South Africa Cops Charged Over Van Man Murder

Eight South African police officers have been charged with murder after a video showed a man being handcuffed to a moving van.

South Africa's police watchdog earlier arrested the men over the death of a Mozambican taxi driver who died in custody after being dragged by the police vehicle.

Police in Pretoria held a press conference to placate a nation outraged by the footage showing Mido Macia being dragged through the streets.

He was later found dead in a police cell with serious head and internal injuries.

National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, General Riah Phiyega, said the eight officers had been suspended and disarmed. They have since been charged with murder.

Taxi driver Mido Macia with his sister Melida

The station commander in Daveytown, a township east of Johannesburg, has also been removed from his post, she said.

"Any one death is one too many," Ms Phiyega said. "We believe in the principle of police being policed."

The Daily Sun, a South African newspaper, posted footage of the dragging incident, which occurred on Tuesday.

It was apparently filmed by several people on mobile phones.

Witnesses said Mr Macia, 27, drew the attention of police when he parked in a way that blocked traffic, and then got into an row with officers.

"We are going to film this," several onlookers shouted in Zulu as the police subdued Mr Macia.

One bystander can be heard shouting: "What has this guy done?"

President Jacob Zuma condemned the killing of Mr Macia.

Some commentators drew comparisons with the 1977 death of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, who also suffered head injuries in police custody.

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Delhi Rape: Seven-Year-Old 'Attacked In School'

Hundreds of protesters have clashed with police after reports that a seven-year-old girl has been raped at a government school in northwest Delhi.

The Times of India newspaper said the attack had occurred in the Mangolpuri area of the capital.

The girl's parents informed police after the injured child was taken to hospital.

Dr Sanjay Kumar, who helped treat the girl, said she had injuries consistent with rape.

Angry mobs gathered at the hospital and threw stones at a nearby bus, shattering its windows.

Protesters say Delhi police have failed to act decisively in rape cases

Protesters hurled stones at police, who had cordoned off the road and used batons to break up the demonstration.

After several hours the crowd dispersed.

"The protesters were angry over the assault on the little girl and were demanding that police act against the culprit," a police official said.

A Delhi police spokesman said police had registered a rape case and were questioning teachers and security guards at the facility, run by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit called the attack "shameful".

"Rape inside a school is a shocking incident. It is shameful that it happened," she said.

A man runs across a street during the protest

India has been gripped in recent months by a national debate over the treatment of women and girls and their safety.

Last month three sisters, aged six, nine and 11 were raped and murdered before their bodies were dropped in a village well.

In December a 23-year-old medical student was gang raped and attacked on a bus in Delhi. She died 13 days later after being flown to a hospital in Singapore.

Six men, including a 17-year-old, have been charged with her murder.

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Obama Signs Order To Start Spending Cuts

President Barack Obama has signed an order authorising $85bn cuts in domestic and defence spending following the failure of efforts to strike a deal with Republicans on cutting the US deficit.

Mr Obama and Republican leaders in the House and Senate declared themselves still deadlocked after a last-minute White House meeting last night.

The two sides are at odds over the president's insistence on increasing tax revenue as part of any plan to tackle the country's $16.6trn debt.

Mr Obama signed the order which officially enacts the across-the-board reductions - known as a "sequester" in government budget language. Under the law, the president had until midnight.

The $85bn cuts apply to the remainder of the 2013 fiscal year, which ends on September 30. But the legislation that requires the spending reduction will continue slashing government spending by about $1trn more over a 10-year period.

Speaking after the White House meeting, Mr Obama said: "Let's be clear, none of this is necessary."

He blamed the deadlock on Republicans who he said refused to close tax loopholes that benefit the wealthy, adding that "the pain will be real" for the American people.

"I am not a dictator. I'm the president," Mr Obama said, warning he could not force his Republican foes to "do the right thing," or make the Secret Service barricade Republicans leaders in a room until a deal is done.

"These cuts will hurt our economy, will cost us jobs and to set it right both sides need to be able to compromise," Mr Obama added.

US Speaker of the House John Boehner walked out of the meeting

Republican John Boehner, speaker of the House of Representatives, walked out of the meeting to say there would be no compromise as long as Mr Obama insisted on higher tax revenue.

