Cruz And Bardem 'Face Hollywood Backlash'

Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem are reportedly facing a Hollywood backlash over their criticism of Israel's offensive in Gaza.

The couple, along with dozens of other Spanish film stars, directors and writers, signed an open letter which described the actions against Palestinians as "genocide".

The letter demanded a ceasefire by the military and urged Israel to lift the blockade in the Gaza Strip.

Following the comments, the pair were accused of being anti-Semitic.

One top producer who has worked with Cruz says he has vowed not to hire her again, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The publication also said another top Hollywood executive had expressed his disapproval, saying he was "furious at Javier and Penelope" and was not sure about working with the couple again.

So far, one studio boss, Relativity Media chief executive Ryan Kavanaugh, has gone public with his views.

He said: "As the grandson of Holocaust survivors, I know that anyone calling what's going on in Israel 'genocide' vs self-defence is either ignorant and shouldn't be commenting or is truly anti-Semitic."

The letter demanded a ceasefire by Israel

Kavanaugh reportedly said he received more than 500 calls, emails and texts of support in the 24 hours after his comments were published, including from high-ranking industry executives, suggesting the sentiment was widespread.

But he does not think the open letter will hurt either of their careers as long as they continue to have box office hits.

Another producer reportedly said: "I think the thing any executive or producer will try to calculate before working with Penelope Cruz or Javier Bardem in the near future is what their value is in the all-important international marketplace.

"And what territories they might have alienated people in by what they said. It might not be that many. But it's really all about business."

Cruz and Bardem later clarified their positions. She said: "I'm not an expert on the situation and I'm aware of the complexity of it."

And she said her "only wish and intention" in signing the letter was that there would be peace in Israel and Gaza.

Bardem said: "My signature was solely meant as a plea for peace. Destruction and hatred only generate more hatred and destruction.

"While I was critical of the Israeli military response, I have great respect for the people of Israel and deep compassion for their losses.

"I am now being labelled by some as anti-Semitic, as is my wife - which is the antithesis of who we are as human beings.

"We detest anti-Semitism as much as we detest the horrible and painful consequences of war."

Among those who accused the pair of stoking anti-Semitism was actor Jon Voight.

He wrote: "I am more than angry, I am heartsick that people like Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem could incite anti-Semitism all over the world and are oblivious to the damage they have caused."

22.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Gaza 'Is Living In A Disaster Situation'

By Katie Stallard, Sky News Correspondent, in Gaza

The first ambulance came in at speed, tyres squealing.

Inside, was a 10-year-old boy.

They rushed him to the emergency ward, but there was nothing they could do to save his life.

We saw other children being brought in - a little girl, maybe five years old, carried in a paramedic's arms.

An ambulance brings a child to Gaza's Shifa Hospital

She looked absolutely terrified.

The doctors told us they treated a six-month-old baby for shrapnel wounds to the head.

We saw an 80-year-old woman, clearly very frail and confused and clearly seriously injured.

"Gaza is living in a disaster situation," said Dr Sobhi Skaik at Shifa Hospital.

"Again the war is coming to kill and kill and kill.

"Today is the 33rd day of this massacre in Gaza. This is inhuman and it has to be stopped."

Dr Sobhu Skaik tends to an injured 80-year-old woman

He said they need basic supplies now - surgical instruments, drugs, medication, and expertise - specifically vascular, orthopaedic and neurosurgeons.

One of the ambulances pulling up outside had blast damage to the windscreen and a bullet hole in the side.

Six medics have been killed in Gaza so far.

Paramedic Ahmed Abu-Ali said: "We feel we are targeted in any minute.

"All medical teams are now afraid they are targeted, it's very hard now.

"We wake up every day and we don't know if we are coming back to our homes or not."

We saw outgoing rockets too.

Although Hamas has not admitted firing any rockets since the ceasefire ended, Islamic Jihad and other smaller militant groups have said they fired on Israel.

But Israel says Hamas violated the ceasefire, and therefore Hamas is responsible for any resulting harm to the residents Gaza, who, it says, are being used as human shields.

But it's difficult to explain that argument to a parent carrying their child into the emergency ward.

22.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Israeli Shells Pound Gaza As Fighting Resumes

Hamas has vowed it will not back down as Israel pounded Gaza with a fresh wave of strikes, killing five Palestinians.

