Losing Walcott is a blow - Hodgson

7 January 2014 Last updated at 18:14

Theo Walcott loss is England World Cup blow - Roy Hodgson

England coach Roy Hodgson says losing Arsenal winger Theo Walcott for the World Cup is a blow.

Walcott, 24, is to have surgery after suffering a cruciate knee ligament damage against Tottenham on Saturday, with the Gunners stating he will be out for "at least six months".

"It is such a shame that we have lost a player of his calibre for the World Cup," Hodgson told the FA's website. 

"It is a blow for him personally, and for both Arsenal and England."

Walcott picked up the injury late in the Gunners' 2-0 FA Cup win over their north London rivals when he appeared to catch his studs in the turf as he raced back to make a defensive tackle.

He was carried off on a stretcher, but seemed in high spirits when making a gesture of the scoreline to the Spurs fans inside the Emirates Stadium.

Hodgson, 66, added: "Having worked with him for two years as England manager I know the character he has, and I know he will come back even stronger from this setback."

However, a leading expert in sports rehabilitation has told BBC Radio 5 live that Arsenal have been premature in dismissing the player's chances of playing at Brazil 2014.

"They've put an unnecessary timeframe on it now," said Michael Davison, who runs a Fifa medical centre of excellence in London.

"You have opportunity to undertake surgery, and then think about the motivation of the player and look at early weeks of rehab before actually making decision whether he can or cannot go."

Former Premier League player Danny Higginbotham, who had the same injury while playing for Stoke, said the England international could be risking his career if he came back too early.

"Forget the World Cup," the 35-year-old Altrincham player told BBC Sport.

"He's a young lad with at about 10 more years of playing time - why risk something like that?"

The current Gibraltar international added: "Theo should concentrate on getting his rehab right and make sure he's in a good position for pre-season so that he can be ready for next campaign.

"He should put the World Cup to the back of his mind and everybody involved should tell him the same. To me it's unrealistic."

Higginbotham suffered his anterior cruciate ligament injury in April 2011 while playing for the Potters against Chelsea although he was keen to play in the club's FA Cup semi-final against Bolton two weeks later.

He added: "I asked the doctor whether he could give me an injection so I could play. He looked at me and responded, 'what did you say?'

"I did get back into things after five months, but I didn't feel the same when I returned. However, you have to take into consideration that I was 32. Theo has time on his side."

Higginbotham said the rehabilitation process, after the impending operation in London, will be mentally taxing for Walcott, who was a non-playing squad member for the 2006 World Cup and then omitted from the squad for the 2010 finals.

"The issue is the fight with yourself in rehab," he continued.

"You become really good friends with the physio, but also end up falling out with the physio.

"They become a punchbag for you. It's a mentally draining time. You do the same monotonous things day in, day out."

Also related to this story

• Walcott in World Cup 'nightmare' 06 Jan 2014 Arsenal
• Injured Walcott out of World Cup 06 Jan 2014 Arsenal
• Walcott blow hurts Hodgson and Wenger 06 Jan 2014 Arsenal
• Euro 2012 day eight analysis: How Walcott saved England 16 Jun 2012 Euro 2012
• Walcott left out of England squad 01 Jun 2010 World Cup 2010
• Walcott & Lennon in England squad 08 May 2006 England
• How England's schedule helps players and fans 09 Dec 2013 Football
• Get Inspired: FOOTBALL 19 Jul 2013 Get Inspired

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CAR aid worker: We fear attack

7 January 2014 Last updated at 18:00 GMT

Central African Republic crisis: Aid worker fears attack

Half the population of the capital has fled their homes

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An aid worker at a Catholic mission in the Central African Republic, where some 3,000 people have sought shelter, says he fears a massive attack.

Vojtech Bily told the BBC that the town of Bozoum, north of the capital Bangui, was surrounded by Christian militia, who he feared could massacre Muslim residents.

He said the mission only had enough food supplies to last for three days.

The conflict has pitted Christian and Muslim militias against each other.

"The situation here in Bozoum is critical," Mr Bily told BBC Focus on Africa. "We are here alone since French soldiers left on 21 December."

Attacks have made it difficult to deliver aid

The UN has called for an increase of French and African Union troops

France has deployed 1,600 troops to try to end the conflict but fighting has continued.

The African Union also has some 4,000 peacekeepers in the country.

UN Under Secretary General for political affairs Jeffrey Feltman on Monday warned that the country was on the brink of a catastrophe.

