Profile: Free Gaza Movement Page last updated at 16:03 GMT, Tuesday, 1 June 2010 17:03 UK E-mail this to a friend

Israeli forces stormed the lead ship, the Mavi Marmara

The Free Gaza Movement, the group behind the Gaza aid flotilla, is a broad coalition of human rights activists and pro-Palestinian groups that has been trying to break Israel's blockade of Gaza since 2008.

It is a registered charity based in Cyprus and is endorsed by international figures, including South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire.

But in recent years Israeli intelligence agencies say it has grown to include dangerous Islamic organisations with terrorist links.

The six-ship flotilla was carryi ng 10,000 tonnes of medicine, construction materials and education supplies - the movement's largest operation to date.

There were more than 650 passengers, among them representatives of the Malaysian-based Perdana Global Peace Organisation, the Greece and Sweden-based Ship to Gaza group, and the large Turkish charity, IHH.

The Mavi Marmara, the lead ship stormed by Israeli troops, was operated by IHH, a group banned by Israel in 2008.

IHH raises some of its money from Islamic religious groups and has strong sympathy among Turkey's Islamist-rooted ruling party.

IHH, founded in 1992, is now active in 120 countries and has been present in recent disaster areas including Haiti.

The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center (ITIC) - an Israel-based non-governmental organisation which has close ties to the Israeli Defense Forc es - does not dispute the organisation's legitimate philanthropic activities.

But the ITIC says the Turkish charity is an overt supporter of Hamas - an Islamic militant group that seized power in Gaza in 2007, and is branded by Israel, the EU and US as a "terrorist organisation".

The ITIC says it also has evidence the IHH has helped provide weapons and funds for "Islamic terrorist elements in the Middle East".

But Greta Berlin, a director of the Free Gaza Movement, said the claim that IHH has links to radical Islamist groups was "utterly scurrilous".

She said those on board the Mavi Marmara were unarmed civilians trying to get aid to Gaza.

She told the BBC News website that the Israelis acted illegally in international waters and now "they are trying to blacken the reputations of all of us".

Permanent sea lane

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Daniel Ayalon described the Free Gaza Movement mission as an "outrageous provocation".

"The organisers are well-known for their ties with global Jihad, al-Qaeda and Hamas," said Mr Ayalon. "They have a history of arms smuggling and deadly terror."

He said weapons were found onboard and used against the soldiers. Israel insists its commandos acted in self-defence, while enforcing a legal blockade of Gaza.

The Free Gaza Movement states its mission is "to overcome this brutal siege through civil resistance and non-violent direct action, and establish a permanent sea lane between Gaza and the rest of the world".

It attempted to make its first deliveries to Gaza in summer 2008, and tried again in 2009.

The earliest aid deliveries were allowed to reach Gaza but later attempts were intercepted.

Despite the deadly consequences of its latest aid mission, the Free Gaza Movement says it is already considering sending "a second wave" of boats to Gaza.

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'North Korean torpedo' sank South's navy ship - report Page last updated at 9:06 GMT, Thursday, 20 May 2010 10:06 UK E-mail this to a friend

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Co-head of i nvestigation team, Yoon Duk-yong: "Both sections at the failure point were bent upward"

A North Korean submarine's torpedo sank a South Korean navy ship on 26 March causing the deaths of 46 sailors, an international report has found.

Investigators said they had discovered part of the torpedo on the sea floor and it carried lettering that matched a North Korean design.

Pyongyang rejected the claim as a "fabrication" and threatened war if sanctions were imposed, say reports.

China has urged both countries to show restraint.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak pledged to take "stern action" against the North.

The White House described the sinking of the ship as an "act of aggression" by North Korea that challenged peace.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the report was "deeply troubling".

Pyongyang said it would send its own inspection team to the South to "verify material evidence" behind the accusation.

NORTH KOREAN ATTACKS

Continue reading the main story

• Jan 1967 - attacks South Korean warship near border, killing 39 sailors
  
  


• Jan 1968 - commandos storm presidential palace in Seoul in a failed attempt to kill President Park Chung-hee
  
  


• Jan 1968 - captures USS Pueblo - one crew member dies and 82 held hostage for 11 months
  
  


• Dec 1969 - hijacks South Korean airliner taking dozens of passengers hostage
  
  


• Oct 1983 - bombs hotel in Rangoon, Burma in failed attempt to k ill South Korean President Chun Doo-hwan - 21 people die
  
  


• Nov 1987 - bombs South Korean airliner, killing 115
  
  


• Sept 1996 - sub carrying 26 troops disabled off South - some land in South sparking deadly manhunt
  
  


• Mar 2010 - torpedoes Cheonan warship, 46 sailors killed
  
  

How the ship was sunk

A North Korean defence spokesman said the country would "respond to reckless countermeasure with an all-out war of justice", the state KCNA news agency reported.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said Beijing had "noted" the report and would make its own assessment, but called on both sides to exercise restraint.

