Man 'Sets Himself On Fire' At Rome Airport

Passengers have spoken of their shock after a man set himself alight at a Rome airport.

The 19-year-old man, from the Ivory Coast, doused himself in petrol and set himself on fire in front of dozens of travellers and workers at Fiumicino airport, 10 miles west of the Italian capital.

Police said he arrived at the departures area of the airport's terminal three with a deportation order and had been due to leave Italy.

But as he spoke to police he suddenly pulled out a plastic bottle of petrol, tipped it over himself and ran off through the terminal.

Officers gave chase, but he then used a lighter to ignite the fuel in front of stunned passengers.

Pasquale Pierri, 43, who was due to catch a flight to London, told Sky News: "I was heading to check in when all of a sudden I heard screaming and shouting.

"The next thing I saw was the police surrounding someone and there was a horrible smell of smoke in the air.

"People were screaming because no one knew what had happened and I think the first suggestion was that it might have been a terror attack."

Fellow traveller Silvana Urso said: "There was a lot of shouting and police running after someone, that was all I saw.

"There was a smell of smoke and then police were telling us to evacuate the terminal because there had been an incident.

"It was only when I was outside that I heard a man had set himself on fire."

One policeman grabbed a fire extinguisher to douse the flames and was slightly injured.

Paramedics wrapped the man in specialist blankets before taking him away in an ambulance.

A spokesman at the Sant Eugenio hospital where he was being treated said he was in a "serious condition with extensive burns".

The officer who tackled him was said to have a slight burn to his right arm but was otherwise uninjured.

Officials said the airport remained open and only a small section of the terminal was closed before it reopened after an hour. There were no significant delays for passengers.

A Rome police spokesman said: "We are investigating the circumstances of the incident which involved a 19-year-old man from the Ivory Coast.

"He was due to leave the country after being served an expulsion order but set himself alight. One of our officers was slightly hurt as he tackled him.

"Scientific teams are at the airport examining the scene and officers will also speak to the man when possible."

A spokesman for the Italian Refugee Council confirmed that the man had arrived in Italy from Holland earlier this week and had tried to claim asylum but had been denied and was ordered out of the country.

He had been due to board a flight to Amsterdam when he set fire to himself. The spokesman added: "One can only imagine the desperation and frustration he must have faced to carry out such an act."

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Israel, Prisoner X And Digital Age Censorship

The suicide of an alleged Mossad spy in an Israeli jail has raised the question of censorship in the digital age.

It has also more widely revealed the inner workings of the Israeli security establishment's relationship with the media.

Ben Zygier, also known as Ben Alon, held dual citizenship - Australian and Israeli. 

When he was held by the Israelis his family was informed, but there was a news blackout in Israel on grounds of national security.

It is said that even his guards were unaware of his identity and he became known as Prisoner X.

The blackout continued after his suicide, but on Tuesday Australia's ABC network broadcast details of his death and the background to the case.

The news quickly spread to other foreign news outlets and then onto social media sites in Israel.

Zygier died in Israel's Ayalon Prison

Despite, or perhaps because of that, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called in the Israeli Editors Committee (IEC) and "asked" members to continue to withhold information.

Breaking the security censorship laws in Israel can lead to prison sentences.

By this point ordinary Israelis were busy sending tweets such as: "Foreign media says the sun is shining in Israel today" and other pointed barbs at how the security establishment was trying to tell the tide not to come in.

What occasionally happens in Israel is that local journalists tell foreign correspondents there, or in other countries, what is going on.

That news surfaces in the foreign media, the Israeli media then writes the story along the lines of: "Foreign media says that ..."

The most recent example of this was the Israeli air strike in Syria last month.

In the case of Prisoner X, the gagging order was so severe that it prevented the "foreign media says" route from operating.

It was only broken after three Israeli politicians used parliamentary immunity to raise the issue in the Knesset which led to a partial lifting of the censorship.

All countries have censorship laws on security and other issues.

Some of the democracies have forums for discussion of security matters between the government and the media.

Israel, which has a vibrant argumentative media, has the IEC.

In the UK, the Official Secrets Act is used to attempt to keep secret information which is regarded as important for national security. It is rarely used against journalists. 

The UK also has the DA Notice System, more popularly known as the D Notice. 

The government side of this system can only "request" information to be withheld.

The Prisoner X case has shown how limited censorship laws can be in the internet age, especially in democracies. 