About half the people of Bangui have been driven from their homes, a total of about 513,000, he said.

'Really scared'

He said that international aid workers had been unable to get supplies into the town as attacks by Christian militia, known as anti-Balaka, had intensified.

He said he feared most of the Muslim population might be killed in a large-scale attack on the town.

"The situation is very confusing," he added. "The Muslims are really scared. We are afraid anti-Balaka will organise one huge, massive attack on Bozoum."

Muslim rebel leader Michel Djotodia seized power last March, forcing then-President Francois Bozize, who came from the majority Christian population, to flee into exile.

The UN says 2.2 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance.

The UN's refugee agency has warned the delivery of aid relief was being severely limited by attacks on civilians, looting and the presence of armed militia at refugee camps.

Earlier this week, the UN warned the violence had sunk "to a vicious new low" as children were mutilated and beheaded in revenge attacks.

Flood warnings after coastal damage

7 January 2014 Last updated at 17:38 GMT

UK storms: More flood warnings after damaging tides and rain

Arwyn Jones reports from the promenade in Aberystwyth, which has been battered by high tides

Large swathes of the UK are still being warned of the risk of floods, as the Met Office forecasts heavy rainfall for south and south-east England.

There are currently more than 100 flood warnings in England, Scotland and Wales, where flooding is expected and immediate action is required.

The warnings include areas along the River Thames, such as Oxford, which has seen flooding.

A night of rain and exceptionally high tides overwhelmed defences in Dorset.

Chiswell's flood sirens sounded for the first time since they were installed 30 years ago, with one English Channel coastguard saying she had never seen such a prolonged storm.

Karen Bosman, watch officer at Solent coastguard, also told the BBC there were forecasts for more high winds of up to 50mph on Tuesday that would whip up the sea.

'People are worried'

With several flood warnings in place along the River Thames, the rising water levels in Oxford led to Abingdon Road being closed.

BBC Weather's Susan Powell: ''We are up against strong winds and heavy rain''

Some residents described it as "a river", while Claire Hogan from the Duke of Monmouth pub said water had begun to "lap the doorsteps" of nearby homes.

Local vicar Jane Sherwood from St Luke's Church on nearby Canning Crescent said "people are very worried, there's water in every direction you turn".

Flooding has also started to affect parts of Surrey, including Guildford, Horley, Staines, Sunbury, Thames Ditton and Weybridge.

The Environment Agency said properties in several parts of Berkshire had been flooded, including Purley on Thames, Shiplake, Old Windsor, Wraysbury, Bourne End, Datchet and along the lower Rover Lodden.

The Thames Barrier in London has been closed for the 11th successive tide and is due to reopen at 18:45 GMT. The Environment Agency said it has closed operationally only 135 times since being built in the 1980s.

The Environment Agency has issued 109 flood warnings for England and Wales, with the South East and South West the areas most likely to be flooded.

In Scotland, 14 flood warnings have been issued by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, though none is rated severe.

The Environment Agency said communities in parts of the south of England are urged to prepare for more flooding for the rest of the week.

There is a risk of flooding from groundwater in Dorset and south Wiltshire, it said, and river flooding is expected along the River Stour, the Hampshire Avon and the Thames, including Oxford and the lower reaches of the Thames.

It also said the problem is ongoing in the Somerset Levels and damage to property is possible in the next 24 hours.

The agency's flood risk manager, Paul Mustow, said: "The risk... continues this week, with communities in the South West and South East urged to stay safe and sign up to free flood warnings."

Weather warnings were issued for much of the UK on Monday, but these have all been lifted with the exception of the rain warning for southern and south-eastern England.

This is a yellow warning - the lowest of the Met Office's three levels - for "heavy showers, some of them combined with hail and thunder".

The warning, due to run until 06:00 GMT on Wednesday, says the public should be "aware of the risk of further localised flooding, especially in areas which have been affected in recent days".

Waves battered parts of the south coast and Wales on Monday evening.

A clean-up operation is under way in Aberystwyth after waves battered the coastal town on Monday night.

As well as the parts of Dorset that were subject to severe flood warnings, there were also some villages in Somerset cut off and some properties flooded in Cornwall and Salisbury in Wiltshire.

Powerful waves also reduced the Pom Pom rock stack in Portland, Dorset, and a rock arch in Porthcothan Bay, Cornwall, to rubble.

