery barrages.

Ukrainian officials have denied government forces were shelling populated areas and blamed civilian casualties on the insurgents.

Pro-Russian separatists near the site of MH17

It comes as a top rebel leader and the newly appointed prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic said his forces have seized 18 Grad systems and a large number of tanks from a Ukrainian unit.

Alexander Zakharchenko's claim could not be independently confirmed.

Meanwhile, Russian investigators said they had detained five Ukrainian soldiers on suspicion of war crimes in eastern Ukraine, after they crossed into Russia earlier this week.

The troops went across the border in a huge contingent of more than 400 servicemen on Monday.

Moscow claimed they had surrendered and were switching sides but Kiev said they were forced to cross after running out of ammunition. Most of the men have since gone back to Ukraine.

Twenty-three of the MH17 victims have now been identified

Fighting in the east of the country has intensified since Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down on July 17, killing all 298 passengers and crew.

The West has blamed the rebels, who allegedly hit the aircraft with a BUK missile after mistaking it for a Ukrainian military plane.

But Russia and the separatists say Kiev government forces were responsible.

Dutch forensics experts have identified 21 more flight MH17 victims, while their colleagues at the crash site began arriving home from east Ukraine where fighting has stopped the investigation.

Until now, only two bodies had been identified. The 21 new victims were 16 Dutch, including a dual British national, two Malaysians, a German, a Canadian and a Briton.

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Israel Denies Targeting Hospitals In Gaza Strip

Israel has denied deliberately targeting hospitals or civilians in Gaza as a three-day truce ended in more bloodshed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government said it is targeting "terror sites across the Gaza Strip" in response to Hamas rocket attacks.

A 10-year-old Palestinian boy was killed and five other boys injured in an airstrike near a mosque in Gaza City, according to doctors in the area.

At least 30 rockets have been fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel since the truce ended at 6am UK time, Israeli army officials say.

A rocket that hit the Sdot Negev regional council injured a civilian and a soldier, the Israeli military tweeted.

Earlier, Amnesty International claimed it has evidence that Israel's military forces have specifically targeted hospitals, health workers and ambulance personnel during the conflict.

However, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev told Sky News: "We don't target hospitals, we don't target civilians."

He added: "What we've had to do on a number of occasions is to hit terrorist targets in the immediate vicinity of hospitals and things like that, where they've abused them.

"And what you've seen is there's a whole series of reports coming out of Gaza from journalists across the planet - not Israeli journalists, Canadians, Finns, Indian journalists and others - who have all reported that Hamas has got this systematic pattern of behaviour where they deliberately abuse humanitarian structures to shoot their rockets at Israel.

Palestinians leave their homes in Gaza City following Israeli attacks

"So actually if they're turning these humanitarian sites into warzones, they should be accountable."

He said Hamas "threw away the chance" to extend the ceasefire and Israel waited six hours before striking back.

Thousands of Palestinians are fleeing their homes in north and east Gaza as Mr Netanyahu ordered "forceful retaliation".

Sky's Katie Stallard, in Gaza City, heard two loud explosions and Israeli F16 fighters overhead.

Israeli tanks also fired into northern Gaza and Israeli gunboats targeted the central area of the strip, according to reports.

In Jerusalem, Israel has opened rocket shelters near the Gaza border so residents can take cover.

Israeli delegates have left talks in Cairo with Hamas and the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) on stopping the bloodshed.

The month-long violence, punctuated by brief periods of truce, has killed nearly 1,900 Palestinians, while Israel has lost 64 soldiers and three civilians.

UN figures indicate that 73% of the Palestinian victims, 1,354 people, were civilians.

Of that number, at least 429 were children.

As the conflict continued, a Gaza teenager and Israeli teacher - both living under threat of bombardment in the region's ongoing conflict - have taken part in a passionate Google Hangout discussion on Sky News.

Farah Baker and Adele Raemer tackled controversial issues including allegations that Hamas uses civilians as human shields and Israel's shelling of UN schools used as shelters by Palestinian children.

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British GSK Investigator Gets Jail In China

A British man who had carried out a probe for drugs firm GlaxoSmithKline in China has been jailed for breaking privacy laws.

Peter Humphrey, 58, was on trial for breaches which involved illegally obtaining Chinese citizens' personal information and selling it to companies including London-based GSK.