The Israelis were put in the position of having Australians knowing more about their country than they were allowed to.

The dam has not burst, but it is leaking.

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Disabled Cruise Ship 'Filthy', Passengers Say

By Sky News US Team, in New York

Relatives of passengers aboard a disabled cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico say their loved ones have complained of filthy, hot conditions, overflowing toilets and limited access to food.

Jimmy Mowlam says his son, Rob, who got married onboard the Carnival Triumph, told him by phone that there is no running water and few working toilets.

He said passengers were given plastic bags to "use for their business".

The ship, which became stranded on Sunday after a fire erupted in the vessel's engine room, is not due to reach a port in Mobile, Alabama before Thursday at the earliest.

Another passenger told CNN her ex-husband told her "the conditions have gotten so bad that they're asking them to use the restroom in bags, and they were eating onion sandwiches".

The cruise line, however, contradicted the accounts, saying it is making the passengers as comfortable as possible with running water and some working bathrooms.

Carnival President Gerry Cahill said the ship - carrying more than 4,200 passengers and crew - has running water and that most of its 23 public restrooms and some of the guest cabin bathrooms were working.

Jay Herring, a former senior officer for Carnival Cruise Lines, said one of the biggest concerns crew members will have until the ship docks is the potential for disease outbreak, particularly norovirus, which causes vomiting and diarrhoea.

Mr Cahill downplayed the possibility of an outbreak of disease from unsanitary conditions, saying the ship had not seen an abnormal number of people reporting to the infirmary as being ill.

Carnival President Gerry Cahill speaks to reporters in Miami

He said: "No one here from Carnival is happy about the conditions onboard the ship. We obviously are very, very sorry about what is taking place."

Mr Mowlam said his son told him the lack of ventilation on the Triumph's current voyage had made it too hot to sleep inside and that many passengers had set up camp on the ocean liner's decks and in its common areas.

"He said up on deck it looks like a shanty town, with sheets, almost like tents, mattresses, anything else they can pull to sleep on," said Mr Mowlam.

He added that his son indicated that passengers are trying to make the best of a bad situation, and that the ship's crew had started giving free alcohol to passengers.

Despite a forecast of brisker winds and slightly higher seas, the US Coast Guard and Carnival said they did not expect conditions to deteriorate aboard the ship.

The ship left Texas for a four-day cruise last Thursday.

The vessel was about 150 miles (240 km) off Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on Sunday when an engine room fire knocked out its primary power source, crippling its water and plumbing systems and leaving it adrift on only backup power.

No one was injured in the fire, but Carnival spokeswoman Joyce Oliva said that a passenger with a pre-existing medical condition was taken off the ship as a precaution.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it has opened an investigation into the cause.

Carnival Cruise Lines has cancelled a dozen more planned voyages aboard the Triumph and acknowledged that the crippled ship had been plagued by other mechanical problems in recent weeks.

The ship will be idle through April. Two other cruises were called off shortly after Sunday's fire.

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Afghan President Condemns Nato Air Strike

By Mustafa Kazemi, In Kabul

President Hamid Karzai has condemned in the "strongest terms" a Nato air strike on the Afghan border with Pakistan that left 10 Afghan civilians - including women and children - dead.

The president has ordered a special delegation to investigate the incident.

In a press release sent to Sky News, Mr Karzai said: "Terrorism is not there in the villages and houses of people of Afghanistan.

"Fighting against terrorism in the villages of Afghanistan will not lead to any results."

The president spoke by phone to the families of victims to offer his sympathies and condolences. 

General Joseph Dunford, the new commander of the US military forces in Afghanistan, met Mr Karzai to brief him about the Nato operation.

The general also "expressed his personal condolences for any civilians who may have died or been injured" in the air strike.

The attack occurred at around 10pm on Tuesday night in the Shigal district of Kunar province.

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Israel Admits 'Prisoner X' Secret Jailing

Israel has admitted for the first time that it secretly jailed an Australian - who apparently killed himself in his prison cell.

The man, who came to be known as "Prisoner X", is believed to have been Ben Zygier, 34, a national of both Israel and Australia who allegedly worked for Israel's intelligence agency Mossad.

Prisoner X had been arrested on serious, but unspecified charges, in 2010.

Israel's justice ministry broke its silence after an Australian Broadcasting Corporation report into the case sparked an outcry over media gagging orders.

"For security reasons the man was held under a false identity although his family was immediately informed of his arrest," a statement said.

