27 March 2014 Last updated at 11:40 GMT
A construction worker who was rescued from a burning building in Houston, Texas has thanked the firefighter who saved his life.
Curtis Reissig found himself trapped on a balcony before Fire Captain Brad Hawthorne arrived with a ladder allowing him to jump to safety.
ABC's Gio Benitez reports.
Video courtesy of ABC News Good Morning America
27 March 2014 Last updated at 14:02 GMT
Airbus has built a giant sand pit in Stevenage to mimic the surface of Mars.
The indoor terrain, about the size of a basketball court, will be used to test systems on the rover that Europe will send to the Red Planet in 2018.
ExoMars, as it is known, will be a six-wheeled robot tasked with finding signs of past or present life.
Richard Lancaster, navigation and control analyst for the ExoMars project, gives the BBC a guided tour of Stevenage's own indoor version of the Red Planet, and explains how it is being used to test the rover.
27 March 2014 Last updated at 18:38 GMT
Politicians and well-wishers gathered at Westminster on Thursday to bid an emotional farewell to former Labour minister Tony Benn.
A large crowd holding trade union and anti-war banners lined the route of his funeral cortege, as James Landale reports.
The figure of Shiva, as Lord of the Dance, is thought to have been looted from a temple in India India has requested the return of two ancient Hindu statues from galleries in Australia following allegations they were stolen.
The National Gallery of Australia has removed one of the statues of the god Shiva from display.
It was purchased for $5m (£3m) in 2008 from a New York dealer who is accused of looting antiquities.
The other, considered a lesser work, has also been removed from display at the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
The dealer, Subhash Kapoor, is awaiting trial in India, where he is accused of looting statues and other antiquities in a multi-million dollar enterprise.
The National Gallery of Australia is suing Mr Kapoor and his company in New York, saying that they forged certifications about the statue.
It said that if proven, they would have been the victim of an audacious act of fraud.
It said in a statement that it had researched the 900-year-old bronze statue of a dancing Shiva for more than a year before agreeing to the purchase.
It is considered a superb example of bronze casting from the Chola period in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
It is one of 22 items bought by the gallery from Mr Kapoor's company.
The Indian government said the two statues had been exported in contravention of cultural property laws.
The museums are preparing to return the statues to India, according to reports in the Australian media.
Power firms are back in the spotlight, with the Daily Telegraph reporting that regulator Ofgem is expected to order an investigation into alleged profiteering by the "Big Six". 
Meanwhile, the Daily Express celebrates "cheaper energy bills for millions" after power firm SSE announced it would freeze costs until 2016. The paper says the move has raised hopes of a price war between the Big Six. 
Gwyneth Paltrow's separation from Coldplay singer Chris Martin is still making headlines. The Daily Star prints a photo of the actress kissing an ex-partner in public and suggests the moment could have been behind the split. 
"Out in the Coldplay," is the Sun's front page headline. It claims to have "secrets" of the stars' split, saying that Martin was "frozen out" of the relationship, sleeping at a friend's flat, while Paltrow became "close" to five men. 
However, the Daily Mirror quotes "sources close to the US actress" as saying Paltrow branded rumours of three affairs as "ridiculous". The paper quotes Martin's family as saying there is "no bad blood" between the pair. 
David Cameron faces pressure from some Tories to expel jobless EU migrants, after Germany adopted a similar measure, says the Times. Its main image is of Lib Dem Nick Clegg and UKIP's Nigel Farage debating Britain's EU membership. 
The i leads on the debate, which was broadcast by LBC radio and Sky TV, saying a snap poll had handed victory to Mr Farage, despite him being accused of "scaring people" over immigration by the Lib Dem leader. 
The Independent claims to have uncovered details of a second secret internal Metropolitan Police probe which, it says, found dozens of rogue detectives in the employ of organised crime gangs. 
The Guardian reports "failings" in the police's response to domestic abuse, citing a watchdog's report accusing some officers of a "lack of empathy" and saying many victims are not being taken seriously. 
The Daily Mail interprets comments from Office for Budget Responsibility chief Robert Chote to MPs about rising house prices as "official" confirmation that the UK is on the verge of a "dangerous housing bubble". 
Media news leads the Financial Times, which suggests that Lachlan Murdoch is in "pole position" to take over his father Rupert's media empire - comprising News Corp and 21st Century Fox - after returning as non-executive co-chairman. If people feel like their gas and electricity bills are too high, the Daily Telegraph's lead story suggests that a watchdog agrees with them.
Ofgem is expected to refer the energy sector to the Competition and Markets Authority over claims of profiteering, says the paper.