The Israeli military has launched 30 airstrikes on Gaza since midnight on Saturday as talks to extend the temporary ceasefire stalled.

Palestinian health officials claim senior Hamas official Moaaz Zaid was among three Palestinians killed in an attack on a mosque. Two people travelling on a motorcycle died when they were struck by a bomb.

Another two Palestinians were shot dead by soldiers and dozens wounded in clashes with Israeli forces amid violent protests in occupied West Bank.

Palestinians pray over the bodies of three members of the same family

The deaths bring the number of dead in the month-long conflict to nearly 1,900. The United Nations, which has condemned Israel's actions, say 1,354 of those killed have been civilians.

Israel has lost 64 soldiers during the conflict, while three civilians have died from rocket fire into the country.

Israel says Hamas has fired six rockets across the border since the 72-hour ceasefire ended on Friday morning.

Smoke rises from what witnesses said was an Israeli strike on Gaza City

Hamas spokesman Fawzy Barhum said: "There will be no going back, the resistance will continue. The occupier's intransigence will get it nowhere and we will make no concessions on the demands of our people."

The resumption of violence came as Britain announced it would send a team of NHS experts to help victims wounded in Gaza.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: "The conflict in Gaza has taken a terrible toll.

"The NHS has always stepped up to the plate to help those in need and this expert team will play a crucial role in helping hundreds caught up in this conflict."

Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli border guards in West Bank

The UK team consists of doctors, nurses, surgeons, anaesthetists and paramedics - and their specialities include trauma and plastic surgery.

And the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) said its appeal for Gaza had raised £4.5m from the British public in less than 24 hours.

Mr Cameron is under increasing pressure to suspend arms exports from British manufacturers to Israeli forces following the resignation of foreign minister Baroness Warsi over the Government's line on Gaza this week.

A Palestinian boy sleeps in a UN-organised shelter

Lady Warsi said the Government's approach had been "morally indefensible" and has stepped up her call for action to be taken.

"For me at that moment the concern that I had was that even if the ceasefire had held, and I sincerely hoped it had, there was still no clear language from the Government in relation to the condemnation of what had happened," she said.

"There was no clear commitment that we would lead the international effort on accountability on both sides for what had happened.

Protesters in London march on Hyde Park

"Our language was not there. It was lagging behind. I don't think it was just words that would have stopped me from doing what I did.

"I think it was a combination of issues. It was the language that we were using, I think it was our lack of support for international justice and accountability for the crimes that had been committed."

In London protesters calling for an end to the "massacre" in Gaza marched on Hyde Park.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has urged the coalition to halt arms export licences for ammunition, drone parts and armoured vehicles, which are being used in Operation Protective Edge. He had indicated on Thursday an announcement would be imminent.

Baroness Warsi's resiganation has placed pressure on David Cameron

The United States said it still hoped the three-day ceasefire could be revived and Egypt, which attempting to broker peace between Israelis and Palestinians with US and European mediators, insisted negotiations were making progress.

However, little movement seems to have been achieved and the two sides are still far apart on meeting terms of agreement.

In an interview with the New York Times on Friday, Barack Obama urged Israel to recognise Palestinians had a right to land and space to live.

He said: "It has consistently been my belief that you have to find a way to live side by side in peace with Palestinians ... You have to recognise that they have legitimate claims, and this is their land and neighbourhood as well."

22.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Guinea Closes Borders To Stop Ebola Outbreak

Guinea has closed its borders with Sierra Leone and Liberia in an attempt to stop the spread of ebola in West Africa.

The outbreak - the most serious since the disease first emerged in Africa 40 years ago - has so far killed nearly 1,000 people in the three countries this year.

"We have provisionally closed the frontier between Guinea and Sierra Leone because of all the news that we have received from there recently," Health Minister Rémy Lamah told a news conference.

She said the border has also been closed with Liberia.

The World Health Organisation has declared an international health emergency and said the virus may continue spreading for months.

On Friday, Nigeria became the third African nation, after Sierra Leone and Liberia, to declare a national emergency as hospitals struggled to cope with increasing cases.

"The outbreak is moving faster than we can control it," WHO Director-General Margaret Chan told reporters at a news briefing in Geneva.

She said all countries with ebola should declare a national emergency, but said a ban on international travel is not needed.

Some 1,779 people have been infected and 961 people have died in the outbreak, according to the latest WHO figures.