The seafront at Aberystwyth was damaged by waves on Monday

A clean-up operation has started in Aberystwyth

There has been flooding in Oxford in areas close to the Rives Thames

Roads in many areas, including some in Somerset, have flooded

There has also been flooding in Thames Ditton, Surrey

There has been travel disruption, with many roads closed due to flooding.

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Travel news: Choose an area

More rain later could cause further problems.

There has been some rail disruption caused by the bad weather, although the Rail Delivery Group, which speaks on behalf of the rail industry, said on Monday that 96% of scheduled services were operating despite localised flooding and weather damage.

The recent flooding has prompted the UK government to co-ordinate with international partners to gather information on the damage caused from their satellites.

Have you been affected by the floods? Please get in touch using the form below. When sending us pictures at no time should you endanger yourself or others.

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Iraq in 'deadly strike' on militants

7 January 2014 Last updated at 17:23 GMT

Iraq violence: Airstrike 'kills 25 militants'

Burnt out tanks could be seen one of the roads to Ramadi on Tuesday

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Iraqi troops have killed 25 al-Qaeda-linked fighters in Ramadi in an airstrike, the government says as it battles militants in Anbar province.

However an assault on Fallujah has been delayed because of fears over civilian casualties, the defence ministry says.

The government lost control of Fallujah to al-Qaeda militants and allied Sunni Arab tribesmen at the weekend.

Fighting in Anbar in recent days has led to some of the heaviest clashes in Iraq for years.

Mohammad al-Askari, spokesman for the Iraqi defence ministry, told local media that the Iraqi air force had targeted vehicles in Ramadi carrying heavy weapons with a missile strike, killing 25 "armed men".

Ramadi is reported to be under the control of powerful Sunni tribes working with local police to counter the al-Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - known as ISIS.

Despite long-standing grievances against the central Shia-led government, the Ramadi tribes have renewed a pact with senior Iraqi army leaders to dislodge any presence of al-Qaeda.

However, much of Fallujah is reported to be controlled by ISIS, and Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has urged residents to drive them out.

On Monday, Mr Maliki said that if people in Fallujah expelled "terrorists", they would be spared military action.

It would ensure "their areas are not subjected to the danger of armed clashes", state television quoted him as saying.

Hundreds of Fallujah residents have already fled shelling and air strikes by government forces.

At the same time, the militants have called on Sunni tribes in the area to support them and have urged families who have fled the city to return to their homes.

Sunni anger

The latest upsurge in violence began last month after troops broke up a protest camp by Sunni Arabs in Ramadi.

Many Sunnis in Iraq claim they are being marginalised by Mr Maliki's Shia-led government.

BBC Middle East correspondent Jim Muir says Islamist militants have been able to benefit from those deep-seated grievances.

Mr Maliki's drive to restore control is being seen by many Sunnis as an attempt at domination and oppression, and it is taking Iraq back to the brink of a sectarian civil war, he adds.

Many from Fallujah have fled to other parts of Iraq

After the 2003 US-led invasion, al-Qaeda based itself in Fallujah where several beheadings and killings of foreigners took place.

Also on Monday, the US said it was speeding up the supply of military equipment to Iraq to help the government fight and other militant groups.

The White House said additional surveillance drones would be delivered within weeks and more Hellfire missiles sent in the next few months.

Correspondents say that despite withdrawing from Iraq at the end of 2011, the US remains a key security partner, providing more than $14bn (£8bn) worth of weapons to Baghdad since 2005.

Syria rebel groups 'execute rivals'

7 January 2014 Last updated at 17:01 GMT

Syria crisis: Rebel groups 'execute rivals'

Rebel fighters in Jabal al-Zawiya, where the Observatory says 34 foreign jihadists have been killed

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Thirty-four foreign jihadists have been singled out by rival Syrian rebels and killed, say UK-based activists.

It happened over the past three days in Jabal al-Zawiya, north-western Idlib province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Meanwhile, activists in Aleppo city told the BBC militants from one of the same jihadi groups, ISIS, had summarily executed at least 50 captives.

A regional battle is pitting ISIS against an alliance of rival rebels.

A coalition of moderates and other Islamists fighting to depose President Bashar al-Assad is ranged against ISIS in several parts of northern Syria.

The al-Qaeda-linked ISIS - Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant - is accused by other rebel groups of undermining the struggle against the regime of President Assad, focusing on accumulating territory and imposing a rule of terror in the areas it controls.

The fighting is continuing in Raqqa, a city under full rebel control and previously an ISIS stronghold.

