Syria: Russia And US Send Warships To Med

Russia and the US have sent further warships to boost their military capacity in the Mediterannean as expectations grow of an imminent strike on Syria.

Syria's ally Russia is sending an anti-submarine ship and a missile cruiser to the Mediterranean, according to Russian news agency Interfax.

An armed forces source reportedly said the planned deployment was in response to the "well-known situation" - a clear reference to the conflict in Syria.

The navy has denied the deployment is linked to events in Syria, saying it is part of a planned rotation of its ships in the Mediterranean.

UN inspectors continue their investigations but will leave on Friday

In the US, a defence official has said a fifth destroyer, the USS Stout,  has been deployed to the Mediterranean and is "heading and moving east".

The guided missile destroyer is due to relieve the Mahan, but both ships might remain in place for the time being, the official said.

Other destroyers in the region - the Ramage, the Barry and the Gravely - criss-cross the Mediterranean and could launch their Tomahawk missiles toward Syria if so directed by US President Barack Obama.

President Assad was shown on state TV meeting Yemeni politicians

Russia and the US will take part in an "urgent" meeting of the five permanent UN Security Council members in New York at 2.30pm ET (7.30pm BST).

Russia is strongly against any military intervention in Syria, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov believing it would seriously destabilise the region.

Mr Lavrov has said any attack without UN Security Council approval would be a "crude violation" of international law.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin has spoken to German leader Angela Merkel by phone, with the pair agreeing the Syrian conflict can be solved politically, the chancellor's spokesman said.

"The chancellor called on the Russian president to use negotiations in the UN Security Council for a quick, unanimous international reaction," he added.

Mr Lavrov has warned against an attack without Security Council approval

Public opinion in Germany is overwhelmingly against military action in Syria, less than four weeks before an election in which Mrs Merkel hopes to win a third term.

The warship reports come after US President Barack Obama said the US had studied evidence and concluded that the Syrian government was behind the alleged attack.

Mr Obama said any strike would be to "send a shot across the bow" and give a "pretty strong signal that [Syria] better not do it again".

He added the US had not yet made a firm decision about how to respond, but that it could take action even without the backing of allies or the United Nations.

However, behind the scenes, US intelligence officials are reportedly saying the intelligence is no "slam dunk".

The president's national security adviser Susan Rice, intelligence director James Clapper, defence secretary Chuck Hagel and secretary of state John Kerry are to brief Congress on Syria later, according to Reuters.

Military action is unpopular in Germany, where Mrs Merkel faces an election

Questions are said to remain about who actually controls some of Syria's chemical weapons and whether President Assad himself explicitly ordered the alleged attack.

Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta told state radio that his country condemned the Assad regime but would not join any military operation without UN Security Council authorisation.

The Syrian leader was shown meeting Yemeni politicians on state television on Thursday.

It quoted President Assad as saying the country would defend itself in the face of any aggression.

A draft resolution by the UK on authorising a strike failed to win the approval of the UN Security Council on Wednesday as Russia reiterated its objections.

China has also entered the discussion and warned the West against any military action. 

"China calls on all parties to exercise restraint and remain calm and to remain committed to the correct track of political solutions," Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said.

British involvement in any strike will be debated today by politicians in the House of Commons.

Meanwhile, United Nations weapons inspectors set out on Thursday morning for the Damascus suburbs in a third day of investigations.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has pleaded for all sides to hold off on any military strikes.

He said his inspection team would soon finish its investigation, leaving Syria on Friday and reporting their findings to him the following day.

Last week's alleged chemical attack is claimed to have killed 1,300 people.

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Panama Skull Identified As California Woman

Skeletal remains found this month in Panama have been identified as those of an American woman who disappeared there in 2011.

DNA testing confirmed that the remains - a skull and some bones - found on the island province of Bocas del Toro came from Yvonne Lee Baldelli, Panamanian officials said.