Republicans are standing fast against further increasing taxes and will not compromise on achieving debt reduction through spending cuts alone.

The opposition party is still feeling the sting from its most conservative members after agreeing at the end of 2012 to allow the expiration of Bush-era tax cuts for Americans earning $400,000 or more a year.

Friday's meeting was the first the two sides have held this year on the budget battle, and it lasted less than an hour.

The immediate impact of the cuts on the public is uncertain, but they will carve 5% from domestic agencies and 8% from the Pentagon between now and October 1.

Defence officials say they will be forced to reduce the working week of 800,000 civilian employees, scale back flight hours of warplanes and postpone some equipment maintenance.

The deployment of a second aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf has also been cancelled.

The US Navy will gradually stand down several hundred planes starting in April, the Air Force will curtail flying hours and the Army will cut back training for all units except those deploying to Afghanistan.

Several major programmes will be unaffected, including the Social Security pension programme, the Medicaid health care programme for the poor and food stamps.

Pentagon chief Chuck Hagel warned that the budget cuts will endanger the US military's ability to conduct its missions.

"This will have a major impact on training and readiness," he said. "Later this month, we intend to issue preliminary notifications to thousands of civilian employees who will be furloughed."

Mr Hagel also acknowledged that the budget cuts "will cause pain, particularly among our civilian workforce and their families".

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Kenya: Hate Leaflets Trigger Voter Poll Fears

By Sara Mojtehedzadeh, in Kenya.

Hate leaflets threatening violence ahead of Kenya's elections are being distributed in numerous parts of the country, police have confirmed.

In one leaflet obtained by Sky News, a politician in Western Kenya accused a rival tribe of seeking to uproot his community ahead of the March 4 polls.

Referring to the tribe members as "weeds", he promised to push them off their land and return them to their "original home" if elected.

Deputy Police spokesman Charles Owino Wahong'o said in a statement: "The leaflets are causing fear and may cause people to leave the regions where they registered as voters.

"Other leaflets are warning people of possible violence during and after the election."

Kenya was rocked by ethnic conflict during its 2007-2008 elections.

More than 1,100 people were killed and up to 600,000 forced from their homes as a result of the disputed poll, where members of two rival tribes both claimed victory.

Hate speech, often reported by local media, was a major catalyst for the fighting.

Journalist Joshua Arap Sang is now wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity for allegedly inciting violence on his radio station KASS FM.

His trial is due to start in April, along with that of current presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta - who is also indicted on charges of crimes against humanity.

In a report released earlier this month, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights said it had recorded politicians in Kenya's coastal region issuing "inflammatory" statements including threats to "dispossess" rival ethnic groups.

A spokesperson for Kenya's Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission told Sky News that it had deployed observers to monitor political campaigns for hate speech ahead of Monday's presidential poll.

The IEBC was established in the wake of the 2007-2008 conflict to serve as a neutral elections arbiter in an effort to ensure this year's contest runs peacefully.

The commission has received £14m in funding from the British government.

Nonetheless, reports suggest that irregularities may plague next week's election.

In its report, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights claimed to have received information suggesting "widespread incidences of voter bribery during the nominations period and the ongoing campaigns".

Another organisation, the Kenya Commission on Human Rights, said its field monitors had reported a growing number of armed gangs, an increase in voter intimidation and harassment of female political candidates ahead of the election.

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Battling Somali Pirates In The Seychelles

By David Bowden, Defence Correspondent, in the Seychelles

A British-backed international effort is making the Seychelles the frontline in the battle against Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean.

There are believed to be four ships and 108 hostages currently being held by pirates in the region, who have made millions from what is effectively armed robbery and kidnapping at sea.

But the number of attacks has fallen dramatically over the past year, thanks largely to high-intensity multinational naval patrols and the presence of heavily-armed guards on cargo ships.

Now the Regional Anti-Piracy, Prosecution and Intelligence Coordination Centre (RAPPICC) hopes to boost the fight against piracy by bringing together policing skills more commonly associated with organised crime, people trafficking, drug smuggling, gunrunning and money laundering.