Separately, the Observatory says the death toll from a government air campaign launched in Aleppo province in mid-December now exceeds 600, including 225 children and women.

On its Facebook page, it pledged to "work tirelessly" for the prosecution of those responsible for the massacres in the International Criminal Court.

Power struggle

Most of the 34 reported dead in Jabal al-Zawiya were ISIS fighters, with the remainder from a smaller allied group called Jund al-Aqsa, the Observatory said.

The execution of the "non-Syrian" fighters had been confirmed by medical and local sources, it said.

Those executed by ISIS in Aleppo were said to include medics, local journalists and members of rival rebel groups.

None of the reported killings can be independently confirmed.

The reported killing of prisoners held by ISIS could undermine initiatives by radical clerics to reconcile the warring Islamist factions in northern Syria, says BBC Arabic correspondent Ahmed Maher.

Since last Thursday, large-scale attacks by an alliance of moderate Islamist factions and rebel groups have been taking place across northern and north-eastern Syria on ISIS strongholds and strategic positions, inflicting heavy losses on ISIS. Scores are said to have died, including civilians.

The alliance says that the offensive is driven by public anger in ISIS-controlled territories over practices including strict interpretation of Islamic laws as well as the kidnapping of journalists and horrific torture of prisoners, our correspondent explains.

Experts in Islamist movements, however, place the conflict in the context of a power struggle between all Islamist factions.

'No danger' over airport alert bag

7 January 2014 Last updated at 17:23 GMT

'No danger' over Edinburgh Airport alert baggage

Passengers and staff were asked to leave the terminal building

Managers at Edinburgh Airport have said the site has been declared safe after an alert over a passenger's baggage.

The terminal building had been evacuated due to concerns about an item found at the airport's security area.

Police Scotland said the terminal and access road were closed following the discovery of "a potentially suspicious bag".

Passengers and staff were asked to leave the terminal building while an investigation took place.

Bomb disposal experts were called to the airport and a cordon was put in place. The airport was closed to all flights.

A BBC reporter was told that a male passenger was stopped by security staff.

A source said the investigation was at an early stage but this did "not look like another Glasgow Airport", referring to a terrorist attack in 2007.

Security cordon

It is understood the authorities are working on the theory that the passenger being questioned about a suspicious package may have an innocent explanation.

Some passengers were bussed to the Royal Highland Showground at Ingliston.

Earlier, Carlos Martinez, who was stuck on a plane that arrived from Alicante, told the BBC: "At first we weren't even allowed to approach the terminal, but now the plane is parked in some way, but no-one is allowed to get off.

The airport was closed to all arriving flights

"We have been told the airport is closed and no-one is allowed in or out. We haven't been told why. The crew has told us they know nothing officially."

A Scottish government spokeswoman said the first minister, deputy first minister and justice secretary were aware of the incident and the government's resilience operation had been activated.

She said: "Police Scotland are in operational charge of the situation and continue to update ministers on a regular basis."

EasyJet, which has had flights from Munich and Berlin diverted to Glasgow Airport, told customers the situation could take up to three hours to be resolved.

The airline tweeted: "The local authorities at Edinburgh airport have assessed the situation and estimated a minimum of 2-3 hours until the issue will be resolved.

"We advise all passengers to regularly check our flight tracker for any updates and the status of your flight."

At Glasgow Airport, seven flights were diverted from Edinburgh.

Are you affected by the airport evacuation? Are you intending to fly to or from Edinburgh Airport today? Send us your experiences using the form below.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

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VIDEO: US snow: 'Indianapolis a ghost town'

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US freezing weather: 'Indianapolis a ghost town'

7 January 2014 Last updated at 17:03 GMT

A brutal blast of arctic air has settled over eastern North America, bringing dangerously low temperatures not seen in decades.

About half of the US population has been placed under a wind chill warning or cold weather advisory.

ABC New reporter Ryan Owens said that Indianapolis was "a ghost town" and that on Monday the governor made driving in the state of Indiana illegal.

7 January 2014 Last updated at 14:52 GMT

Article written by Matt McGrath Environment correspondent

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Floods not the only worry for Defra

 

Storm surges and high tides have caused flooding problems across the UK

Given the furious storms and relentless flooding that Britain has endured over the past two months, it is little wonder that reports about MPs criticisms of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) should focus on budget cuts and their impact on flood defences.

But the Departmental Annual Report 2012-13 covers much more than just soggy ground and surging tides, and it deserves some attention.