Humphrey was jailed for two years and six months, while his naturalised American wife Yu Yingzeng, 60, received a two-year prison sentence.

According to a statement read out by a court official at a press conference, Humphrey will be deported, but it gave no further details on that aspect of the judgment, including on whether Yu would also be deported.

Humphrey in court during his trial

They are allowed to appeal against their sentences, the court said.

A message posted on a state social media account said Humphrey had accepted the charges against him on the first day of his hearing in Shanghai.

Speaking outside the court, the couple's son Harvey said: "My parents' trial lasted 12 hours - they were allowed to speak and to present a defence.

"I'm very sad about the court's verdict but I hope that the authorities will take into account their poor health conditions."

The pair ran risk consultancy ChinaWhys and were arrested shortly after completing an internal investigation for GSK - which is now the focus of a separate corruption investigation.

In January last year an email was sent to GSK's UK-based chief executive containing a sex tape of GSK China's general manager Mark Reilly and his Chinese girlfriend.

The email accused Mr Reilly of being behind corruption in the company's China operation.

ChinaWhys was tasked with finding out who had sent the email and how the video had been filmed.

GSK suspected a former senior staff member with political connections, but who has denied being the whistleblower.

The trial was closely watched for any comments on GSK, but there was no mention of the British drugmaker.

Earlier, Harvey Humphrey accused the multinational of "misleading" his parents and claimed the company had "gone into full survival mode", which he said included denying any connection with his parents.

He told Sky News: "This whole thing stems from GSK's misleading of my parents and I think in that process they trod on several powerful toes, if I may put it that way."

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We note the verdict in this case.

"We have continually called for a transparent process leading to a swift and fair conclusion to this case, in accordance with Chinese law.

"It would be wrong to comment further while the case remains open to appeal."

A spokesman for GSK said the pharmaceutical company would not comment on the case.

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Pistorius' Family Hopeful Over Outcome

The Pistorius family hugged, smiled and kissed each other at the end of the defence summing up.

The athlete's uncle, Arnold, turned to reporters and, describing the two lawyers' performances, said: "It's a Mercedes versus a Fiat."

I asked: "Has Barry Roux done enough?"

Mr Pistorius answered: "Oh yes. More than enough."

In just over a month, we'll find out if he's right.

Judge Thokozile Masipa has retired to consider more than four hundreds pages of summing up arguments from both sides.

She'll deliver her verdict on September 11. As one reporter put it: "Oscar Pistorius' very own 9/11."

Friday was the defence fightback and his lawyer's last chance to prove his innocence.

The Pistorius family consider Barry Roux the Mercedes of defence lawyers

The day before was spent hearing from the prosecution how the paralympian had constructed a "snowball of lies" to avoid taking the blame for killing Reeva Steenkamp. On Friday, his defence team weighed in with 243 pages of reasons why the State had got it wrong.

The model was killed on Valentine's Day 2013

The athlete's lawyer, Barry Roux, turned to the crux of the defence case before the mid-morning tea break - pleading with the Judge not to forget that Oscar Pistorius had lived with disability all his life, disability which would mean he reacted like no able-bodied person and which ultimately meant he could not be held responsible for the death of his girlfriend.

His reactions that night were involuntary, Barry Roux argued, they were primal instincts due to a lifelong "slow burn" which meant he didn't even know what he was doing when he fired the shots.

Even as a little boy, the lawyer argued, Oscar Pistorius lived with fear and vulnerability due to not having legs. The effect was a "slow burn" on him and his behaviour. Mr Roux likened the "bladerunner's" reaction on that morning to that of an abused woman who finally snaps after years of abuse to shoot her abuser.

On being asked by the Judge to explain the analogy, Mr Roux said he wasn't suggesting the athlete was abused but that his reactions were similar, that he wouldn't even know what he'd done because he was startled and his response was an "involuntary reflexive response". That, the defence said, meant he could not be held criminally responsible for his actions.

Mr Roux is seeking to have the Paralympian acquitted on the charge of pre-meditated murder of his girlfriend, saying at no time did he intend to shoot Reeva Steenkamp.

At one stage, the advocate told the judge that the athlete should have been charged with culpable homicide in the first place - and not the much more serious charge of murder.

The State's case is that Oscar Pistorius deliberately set out to kill Reeva Steenkamp - and that he searched around for a gun in his bedroom, took it out of its holster, prepared it for shooting and then advanced down the bedroom corridor towards the bathroom and the perceived danger, intending to shoot and therefore kill. All this, the State insists, suggests there was pre-meditation, planning and intent.