The man was found dead in his cell and a judicial inquiry ruled he took his own life, the ministry added, although it did not reveal his identity or the charges against him.

"Following an extensive investigation it was ruled six weeks ago that it was suicide," said the ministry. "The prisoner was held in jail under a warrant issued by a court."

But other details of the case remained under a gagging order, leaving local media obliged to quote foreign reports.

Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr initially said he only became aware of the man's incarceration after his death, but has now admitted the government knew of his detention at the time.

He told a parliamentary committee the information had been gathered through Australian intelligence channels.

"They provided the name of the citizen, in relation to serious offences under Israeli national security legislation," he said, adding that Canberra had sought assurances that he was not being mistreated.

The story first emerged in June 2010 when Israel's Ynet news website briefly ran a report about a prisoner being held in top secret conditions whose identity and alleged crime were not even known to his jailers.

The story was quickly taken offline and a complete media blackout imposed, but it resurfaced on Tuesday through Australia's public broadcaster.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called an urgent meeting with top editors to ask them to withhold publication of information "pertaining to an incident that is very embarrassing to a certain government agency", the Haaretz newspaper said, in a clear allusion to Mossad.

Shortly afterwards, three MPs raised questions over the issue in parliament, effectively sidestepping the censor in a move that forced a slight easing of the reporting restrictions.

While Israel has not revealed the charges, The Australian newspaper suggested he had been detained for treason.

It cited Israeli Army Radio as saying: "Why was he interned? The suspicion is because of treason against Israel."

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Zygier was being investigated by Australia's overseas espionage agency ASIS, which suspected him of using his Australian passport to spy for Israel.

The Herald said he was one of at least three dual Australian-Israeli citizens who emigrated to Israel in the past decade whose cases were probed.

It said that in each case the men used the passports to travel to Iran, Syria and Lebanon - countries that do not allow Israelis to enter.

When the newspaper confronted Zygier in early 2010, he angrily denied he worked for Mossad.

"I have never been to any of those countries that you say I have been to," he said at the time.

"I am not involved in any kind of spying."

Tensions between Australia and Israel were high in 2010 following the alleged assassination of the senior Hamas figure Mahmoud al-Mabhouh by a Mossad team at a Dubai hotel.

The team was said to have used four forged Australian passports, and Canberra expelled the Israeli Mossad station chief over the affair.

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Oscar Pistorius: Reeva Steenkamp Remembered

In the days leading up to her death, Reeva Steenkamp's excitement about Valentine's Day was clear.

"What do you have up your sleeve for your love tomorrow??? #getexcited," the girlfriend of South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius tweeted.

Miss Steenkamp then received a series of replies, one of which was from a mother who said her children would be making a card for their father. 

Miss Steenkamp had a law degree

She responded: "That sounds amazing! Wow that's what it's all about! It should be a day of love for everyone :) may it be blessed."

Miss Steenkamp said Pistorius - her boyfriend since November - had "impeccable" taste.

"His gifts are always thoughtful," she was quoted as saying on the social pages of last weekend's Sunday Independent.

But February 14 ended up going terribly wrong for the 30-year-old when she was shot dead in Pistorius' home.

Now Twitter and other social media are flooded with tributes to the model and law graduate.

Former Miss South Africa Melinda Bam said: "Heartbroken for #ReevaSteenkamp's family & for #OscarPistorius. This highlights how unsafe most South Africans feel because of crime#RIPReeva."

Sammy Lambrechts said: "A woman with rare beauty ... A classy and sophisticated young socialite with a heart of gold. A true lady."

Miss Steenkamp's tweets about Valentine's Day

On Facebook, her cousin Deon Steenkamp said: "RIP cuz this is tragic we will always remember you for your stuning smile brighting up everyone world."

Miss Steenkamp's publicist Sarit Tomlinson described her as "the sweetest human being" and "a talented and bright young girl".

She told Sky News that the couple had a "healthy, fabulous relationship".

Miss Steenkamp had most recently been a celebrity contestant on South African reality TV show Tropika Island Of Treasure 5. 

The couple had a 'healthy' relationship, her publicist said

The first episode of the show, which was filmed in Jamaica, was due to air this weekend.

On the show's website, a tribute to Miss Steenkamp said: "We are deeply saddened and extend our condolences to Reeva's family and friends."

The Cape Town-born model grew up in Port Elizabeth, where she studied law, but later moved to Johannesburg after signing a deal with cosmetics company Avon.