Secretary of State Owen Paterson has been in charge of Defra since September 2012 and with the ash dieback crisis, the horse meat saga, the badger cull and extreme weather, he has rarely been out of the headlines.

All these events have made running a department with a diminishing budget much more difficult.

But the MPs are worried that perhaps the limited money in hand is not being spent in the wisest manner.

They are worried that staff morale in Mr Paterson's department is well below the average for the civil service. They point to the fact that 25% of senior staff received performance related bonuses of between £10,000 and £12,000 last year.

"We are surprised, however, by the discrepancy between the amount of bonus paid to senior staff and that paid to more junior staff," the MPs write.

Many observers might be surprised that bonuses were being paid at all, given the cuts of £500m the department has been asked to make since 2010.

The MPs also look closely at a number of critical policy issues, including the controversial badger cull to curb bovine TB.

Cull questions continue

They are troubled by the fact that both trials carried out last year failed to reach the 70% reduction in badger numbers that was said to be needed to reduce incidence of TB.

Villages like Muchelney in Somerset, have been cut off for days

"We invite the Government to set out why the first year of the pilots failed to achieve the target figure in the allocated time," says the report.

They are also concerned about the accuracy of badger population estimates, which were twice substantially reduced.

"Repeated revision of those estimates undermines confidence in the process," the MPs write.

"The Government must demonstrate whether there is any evidence of badgers moving from the cull zones into neighbouring areas and thereby risking the spread of bovine TB."

The MPs are also cool on the idea of biodiversity offsetting, the controversial idea that damage to habitats caused by development can be mitigated by creating replacement habitats in other places.

They urge Mr Paterson to proceed cautiously.

"The Government has initiated six pilot offsetting projects and it is difficult to understand why it does not wish to assess these properly before embarking on a wider rollout."

But one area where they want the Secretary to speed up is plastic bags. The MPs are "disappointed" that a charge for single-use plastic carrier bags will not come into effect in England until 2015.

Introducing this more rapidly would be a "quick win" in the words of the committee.

Given the choppy waters in which he is presently sailing, perhaps Mr Paterson could do with one?

China's tech hope to fix smog crisis

7 January 2014 Last updated at 01:10 GMT

Article written by David Shukman Science editor

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Desolation of smog: Tackling China's air quality crisis

 

All downhill from here? China wants to arrest the decline in air quality in urban centres

Officials in China say they are confident green technology will help overcome the country's notoriously polluted air.

Apocalyptic scenes of dense smog have recently forced major cities including Shanghai and Harbin to virtually shut down.

The capital Beijing is among urban areas where pollution routinely exceeds safety limits set by the World Health Organization (WHO).

In a rare interview, a senior environmental official told the BBC he was "optimistic" that the problems would be overcome.

How China is trying to battle the smog

The Chinese government has launched an effort worth 1.7 trillion yuan (£180bn) to clean up power stations and traffic fumes.

The head of air quality at Beijing's Environmental Protection Bureau, Wang Bin, pointed to the success other major world cities have had in tackling smog.

"You can see in those big cities like in London in Britain, Los Angeles in America and Tokyo in Japan, they all had huge air problems in the past - for example, London was nicknamed Smog City - which was caused by fast industrialisation.

Pollution monitoring equipment is an outward sign that China is taking air quality seriously

"But their situation has improved a lot and their air is really better now. Beijing's pollution is not that severe.

"We have already moved fast to cope with this issue. So we are very confident about reaching a good level of air quality and changing our capital into a green Beijing in future."

Specific measures include closing down any power stations within the city that burn coal - or switching them to burning cleaner gas instead.

A new lottery system with very few winners is restricting the rise in the number of new cars and drivers. Beijing already has five million cars on its roads, and greener cars will get priority.

Beyond that, a major push for renewable energy including hydroelectric, wind and solar is designed, in part, to help replace power generation by coal, the cheapest but most polluting fuel.

But many people will remain to be convinced that these actions are drastic enough - or that any official optimism is justified.

One mother, Jia Yi, told me of her fears for the health of her twin seven-year-old daughters.

She insists that Ji Xiang and Ru Yi wear face masks on days when the pollution levels are high.

"There are so many people and cars in Beijing and that will influence my children's health - I do believe Beijing is not a place to live.

"So if it won't affect my children's education, we'd rather go to the southern part of China which has better air and environment."