Still, the Daily Express hails good news for householders after one firm, SSE, froze prices until 2016. Its front page predicts "cheaper energy bills for millions" and raises the prospect of a price war among the "big six" suppliers.
The Daily Mail, however, points out there are "already many cheaper deals available which last for even longer". According to the Daily Mirror, Labour leader Ed Miliband can feel "vindicated" because the development proves that suggestions his energy price freeze plan would lead to economic ruin were "scaremongering nonsense".
But the Daily Telegraph argues that there is a gulf between Mr Miliband's promises and the "real costs of their implementation".
The Independent notes that the firm is scaling back investment in wind farms and cutting 500 jobs, adding: "If we needed evidence that there is no quick and painless fix to the problem of high energy prices, SSE has just proved it."
The paper suggests it's no coincidence that SSE acted ahead of the expected competition inquiry. This review, says the Financial Times, should offer an "opportunity for a detached assessment of the charges laid by politicians. Mr Miliband and others have after all failed to produce compelling evidence to back their claims of profiteering".
Sketchwriters were dispatched to sample the atmosphere at the debate between UKIP's Nigel Farage and Lib Dem Nick Clegg over Britain's EU membership.
Ann Treneman, in the Times, describes her disappointment at discovering Europe was, indeed, the topic for discussion. "I had hoped for something else. Still, at least they properly don't like each other," she writes.
"Nigel Farage shone," says the Telegraph's Michael Deacon, adding that he meant his skin, rather than his performance: "A sign of righteous conviction? Or nerves?" The Independent's Donald MacIntyre contrasts Mr Clegg, a "conventional politician", with his opponent who "may be at heart steeped in 1950s nostalgia but is a good deal more post-modern about the facts".
The Daily's Express's Macer Hall, meanwhile, notes that Mr Clegg's "old tricks of speaking directly into the camera and to members of the audience were trotted out once again" but that he was given a "serious verbal pummelling". Meanwhile, the Daily Mail's Quentin Letts wonders: "Who'd choose one of these jabbering maniacs to rule us?"
And the Guardian's Esther Addley asks: "Weren't there a couple of conspicuous figures missing: the leaders of the only two parties that have any possible chance of forming a government that could actually do something about Britain's position in Europe?"
So who won?
"Farage bashes Clegg," is the Express's verdict, while the Times offers marks out of five in categories such as key arguments, best statistics, funniest jokes and screen appeal, before awarding the contest to the UKIP leader by a point. The Mirror scores it the other way by the same margin.
The Telegraph asks four writers to give their verdicts, with three handing victory to Mr Clegg and one undecided. A snap poll of people who matter - the voting public - awarded the contest to Mr Farage, by 57% to 36%. However, the YouGov poll - for the Sun - showed both leaders enjoyed a ratings boost as a result of the debate, with an increase percentage of respondents saying they had a positive impression of them afterwards.
What's clear, suggests the Independent, is that - by not taking part - Labour and the Conservatives lost.
Many column inches are dedicated to the separation of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin from actress Gwyneth Paltrow. And while the tabloids speculate about the background to the split, the Times notes that the pair have begun their new lives apart "together, with a family holiday in the Bahamas".
However, it's their description of a "conscious uncoupling" that provokes most comment. And there is little sympathy in evidence.
"Most people reading that will be consciously vomiting," suggests the Daily Star. The Daily Mail's Jan Moir agrees that it's "sickly, self-serving twaddle", describing the phrase as: "An irony-free chunk of classic Paltrow pretentiousness.... Being 'consciously uncoupled' certainly made breaking up the family home and 'co-parenting' nine-year-old Apple and Moses, seven, seem like something holistic and pure."
Allison Pearson, in the Telegraph, agrees the term is "hilariously precious", suggesting it sounds like "something Percy does to Gordon in Thomas the Tank Engine". But she concludes: "If, in the end, 'conscious uncoupling' is just Californian for 'amicable separation', so what? It's better than a train wreck."
The Independent's John Walsh, meanwhile, imagines alternative descriptions of famous break-ups, such as the "psychic sundering" of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, or the "vodka-based domestic realignment" of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.
Meanwhile, Martin doesn't emerge unscathed. Setting out five traumas (for the public) caused by the break-up, the Daily Mirror's Polly Hudson describes Coldplay's back catalogue as "dirgey, whiny, mopy and limp", adding: "Chris Martin wrote all that when he was supposedly happily married. Can you imagine how whingey the next Coldplay album will be?"
As though in answer, the Daily Telegraph prints lyrics it describes as "born of a broken heart" from the band's recently-released single, Magic.
There are "no Gwynners" in such a situation, says the Sun, adding: "It's so much sadder than the unconscious coupling after the pub which has launched so many fine relationships."