Ms Baldelli went to Panama with boyfriend Brian Brimager in September 2011.

The 42-year-old from Laguna Nigel, California, was last seen in November that year. Her family reported her missing the following January.

Ms Baldelli was last seen in November 2011

"The whole family has been very sad and desperate," her sister, Michelle Faust, told the AP News Agency. "We didn't know where Yvonne was.

"The good thing about today is that once the evidence (from the remains) is studied we will be able to bring her home."

Forensic experts analysed blood samples and dental records to identify the remains, but the cause of death remains unclear and further testing will be carried out.

Her boyfriend, Brian Brimager, is being held

The skull and bones were found on August 20 in a bag by a man who was cutting bushes, prosecutors said.

"I saw the bag bit I thought it was robbed from the tourist beach," said Rigoberto Jole.

"I cut it with a machete and then I opened it - and there was a human head."

The family of Ms Baldelli, a clothing designer, said she was frequently out of touch so they did not immediately suspect anything was wrong.

Panama police say Mr Brimager left for Costa Rica and the US about 10 days after last being seen with Ms Baldelli.

Ms Faust said Mr Brimager is being held in California on obstruction of justice charges related to her disappearance.

Last year, FBI agents and Panamanian forensic specialists found traces of blood on the walls and floor of the El Sapo hostel in the Bocas del Toro archipelago, a popular tourist spot where Ms Baldelli was last seen.

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Syria Gas Attack: 'My Eyes Were On Fire'

Survivors have described the horrific aftermath of the "gas attack" in Syria in a series of chilling interviews from Damascus.

Victims told how a gas with "a faint green colour" stung their eyes "like needles", causing their legs to buckle and making their bodies convulse in pain.

One told how he regained consciousness after succumbing to the gas, seeing wild hallucinations "like Alice in Wonderland" with his "eyes on fire".

Others described how they saw hundreds of suffocating, twitching victims in the streets and in hospitals following a barrage of "whistling" rockets.

Girls who survived rest in a mosque in Damascus

In several interviews, released by the Associated Press news agency, witnesses told how the rockets made a "strange noise", never heard before.

The rocket assaults came around the same time on two suburbs on opposite sides of the capital: Moadamiyeh to the west and several districts to the east.

Ammar, a resident who said he miraculously survived the barrage on Moadamiyeh, where 80 people were killed, said he was awakened by shelling around 5am. 

He said he heard a screeching sound, followed by the sound of people screaming on Rawda street below his apartment - and saw the green gas.

A boy who survived and took cover in a Damascus mosque

"I ran out to see what was going on and saw people in various stages of suffocation and convulsions. I tried to help, but then my legs buckled and I fell to the ground," he said.

Ammar woke up at a makeshift hospital, where he said he spent five days getting oxygen and injections of atropine, which counteracts the effects of nerve gases.

A week later, Ammar said he has not fully recovered. He suffers bouts of cold sweats, exhaustion, hallucinations and a runny nose.

Worst of all, he said, were the nightmares.

"I can't sleep anymore. I keep seeing the people who died, the scenes from the hospital of people twitching and foaming. I can never forget that," said Ammar, 30.

A child victim of the attack

His father, who identified himself by his nickname, Abu Ammar, was at the nearby al-Rawda mosque waiting for dawn prayers when the first rockets hit.

He said some people ran outside and then came back in immediately, shouting: "Chemicals! Chemicals!"

He put water on a tissue and covered his mouth and nose, and then went out.

"I saw at least seven people lying on their backs, completely still," he said.

Qusai Zakarya said the rockets crashed with a strange whistle "like a siren".

Friends took him to the hospital, where he saw dozens of people crowding the rooms and corridors, many of them in their underwear.

Nurses and doctors doused them with water. That was when he fainted. When he came to, doctors were injecting him with atropine and he started vomiting.

"Strange colours came out of my stomach," the man said. He fainted again and later woke up in the street outside in his underwear, apparently moved out to make room for others.