She went on to model for FHM and feature in various national and international advertising campaigns.

Miss Steenkamp's family is 'shocked'

Miss Steenkamp - who spoke out on Twitter against rape and abuse of women - described herself as someone who has a "passion for cars and cooking and prefers to read a book on her off days and spend quality time with friends and family".

She was from a family of horse trainers, who are all "shocked" and "devastated" by the news, Miss Steenkamp's publicist said.

Her former headmaster Greg Stokell told the South African Press Association that Miss Steenkamp was popular and respected by all.

"She was a vibrant, friendly, diligent, and motivated student who was popular with and respected by staff and peers alike," he said.

"The St Dominic's Priory school community in Port Elizabeth is both shocked and saddened by Reeva Steenkamp's sudden and tragic death."

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Baked Beans Firm Heinz Sold For $28bn

The baked beans and ketchup maker HJ Heinz has agreed to a takeover worth $28bn (£18bn) in a move that could potentially effect thousands of UK workers.

An investment consortium, which includes billionaire investor Warren Buffett, is behind the deal.

The company said Heinz shareholders would receive $72.50 (£47) in cash for each share of common stock they own under the plans.

The takeover's value includes the assumption of Heinz's debt and the per share price represents a 20% premium to Heinz's closing price of $60.48 (£39) on Wednesday.

Berkshire Hathaway, which is Buffett's investment vehicle, and Burger King-owner 3G Capital say Heinz will remain headquartered in Pittsburgh under their plans.

Berkshire Hathaway is putting up to $13bn in cash toward the joint buyout.

"It's our kind of company," Mr Buffett said in an interview on CNBC, noting its signature ketchup had been around for more than a century. "I've sampled it many times," he said.

Mr Buffett also confirmed that Berkshire will still have room to make further acquisitions, noting that the firm's businesses continually replenish its cash supply.

He said: "Anytime we see a deal is attractive and it's our kind of business and we've got the money, I'm ready to go."

Given the saturated North American market, Heinz has increasingly looked to emerging markets for growth and the buyout should aid the pace of investment.

In its last quarter, the company said emerging markets made up 23% of sales.

Union officials representing thousands of UK workers employed by Heinz at five sites are seeking urgent talks for reassurance about their jobs.

Unite national officer Jennie Formby said: "Whilst we recognise the commitment given by Berkshire Hathaway that it will be business as usual following the surprise change of ownership announced today, the 3,000 Unite members who work for Heinz in the UK will want more detailed assurances that their jobs and sites will remain secure.

"Unite will be seeking an early meeting with senior management to allow us to explore in greater detail what impact, if any, this acquisition will have for the UK business."

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Liverpool Fears Racism At Game In Russia

By Katie Stallard, Russia Correspondent

Liverpool's manager will speak to his players about how to respond to any racist abuse during their match against Zenit St Petersburg on Thursday night.

The Europa League tie will be the Russian club's first significant match since a group of its fans published a manifesto in December calling for non-white and gay players to be kept out of their club.

St Petersburg is due to be a host city for the 2018 World Cup and with just five years to go it is hardly the image Russia would hope to project.

Liverpool FC has written to both Zenit and UEFA to express the club's concerns ahead of the game.

Manager Brendan Rodgers said he would be briefing his players about the potential for trouble before the match.

He said: "I will make reference to it because we have players it maybe could affect but we are here for football.

Zenit fans fight with riot police during a game with Dinamo Moscow in April

"No-one in life wants to see anyone come under any sort of scrutiny like that.

"You go into the sporting arena and hopefully everyone from football, UEFA, referees and officials will support any player it may affect.

"There is no doubt if there is anything like that which is untoward then as a group, we will do everything we can to support the player or players.

"We hope it is a game where the officials and UEFA can take care of all that."

The club's managing director said they would do whatever was needed to protect their players, both on and off the pitch.

In an interview posted on the Liverpool FC website, Ian Ayre said: "The most important thing for our players is that they remain professional throughout this.

"We certainly won't tolerate that type of attitude or any of those types of incidents from our team.

"So the important thing is that we let them know how we expect them to act if there is an incident. 

"I'd much rather we take the incident off the pitch and we deal with it.

"Obviously the referee has a role to play within that. But we'll be briefing our players on what's acceptable and what's not.

"Anything that happens off the pitch, then we'll work very closely with the authorities."

Zenit is the only top-flight Russian side never to have fielded a black player, and has developed a reputation for racism among its fans.