Russia's takeover of Ukraine's naval assets in Crimea is complete, reports the Telegraph, with 51 of Kiev's fleet now flying the Russian flag.
But Moscow also has control over its neighbour's pod of combat dolphins, reports Roland Oliphant from Simferopol. The unit was trained to locate mines, mark underwater obstacles and detect - or even kill - enemy frogmen in the 1960s, before being inherited by Ukraine after the collapse of the Soviet Union, he explains.
Back in the UK, the Army has unveiled its latest weapon - "a bomb-sniffing dog that is also able to attack the enemy" - reports the Times. The paper says that while the Army has used dogs since before World War One, the 249-strong unit is the first to take on the dual role.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror says the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has become embroiled in an animal cruelty row after a freedom of information request revealed that between 2010 and 2012, 115 live pigs had been "strapped into body armour and blown to pieces" for research into battlefield blast injuries.
Animal rights campaigners say it's impossible to justify, while the MoD is quoted as saying the animals were anaesthetised and "humanely culled" afterwards and that some developments cannot be brought about without using animals.
Daily Mail: Monster 15-inch rat terrorises Swedish family after chewing through CONCRETE wall to make its home in their kitchen
Daily Telegraph: 31 reasons why Moyes must go
Times: Pilot's world was crumbling after wife left
Guardian: Why Oculus's $2bn sale to Facebook sparks fury from Kickstarter funders
Independent: 'Tools in the toolbox': Women fake orgasms to increase their own arousal, say scientists
Russian forces seized Crimea's remaining military bases after Ukrainian servicemen withdrew this week The UN General Assembly has approved a resolution describing the Moscow-backed referendum that led to Russia's annexation of Crimea as illegal.
It comes after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to a loan deal with Ukraine worth $14-18bn.
The US Congress also passed legislation on Thursday backing a $1bn loan guarantee for Ukraine.
Tensions are high between Russia and the West after pro-Russian troops annexed Ukraine's southern peninsula.
The West has widely condemned the move, with US President Barack Obama warning on Wednesday of "deeper" EU and US sanctions against Russia if it carried out further incursions in Ukraine.
Non-bindingOne hundred countries voted in favour of approving a UN General Assembly resolution declaring the Crimean referendum on 16 March illegal and affirming Ukraine's territorial integrity.
Eleven nations voted against, with 58 abstentions.
"This support has come from all corners of the world which shows that this (is) not only a regional matter but a global one,'' Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsia told reporters after the vote.
Given that the resolution was non-binding, the vote was largely symbolic, says the BBC's Nick Bryant in New York.
But Ukraine hopes the resolution will act as a deterrent and dissuade Moscow from making further incursions into its territory, he adds.
Diplomats left their seats to photograph electronic monitors displaying the General Assembly vote count President Obama said the IMF announcement, which would unlock a further $10bn in loans for Ukraine, was a "major step forward" to help stabilise the country's economy and meet the long-term needs of its people.
Speaking after talks with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in Rome on Thursday, Mr Obama said it was a "concrete signal" that the world stood united with Ukraine at a difficult time.
A bill was also passed in the US Senate and House of Representatives on Thursday providing $1bn in loan guarantees aimed at stabilising Ukraine's economy. The measure still needs to be signed into law by President Obama.
Ukraine's interim Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk had earlier told parliament the country was on the ""on the edge of economic and financial bankruptcy".
'Door of diplomacy'Also on Thursday, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said she planned to run for president of Ukraine in the elections expected to take place on 25 May.
Ms Tymoshenko, who has already served twice as prime minister and ran for president in 2010, said she would stand as "a candidate for Ukrainian unity".
Yulia Tymoshenko: "I dream about victory... but the victory for Ukraine"
She was released after serving three years in jail on corruption charges, following the ousting of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in February.
More than 100 people were killed during protests which overthrew pro-Kremlin President Yanukovych in February.
They followed months of street protests sparked by Mr Yanukovych's decision to reject a planned EU trade deal in favour of closer ties with Moscow.
Since then, Russia has annexed the Crimean peninsula, which last week voted to become part of the Russian federation.
Mr Obama said on Thursday that the US hoped Russia would "walk through the door of diplomacy" and resolve the issue in a peaceful way.
Ukraine hopes the UN General Assembly resolution will deter Russia from any future incursion In other Ukraine developments:
Closer magazine reported that President Hollande was having an affair with actress Julie Gayet A French court has ordered Closer magazine to pay Julie Gayet 15,000 euros (£12,000) over a breach of privacy for revealing her affair with President Francois Hollande.
The magazine published photographs of Mr Hollande and Ms Gayet arriving separately at an apartment in January.
The payout was far lower than the 50,000 euros the actress had sought.