The Cheonan went down near the disputed inter-Korean maritime border, raising tension between the two nations, which technically remain at war.

The shattered wreck of the 1,200-tonne gunboat was later winched to the surface, in two pieces, for examination.

The investigation was led by experts from the US, Australia, Britain and Sweden. The team examined eyewitness accounts, damage to the vessel, evidence collected from the seabed and the injuries sustained by survivors and those who died.

It said: "The evidence points overwhelmingly to the conclusion that the torpedo was fired by a North Korean submarine.

"There is no other plausible explanation."

'Perfect match'

Monitoring of seismic activity in the region, damage to the ship and the "fractures and lacerations" sustained by the dead crew were all consistent with "damage resulting from a shockwave and bubble effect" caused by an explosion directly beneath the vessel, it said.< br>

The report said the torpedo parts found "perfectly match" a torpedo type that the North manufactures.

Lettering found on one section matched that on a North Korean torpedo found by the South seven years ago.

There had earlier been a number of explanations suggested for the sinking, including an accidental collision with an unexploded sea mine left over from the Korean War.

Mr Lee's presidential office said he had told Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd: "We will be taking firm, responsive measures against the North - and through international co-operation, we have to make the North admit its wrongdoing and come back as a responsible member of the international community."

However, the BBC's John Sudworth in Seoul says agreeing an international response will be difficult as the diplomatic options will be limited.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai said on Thursday the sinking of the vessel was "unfortunate" but he would not comment on the international report.

Continue reading the main story

Adam Brookes
BBC News, Washington

Absent from the White House statement is any call for retribution or military response. The US does not want fighting to break out on the Korean peninsula.

The White House, said one expert, will be looking for a response that deters, but does not provoke North Korea.

Sources here say the Obama administration is considering putting North Korea back on the list of countries which sponsor terrorism. That could mean sanctions. North Korea was removed from the list in 2008.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is due to travel to Japan, South Korea and China in the coming days. Managing this smouldering crisis between the two Koreas will no doubt occupy much of her time.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said US President Barack Obama had expressed his "deep sympathy" to Mr Lee and the Korean people and that the US "strongly condemned" the action.

"This act of aggression is one more instance of North Korea's unacceptable behaviour and defiance of international law," said Mr Gibbs, adding that it "only deepens North Korea's isolation".

He called the alleged attack "a challenge to international peace and security" and a violation of the armistice agreement which ended the Korean war.

But he said it had reinforced the resolve of North Korea's neighbours "to intensify their co-operation to safeguard peace and stability in the region against all provocations".

Japan's Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said in a statement that North Korea's action was "unforgivable".

The country's chief cabinet secretary, Hirofumi Hirano, said the situation was "extremely regrettable" and would "evidently" be brought before the UN.

The British embassy in Seoul quoted Foreign Secretary William Hague as saying: "[North Korea's] actions will deepen the international community's mistrust. The attack demonstrates a total indifference to human life and a blatant disregard of international obligations."

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Adobe's row with Apple over Flash technology escalates Page last updated at 21:17 GMT, Sunday, 16 May 2010 22:17 UK E-mail this to a friend

By Jonathan Fildes
Technology reporter, BBC News




The letter is part of a global advertising campaign by Adobe

Adobe has launched its latest salvo in an ongoing dispute with Apple.

The co-founders of Adobe have published an open letter in which they say that Apple threatens to "undermine the next chapter of the web".

The software firm has also started an adverting blitz in newspapers and on popular technology news sites.

Some of the online adverts contain the tongue-in-cheek slogan "We heart Apple".

It follows a letter from Apple boss Steve Jobs in which he defended his firm's decision not to allow Adobe's Flash technology on many of its popular products.

Mr Jobs described Adobe's software - used on many websites for video and animations - as a "closed system" and "100% proprietary".

"While Adobe's Flash products are widely available, this does not mean they are open, since they are controlled entirely by Adobe and available only from Adobe."

Whilst Mr Jobs admitted that Apple also had "many proprietary products", he said that Apple believed "all standards pertaining to the web should be open".

Amongst other criticisms, he also said Flash performed poorly when used on touchscreen smartphones and handheld devices.

Adobe co-founders Chuck Geschke and John Warnock have now hit back.

"We believe that consumers should be able to freely access their favorite content and applications, regardless of what computer they have, what browser they like, or what device suits their needs," the letter reads.