Most of the cases are in the remote area where Guinea borders Sierra Leone and Liberia.

22.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Supersonic 'Flying Saucer' Video Released By Nasa

Footage of a supersonic "flying saucer" has been released by Nasa, as the agency attempts to find a process for landing heavier spacecraft on Mars.

The video of the spinning saucer, launched from Hawaii, shows it being shot 120,000ft into orbit by a giant balloon.

A giant balloon launches the craft into space

Officially called a Low Density Supersonic Decelerator, the spacecraft is part of a system designed to slow down landings in space.

The device borrows the rapid inflation technique of the Hawaiian puffer fish to slow the landing - reducing its velocity from four times the speed of sound to two and a half times the speed of sound.

The parachute is ripped to pieces

The footage, shot on June 28, shows a giant parachute being shot out once the slower speed is reached and then being ripped to pieces as the spacecraft punches a hole in the atmosphere.

Landing exploratory vehicles on Mars presents greater problems than landing spacecraft on Earth because the planet's atmosphere is much thinner.

The flying saucer is important for the future of Mars exploration

Giant parachutes, several times the size of those used for Earth landings, and a deceleration device are needed to put the brakes on so that rovers can be landed on the Red Planet safely and in one piece.

Nasa is working on the system because future missions to Mars will need heavier landers than the current one-ton Curiosity Rover.

22.56 | 0 komentar | Read More

Storm Iselle Makes Historic Landfall In Hawaii

Iselle has reached Hawaii, the first tropical storm to hit the state in 22 years, knocking down trees and causing widespread power cuts.

The weather system is expected to inundate Hawaii with 8in (20cm) of rain, prompting warnings of flash floods and rock and mudslides.

The storm was downgraded from a hurricane on Thursday night, and is packing winds of nearly 60mph (96km). 

Following in Iselle's wake is category three Hurricane Julio, with maximum sustained winds of 120mph.

Many supermarket shelves have been stripped bare

People have packed emergency shelters on the Big Island, the southernmost of Hawaii's main islands, which is under hurricane warning. 

A tropical storm warning has been extended across the rest of the state.

The National Guard is at the ready while airlines have grounded flights. 

Some beach-goers in the surfer's paradise have ignored red flag warnings of riptides to plunge into the water as the storm surge generated 20ft (6 metre) waves.

Residents are preparing their homes

No deaths or major injuries have been reported so far.

The last time Hawaii was hit with a hurricane or tropical storm was in 1992, when Hurricane Iniki killed six people.

Julio, which is about 1,000 miles behind Iselle, is expected to brush the Big Island on Saturday night or early Sunday.

Authorities have told people to stay indoors, closed all schools and sent employees home from work early.

Residents of the arid Maui island have been getting used to an unusual sight: rain.

Children play with their father on a Honolulu beach on Thursday

Iselle has left thousands of people without power, in a state where such outrages are already a common occurrence.

Many supermarket shelves have been picked bare. Spam, the tinned meat which is popular on Hawaii, was in especially short supply.

Roofs were reportedly blown off houses near Hilo on Thursday night.

Sandbags, meanwhile, have been stacked around homes and businesses.

"In 22 years here, I've never seen anything of this magnitude," store owner Tim White told AFP news agency. 

As Hawaii prepared for the storms on Thursday, a 4.5-magnitude earthquake struck, though no injuries were reported.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola An International Health Emergency - WHO

Ebola Cure 'A Long Way Off': Facts About Virus

Updated: 12:08am UK, Thursday 07 August 2014

A cure for the deadly ebola virus, which has killed hundreds of people in West Africa, is "a very long way off", an expert has told Sky News.

David Evans, a professor of virology at Warwick University, said ebola is the latest disease to be transmitted "very efficiently" because of international travel.

More than 670 people in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria have fallen victim to the viral illness, which has a fatality rate of up to 90%.

Those with ebola will often be overcome by a sudden onset of fever, as well as weakness, muscle pain and headaches.

The body is then gripped by vomiting, diarrhoea, rashes, kidney and liver problems and bleeding.

The time between infection and symptoms appearing is anything from two days to three weeks.

Ebola is spread through the direct contact with the blood, organs or other bodily fluids of those infected.

The liquid that bathes the eye and semen can transmit the disease, Prof Evans said.