The Paris court ordered the magazine to publish the ruling on the front page of its next edition.
Closer caused a political storm in France on 10 January when it published images purporting to show Mr Hollande and Ms Gayet arriving at a Paris flat for alleged trysts.
Although he refused to comment on the allegations, President Hollande announced that he had "put an end" to his "shared life" with long-term partner Valerie Trierweiler shortly afterwards.
During court hearings, Ms Gayet's lawyer said she had been "hunted" by journalists.
"She was assaulted by swarms of photographers... it was like the hunt of a wild animal," he said.
Closer says it was justified in publishing the images because they raised questions over security Closer's lawyer maintained that the magazine was justified in publishing the photographs, saying they were in the public interest because they raised questions about Mr Hollande's "duty of transparency".
Ms Gayet has also filed two criminal complaints: one for a breach of privacy over photographs taken of her inside a car and another accusing paparazzi of "endangering others" while chasing her.
The mother of two, who has acted in more than 70 films over a 20-year career, has kept a low profile since the scandal broke.
During a rare public appearance in New York earlier this month she fended off questions about her relationship with President Hollande, saying: "My private life is my private life."
Maria Corina Machado was elected to the National Assembly in 2010, representing the state of Miranda Opposition Venezuelan lawmaker Maria Corina Machado has returned to Caracas after having her mandate revoked.
Ms Machado was in Peru when the National Assembly stripped her of her parliamentary immunity on Monday.
The Assembly said she breached the Venezuelan constitution last week when she addressed the Organization of American States as a guest of Panama.
Speaking to hundreds of supporters in Caracas, Ms Machado said she had been illegally dismissed.
"I am a still a legislator, more than ever, and will continue my activities inside and outside the National Assembly," she said.
National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello had threatened to have her arrested for "acting as a Panamanian ambassador" before the Organization of American States (OAS).
She was also accused of inciting violence.
Mr Cabello said Ms Machado could be prosecuted for inciting violence Ms Machado was welcomed at the main Caracas airport by hundreds of supporters, who followed her to a demonstration in an opposition stronghold in the east of the capital.
"Mr Cabello has violated all of the laws of the nation. He does not know what the procedures are to have a lawmaker sacked from his post," she said.
"If the price that I have to pay so that our voice is heard around the world is this persecution and these threats, I'll pay it once and a thousand times."
'Plotting generals'Venezuela has faced nearly two months of streets protests, with the opposition blaming the government's failed left-wing policies for high inflation, crime and the shortage of many staples.
Thirty-five people - from both sides of the political divide - have been killed in the protests, according to the government.
Hundreds of Ms Machado's supporters gathered in the eastern Caracas district of Chacaito Ms Machado is one of the most outspoken voices in the opposition.
She has repeatedly called for the removal of President Nicolas Maduro, who was elected last year. But she has reiterated that he should be ousted "through legal means".
Another high profile opposition leader, Leopoldo Lopez, has been under arrest since 18 February, also accused of inciting violence.
On Tuesday, Mr Maduro announced the arrest of three air force generals for "plotting an uprising" against his government.
The names of the three men have not been officially released.
"I have ordered a full investigation into the incident. If the three generals are found to be guilty, they should receive the toughest punishment," he said.
Mr Maduro has previously accused right-wing sectors backed by the United States of stirring up trouble as part of a plot to oust him.
Rescuers are continuing to scour the site, though no-one has been rescued alive since Saturday The number of fatalities in a mudslide in Washington state will rise "substantially" in the next two days, authorities say.
Sixteen bodies have been recovered and another nine bodies have been found but not yet retrieved.
Some 90 people remain missing after the 177ft (54m) wall of mud hit the town of Oso, north of Seattle.
Hopes of discovering any more survivors have faded as the search entered day six on Thursday.
Workers have been scouring the area for survivors and victims, using search dogs, helicopters and laser imaging.
'Enormous disaster'Snohomish county fire chief Travis Hots said the death toll would increase substantially within the next 24-28 hours as the medical examiner catches up with the recovery effort.
Authorities have so far identified one victim, 45-year-old Christina Jefferds.
The 45-year-old - who the Seattle Times reports was a dental office manager - died of blunt impact injuries, says the medical examiner.
The mudslide on Saturday destroyed about 30 houses, temporarily damming a river and leaving a square mile field of muck and debris in its wake.
"This disaster is so enormous, I sometimes think even the pictures don't always do it justice," said Congresswoman Suzan DelBene, who represents the area.
"The number of families that have been impacted, the number of people that they've lost, the number of people who are still missing. It's truly, truly heartbreaking."