"No company - no matter how big or how creative - should dictate what you can create, how you create it, or what you can experience on the web."

'Smokescreen'

Adobe's campaign is the latest move in a high-profile war of words between the two companies, which began with Apple's decision not to allow Flash technology to run on some of its popular gadgets such as the iPhone and iPad.

The a dverts contain tongue-in-cheek messages

In early April, Apple also clamped down on the tools that it allowed developers to use to create applications for the iPhone and iPad.

By changing the terms of the licence that software developers must sign when writing code to run on Apple products, the firm effectively blocked developers from using software that Adobe was about to release. The software - Creative Suite 5 -contained tools that automatically translate Flash code into programs that will run on Apple gadgets.

Mr Jobs later justified the changes in his letter by saying that experience had shown that it could result in "sub-standard " applications.

But Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen described Mr Job's letter as a "smokescreen" and said the decision had made it "cumbersome" for developers who were forced to have "two workflows".

Adobe has said it will stop making the tools.

Tongue-in-cheek

The new letter from the co-founders of Adobe attacks Mr Jobs' assertion that Flash is a closed system.

Mr Jobs says that Flash is 'closed'

"As the founders of Adobe, we believe open markets are in the best interest of developers, content owners, and consumers."

"If the web fragments into closed systems, if companies put content and applications behind walls, some indeed may thrive - but their success will come at the expense of the very creativity and innovation that has made the internet a revolutionary force.

The company claims that its software- and particularly Flash - is open.

"We publish the specifications for Flash — meaning anyone can make their own Flash player," it reads.

"We believe that Apple, by taking the opposite approach, has taken a step that could undermine this next chapter of the web - the chapter in which mobile devices outnumber computers, any individual can be a publisher, and content is accessed anywhere and at any time.

"In the end, we believe the question is really this: Who controls the world wide web? And we believe the answer is: nobody — and everybody, but certainly not a single company."

In response to the letter, an Apple spokesperson said that the firm also believes in "open web standards" such as HTML5, the latest version of a programming language used to build web pages.

"Flash is not an open web standard like HTML. It is a proprietary Adobe product. Just ask the W3 consortium that controls web standards - they have chosen HTML5 as the open web standard to move forward with."

Adobe's letter has been published on its website as part of a global advertising campaign.

The adverts list a series of technologies that Adobe says it "loves".

It ends: "What we don't love is anybody taking away your freedom to choose what you create, how you create it, and what you experience on the web."

The adverts have been bought in the New York Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle as well as the Financial Times and Wall Street Journal. Online, they appear on Wired, Techcrunch and Engadget.

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The new iPhone: Your Comments Page last updated at 23:37 GMT, Monday, 7 June 2010 00:37 UK E-mail this to a friend

The new handset has two cameras and allows users to video-chat

Apple has unveiled a redesign of its popular iPhone handset. BBC News Online readers have been telling us what they think of the iPhone4. Here is a selection of their comments.

Apple shows off iPhone4

I will be buying one when my contract ends for my last iPhone. Why? Because with all this change in technology that I have had from an early age, I now like consistency and reliability. Google Android could even be better, but I don't want to change again. Other companies seem to like redesigning and reinventing the wheel, Apple just keeps making the wheel better.< br>

Dave Hacker, Bournemouth, UK

I recently switched over to a HTC Incredible running Google Android. Not only is this a better application of Smartphone technology, the service is better through the connection provider. Apple has really lost a great deal of market share through their exclusivity contracts with companies like ATT.

Baker Tee, Chicago, Illinois, USA

We will surely be buying this latest iteration of the ever popular phone. The addition of the front facing video camera adds a whole new dimension. Although video calling has been around for decades, the iPhone will be responsible for making it ubiquitous.

Shweta Kumar, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

Perfect timing! I was about to buy a 3GS but will wait the extra two weeks and get the new iPhone 4. It looks awesome

< span class="cross-head">Matt Terry, Worthing, UK

Should I buy another Apple iPhone? They are joking! I have had problems with mine from the beginning. Also, I'm unable to use it as a memory stick makes the 8GB a waste of money. The most expensive mobile phone mistake I have made.

Andrew MacArthur, Fushun, China

It looks excellent. As for the "walled garden" that has been much criticised, I consider it an important part of what I like about the phone. Our family will end up with five of these.

Tim, Southport, Australia

Interesting but I have just come back from a meeting which had and iPad in attendance which was much more useful.

James Spencer, Manchester, UK

It looks pretty but when I replace my current iPhone it will be with an Android handset. I don't l ike Apple's tight control of content.

Mervyn Thomas, Brisbane, Australia

Continue reading the main story

The Android operating system is fast overtaking the iPhone operating system in functionality.