Later, he felt well enough to go home and said he slept for 13 hours.

Many children fell ill after the assault

"When I woke up I felt like Alice in Wonderland," he said.

"Everything looked distorted and I couldn't remember anything.

"My eyes felt as if they were on fire, and every time I tried to smell something I felt terrible pain. My chest also ached," he said, his speech interrupted by a hacking cough.

To the east of Damascus, some 600 patients poured into a makeshift hospital in the district of Arbeen. Of those, 125 died, including 35 children.

Abu Akram said he was told by several medics that some people were found in their homes, with wet towels on their faces or hiding with their children in bathrooms.

"People didn't die in their sleep; they tried to save themselves," he said.

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Gibraltar: Spanish Border Police Hit By 'Missiles'

Spanish police are investigating a claim that a "small number of missiles" were allegedly thrown at the Gibraltar border.

Up to 8,000 Spaniards living mainly in the nearby Andalusia towns of La Linea and Algeciras work in Gibraltar and have been caught up in regular long queues caused by stringent checks imposed as part of a diplomatic spat with Britain.

The Royal Gibraltar Police (RGP) said the missiles were thrown at Guardia Civil officers carrying out the checks on Wednesday afternoon.

An RGP spokesman said it had received an "unofficial report" from the Guardia Civil about missiles being thrown from the motorcycle lane, as well as verbal abuse.

"This has allegedly taken place at the peak of extensive queues to exit Gibraltar which at their height reached four hours," he said.

"The alleged missile throwing is reported to have come from the area of the motorcycle lane which at the time was full of cross-border workers unable to return home.

"It came after insults and abusive comments were directed at the Guardia Civil.

"The RGP is, notwithstanding the number of RGP officers present at the frontier managing the traffic, unable to substantiate the complaint at this time.

Spanish fishermen say Gibraltar is blocking their fishing ability

"The matter is under investigation."

Chief minister of Gibraltar Fabian Picardo met Foreign Secretary William Hague in London on Wednesday to discuss the border dispute with Spain.

The traffic checks, which have led to long delays on both sides of the border, were introduced by the Spanish government in protest at an artificial reef sunk off the British Overseas Territory.

The Spanish say the 74 concrete blocks on the seabed disrupt an area used by its fishing boats, while the Gibraltarians say it was a necessary environmental measure.

The row, which started at the beginning of this month, has gone all the way to the European Commission and continued to simmer in recent days.

The Gibraltar government accused Spain of introducing an export ban on construction materials destined for the enclave.

It threatened legal action and an official complaint to the European Commission if the "illegal and anti-European" restrictions are not lifted.

Spain lays claim to Gibraltar, which has a population of just 30,000 and was ceded to Britain 300 years ago.

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'Swedish Eton' Shut Down Over Bullying Rituals

Sweden's equivalent of Eton has been shut down after two new boys were burned with an electric iron as part of an initiation ritual.

The country's school inspectorate closed down the Lundsberg School, which was attended by Prince Carl Philip, the youngest son of Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf.

It is only the second time the body has ordered the immediate closure of a school.

The pupils who took part in the hazing ritual were reported to the police for their bullying over the weekend.

The boys who were subjected to the assault were said to have suffered only minor injuries.

Prince Carl Philip was a pupil at Lundsberg

The prestigious boarding school has been criticised several times in recent years by the inspectorate for failing to deal with bulling after pupils reported initiation rituals that degenerated into sexual assaults and other abuses.

The inspectorate said: "It's startling that something like this can happen in light of the measures the school has presented to the school inspectorate concerning its efforts to prevent violations."

Lundsberg was founded in 1896 and has about 200 boys and girls of junior high school and high school age.

It will now remain closed from Thursday for six months.

Lundsberg's board of directors said it had dismissed its chief executive effective immediately following interviews with students and staff involved in the weekend's incidents.