The square mile debris field is pocked with deep pits of water and strewn with sharp and dangerous wreckage, including fallen trees, propane and septic tanks, destroyed vehicles and smashed timber.
Survivors were last pulled alive from the mud on Saturday.
Doug Massingale's four-month-old granddaughter is among the missing.
Searchers have found carpet from the infant's bedroom, but no sign of the baby so far.
"It's stressful to think about," he told the Associated Press news agency. "A little baby that hasn't gotten a start yet in life. It's too much."
Another one of those watching the recovery effort in the hope of a miracle is Becky Bach, whose brother and wife are unaccounted for.
"Realistically I honestly don't think they're going to find them alive," she said.
"But as a family, we're trying to figure out what to do if they find no bodies."
The landslide left a cliff known as a head scarp that is 600ft (182m) high and a one sq-mile zone of destruction 
US Air Force personnel have joined the search effort 
Sedki Sobhi (right) was promoted to first lieutenant-general shortly before Abdul Fattah al-Sisi's resignation Egypt's new armed forces chief and defence minister has been sworn in, a day after Abdul Fattah al-Sisi resigned so he could stand for the presidency.
Interim President Adly Mansour confirmed Gen Sedki Sobhi's appointment at the weekly cabinet meeting in Cairo.
Gen Mahmoud Hegazi, whose daughter is married to one of Mr Sisi's sons, was named the army's new chief-of-staff.
Mr Sisi, who held the rank of field marshal, reportedly turned up at the cabinet meeting in civilian clothes.
As commander-in-chief last July, he led the overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi following mass opposition protests.
The military-backed interim authorities subsequently launched a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood that has left more than 1,000 people dead and seen some 16,000 others detained.
They have also struggled to combat jihadist militants based in the Sinai peninsula who have attacked government and security forces personnel, killing more than 200.
'Coup leader'Mr Sisi attended Thursday's cabinet meeting to submit his resignation as defence minister and see his former chief-of-staff sworn in as his successor, the Mena news agency reported.
Announcing his presidential bid on Wednesday, the 59 year old said he was answering "the demand of a wide range of Egyptians who have called on me to run for this honourable office".
Mr Sisi promised he would soon offer "a clear platform for a modern and democratic Egypt".
But he warned of an "extremely difficult task" ahead as the country faced up to its "economic, social, political and security realities", including the threat of "terrorists".
To his supporters, the former military chief is a strongman who can end the political turmoil that has dogged Egypt since 2011 when a popular uprising ended Hosni Mubarak's three decades of one-man rule.
But Mr Sisi's opponents hold him responsible for what human rights groups say are widespread abuses, including the torture of detainees, and fear that he wants a return to authoritarianism.
"He led a coup to become president. He is a man who has killed daily since the coup," Ibrahim Munir, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's political bureau, told the AFP news agency by telephone from London.
BBC News profiles the man some are calling Egypt's president-in-waiting
Before Mr Sisi announced his presidential bid, at least one student was killed and more than a dozen were injured in clashes with riot police at Cairo University, officials said.
On Thursday, further clashes were reported as Islamist students protested in an eastern district of the capital where the defence ministry building is located.
No date has been set for the presidential election, but Mr Mansour was recently quoted by the state-run newspaper al-Ahram as saying it would be over by mid-July, after which parliamentary polls would be held.
Correspondents say Mr Sisi is likely to win, given his popularity and the lack of any serious rivals.
Leftist politician Hamdeen Sabahi, who came third in the 2012 election, is the only other candidate to have declared his intention to run.
The revamped Beira-Rio stadium can hold 51,000 people Legislators in Brazil have removed the threat of having the southern city of Porto Alegre excluded from the football World Cup in June and July.
Private companies will be given tax breaks to build media facilities and other temporary structures next to the Beira-Rio stadium.
The legislation was passed by the Rio Grande do Sul state assembly.
Porto Alegre Mayor Jose Fortunati had said that the city would have to drop out unless the measure was approved.
On Sunday, Mr Fortunati told a local station that "there was no plan B" to find much-needed extra funding.
Brazilian law bans the use of public money to finance structures that will not leave a legacy for the event's host cities.
On Tuesday night, state legislators passed the new legislation by 31 votes to 19. The tax exemptions are worth up to 25m reais (£6.5m; $10.8m).
'Huge mistake'Left-wing state governor Tarso Genro has said that from a social perspective, Brazil's decision to host the event had been "a huge mistake".
"If I wasn't governor, I would also be protesting against the mistakes in the organisation of the World Cup," said Mr Genro.
Private companies have less than three months to finish building the temporary structures outside the stadium The Beira-Rio stadium was reopened a month ago, but it still needs temporary structures to house the media, sponsors and other requirements from the world football governing body, Fifa.