Gary, UK

Who gives a toss about phones? What a bizarre thing to get excited about.

David Jones, Leeds, UK

I already have an iPhone and cannot imagine life without it. The new version is a huge improvement and I will definitely buy it.

Peter, Brussels

Looks like there will be more new iPhones out each year than Manchester United shirts.

Ian, Burnham on Sea, UK

No, I will not buy one. The battery life is poor compared to other phones like the HTC Desire. I travel a lot and do not want to have to keep charging my phone every night. The Android operating system is fast overtaking the iPhone operating system in functionality: it doesn't tie you to just one manufacturer and you don't pay through your nose for an iconic brand name.

Gary, East Grinstead, UK

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Spanish public sector on strike against austerity plan Page last updated at 12:29 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 13:29 UK E-mail this to a friend

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The BBC's Sarah Rainsford reports from the streets of Madrid as crowds grow

Spanish public sector workers are holding a strike in protest against an average 5% cut in pay that comes into effect this month.

The cuts are part of a government austerity package aimed at reducing the country's budget deficit, swollen by almost two years of recession.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of Madrid's finance ministry blowing horns and chanting slogans.

Spanish unions said 75-80% of public sector workers had joined the strike.

The labour ministry, however, put the figure at 16%.

"This government is totally inept," said protester Alfredo Barrero Sanchez, 55.

He accused the government of ignoring the crisis until it was too late.

"In the end, look what has happened to this country," he told Associated Press news agency.

Spain has suffered one of the toughest recessions in the EU, and has its highest unemployment rate. It recently had its credit rating downgraded, amid fears it could follow Greece into a debt crisis.

More than 2.5 million Spaniards work in the public sector, and the strikes were reported to be affecting hospitals and schools, fire stations and local government. Emergency responders were providing minimum services.

With a budget deficit currently running over 11%, the government is under pressure from the EU to slash spending.

In May, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero announced a 5% cut in public sector pay, starting this month. Salaries will be frozen in 2011.

There were also big cuts in public investment and development aid. Some pensions were frozen.

The cuts are part of a 15bn euro (S12bn; $18bn) package of austerity measures also meant to reassure the financial markets that Spain will meet its debts.

Testing public mood

Trade unions are angry that public sector workers are being penalised.

Continue reading the main story

• 5% average pay cut for public workers in 2010
  
  


• Automatic inflation-adjustments for pensions suspended
  
  


• Payout scrapped to parents for birth of children
  
  


• Funding to regions cut by 1.2bn e uros
  
  

EU austerity: country-by-country

They accuse the Socialist Party of reneging on previou promises, and taking desperate measures now - after insisting for months that Spain would be relatively unaffected by the economic crisis.

The government is due to unveil on Wednesday plans to free up the labour market, by making it easier to hire and fire workers, in an attempt to stimulate growth.

The unions have threatened a general strike if those measures go ahead.

In recent months, Greece has been hit by mass strikes and protests over austerity measures imposed to combat a debt crisis that has shaken the 16-member eurozone.

Germany on Monday announced 86bn euros in cuts by 2014 - its biggest budget cut since World War II, and the latest in a series of austerity plans being hatched acros s the eurozone.

Britain, the Republic of Ireland, Portugal and Italy have also announced austerity programmes.

Are you in Spain? Will you be striking? Send us your comments.

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Gautrain arrives in time for World Cup Page last updated at 07:40 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 08:40 UK E-mail this to a friend

By Pumza Fihlani

BBC News, Johannesburg

Advertisement

On board the new high-speed train with football fans

Africa's first high-speed train has started running - just in time for fans travelling to South Africa for the World Cup, which starts on Friday.

Costing a massive 24bn rand ($3bn; S2.1bn), South Africa hopes that its revolutionary rapid transit system will bring some much needed change to its outdated and sometimes unreliable transport system.

Its top speed is 160 km/ h (100 mph) - a long way from the world's fastest trains but still far superior to the locomotives chugging along most of the rest of the continent's tracks, which mostly date from the colonial era.

Although the Gautrain was not intended to be a World Cup project, the local authorities and constructors Mbombela were anxious to get the main route ready in time for the football extravaganza.

Large crowds turned up to ride on the train's inaugural trip. Narcizo Makwakwa took the train from Sandton to the airport "just for a joy ride".

"After this, I am going to work but I had to see it. I couldn't wait for the past seven years for this, it is beautiful," he told the BBC.

Gaillard Rossouw said the train was the only way he could make it from Johannesburg to the airport for his early morning flight back home to Durban.

"It took me 15 minutes to get here, this is awesome."