Horseshoe bats are believed to be the natural host of the viral disease, he said.

"These bats transmit the virus between themselves, but periodically it then ends up in probably primates or other types of bushmeat which are then hunted by villagers and the virus is then transmitted from the sick animals to humans," he said.

Transmission has also been documented through the handling of chimpanzees, gorillas and porcupines.

One of the reasons for the disease's rapid spread is a tradition at burial ceremonies for mourners to have direct contact with the body of the deceased.

"Therefore barrier methods that prevent that direct contact, including things like washing of hands and things like that provide a reasonable level of protection," he said.

Healthcare workers treating patients are particularly at risk.

Public Health England said in a risk assessment published earlier this month said that the current outbreak could increase the risk for Britons working in humanitarian and healthcare delivery.

But the threat to tourists, visitors and expatriates is still considered "very low if elementary precautions are followed".

Prof Evans said there had been "periodic outbreaks" of ebola since the first recorded instances in 1976, but this is the deadliest so far.

There were two simultaneous outbreaks in Nzara, Sudan and Yambuku, a village in the Democratic Republic of Congo located near the Ebola River.

Data from the World Health Organisation shows the previous deadliest outbreak was the one in the DRC, when 280 out of 315 people infected died.

In the same country in 1995 another outbreak claimed 254 lives, with 315 patients infected.

In 2000, there were 425 cases in Uganda and 224 people died.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

US Strikes ISIS Artillery In Northern Iraq

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

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

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

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

The group has been advancing in Iraq

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

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

In the hours after the airstrikes, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) banned all US civilian flights over Iraq. Turkish Airlines also halted its flights to Irbil.

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

Yezidis seen fleeing the violence in Iraq

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

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

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

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

Barack Obama with his national security team

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

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

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

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

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

Christian refugees have fled to Irbil

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

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

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

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

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

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Israel Denies Targeting Hospitals In Gaza Strip

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Palestinians leave their homes in Gaza City following Israeli attacks

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Of that number, at least 429 were children.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

British GSK Investigator Gets Jail In China

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

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

Humphrey in court during his trial

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

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

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

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

More follows...

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Russia Threatens EU And US Flight Ban

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said the country is considering a ban on flights from Europe and the US to Asia.

Speaking at a government meeting he said the "serious measure" of blocking Russian airspace was a response to sanctions that recently stopped Dobrolyot, one of Russia's low-cost airlines, from flying.

It comes as Mr Medvedev confirmed the country has banned transit flights for Ukrainian airlines via its territory.

If Russia goes ahead with the ban on Western airlines, passengers could see ticket prices rise because carriers would be forced to use more fuel to reach destinations using longer flight paths.

The move could hit major European airlines such as British Airways, Lufthansa and Air France, leaving them faced with multibillion-pound losses.

Mr Medvedev said a response to sanctions against Russia was needed

Meanwhile Russia announced further details of its sanctions on food and agricultural products from the West.

Mr Medvedev said an immediate ban has been put on fruit, vegetable, meat, fish, milk and dairy imports from the European Union, United States, Australia, Canada and Norway.

He said: "Until the last moment, we hoped that our foreign colleagues would understand that sanctions lead to a deadlock and no one needs them.

"But they didn't and the situation now requires us to take retaliatory measures."

He said the food ban would last for a year, but could be lifted earlier if the West reacted with a "constructive approach".

Responding to the decision, the European Commission warned it was ready "to take action".

In a statement it said: "This announcement is clearly politically motivated.

"Following full assessment by the Commission of the Russian Federation's measures, we reserve the right to take action as appropriate."

In 2013 the EU's agricultural exports to Russia were worth €11.8bn (£9.4bn), while the US says its food and agricultural exports amounted to $1.3bn (£77m).

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ukraine: Russia Troop Build-Up Invasion Fear

Russia has built up the number of combat ready troops on the Ukrainian border to 20,000, according to Nato.

Officials fear the troop movements are a precursor to an invasion, which could be carried out under the pretext of a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission.

It comes as Russia bans beef, pork, fruit and vegetable produce, poultry, fish, cheese, milk and dairy imports from the EU, US, Australia, Norway and Canada. The move is a response to sanctions against Russia.

Fighting has continued in eastern Ukraine, where some 1,300 people have been killed since April, according to the United Nations.