The stadium owners - top division football club Internacional - had refused to pay for the temporary structures.
They argued that the club had spent enough money in extensive refurbishment work in the stadium and a nearby sports hall that will be used during the World Cup.
Five matches are scheduled for the stadium. France, the Netherlands and Argentina are among the main teams playing there.
Less than three months before the World Cup begins, three of the venues are still under construction.
Fifa's main concern is the Arena Corinthians - or Itaquerao - in Sao Paulo, where Brazil and Croatia are due to play the event's inaugural match on 12 June. It is expected to be ready on 15 April.
The other two unfinished stadiums are the Arena da Baixada, in Curitiba, and the Arena Pantanal, in Cuiaba.
Executions have been declining worldwide in recent years - but not in 2013 A sharp rise in the number of people put to death in Iraq and Iran caused a global spike in executions in 2013, Amnesty International says.
The human rights group annual review of the death penalty found a jump of almost 15% compared with 2012.
China is thought to execute the most people, although the exact number of executions there is kept secret.
Elsewhere, at least 778 executions are known to have been carried out in 2013, compared with 682 in 2012.
At least 369 people were killed in Iran while Iraq saw a stark rise in its executions, with 169 being killed.
"The virtual killing sprees we saw in countries like Iran and Iraq were shameful," said Salil Shetty, Amnesty International's secretary general.
"Only a small number of countries carried out the vast majority of these senseless state-sponsored killings. They can't undo the overall progress already made towards abolition."
Executions were carried out in 22 countries in 2013 with Indonesia, Kuwait, Nigeria and Vietnam all resuming use of the death penalty.
'A thing of the past'There has, however, been a steady decline in the number of countries performing executions over the past 20 years and Amnesty said there was progress in all regions last year.
Many countries who executed in 2012 did not implement any death sentences last year, including Gambia, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan.
Belarus also refrained from executions, meaning Europe and Central Asia were execution-free for the first time since 2009.
"The long-term trend is clear - the death penalty is becoming a thing of the past," Mr Shetty said.
Amnesty, a UK-based group, said methods of executions in 2013 included beheading, electrocution, firing squad, hanging and lethal injection.
Public executions took place in Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Somalia.
People faced the death penalty for a range of non-lethal crimes including robbery, drug-related and economic offences, as well as acts such as "adultery" or "blasphemy".
Rangers have reported losses of £3.5m in the six months to 31 December and been warned by their accountants that a possible fans boycott could jeopardise their ability to keep trading.
Supporters, though, still intend to seek security over Ibrox and Murray Park in return for releasing season ticket funds.
Auditor Deloitte has issued its warning in light of that threat.
Interim accounts show cash reserves of £3.5m, down from £21.2m.
Rangers described the latest results as "encouraging" and insisting that they "show growth".
The £3.5m loss was down from £7.2m for the seven-month period to the end of the previous year.
It was helped by a new retail deal with Sports Direct, but staff costs remain high, at £7.5m.
The financial results arrive following criticism of the board by fans groups and former Rangers director Dave King.
King has suggested supporters put their money into a season ticket trust fund until the board provides answers over the club's future.
Rangers chairman David Somers said the proposed withholding of season ticket money had caused "material uncertainty". Supporters, though, will press ahead with their plans to set up a trust fund for the season ticket renewal money.
"We are certain that not a single one of the 6,500 fans, and counting, who have so far shown interest in the idea of a season ticket trust have any wish to withhold any money from the club," said a statement from the Union of Fans, a coalition of supporters groups.
"However, it would be foolhardy for fans to once again commit their money without any kind of transparency or security.
"The fans have shown outstanding loyalty and commitment in the past two years, both via the IPO and two sets of unprecedented season ticket sales, but we have seen that loyalty thrown back in our faces as money has been squandered.
"Mr Somers acknowledges how vital season ticket cash is and the need for the board to build trust with the fans.
"What better way to do that than to give security over vital club assets - Ibrox and Auchenhowie - to the fans in return for that much needed income?
"The board have publicly stated that they have no plans to use these assets for any other security, or a sale and leaseback, and so there is no impediment to them agreeing to the terms of release.
"For the avoidance of doubt, there is no plan to drip feed season ticket money on a game-by-game basis.
"The proposal is simply that season ticket money is paid in a lump sum, prior to the start of the season, in return for security over club assets."
There is no indication in the interim results, though, as to why the board sought a £1.5m loan from two shareholders in February, with the money required for working capital.
At the annual meeting in December, the chief executive Graham Wallace claimed that there was "sufficient cash in the business to fund the ongoing needs of the club in the near term".