In December its largest fans group, Landscrona, published an open letter on its website objecting to what it called "non-European" and "sexual minorities" players being brought into the club.

The manifesto stated: "We object to representatives of sexual minorities playing for Zenit.

"We are not racists and for us, the lack of black players at Zenit is only an important tradition, which emphasises the identity of the club and nothing more.

"As the most northern club of the major European cities, we have never been associated with Africa, South America or Australia and Oceania.

"We have absolutely nothing against the people of these and any other continent. But now black players are being imposed on Zenit almost by force."

Previous incidents involving the club have included Brazilian player Roberto Carlos being offered a banana by Zenit fans in March 2011, and monkey chants being made and bananas thrown by fans during a match with Marseille in 2008.

The current manager insists there is no formal selection policy excluding black African players, and points to the recent signings of Brazilian striker Hulk and Belgian midfielder Axel Witsel as evidence of the club's multiculturalism.

A spokesperson for the club said it was working with UEFA to ensure the safety of players and fans at tonight's match.

The statement said: "We at Zenit have always condemned racism.

"We strongly underline that tolerance is the only possible mode of development for our club, the game of football, and sport in general.

"We sincerely hope that this principle is fully shared by our opponent, and that we'll all get to see a high-quality football match featuring great support from the stands!"

A statement posted today on the Landscrona fan site, apparently by members of the group, urged Zenit followers to behave tonight, warning that they could be kicked out of the Europa tournament if they did not.

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Pope Was Left Bloodied By Fall, Says Vatican

Fresh questions over the health of Pope Benedict XVI have emerged after the Vatican confirmed reports he fell over and hit his head while on a tour of Mexico last year.

Pope Benedict stunned the world earlier this week with his announcement that he would step down as leader of the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics at the end of this month.

The 85-year-old said he was tired and could no longer carry on, and although the Vatican was quick to insist there were no health issues, rumours have been swirling of more serious underlying concerns.

La Stampa newspaper claimed that the Pope decided to step down after his fall last March, while on a gruelling transatlantic trip to Mexico and Cuba and which had left him with a blood soaked head.

Details were hushed up until now and only emerged after an unidentified cleric spoke to La Stampa.

The details of the incident in the city of Leon have now been confirmed by the Pope's spokesman Federico Lombardi.

The Pope led Ash Wednesday mass earlier this week

La Stampa reported how Pope Benedict had been staying in a Capucin monastery when aides noticed he had "blood soaked hair". When asked about it he revealed he had fallen during the night as he went to the bathroom and hit his head on a sink.

The incident was similar to one in July 2009 when he slipped during the night while of his way to the bathroom during a break in the Italian Alps and he fractured his wrist.

La Stampa quoted the clergyman as saying: "Even the cushion was bloodstained and there were drops on the rug.

"Everything disappeared very quickly and the rug was cleaned of blood. It wasn't a deep or worrying cut.

"The area in question was covered up by his skull cap and the Pope's hair also hid it away. There was no plaster - unlike when Pope John Paul II fell during a trip to Poland in June 1999."

Following the incident, Pope Benedict's personal doctor Patrizio Polisca is said to have told him: "You see Holy Father why I am opposed to these trips?"

The Pope arriving at the Vatican for Ash Wednesday mass

The Pope reportedly replied: "Even I'm critical of them."

On Thursday Father Lombardi said at his daily media briefing: "I'm not going to deny what happened but I will underline that the incident had no impact on the trip or on the Pope's decision."

Besides the fall, the Pope is said to have been particularly affected by the Vatileaks scandal of last year after bitter infighting and rivalries emerged in documents leaked to the Italian media by the Pontiff's personal butler.

In one of his final public events Pope Benedict met hundreds of priests from parishes across Rome in an event held at St Peter's Basilica.

He told them: "Even if I am about to retire I will always be near you in prayer and you will be near to me even if I am hidden from the world."

Rome's council said that it would be asking for help from central government ahead of the Pope's final public events at the end of the month and the conclave in March with an estimated extra 150,000 people expected to flock to the city.

Mayor Gianni Alemanno said he would be asking for 4.5m euros from Prime Minister Mario Monti to help cover expected costs, including the setting up of giant screens as well as extra refuse collection and civil protection teams.

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Oscar Pistorius Charged Over Girlfriend Murder

Paralympic and Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has been charged with murder after allegedly shooting dead his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his home in South Africa.