A rocky road






















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THE GAUTRAIN

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• New line runs from Johannesburg to Pretoria with an extension to OR Tambo International Airport
  
  


• Construction began in 2006, due to complete in 2011
  
  


• Cost: 24 bn rand [$3bn/S 2.12bn]
  
  


• Speed: 160 kmh [100 mph]
  
  


• Length: 80km when complete
  
  


• Trains based on 'Electrostar' design and built by Bombardier in Derby, UK
  
  

Just one section of of the line has been finished - between the OR Tambo international airport and central Johannesburg.

The next section of the line will link Johannesburg to the national capital, Pretoria, 50km (31 miles) away in 40 minutes.

Currently, driving between the two cites in Gauteng province can take up to two hours in peak-hour traffic.

Construction on the Gautrain beg an in September 2006 and will be finalised in June 2011 when an additional 10 stations, covering approximately 80km (50 miles) are completed.

Close to 100,000 direct and indirect jobs have been created by the construction of the Gautrain, with more than 25% of those going to locals.

Still this high speed system has seen its fair share of controversy.

Critics have argued that it would only benefit the elite.

They said the billions spent on the ambitious project should be used to improve the existing transport system, which includes the old Metrorail network, responsible for transporting two million people daily, instead of beginning a new one.

The Metrorail trains are mainly used as a link between townships including Soweto and Johannesburg.

In contrast to the luxurious Gautrain with its air-conditioned coaches, people are often crammed into the Metrorail's carriages, where muggings have become a common problem.

The trains also sometimes prove to be unreliable - either arriving late or not being available due to strike action, as happened recently, stranding hundreds of thousands.

Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin once expressed concerns that the Gautrain might become a scapegoat for disgruntled Metrorail commuters.

But opposition parties were more concerned that like many of the country's roads, the Gautrain would ultimately be neglected.

"The government is unable to properly maintain and rehabilitate the existing 23,000 km of tarred roads," Democratic Alliance transport spokesman Stuart Farrow said in 2005.

"How is the public then expected to believe that 20bn rand spent on the Gautrain is in their best interest?"

Smart card

Initial estimates for the project were 7bn rand, before rocketing to more than 20bn.

The operational route includes four stations and bus services between the affluent Sandton suburb and the airport.

It will offer a cheaper alternative for airport transfers from Sandton and Johannesburg which on average cost 300 rand ($40; S27.32) but will now cost just $13.

Although offering the benefits of speed and additional safely, it will prove to be more expensive for people looking to commute between suburbs in Johannesburg and in Pretoria, whose costs are currently minimal.

At the moment minibus taxis and Metrorail are the preferred means of travel for many but over the years concerns have been raised about the minibus industry which remains difficult to regulate.

Traffic between Johannesburg and Pretoria is currently growing by 7% each year. If the Gautrain is as efficient as South Africans have been made to believe, it will certainly be useful to those looking to save time while commuting between the commercial districts.

It will operate between 05:30 and 20:30 weekdays, running every 12 minutes during peak times.

This public transport service will include dedicated, exclusive bus services to transport passengers to and from stations.

Commuters will access all services by means of a contactless smart card - the Gautrain Gold Card, which can be topped up with money.

The Gauteng provincial government say s this will "revolutionise" how people use the transport system and argues that it will aid economic growth.

New Justice Minister Jeff Radebe said the project was "long overdue". He was transport minister when the project was announced in the Gauteng provincial legislature in 2002.

"For too long the people of Gauteng were hoping and dreaming about the day when our public transport systems are on par with the rest of the world," he said on Saturday.

South Africa's hard-pressed commuters - as well as the world's football fans - will be hoping the comfort and speed will prove to be worth the wait.

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Oil spill: Barack Obama criticises BP boss Tony Hayward Page last updated at 09:04 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 10:04 UK E-mail this to a friend

Tony Hayward's handling of the disaster has been under scrutiny

US President Barack Obama has strongly criticised BP's chief executive Tony Hayward over the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

In an interview with NBC, Mr Obama was asked about comments Mr Hayward made in the wake of the disaster, such as "I want my life back" and the Gulf is "a big ocean".

Mr Obama said: "He wouldn't be working for me after any of those statements."

He said he had visited the Louisiana coast "so I know whose ass to kick".

The interview on NBC's Today show is to be broadcast later on Tuesday.

Mr Obama used the interview to defend his role in dealing with the crisis. Polls suggest that many Americans think he has handled the disaster poorly.

The president has made three visits to the oil-hit coast since the disaster started in late April, talking to fishermen and oil spill experts.

"I was down there a month ago before most of these talking heads were even paying attention to the Gulf," Mr Obama told NBC.