Twins Ji Xiang and Ru Yi wear face masks on days when pollution levels are high

Prof Pan Xiao-chuan of Peking University's School of Public Health has led studies into air pollution.

"My personal feeling is that in the last two years the smog frequency in Beijing has been rising - we have figures to prove that - and also the density of the smog is increasing.

"This means the figures of PM 2.5 and PM 10 are really high when there's a big smog in Beijing."

PM 2.5 and PM 10 are two types of pollution involving particles too small to see with the naked eye - less than 2.5 or 10 microns in diameter.

Often these consist of fragments of unburned fuel and are small enough to reach the lungs or, in the smallest cases, to cross into the bloodstream as well.

The World Health Organization (WHO) sets a maximum safe limit of exposure over a 24-hour period: 25 of the PM 2.5 particles in every cubic metre of air.

Most Chinese cities routinely experience levels well in excess of 200 and, on one occasion in Beijing, of 800.

Given the risks of respiratory and cardiovascular problems, Prof Pan says the regular publication of pollution data has "a very important public health value".

Until recently, the Chinese authorities did not release data on PM2.5, even though readings on this pollution type were published by the US Embassy in Beijing.

This led to an outcry on social media during a particularly bad smog event in 2011 and forced a change in policy.

Prof Pan said: "This will warn the public when they can go outdoors and when it's better to stay indoors, and how the old and children should protect themselves."

The threat of air pollution has become so serious that one school for expatriate children has taken the drastic step of sealing off part of its playground.

A social media outcry led to changes on the publication of pollution data

A giant inflatable dome at the International School of Beijing now provides an insulated space where the air is filtered and positive pressure ensures any pollution is kept at bay.

Gerrick Monroe, the school's operations director, said the dome was bought after one pollution spell kept children indoors for a 20-day period.

"One of the first questions prospective parents will ask is 'what is the air quality like?'

"This is one of the selling points - we take indoor air quality very seriously here."

For the longer term, the hope is that the government's measures will start to take effect.

But one leading environmental scientist, Prof Zhang Shiqui of Peking University, says it is "a really big challenge for China" trying to balance economic growth and poverty reduction with public health.

Some commentators are less than optimistic about the prospects for a greener environment in the near term

"I think it's highly dependent on whether China can successfully introduce a restructuring strategy and, second, can China can switch to cleaner sources of energy, and can consumers change their behaviours?

"In previous years, if the government wanted to slow down the economy to get a greener environment, the public would not have agreed.

"But after the PM2.5 event in 2011, the public has a high awareness of air pollution and they are eager to improve the environment here.

"But although China has huge GDP growth, per capita it's still very low, so China should maintain proper economic growth to solve the poverty issue."

The reality is that it will take years or even decades to reduce China's pollution problem - but a combination of public awareness and cleaner technology may help accelerate the process.

Turkey clears military over bombing

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:46 GMT

Turkey clears military over Uludere bombing deaths

Relatives of the Uludere bombing victims demonstrated in Ankara last month

Turkish military prosecutors have dropped an investigation into the deaths of 34 Kurdish civilians in an air force bombing raid in 2011.

The move clears five officers who had been accused over the botched raid by F-16 jets near Uludere in south-eastern Turkey. Those involved had "made an unavoidable mistake", prosecutors said.

Kurdish groups condemned the ruling.

In December 2011 Turkey expressed regret over the raid, saying smugglers had been mistaken for Kurdish rebels.

Ferhat Encu, who lost two brothers and nine other relatives in the raid, said "the killer state has been acquitted once again", the Turkish daily Hurriyet reported on its website.

Last November the European Court of Human Rights ruled against Turkey over a similar air strike that took place in 1994. In that incident, 38 Kurdish villagers died in Sirnak province, near the Iraqi border.

Uludere is in the same province, an area where armed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels are particularly active. The rebels have been fighting for an independent state since 1984.

The European court in Strasbourg ordered Turkey to pay 2.3m euros (£2m; $3m) to the plaintiffs, saying the authorities had failed to investigate the raid properly.

The military prosecutors' statement on Tuesday said the December 2011 air strike had been approved by the Turkish General Staff.

"The army personnel made an unavoidable mistake while performing their duties," the prosecutors said.

A lawyer representing the families of victims, Tahir Elci, denounced the ruling. He said the plaintiffs would lodge an appeal with Turkey's Constitutional Court, the AFP news agency reported.

Turkey is currently gripped by political tensions in the ruling AK Party, which also affect scores of military officers convicted over alleged coup plots. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has backed calls for retrials in the high-profile "coup" investigations.