Rangers' interim accounts show that, in December, about £1.7m of their £3.5m cash reserves related to money that is "not immediately available as working capital".
"We note interim results which show a drop in revenue excluding the Sports Direct deal, a failure to address operating costs during the period to December 2013 and doubts over the cash position of the club going forward," said the Union of Fans.
"The most important issue, and one which highlights the obvious need for substantial investment, surrounds the cash position of the club both at this present moment and at the AGM last December.
"The CEO, Graham Wallace, stated at the AGM that there was 'sufficient cash in the business to fund the ongoing needs of the club in the near term'.
"It appears from both these interim results and the recent loan of £1.5m from shareholders that this statement at the AGM may have been somewhat misleading.
"It is unclear exactly how it could have been stated by the board at that time, with any confidence, that there was sufficient cash even for the short term and we would like Mr Wallace and Mr Somers to explain this as a matter of urgency."
However, the club are planning on the basis that they will receive season ticket funds at the usual time of this year, planning for more ticket sales and at a higher price.
Somers and chief executive Graham Wallace both believe that the financial situation can be improved.
Wallace said: "I am encouraged with the improved trading performance for the period under review, which shows growth over the prior year.
"However, we continue to deal with the impact of the previous short-term focus on managing the business - in particular, the management of cash and resulting cash outflows since the IPO.
"We have recently addressed the short-term working capital requirements of the club and will continue to address the longer-term financing needs as part of the wider review of the business."
Wallace said there were still "many legacy issues" and "many challenges ahead".
"However, I am pleased to report that we are making good progress in repositioning the club and business to be capable once again of challenging at the top levels of domestic and European competition," he added.
"With the continued support from Rangers shareholders and supporters, together with a strong sustainable business plan, we are putting in place the foundations for a period of long-term success and financial stability."
The collapse of John Downey's trial last month sparked the On the Runs crisis The scheme that led to more than 190 letters being issued to Irish republican On the Runs "was devoid of morality", MPs have been told.
The DUP's Nigel Dodds told a Commons debate the scheme was a "dirty deal, done behind the backs of everyone".
MPs are debating the background to, and implications of, the judgment in the case of John Downey.
He was accused of the 1982 IRA murder of four soldiers in the Hyde Park bombing.
Last month, a judge at the Old Bailey in London halted the trial because Mr Downey had a letter from the Northern Ireland Office assuring him that he was not wanted by the police.
This was despite the fact that police in Northern Ireland knew he was still being sought by Scotland Yard.
Mr Dodds said that as the scheme related to Mr Downey, it had amounted to an amnesty.
He said "the anger in the community, not just unionists, is real".
The North Belfast MP also said the idea that his party and other unionists knew about the scheme "doesn't wash" and said that had it not been for the Downey, case politicians would still be "in the dark" about it.
He said the scheme had been "characterised by years of deceit" and had not been subject to "public scrutiny or debate".
The chair of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, Laurence Robertson, said he found it extraordinary that the judgment in the Downey case seemed to treat the possession of a letter from the government as having greater importance than a multiple murder charge.
Mr Robertson described the wording of the letter to Mr Downey as ambiguous and "weak and flimsy".
DUP Upper Bann MP David Simpson suggested to Mr Robertson that it was possible the possession of a letter may not have been sufficient without political influence.
Attorney General Dominic Grieve said any decisions taken by the Crown Prosecution Service could not be taken on a political basis.
He described the Downey judgment as straightforward and said it was not possible to appeal against it because there was no prospect of success.
Naomi Long said to suggest the scheme "flowed naturally from the Good Friday Agreement was absolutely false".
She said the people of Northern Ireland had been given no opportunity to vote on the issue.
Gerald Howarth questioned why Bloody Sunday soldiers should have confidence in the Police Service of Northern Ireland
The East Belfast MP added that in the Downey case, the intent behind the letter he received, rather that the content of it, seemed to be more important in terms of the collapse of the case.
She said "secret dealing would end up being the undoing of the peace process, not its underpinning".
Lady Sylvia Hermon referred to the scheme as "these tawdry, scheming, dirty little letters".
Aldershot MP Gerald Howarth, who represents soldiers who were on duty during the Bloody Sunday killings in Londonderry in 1972, questioned why they should have confidence in the PSNI given what he described as its "screw up" of the case against Mr Downey.
That prompted a retort from the DUP's Sammy Wilson who blamed government ministers and politicians not the police.
Shaun Woodward, who had been secretary state for a short time when the letter to John Downey was issued, said he was aware of the administrative scheme, but said he viewed it as a statement of facts as to whether people were wanted by UK police forces.
He said the Downey case made him concerned that the letters could be viewed as more than a statement of facts.