Barry Steenkamp, Reeva's father, has recently attended court

Mr Roux spent much of the day rebutting evidence by key State witnesses by using a timeline which, he said, was backed up by telephone data and other witnesses - and which he said perfectly fitted into Oscar Pistorius' version of what happened.

He accused the State of being very selective in which witnesses it had chosen to call, saying they preferred to call neighbours who lived much further away (177m and 80m) rather than the athlete's immediate neighbours who backed up his version.

He was crushingly critical of the State's decision not to call the initial investigating officer Hilton Botha - who was heavily criticised at the bail application hearing for his incompetence and for contaminating the crime scene.

At the conclusion, Mr Roux told the judge that, if she found Oscar Pistorius had acted as a reasonable disabled person would, with no legs, with history of hyper-anxiety, having been startled, with gun in hand and feeling vulnerable, then she had to acquit him.

The trial, which was scheduled to take just three weeks and began in March, will finally end six months later.

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US Strikes ISIS Artillery In Northern Iraq

The US has carried out airstrikes against artillery used by Islamist militants in northern Iraq, the Pentagon says.

Two F/A-18 aircraft dropped 500-pound laser-guided bombs on a mobile artillery piece near Irbil, the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement that the Islamist militants had been using the artillery to shell Kurdish forces defending the city, where US personnel are located.

According to military officials, the strike was launched from the US aircraft carrier the USS George HW Bush, which in June was moved to the Gulf in preparation for any possible military action in Iraq.

The group has been advancing in Iraq

On Thursday President Barack Obama said he had authorised the strikes on Iraq to stop the advance on Irbil by the Islamic State - the group previously known as ISIS or ISIL.

He vowed to protect American citizens and religious minorities and to prevent a "genocide" by the IS, Sunni fighters who are intent on eradicating non-believers.

In the hours after the airstrikes, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) banned all US civilian flights over Iraq. British Airways also decided to stop flying over the war-torn region.

Other international airlines including Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines have halted their flights to Irbil until Monday.

The aftermath of US airstrikes near Irbil, seen from the Khazer Checkpoint

Some 40,000 residents from the ancient Yazidi community have been forced to leave the northern Iraqi town of Sinjar after the militants overwhelmed Kurdish forces.

Many Yazidis are trapped on Mount Sinjar without food or water and are at risk of starvation as the militants surround the base.

Kurdish media has reported that Peshmerga forces have rescued 11,000 of those trapped in the mountains.

On Thursday, the US dropped thousands of gallons of drinking water and 8,000 packaged meals to Yazidis.

Yazidis seen fleeing the violence in Iraq

The airdrops were performed by one C-17 and two C-130 cargo aircraft escorted by two F/A-18 fighters from an undisclosed air base in the region, the Pentagon said.

Chuck Hagel, the US defence secretary, said the American military has sufficient intelligence resources and assets in place to launch strikes by both manned and unmanned aircraft. 

He said that, if the IS moves against Irbil, Baghdad or the refugees trapped on a mountain, "it's pretty clear who they are, and they would be pretty identifiable where our airstrikes could be effective".

In his late-night address on Thursday, Mr Obama said: "America is coming to help".

An F/A-18C Hornet aboard the USS George HW Bush on August 8

Mr Obama's announcement reflected the deepest American engagement in Iraq since US troops withdrew in late 2011 after nearly a decade of war.

But the President, who opposed the 2003 invasion, has vowed there would be no return of ground troops to Iraq.

"As commander in chief, I will not allow the United States to be dragged into fighting another war in Iraq," he said.

As militants advance across the north of Iraq and the situation deteriorates, Britons have been warned to leave Irbil. 

Christian refugees have fled to Irbil

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon also said Britain was offering help to the Americans in their efforts to provide humanitarian support.

Pope Francis is sending a cardinal to Iraq to help thousands of Christians fleeing the militants, the Vatican said.

IS has declared a caliphate - an Islamic state - across parts of Iraq and Syria and wants to bring in a strict version of Islamic law. The militants have swept through more than a dozen towns in recent days.

IS believes the Yazidis, who are followers of a religion derived from Zoroastrianism, are "devil worshippers". The group has issued the Yazidis an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay a religious fine, flee their homes or face death.

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