A pirate suspect captured by a Dutch warship is loaded into a police van

The RAPPICC is funded largely by Britain and headed by a senior officer from the Serious Organised Crime Agency, and is deemed so important that Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt flew to the Seychelles to officially open it.

He points out that 26,000 ships a year pass through the region and a third of the world's oil is carried across the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden.

He said: "People here reckon there are about a dozen people, that's all, who are controlling this trade and we're targeting them with information, particular skills to make sure evidence can be presented so that people can be prosecuted. Its very important to go after them and that's what we are doing."

A smirking pirate seems unperturbed by a lengthy jail term outside court

In a courthouse a gang arrested last year after hijacking an Iranian fishing vessel were being sentenced to 24 years each, while a teenager escaped with a 16-year term because of his age.

In his summing up, judge Gustav Didon gave some idea of the terrifying ordeal faced by ships targeted as they pass through areas patrolled by the bandits.

Most pirates jailed in the Seychelles go to the Montaine Posse prison

He said: "The Somalis came firing guns. There were nine in a small boat and all of them had guns. He stopped the engine and surrendered.

"He was told to go to the Somali coast. The Somalis pointed their guns at them and told them if they did not go inside they would be shot."

As they are carted off to prison in cuffs the men continue to claim their innocence - though their claim to be mere fishermen differs from their defence in court, where they swore they were refugees who had paid for passage to Europe.

Prisoners claim to be innocent - with some saying they are just fishermen

This week, the crew of Dutch Warship HNLMS De Ruyter captured and handed over nine suspected Somali Pirates to the Seychelles Police after they allegedly attempted to hijack a Panamanian boat.

They will be prosecuted by one of the two British lawyers on the Island, seconded to the Seychelles justice department from the UK Crown Prosecution Service.

Most pirates jailed in the Seychelles are taken to the Montaine Posse prison, run by Will Thurbin, a former prison governor from the Isle of Wight.

Among more than 400 inmates in his jail are some 88 Somali pirates, though there have been more than a 100 locked up there in the past.

The prison's British governor speaks to Sky's David Bowden

Mr Thurbin told Sky News: "Their reputation on the high seas is well-earned with the violence they show people they take captive and taking ships, but we find that once the pirates come into the prison their behaviour settles down."

For now, Rear Admiral Bob Tarrant, operational commander of one of the three naval coalitions patrolling the region, says the pirates are on the back foot - but will return if the international community takes its eye off the ball.

He told me: "The pirate business model is fractured, but it's not broken and if we relieve the pressure now my military judgement estimates that piracy will come back quickly."

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South Africa: Cops Suspended After Man Tied To Van

Several police officers in South Africa have been suspended after a man was tied to a moving police van and died later in a cell.

More follows...

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Son Arrested After Mum's Body Found In Bin Bags

By Sky News US Team, in New York

Two men, including the victim's son, have been arrested after a woman's dismembered remains were found in rubbish bags in New York City.

Bahsid McLean, 23, and 26-year-old William Harris were arrested on suspicion of unlawfully dissecting a human body and hindering prosecution.

Police have not filed murder or manslaughter charges and said they were still investigating.

The remains of Tanya Byrd, 45, were found stuffed in several bags scattered along four blocks in the Bronx.

Her death came to light when a local resident's dog sniffed out one of the sacks in the early hours of Tuesday.

A heavy-duty plastic garbage bag stuffed in a duffel bag with the woman's bloodied leg inside was found in a rubbish pile in the Melrose neighbourhood.

Police then found three other bags containing the victim's head, limbs and part of her torso.

Witnesses told police a sport utility vehicle dropped the bags off sometime on Monday night or early Tuesday morning.

Family members described McLean as a troubled man who had long harboured anger toward his mother.

His father, James McLean, told the Daily News: "He did destructive things. He set fires; nobody could control him."

Ms Byrd, a health aide, was described by friends as an upbeat and generous woman.

"Anything you would have needed, she would have given it to you," Elizabeth Cruz told WCBS-TV.

