Six In The Morning

Malaysia flight MH370: Indian Ocean search resumes

 23 March 2014 Last updated at 07:39

  The BBC

More planes have joined an increasingly international search of the south Indian Ocean for missing flight MH370.

Eight planes were sent out on Sunday over a wider search area after China released new images of possible debris.

Australia is leading the search and said it was investigating sightings of a wooden pallet and other items.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared on 8 March en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, with 239 people on board.

Malaysian officials believe the plane was deliberately taken off course.

Global warming to hit Asia hardest, warns new report on climate change

 Flooding, famine and rising sea levels will put hundreds of millions at risk in one of the world’s most vulnerable regions

Robin McKie, science editor

People in coastal regions of Asia, particularly those living in cities, could face some of the worst effects of global warming, climate experts will warn this week. Hundreds of millions of people are likely to lose their homes as flooding, famine and rising sea levels sweep the region, one of the most vulnerable on Earth to the impact of global warming, the UN states.

The report – Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability – makes it clear that for the first half of this century countries such as the UK will avoid the worst impacts of climate change, triggered by rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. By contrast, people living in developing countries in low latitudes, particularly those along the coast of Asia, will suffer the most, especially those living in crowded cities.

Al-Qai’da aid project shows the way in Afghanistan

World View: Corruption has blighted the torrent of dollars poured into the country by America since 2001

PATRICK COCKBURN Sunday 23 March 2014

An Afghan acquaintance who had worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) told me several years ago how an Afghan subcontractor had made a large profit from a contract to build and get running a tractor repair shop in Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan. Uruzgan, the home province of Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban, was then a particularly dangerous place, but the subcontractor cunningly turned this to his advantage. The strong Taliban presence in the area meant that nobody from the main contractor or USAID, which was funding the project, could visit the site of the new repair shop. Instead, they relied on photographs emailed to them which showed that the work was making impressive progress.

The head of the subcontractor did not go near Uruzgan, but instead rented an existing tractor repair shop in one of the safer parts of Kandahar. Along with the shop, he hired young men for a few days who were told to look as if they were busily fixing tractor engines. A photographer took pictures of all this which, when emailed to Kabul, convinced the donors and main contractor that the contract was being fulfilled.

More deaths in Venezuela amid pro and anti-Maduro rallies

Three people have been reported dead in Venezuela, as demonstrators rallied for and against President Nicolas Maduro. More than 30 people have now been killed in unrest over the past five weeks.

DW

There were further reports of deaths on Saturday as protesters rallied in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas and beyond.

“In the name of freedom, put an end to the dictatorship now,” read one of the banners that were held aloft in the capital.

Opposition demonstrators have vowed they will stay on the streets until Maduro stands down, amid public anger over hyper inflation, goods shortages and soaring crime.

Deaths reported

A man identified as Jesus Orlando Labrador died from a gunshot wound to the chest Saturday in the southerwestern city of Merida, Mayor Carlos Garcia told the Associated Press news agency. The incident happened when suspected hard-line government supporters fired on anti-government protesters.

Côte d’Ivoire hands Laurent Gbagbo ally to ICC

 The Ivorian government has handed youth leader Charles Ble Goude over to the International Criminal Court to face charges of crimes against humanity.

22 MAR 2014 17:17LOUCOUMANE COULIBALY, THOMAS ESCRITT , JOE BAVIER

Côte d’Ivoire transferred Charles Ble Goude, a youth leader and close ally of ex-president Laurent Gbagbo, to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Saturday to face charges of crimes against humanity linked to a 2011 post-election civil war.

The ICC, based in The Hague, Netherlands, announced in October last year that it had issued an arrest warrant for Ble Goude, who headed the Young Patriots street militia during Gbagbo’s presidency. Ble Goude (41) was arrested in Ghana in January 2013.

The government of Côte d’Ivoire’s current president, Alassane Ouattara, said on Thursday that it had decided to hand Ble Goude over to the court.

Turkey: Twitter Allows For ‘Character Assassination’

 

  NBC News

Turkey’s government on Saturday accused Twitter of allowing “systematic character assassinations” a day after social media users easily evaded a government attempt to block access to the network.

The attempted crackdown came after links to wiretapped recordings suggesting corruption were posted on Twitter, causing Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government major embarrassment before local elections on March 30.