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Yosemite Fire: Crews Say Blaze 30% Contained

Firefighters battling a giant wildfire burning at the edge of Yosemite National Park have made progress in containing the blaze.

The US Forest Service says the so-called Rim Fire is 30% contained, up from 20% the previous day, with crews aided by higher humidity.

However, officials said a major road to the park had to be closed so fire crews could build containment lines along it.

This Nasa photo shows the extent of the fire in California

Officials shut down half of its main east-west corridor, just days before the Labour Day weekend marking the end of the peak summer tourist season.

A long stretch of Tioga Road through the western half of the park was closed on Wednesday as fire crews tightened their grip on the blaze.

The Rim Fire has burned through 300 square miles, destroyed more than 100 buildings, including 85 tent cabins at a camp run by the city of Berkeley.

It is one of the largest blazes in California on record

It also threatened San Francisco's water supplies, hydroelectric power and giant sequoias.

The fire is now expected to burn until September 10, according to officials.

The blaze has also unleashed a smoky haze that has worsened air quality more than 100 miles away in Nevada.

The fire has threatened water supplies

The plume from the fire also triggered emergency warnings in the Reno and Carson City area.

Schoolchildren were kept inside for the second time in a week, people went to hospitals complaining of eye and throat irritation and officials urged people to avoid all physical activity outdoors.

Nearly 4,000 people are involved in fighting the fire, which started during the afternoon on August 17.

Firefighters have also rushed to protect the historic groves of giant sequoia trees, some of the tallest and oldest trees on Earth, from the blaze.

Workers have removed leaf litter from the ground and installed sprinklers to dampen any flames.

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Kenya Bus Crash Kills 41 People

At least 41 people have been killed in a bus crash west of the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

The crash happened around 2.00am (local time) near the town of Narok, around 160km (100 miles) west of Nairobi, the Kenyan Red Cross said.

At least 27 other passengers were injured.

The bus was travelling from Nairobi to Homa Bay on the banks of Lake Victoria when it flew off the road, rolled over and plunged down a hill.

"It is a horrible scene. Bodies are strewn all over," local traffic police official Samuel Kimaru said.

The bus crashed in a hilly area: Pic: Kenyan Red Cross

"It is difficult to tell exactly what happened but all indications point to speeding and possibly overloading."

Mr Kimaru said police had had a difficult time recovering the bodies because the area was "hilly and bushy".

"We've dozens of others injured and we are not certain how many because they were taken to various hospitals ... we have officers checking with the hospitals," Mr Kimaru said.

He said it was unclear if the driver was dead or among the injured.

Kenyan roads are notoriously dangerous, with buses badly maintained and often overloaded so operators can maximise profits.

In February, 30 people died in a bus crash in the east of the country, and in July a school bus crash killed 20, most of them children.

Traffic regulations and fines were toughened late last year, although the local press continue to highlight police corruption as a major hurdle in tackling the issue.

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Lindsay Sandiford: Death Row Appeal Rejected

Indonesia's top court has rejected an appeal by a British grandmother sentenced to death for trafficking drugs into Bali.

Lindsay Sandiford was sentenced to death by firing squad in January.

A panel of three judges at the Supreme Court in Jakarta unanimously rejected her appeal.

The 57-year-old was arrested in May 2012 at Bali airport when customs officers found the drugs in her luggage.

Prosecutors say Sandiford was at the centre of a drugs ring involving three other Britons.

Sandiford after her arrest in May 2012

She says she was forced to transport the drugs under duress as her children's safety was threatened.

The death sentence came as a shock after prosecutors recommended 15 years imprisonment.

This is her second appeal against the ruling. A previous bid in April also failed

Sandiford can now seek a judicial review of the decision from the same court.

After that, only the president can grant her a reprieve, although experts have said this seldom happens in such cases.

This month Sky News was granted rare access behind the walls of Kerobokan jail, where she is being held.