Sky updates porn filter after block

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:27 GMT

Sky updates porn filter after row over blocking

By Jane Wakefield Technology reporter

Critics argue that parents need to do more to protect children from unwanted images

Sky has updated its porn filters following anger that they blocked a legitimate news website.

The filters are intended to allow parents to ensure children cannot view adult content.

But the automatic blocking of all file-sharing sites meant that news site TorrentFreak and other legitimate sites were also blocked.

Following publicity, Sky said that it had decided to tweak its filters to unblock the file-sharing news site.

"The categorisation of torrentfreak.com has now been updated so that the site will no longer be filtered by Sky Broadband Shield," the firm told the BBC.

"If at any time a website owner believes they have been unfairly filtered or miscategorised by Sky Broadband Shield, they can contact Sky and we will look into it as soon as we can," it added.

TorrentFreak editor-in-chief Ernesto van der Dar welcomed the change of heart.

Earlier he told the BBC that he was angry about the block.

"The problem with these filters is that they block many sites that are perfectly suitable for all audiences, simply because they are labelled a file-sharing site," he said.

He said that Sky had originally told him that the site would remain blocked.

A BBC investigation last year found that porn filters from other UK ISPs were blocking access to sex education and rape-victim support websites.

Default censor

Following pressure from the UK government, several of the UK's biggest ISPs have implemented new ways of blocking pornography.

Prime Minister David Cameron had said that the ISPs needed to act to prevent children from "stumbling across hardcore legal pornography".

Sky rolled out its filters in November. New subscribers have to opt out of its Broadband Shield default setting if they want to see adult content.

In December BT announced its version, which is automatically set to be on for new customers

Critics argue that the porn filters used are too sweeping and end up blocking too many legitimate sites.

"We are starting to see sites blocked which should not be," said Sebastien Lahtinen, founder of broadband news site ThinkBroadband.

"When the default position is to filter, a potentially high number of users might not be able to access a filtered site, acting as a form of default censor," he added.

He said that it was relatively easy to side-step filters for anyone determined to do so.

"As soon as I type the filter name into Google it suggests the search term 'bypass'. The second result is a YouTube video of what sounds like a kid explaining how to work around it," he told the BBC.

"The key message needs to be that these are a tool to help parents not a replacement for appropriate education and supervision," he added.

Cocaine cargo sent to German store

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:20 GMT

Cocaine cargo sent to German supermarket 'by mistake'

Police put the confiscated drugs on display along with the banana boxes

Police in Berlin have found 140kg (309lb) of cocaine hidden in banana boxes which were sent to a supermarket in an apparent mistake by traffickers.

Cocaine valued at 6m euros (£5m; $8.2m) was found in fruit sent to five branches of Aldi-Nord in and around the German capital, police said.

The drugs are believed to have arrived by sea in Hamburg from Colombia, from where they were shipped by lorry.

Smugglers probably made a "logistical error", a police spokesman said.

It was Berlin's biggest cocaine haul in years, Olaf Schremm added.

Workers at five branches of Aldi in Berlin and one in Brandenburg uncovered the drugs while unpacking the boxes, the German news magazine Spiegel reports.

Aldi declined to comment, citing the continuing investigation.

Four years ago, workers at Spanish branches of another German budget supermarket chain, Lidl, found nearly 80kg of cocaine hidden in boxes of bananas imported from Ecuador.

Police said Lidl had had nothing to do with the smuggling operation and thanked the chain for its help in finding the drug, The Guardian newspaper reports.

AUDIO: Dire Straits bassist on hearing loss

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Dire Straits bassist: 'I don't like loud music anymore'

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:27 GMT

The bassist of rock band Dire Straits says more must be done to tackle hearing loss resulting from loud music.

John Illsley (pictured, left) suffered hearing damage as a result of his performing career, despite playing at a "fairly moderate" volume.

He says the experience has left him unable to listen to loud music or stay in noisy environments.

Speaking with BBC Radio 5 live's Shelagh Fogarty, Illsley said: "You just get damaged - it's one of those things.... It really needs looking at pretty seriously."

Judge strikes Chicago gun sales ban

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:18 GMT

Chicago gun sales ban ruled unconstitutional by US judge

In May 2012 Lino Diaz became one of the 506 people killed in Chicago that year

A US judge has struck down Chicago's ban on sales and transfers of firearms, finding the city went too far in its effort to prevent legal sales of guns.