"I don't sit around just talking to experts because this is a college seminar, we talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers - so I know whose ass to kick," he said.

Mr Obama told reporters he was committed to seeing the Gulf region restored to a condition better than it was before the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank on 20 April, killing 11 workers.

The leaking wellhead is currently spewing out between 12,000 and 24,000 barrels of oil per day. Some 11,000 barrels of oil are being trapped by a containment cap.

'Nasty calls'

Meanwhile, police are protecting Mr Hayward's family at their home in Kent in southern England after they received hate mail and threatening phone calls.

Maureen Hayward told the Daily Telegraph, a British newspaper, about the growing hostility towards her and their two children.

Continue reading the main story

BP needs to tell whining Americans to take a hike

Bloomberg
Matthew Lynn




Read more commentators' views

"Members of my family have had nasty phone calls and we have also had mail from groups," she was quoted as saying.

"Tony is obviously away and we are miles away from him so it's upsetting," she said.

There is an "ongoing police operation" involving Mr Hayward's family home, the newspaper quoted local police sources as saying.

BP - and in particular Mr Hayward - has received widespread criticism over the handling of the spill. At one point, Mr Hayward said "the environmental impact of this disaster is likely to be very, very modest".

The New York Daily News has called him "the most hated and clueless man in America".

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"DO YOU APPROVE OR DISAPPROVE OF OBAMA'S RESPONSE TO THE OIL SPILL?"

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• Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll: 900 registered voters nationwide
  
  


• CNN/Opinion Research poll: 1023 adults nationwide
  
  


• CBS News poll: 960 adults nationwide
  
  


• Gallup poll: 1035 adults nationwide
  
  


• Margin of error for all polls: +/- 3%
  
  

Lo ng-term damage

Meanwhile, US Coast Guard chief Adm Thad Allen has said that cleaning up marshlands would take a long time.

Tar balls are continuing to wash ashore on beaches and wetlands

Adm Allen, the co-ordinator of the clean-up operation, told reporters it would take "a couple of months" to clear the oil slick from the surface of the Gulf.

But he said: "Long-term issues of restoring environments and habitats will be years."

He said BP needed to do better at getting money to people and businesses affected by the spill.

He said that while BP had nea rly doubled the amount of oil being funnelled from the leaking wellhead since Friday, it was now "trying to increase that production rate, close the venting valves and move to a greater capacity".

He said BP was hoping to move a second production platform into the area to increase the amount of oil that could be siphoned off.

Adm Allen added that BP was also preparing a bigger rig to process a greater capacity of oil in severe weather. The region's hurricane season started last week.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs warned, however, that collecting oil through the containment cap fixed over the leaking well remained a risky operation.

BP said on Monday that the cost of its response to the disaster in the Gulf had reached about $1.25bn (S860m).

This number does not include $360m for a project to build six sand berms to protec t Louisiana's wetlands from the spreading oil, BP has said.

Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill has been found on beaches and wetlands along more than 100 miles (161 km) of coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle.

Attempt to cap oil leak

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The latest stage in BP's efforts to contain leaking oil has involved lowering a cap onto the failed blowout preventer (BOP) valve system on the seabed. The cap sits on the BOP's lower marine riser package (LMRP) section.

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First, the damaged riser - the pipe which takes oil from the well - was cut where it nears the seabed using a remotely-operated shear. This was completed at 1930 CDT on 1 June (0030 GMT 2 June).

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The next stage was for a diamond wire cutter to saw through the riser close to the LMRP. The blade got stuck and had to be removed but BP eventually cut through the pipe using giant shears manipula ted by undersea robots (ROV).

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After removing the pipe, the cap was lowered onto the LMRP enabling the leaking oil and gas to be funnelled to a drill ship on the surface. Latest estimates suggest more than half of the leaking oil is now being captured.

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Head of UN anti-impunity panel in Guatemala resigns Page last updated at 10:39 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 11:39 UK E-mail this to a friend

Carlos Castresana led a team of Guatemalan and foreign investigators

The head of a UN-backed commission set up to combat impunity in Guatemala has resigned, saying he can do no more.

Carlos Castresana of the International Commission against Impunity (CICIG) said the government had not kept its promise to reform the justice system.

Guatemala has a long history of impunity, with few cases either coming to trial or resulting in convictions.

But since January 2008, CICIG has carried out investigations leading to the conviction of dozens of officials.

Hundreds of police officers with links to illegal groups have also been sacked.

Mr Castresana, a Spanish jurist who headed a team of Guatemalan and international investigators, had regularly voiced concern that Guatemala's weak laws hindered CICIG's work.

He also complained that the country's Congress had failed to pass anti-impunity laws.