The notorious facility is nicknamed Hotel K by its inmates.

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Zurich Chairman Quits Amid 'Suicide' Riddle

The chairman of Zurich Insurance has resigned over the apparent suicide of its chief financial officer.

Josef Ackermann said he wanted to avoid damaging the company's reputation as the family of Pierre Wauthier claimed he bore some responsibility for his death.

Mr Ackermann, a former CEO of Deutsche Bank, said in a statement he was quitting because he believed the undisclosed allegations levelled against him could hurt Zurich's top ranks.

His statement said: "The unexpected death of Pierre Wauthier has deeply shocked me.

"I have reasons to believe that the family is of the opinion that I should take my share of responsibility, as unfounded as any allegations might be.

"As a consequence, I see the possibility of a continued successful board leadership to the benefit of Zurich called into question.

"To avoid any damage to Zurich's reputation, I have decided to resign from all my board functions with immediate effect."

Zurich employs 11,000 staff in the UK

Mr Wauthier, who was 53, was found dead in his home in the wealthy lakefront community of Zug, just outside Zurich, early this week.

He would be the second top executive of a Swiss company to commit suicide in the past five weeks.

Switzerland's leading telecommunications company Swisscom said last month that its 49-year-old chief executive Carsten Schloter had taken his own life.

Mr Wauthier, who was a citizen of both the UK and France, joined Zurich 17 years ago and was appointed CFO in 2011.

Two weeks before his death the company said it was struggling to meet its performance targets - posting an 18% drop in quarterly profit.

The board's vice chairman, Tom de Swaan, is taking over as acting chairman of Zurich, which employs 60,000 staff - 11,000 in the UK.

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China Blogger Makes TV 'Prostitute Confession'

By Mark Stone & Victoria Wei in Beijing

A Chinese-American businessman and well-known social commentator has been paraded on Chinese State Television issuing an apparent confession for soliciting a prostitute.

Charles Xue, who is 60 and also known as Xue Manzi, was arrested on August 23 when police broke into a flat in Beijing. According to the Xinhua state news agency, he was found with a 22-year-old prostitute.

His arrest comes as Chinese authorities undertake a crackdown on outspoken online activism.

In footage looped on state TV, Mr Xue is seen in a prison jumpsuit. In an interview, he is heard confessing to his crime.

He claims that he "got into the hobby of prostitution after business trips to Thailand and Holland" and that he needed to fulfil his "particular desire and sexual preferences".

Xue, whose father was once the vice-mayor of Beijing, went to the United States in the early 1980s. He made his fame and fortune in the real estate market in America and was an active investor in China's fast booming IT industry.

In recent years though, he has used his public image to gain a huge following on China's version of Twitter. To an audience of more than 12 million followers, he frequently comments on social, economic and thinly veiled political issues.

His comments are often widely circulated among China's active online community.

The Communist Party has been rounding up online activists, who have exposed perceived corruption, abuse of power and other inappropriate business among Chinese officials.

The government claims to be 'purifying social media', but many opponents argue that its simply strengthening its control over the internet and its ability to silence individuals who speak out against it. 

Last week, Chinese police detained Guangzhou-based journalist Liu Hu and Qin Zhihui and Yang Xiuyu, the founders of a Beijing-based online public relations company. They were arrested on charges of creating and spreading rumours.

China's state-run news agency Xinhua has said that the so-called 'big Vs' - online activists with large numbers of followers - should 'hear the alarm of the law'.

An editorial in the state-run Global Times newspaper has rejected any suggestion that his arrest is connected to his influence online.

"It is meaningless to suspect that Chinese authorities might be using this case to crack down on Xue's massive influence on public opinion. Xue's active participation and deep involvement in China's politics on the internet has made him highly influential. But this means he has to bear special pressure and scrutiny over his personal conduct." it said.

The US embassy in Beijing is aware of Mr Xue's arrest but has not returned requests from Sky News for further information.

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