Her body was discovered at the athlete's home in the Silver Woods country estate in eastern Pretoria, South African police said.

Pistorius reached the 400m semi-finals at the London 2012 Olympics

Initial reports in the South African media suggested Miss Steenkamp was apparently shot as she woke him, trying to surprise him on Valentine's Day, and was mistaken for an intruder.

But police later said the shooting was being treated as a murder investigation and that they were "very surprised" by those reports, which they said did not come from them.

Brigadier Denise Beukes confirmed the couple were alone in the house at the time of the shooting, and that there had been previous incidents at the premises including "allegations of a domestic nature".

"There are witnesses and they have been interviewed this morning," she said. "We are talking about neighbours and people that heard things earlier in the evening and when the shooting took place."

Pistorius was arrested on Thursday morning following the shooting and taken to hospital for a medical examination.

Miss Steenkamp was due to speak at a Johannesburg school on Thursday

He emerged from a police station after questioning, flanked by plain-clothed officers and wearing a hooded jacket covering most of his face.

The athlete requested an immediate appearance at Pretoria Magistrate's Court, but prosecutors said this had been delayed until Friday morning to give forensic officers more time.

The 26-year-old is alleged to have shot his 30-year-old model girlfriend in the head and upper body.

Paramedics were called to his home between 4am and 5am local time. Police arrived shortly afterwards and a 9mm pistol was found.

They said they would be opposing bail when the suspect appears in court.

The shooting took place at Pistorius' home at Silver Woods country estate

"The deceased was shot four times and died on the scene" said police spokeswoman Lieutenant Colonel Katlego Mogale.

Miss Steenkamp's body was removed by a hearse at around 8am.

Pistorius and Miss Steenkamp are believed to have started dating in November.

Her publicist Sarit Tomlinson said the family was "shocked" and "devastated" by the news.

She described Miss Steenkamp as "the sweetest human being" and "a talented and bright young girl", adding that the couple had a "healthy, fabulous relationship".

Miss Steenkamp, a top South African model and a law graduate from Port Elizabeth, was active on Twitter just 14 hours before.

Miss Steenkamp has been described as a 'talented and bright young girl'

She tweeted: "What do you have up your sleeve for your love tomorrow??? #getexcited #ValentinesDay"

In response to someone else's plans, she said: "That sounds amazing! Wow that's what it's all about! It should be a day of love for everyone :) may it be blessed!"

She was due to give a talk at a school in Johannesburg just hours after her body was found, and to star in South African reality TV series Tropika Island of Treasure at the weekend, in which celebrities and ordinary people are tasked with daily challenges in remote, exotic locations.

Photos of the model appeared in newspapers at the weekend, when she described Pistorius as an impeccable man who always had her best interests at heart.

His father, Henke Pistorius, said of his son: "He is a bit emotional, but he is fine."

Police are investigating the shooting and have launched a murder probe

The Johannesburg-born athlete, known as the "Blade Runner", made history in 2012 when he became the first amputee to compete in the Olympics.

He won gold in the 400m and another in the 4x400m relay at the Paralympic Games.

The athlete had both legs amputated below the knee when he was 11 months old, because of a congenital condition, and runs on carbon fibre blades.

Last year Time Magazine named him as one of the world's 100 most influential people.

Silver Woods, situated in the country's capital, is a high security gated complex with a three metre high wall, electric fence, a guarded entrance and regular patrols.

Pistorius lives in a gated complex in the South African capital Pretoria

South Africa has some of the world's highest rates of violent crime with an average of nearly 50 people murdered each day.

Some home-owners carry weapons to defend themselves against intruders. According to statistics, nearly 13 in every 100 people in the country own a gun, and it is estimated there are almost six million civilian firearms.

Pistorius, like many fellow South Africans, appeared to have serious concerns about his safety, and reportedly kept a revolver at his bedside and a machine gun by his window, as well as a cricket bat and baseball bat behind his bedroom door.

South Africa's M-Net cable TV channel said it was pulling an advertising campaign featuring Pistorius off air with immediate effect.

Both South Africa's Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee said they were in no position to comment, but offered their "deepest sympathy and condolences" to the families of all involved.

UN figures show that in South Africa, just over 17 people are killed by gun crime per 100,000 people.

The highest gun death rate in the world is in Honduras with 68 deaths per 100,000. In the USA, the figure stands at 2.97 deaths, while in the UK it is 0.1.

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