The rebel leadership in the city of Horlivka, about 22 miles (35km) north of Donetsk, said 33 civilians had been killed and 129 wounded by shelling over the past few days.

The Ukrainian military said 18 of its soldiers had been killed and 54 injured in fighting over the past 24 hours, the highest number killed or injured in weeks.

Refugees fleeing fighting in south eastern Ukraine take shelter in Donetsk

It was also accused of carrying out its first airstrike on the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, as Ukraine said it was getting ready to recapture the city. 

Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk said: "The threat of a direct intervention (by Russia into Ukraine) is certainly greater than it was even a few days ago."

Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu added: "This is a dangerous situation."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to use his influence with the rebels to help stabilise the country.

Moscow said making claims about the movement of its troops was like "selling soap bubbles".

Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenikov said: "Movements of such forces of thousands of troops and equipment are not possible in such a short time."

Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen is visiting Ukraine to hold talks with President Petro Poroshenko.

A man inspects damage after what Donetsk locals described as an 'airstrike'

Many EU nations and US politicians blame Russia for the continued escalation of fighting in Ukraine, which resulted in Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 being shot down.

Since the jet was shot down, the EU, US and some other Western nations have engaged in a tit for tat exchange of sanctions with Russia.

Ukraine has made major military advances during the last month and says Donetsk has now almost been cut off from the Russian border and the second rebel stronghold of Luhansk.

More than 285,000 people have fled their homes in the last few months because of the fighting, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR.

Luhansk is said to be without power, running water, phone connections or fuel, while food supplies have been running low.

Meanwhile, investigators working on the MH17 crash site were forced to suspend their work on Wednesday due to shooting in the area.

Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott vowed that those responsible for shooting down the Malaysian airliner and killing all 298 people on board would be brought to justice.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Khmer Rouge Leaders Sentenced To Life In Prison

Two Khmer Rouge leaders have been sentenced to life in jail for their part in the deaths of up to two milllion people in Cambodia.

The UN-backed tribunal's verdicts were announced against Khieu Samphan, 83, the Maoist regime's former head of state, and Nuon Chea, 88, who was leader Pol Pot's deputy.

The charges centred on the forced exodus of millions of people from Cambodia's cities into the countryside, where they were starved or worked to death.

The case also involved an execution site in the northwest where thousands of people were shot and buried in mass graves.

Nuon Chea (L) and Khieu Samphan remained impassive as they were sentenced

Nuon Chea, wearing his trademark sunglasses, sat in a wheelchair in the dock as the verdict was read in the capital Phnom Penh, while Khieu Samphan stood next to him.

A man whose father and siblings died during the regime cries outside court

Survivors of the brutal regime - which oversaw the torture and execution of tens of thousands of Khmer people - cried and applauded as they were jailed following the two-year trial.

Skulls at a memorial at the Killing Fields where thousands were butchered

"This is the justice that I have been waiting for these last 35 years," said 70-year-old survivor Khieu Pheatarak.

"I will never forget the suffering but this is a great relief for me. It is a victory and an historic day for all Cambodians."

Cambodian and international journalists watch the trial

She was among tens of thousands of Cambodians taken from their homes at gunpoint in 1975 by the Khmer Rouge's peasant army.

A woman holds a traditional Khmer scarf as she awaits the sentencing

They were forced into agricultural work in an attempt to create a totally self-sufficient and classless agrarian society.

The men's lawyers said they would appeal the verdict.

Torture instruments used by Khmer Rouge activists displayed at Tuol Sleng

"It is unjust for my client. He did not know or commit many of these crimes," Son Arun, a lawyer for Nuon Chea, told reporters.

Despite both defendants denying any knowledge of the Khmer Rouge's crimes, they both eventually expressed remorse for the suffering inflicted.

Former Khmer Rouge leader Ieng Sary died while facing trial

Survivors fear the ageing men will not live long enough to serve more than a year or two of their sentence.

Former foreign minister Ieng Sary died aged 87 last year while on trial on charges of genocide.

An undated photo of Pol Pot (left) with Ieng Sary (centre)

His wife Ieng Thirith was released in 2012 after it was ruled she was too ill to stand trial.

Pol Pot was arrested by former Khmer Rouge colleagues and sentenced to life under house arrest in 1997. He died a year later.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

WHO Under Pressure To Support New Ebola Drug

Ebola Cure 'A Long Way Off': Facts About Virus

Updated: 12:08am UK, Thursday 07 August 2014

A cure for the deadly ebola virus, which has killed hundreds of people in West Africa, is "a very long way off", an expert has told Sky News.