On Monday, Mr Castresana called a news conference in Guatemala City to announce his resignation.

"Nothing that was promised is being done. On a personal level, I feel I cannot do anything more for Guatemala," he said.

Mr Castresana said another reason for his resignation was the appointment of Conrado Reyes as attorney general.

Mr Castresana accused Mr Reyes of having links with illicit organisations and urged President Alvaro Colom to fire him.

The attorney general denied Mr Castresana's claims.

"I do not have, nor have I ever had, ties to the people and organisations he claims," Mr Reyes said.

Commitment

Reacting to Mr Castresana's resignation, President Colom reiterated his government's support for CICIG.

"Sometimes we are limited, legally, or in respect of governance or financing in how we can respond to their requests," Mr Colom said, referring to the various demands CICIG had made.

A statement from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's office said a replacement for Mr Castresana would be appointed as soon as possible.

"The success of this partnership requires that the international commitment be matched by an equal commitment on the part of the national authorities," the sta tement said.

CICIG's mandate runs until September 2011.

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Inmarsat grabs the MacRobert engineering prize Page last updated at 23:51 GMT, Monday, 7 June 2010 00:51 UK E-mail this to a friend

BGAN relies on a network of satellites in geostationary orbit

The UK's top engineering prize has been won by Inmarsat, for its Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service.

Inmarsat's team was awarded the prize for having successfully overcome "formidable" engineering challenges.

The BGAN service comprises a network of satellites which offer near global coverage for voice and data calls.

The MacRobert Prize is awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering to recognise innovative ideas.

MacRobert Award judging panel chairman Geoff Robinson said: " ;The Inmarsat team had the vision to see the demand for a global broadband service, and the courage to invest significant time and money in developing it."

Disaster relief

Inmarsat's BGAN is used by media companies all over the world, enabling them to broadcast from remote or disaster-struck locations.

But it is also popular with companies, governments and non-governmental organisations, and has become a key tool for aid agencies and emergency services involved in disaster relief.

The BGAN satellites feature an innovative unfurling antenna

Just days after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, close to 500 individual termin als accessed the BGAN "spot beam" over the country.

Dr Robinson said: "That their service can deliver such tremendous humanitarian benefits, in addition to the technical and commercial ones, must be a source of great satisfaction to this outstanding team."

The S50,000 prize is split between four Inmarsat employees based at the firm's London headquarters: Eugene Jilg, chief technology officer for Inmarsat; Marcus Vilaca, chief scientist; Franco Carnevale, director, space segment engineering; and Alan Howell, director, system network engineering.

Inmarsat faced tough competition to win the award, which is co-ordinated each year by Britain's Royal Academy of Engineering.

The other shortlisted companies were Chas A Blatchford and Sons for the world's first self-aligning ankle-foot prosthesis; Cobham Technical Services for the Minehound du al sensor landmine detector; and Lucite International for its Alpha process, which is a greener way of making a key ingredient of acrylic plastic.

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Sea Shepherd cuts ties with whale activist Pete Bethune Page last updated at 13:45 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 14:45 UK E-mail this to a friend

Pete Bethune faces up to 15 years in prison in Japan

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd says it has cut ties with one of its most prominent members for violating its rules against carrying weapons.

New Zealander Pete Bethune is on trial in Japan charged with illegally boarding a Japanese whaler.

In a statement, Sea Shepherd said a bow and arrows had been found on the ship he had been captaining, the Ady Gil.

The group said that while Mr Bethune had not planned to use the weapons, his carrying of them was "unacceptable".

The statement, dated 4 June, praised Mr Bethune for hi s work during Sea Shepherd's campaign to disrupt Japan's whaling hunt in the Southern Ocean of the Antarctic in late 2009 and early 2010.

But it said the bow and arrows found to have been on board the high-tech Ady Gil speedboat were contrary to Sea Shepherd's "stance of aggressive but non-violent direct action".

The group said it would continue to support Mr Bethune during his trial in Japan, but that he would no longer "be formally associated with, or be a representative of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, because his methods are not in complete alignment with the organisation".

'Nasty chemicals'

But another Ady Gil crew member, Jason Stewart, told New Zealand's TV3 News that Sea Shepherd had always known about the bow and arrows.

Mr Bethune's ship was destroyed in the crash with the whaler

In a TV3 interview recorded before the Antarctic campaign, Mr Bethune displayed the weapons and said they would be used to shoot "nasty chemicals" into dead whales so the whaling ships would not take them on board.

Mr Bethune is facing five charges in Japan after he boarded a Japanese whaling ship, the Shonan Maru 2, in the Antarctic in February.