Current Secretary of State Theresa Villiers reiterated several times during the debate that the letters were statements of fact and were not amnesties or "get out of jail free cards".
'Rigorous and impartial'Meanwhile, a judge investigating the scheme has said her review would be "rigorous".
The independent review led by Lady Justice Heather Hallett was ordered by Prime Minister David Cameron.
Lady Hallett said the review would be "independent and impartial".
She said her review would:
"I intend to conduct a full and rigorous examination of the administrative scheme from its inception to date," Lady Hallett added.
"I have been promised full co-operation and access to all relevant material by the relevant government departments and agencies.
"No individual or organisation is on trial. However, I am seeking to establish the facts and, where necessary, accountability in relation to what happened, ie, how the scheme evolved and who was or is responsible for its operation.
"As well as the independent analysis of the databases, I intend to sample a number of case files during my examination of police and prosecution records, to ascertain whether or not any other recipients of the letters have been told they are not of interest to the police when in fact they are."
On the Runs are escaped prisoners or those who feared arrest for paramilitary crimes connected to the Northern Ireland Troubles committed in the UK before the Good Friday Agreement.
The police in Northern Ireland are also reviewing the process that led to the issuing of the letters.
The letters told the individuals concerned that they were not wanted for questioning or prosecution for any paramilitary offences committed in the UK before the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement.
A team of 16 detectives has been assigned to the review. They will investigate the circumstances of each of those who received a letter.
Ugandan police divers helped in the search for survivors, and bodies More than 250 people died in last Saturday's boat capsize on Lake Albert between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, a minister has said.
This is a sharp increase on the initial death toll, partly a result of the vessel carrying many more passengers than the official capacity of 80.
The boat was taking Congolese refugees in Uganda back to their home country.
Boat accidents are common in both countries because of poor safety standards and overloading.
Congolese authorities have declared three days of national mourning for the victims of last Saturday's disaster - among whom were many children.
On Tuesday they made up more than half of the then death toll of 107. About 300 people are now thought to have been aboard.
"It is with deep sorrow that we confirm to the nation the death of 251 of our compatriots who had boarded the boat from the Ugandan side of Lake Albert," said Congolese government spokesman Lambert Mende Omalanga, adding that "we have managed to have something like 50 people who have escaped."
Congolese authorities are helping to support survivors, while arranging funerals for the dead, he said.
Saturday's disaster happened just days after DR Congo launched a campaign to enforce the wearing of life jackets on all boats on its many waterways.
It is common for boats in both countries to have too few, if any, life jackets on board.
'Deeply shocked'On Monday, the UN high commissioner for refugees Antonio Guterres said he was deeply shocked by the disaster.
"My thoughts are with those who have lost dear ones, and the survivors," he said in a statement.
"I am grateful to the government and other actors who have mounted a rescue-and-recovery operation and are assisting the survivors.''
The boat was one of two which left on Saturday from Uganda's Hoima district on the eastern side of the lake, which lies on the border with DR Congo.
The boats were carrying refugees who had been living at a camp in Uganda, and had decided to return to eastern DR Congo of their own accord, the UNHCR said.
Nida Naseer has been missing since 28 December The family of missing Newport teenager Nida Naseer have been told that police have found a body.
Nida, 19, went missing two-and-a-half months ago after putting the bins out at her home.
Gwent Police said they were called to Newport Wetlands at West Nash Road on Thursday morning where a body had been discovered.
The body has yet to be identified and the death is being treated as unexplained.
Police said a post-mortem examination was to take place.
The teenager disappeared from her home in Pill at about 20:00 GMT on 28 December.
She was not wearing shoes and did not have her phone, money or coat with her.
Gwent Police said they were called to Newport Wetlands at West Nash Road on Thursday morning
West Nash Road, where a body has been found, is about four miles (6.5km) by road from Linton Street, where Nida was last seen.
Natural Resources Wales, which manages the wetland, said the body appeared to have washed up on to an area of salt marsh.
It said no land had been cordoned off as that area is not accessible to the public.
Police investigating Nida's disappearance have received more than 50 calls reporting possible sightings across the UK but none had amounted to anything.
Officers said they had investigated hundreds of lines of inquiry and taken more than 100 statements.
Four Urdu and Punjabi language specialists from Greater Manchester, Thames Valley and Metropolitan police forces have also helped with the investigation.
Nida's family have made several public appeals for her to return home.
They say she was depressed before she went missing and believe she disappeared because the family's asylum-seeker status prevented her from attending university.
They had sought asylum after coming to the UK from Pakistan five years ago but their application was turned down a year ago. They have appealed.
Have you been affected by the landslide? Email your experiences to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with the subject heading 'US mudslide' or fill in the form below.