David Evans, a professor of virology at Warwick University, said ebola is the latest disease to be transmitted "very efficiently" because of international travel.

More than 670 people in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria have fallen victim to the viral illness, which has a fatality rate of up to 90%.

Those with ebola will often be overcome by a sudden onset of fever, as well as weakness, muscle pain and headaches.

The body is then gripped by vomiting, diarrhoea, rashes, kidney and liver problems and bleeding.

The time between infection and symptoms appearing is anything from two days to three weeks.

Ebola is spread through the direct contact with the blood, organs or other bodily fluids of those infected.

The liquid that bathes the eye and semen can transmit the disease, Prof Evans said.

Horseshoe bats are believed to be the natural host of the viral disease, he said.

"These bats transmit the virus between themselves, but periodically it then ends up in probably primates or other types of bushmeat which are then hunted by villagers and the virus is then transmitted from the sick animals to humans," he said.

Transmission has also been documented through the handling of chimpanzees, gorillas and porcupines.

One of the reasons for the disease's rapid spread is a tradition at burial ceremonies for mourners to have direct contact with the body of the deceased.

"Therefore barrier methods that prevent that direct contact, including things like washing of hands and things like that provide a reasonable level of protection," he said.

Healthcare workers treating patients are particularly at risk.

Public Health England said in a risk assessment published earlier this month said that the current outbreak could increase the risk for Britons working in humanitarian and healthcare delivery.

But the threat to tourists, visitors and expatriates is still considered "very low if elementary precautions are followed".

Prof Evans said there had been "periodic outbreaks" of ebola since the first recorded instances in 1976, but this is the deadliest so far.

There were two simultaneous outbreaks in Nzara, Sudan and Yambuku, a village in the Democratic Republic of Congo located near the Ebola River.

Data from the World Health Organisation shows the previous deadliest outbreak was the one in the DRC, when 280 out of 315 people infected died.

In the same country in 1995 another outbreak claimed 254 lives, with 315 patients infected.

In 2000, there were 425 cases in Uganda and 224 people died.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More

Ebola Outbreak: First Case Treated In Europe

A Spanish missionary priest infected with ebola has become the first person to be treated in Europe during the deadly outbreak which has hit West Africa.

Miguel Pajares, who contracted it while helping ebola patients at a hospital in the Liberian capital Monrovia, is in hospital in Madrid after being flown in from Liberia.

The disease has killed at least 932 people in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria since it first emerged in remote tropical forests earlier this year.

A specially equipped military Airbus A310 brought Mr Pajares, 75, to the Torrejon airbase along with a Spanish nun, Juliana Bonoha Bohe.

Doctors at the Torrejon airbase

She had worked at the same Liberian hospital but did not test positive for ebola.

Immediately after landing, ambulances took the pair to Carlos III Hospital, which specialises in tropical diseases, and they were kept in isolation.

The priest was stable and showed no sign of bleeding while the nun appeared to be well but would be re-tested for ebola just in case, health officials said.

Miguel Pajares was taken by ambulance to hospital

Meanwhile, a state of emergency has been declared in Liberia where bodies lay in streets and Sierra Leone sent troops to guard hospitals and clinics handling ebola cases.

Two Americans who worked for Christian aid agencies in Liberia and were infected with ebola while taking care of patients in Monrovia were recently flown to the US for treatment.

They have shown signs of improvement after being given an experimental US-developed drug known as ZMapp, which is hard to produce on a large scale.

Nigeria is holding out hope that it could receive ZMapp - a drug which is proving controversial as it not being made available to victims in Africa.

The pair have been transported to Carlos III hospital in Madrid

US President Barack Obama said it was too soon to send it to the continent, adding: "We've got to let the science guide us."

He said: "I don't think all the information is in on whether this drug is helpful. What we do know is that the ebola virus - both currently and in the past - is controllable if you have strong public health infrastructure in place."

Ebola - which has a mortality rate of up to 90% - cannot spread through airborne or waterborne methods, say experts.

It is transmitted primarily through contact with bodily fluids such as saliva, blood, urine and other secretions.

22.57 | 0 komentar | Read More