Judge Edmond Chang ruled the ban was unconstitutional, but allowed it to stand while the city appealed.

The judge also said in his ruling that there was little evidence the ban was effective in reducing gun violence.

Chicago has been plagued by gang violence, and has some of the strictest gun laws in the US.

City officials say the effectiveness of the ban on gun sales has been diminished by lax gun laws in the state of Illinois and in surrounding states.

'Really careful'

Roderick Drew, a spokesman for Chicago's law department, said Mayor Rahm Emanuel disagreed with the ruling.

Mr Emanuel has told the city's lawyer to consider other options to regulate firearms sales strictly, he added.

"Every year Chicago police recover more illegal guns than officers in any city in the country, a factor of lax federal laws as well as lax laws in Illinois and surrounding states," Mr Drew said told the Associated Press.

"We need stronger gun safety laws, not increased access to firearms within the city."

Gun rights advocates hailed the ruling.

Can a movement that calls for more guns in the US be effective at saving lives?

The judge's decision "shows how out of step and outrageous Chicago's ordinances really are", said Todd Vandermyde of the National Rifle Association, a powerful gun lobby group.

A lawsuit against the ban was originally filed by the Illinois Association of Firearms Retailers and three Chicago residents.

One of those residents, antique gun collector Kenneth Pacholski, said the ban was unreasonable.

"All the people I know who own guns legally are really careful," said Mr Pacholski, whose wife also sued.

"I'm a collector. My guns are not going anywhere unless I know where they're going because I don't want to be responsible for someone's death."

Last year, a US appeals court struck down the state of Illinois's blanket ban on carrying concealed firearms, the last in the US. And in 2010, the US Supreme Court struck down the city's ban on owning firearms.

Chicago has struggled to turn the tide of gun violence for several years, ending 2013 with more than 400 homicides. Shootings are common in the city's South and West Sides and children as young as six-months-old have been caught in the crossfire.

AUDIO: Macfayden hints at Ripper Street return

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Matthew Macfayden hints at Ripper Street return

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:15 GMT

Matthew Macfayden has hinted that axed Victorian crime drama Ripper Street could make a return.

The actor, who played Inspector Edmund Reid in the show, said that a "touching" fan response may have inspired talks to bring it back "by other means."

He told BBC Radio 5 live's Richard Bacon: "There are efforts being made to breathe life back into it... there was over 20,000 signatures to the petition. There's been a big ground swell of support."

The drama was cancelled due to poor ratings but the BBC is now "looking at partnerships that could enable Ripper Street to return but at better value to licence fee payers."

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Ripper Street: BBC axes Victorian crime drama

Weisz and Craig play 'makes $17.5m'

7 January 2014 Last updated at 16:10 GMT

Weisz and Craig play 'makes $17.5m' on Broadway

Weisz and Craig (left and centre) keep their real-life relationship very private

A Broadway revival of Harold Pinter's play Betrayal starring Rachel Weisz and Daniel Craig has taken $17.5m in just 14 weeks, reports have said.

The play, which opened on 1 October, received mixed reviews from critics but audiences flocked to see the married actors live on stage.

Top price tickets for the show, which closed on 5 January, went for between $275 (£167) and $499 (£304).

It was 2013's second biggest Broadway hit, according to Hollywood Reporter.

The biggest was the late Nora Ephron's play, Lucky Guy, starring Tom Hanks, which grossed just under $23m (£14m) - it also had a limited run but played for four weeks longer than Betrayal in a theatre that had 160 more seats.

The Ethel Barrymore theatre, where Betrayal ran, had 1,096 seats.

Directed by multiple Tony award winner Mike Nichols, the play, about a wife who has an affair with her husband's best friend, also starred Rafe Spall.

Secret agent

Over the Christmas holiday period, Betrayal set a new record for the highest-grossing non-musical in a single week in Broadway history, earning $1.44m (£0.8m) for the week ending 29 December.

When the play opened, tickets were reportedly changing hands for thousands of dollars on the black market.

Steven Spielberg and Bruce Springsteen were among those watching on the opening night.

Pinter's 1978 play was inspired by the playwright's extramarital affair with BBC television presenter Joan Bakewell.

Oscar-winning actress Rachel Weisz married James Bond star Craig in 2011.

Craig is the sixth actor to play the coveted secret agent role,

Weisz won best supporting actress at the Academy Awards in 2006, for The Constant Gardener.