He said he wanted to perform a citizen's arrest of its captain and present a bill for damage to the Ady Gil, which had earlier been destroyed in a crash with the whaler.

But he was instead detained on board and taken to Japan, where he was arrested.

He has pleaded guilty to charges of trespassing, vandalism, possession of a knife and obstructing business, but denied assault. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Japan abandoned commercial whaling in 1986 after agreeing to a global moratorium - but international rules allow it to continue hunting under the auspices of a research programme.

It says the annual hunt catches mostly minke whales, which are not an endangered species.

Conservationists say the whaling is a cover for the sale and consumption of whale meat.

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Iran nuclear scientist Amiri in US 'kidnap' dispute Page last updated at 11:33 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 12:33 UK E-mail this to a friend

This video purporting to show Mr Amiri was posted on YouTube

The Iranian government says it has evidence that one of its nuclear scientists was abducted and is being held in the US against his will.

Shahram Amiri disappeared a year ago while on a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

Iranian television broadcast a video purporting to show the scientist saying he was kidnapped and is now living in Arizona.

It comes a day after another video, posted on YouTube, appeared to show Mr Amiri saying he was happy in the US.

Mr Amiri worked as a researcher at a university in Tehran, Ir anian media reported.

But other reports said he worked for the country's Atomic Energy Organisation and had in-depth knowledge of the country's nuclear programme.

'Drugged'

In the video shown on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting network, the man says he was forced to say he defected with a laptop full of evidence about Iran's nuclear secrets and that he was being used to put pressure on Iran.

The video showed a man wearing headphones and talking to his webcam.

He says he was in the Saudi city of Medina as part of a Muslim pilgrimage when Saudi intelligence officers drugged and kidnapped him.

"When I became conscious, I found myself in a plane on the way to the US," he was quoted as saying by Associated Press news agency.

"Since I was a bducted and brought to the US I was heavily tortured and pressured by US intelligence."

The man said the recording was made on 5 April in the city of Tucson, in Arizona.

'Free and safe'

In the video posted on YouTube, however, the man says he lives safely in the city and wants to continue his education in the US.

Continue reading the main story

I am Iranian and I have not taken any steps against my homeland

Shahram Amiri
YouTube broadcast

"I am free here and I assure everyone I am safe," he said in Farsi. The clip was posted on 7 June.

"My purpose in today's conversation is to put an end to all the rumour s that have been levelled at me over the past year. I am Iranian and I have not taken any steps against my homeland."

Neither the US nor the Saudi Arabian governments have made any comment on the allegations that he was abducted and taken to the US.

In March US news channel ABC ran a report that said Mr Amiri had defected and was helping the US compile intelligence on Iran's nuclear weapons programme.

The US and its allies believe Iran is trying to acquire a nuclear weapon, but Tehran denies the charge.

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British soldier killed in Afghanistan gun battle Page last updated at 14:20 GMT, Tuesday, 8 June 2010 15:20 UK E-mail this to a friend

The soldier was serving in Helmand

A British soldier was killed in a gun battle in Afghanistan on Tuesday, the Ministry of Defence has said.

The soldier was from 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, attached to 4th Regiment Royal Artillery.

He was involved in "small arms fire engagement" with insurgent forces in the Nad-e Ali district of Helmand province, the MoD said.

Next of kin have been informed. It brings the number of troops killed in Afghanistan since 2001 to 293.

'Actions not forgotten'

Spokesman for Task Force Helmand Lt Col James Carr-Smith said the soldier had been serving as part of the 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster's Battle Group.

"The soldier was part of a combined foot patrol, consisting of Afghan National Police and British soldiers, that was seeking to provide security for the local population when he was engaged and killed by small arms fire.

"He died seeking to improve the lives of ordinary Afghans. He will be sorely missed and his actions will not be forgotten."

His death came as Defence Secretary Liam Fox met his US counterpart Robert Gates in London for talks.

Prime Minister David Cameron met Mr Gates in Downing Street on Monday and restated his support for American strategy in Afghanistan.

Taliban plan

Tuesday's talks considered the outcome of last week's peace meeting in Kabul where Afghan president Hamid Karza i sought the backing of provincial, religious, tribal and other leaders for a plan to negotiate with the Taliban.

The UK government has committed itself to "maintain a strong, close and frank relationship with the United States" and to "safeguard the UK's national security and support our armed forces in Afghanistan and elsewhere".

In a visit to Washington, Foreign Secretary William Hague assured the US administration of Britain's continuing commitment in Afghanistan, where more than 9,000 UK troops are based.

Two US troops were also killed in Afghanistan on Tuesday.

On Monday, seven US soldiers, two Australian and one French soldier were killed, as were two civilian contractors training police.

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