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Australia: Huge Meth Bust Is Record Seizure

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

Australian police have made their biggest ever haul of methamphetamine after seizing more than half a ton of the illegal drug - worth around £300m.

A total of 585kg of the substance - known as 'ice' or 'crystal meth' - was smuggled into Sydney hidden in shipments of chemicals from China.

Almost double the previous Australian record of 306kg, police say the quantity would have sold for 438m Australian dollars (£297m).

Three men - an Australian, a Singaporean and a Hong Kong passport holder - have been charged with attempting to possess the drug. They were all refused bail at a Sydney court - and face life sentences if convicted.

Police said methamphetamine was "the sort of drug that sends people mad"

New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said: "There's over half a ton of hideous drugs that were taken off the streets with a street value approaching half a billion dollars - hundreds of millions of dollars.

"There are three people that have been arrested and will be prosecuted. There are more that will likely be arrested."

Police were alerted to the major drug smuggling operation by a telephone call from a member of the public.

"That one phone call was the one thread that allowed us to pull and unravel a syndicate that will be stopped forever," said Mr Scipione.

The police investigation began in September last year in response to the tip-off.

Law enforcement officers found 38 bags of the drug

Police and customs officers were directed to four suspicious shipping containers in a Sydney wharf, which had come from the port city of Shen Zhen in China.

Inside officers found the huge drugs haul, hidden amongst a shipment of chemical cleaner.

They substituted the drugs with a harmless substance then allowed the consignment to be delivered to their original address.

Australia is becoming an increasingly lucrative market for international drug networks because of the strength of the local currency and resilience of the national economy compared to other wealthy nations.

New South Wales police commissioner Andrew Scipione, said it was "very fortunate that somebody took the time to make that phone call".

"This is the sort of drug that sends people mad," he said.

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Pope Benedict XVI's Papacy Enters Final Hours

By Sally Arthy, Senior News Editor, Rome

Pope Benedict XVI's tenure as leader of the world's Catholics will draw to a close later today.

Benedict stands down as Pontiff after nearly eight years and at a time when the Church is mired in controversy.

This morning, more than 100 cardinals will say their farewells to the Pope at a gathering in the Apostolic Palace.

The Pope waves from his 'popemobile' at the end of his last weekly audience

Just before 5pm local time (4pm UK time), Benedict will leave his apartments for the last time, give his thanks to the senior staff who have been by his side during his papacy, and then make his way to the Vatican helipad.

From there he will fly to Castel Gandolfo - the Pope's retreat on the outskirts of Rome.

Then, at around 5.30pm, he will make his last brief appearance on a balcony in front of an expected crowd of around 7,000 before withdrawing from public life for good.

At 8pm the doors of the villa will close and the Swiss Guard will stand aside marking the end of Benedict's papacy.

From then on he will be known as Emeritus Pope and devote his days to prayer and meditation.

Once renovations are complete, Benedict will move to a monastery in the grounds of the Vatican.

Edward Pentin, from the Catholic Herald, said Benedict will live a monk's life and not interfere in the work of his successor.

The next Pope will be chosen by secret ballot during the conclave of eligible cardinals who will vote in the Sistine Chapel.

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Large Shark Kills Swimmer Off New Zealand

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

A man has been killed in a rare great white shark attack off the coast of New Zealand.

Police and lifesavers recovered the man's body on Wednesday afternoon at Muriwai, a popular surfing beach near the city of Auckland, which has been closed.

Witness Stef McCallum, 18, said about 200 people were on the beach at the time. 

She saw a police officer go out in a surf lifesaving boat and fire "about 20" shots into the water at the shark.

"Everybody was evacuated from the water. Word of mouth, 'shark', and everybody left the water," she said. A fellow beachgoer had told her "there was a big pool of blood in the water".

Another witness told television station 3 News NZ that he spotted the lone swimmer while he was fishing at the beach.

The distressed man signalled for help when he was attacked, before he was pulled underwater. At this point, the witness said three or four other sharks appeared in the area.

A St John ambulance spokeswoman told the AFP news agency the victim was 47 years old. Inspector Matt Sillars said his body has been recovered.

As many as 200 people were on the beach at the time of the attack

"We're not sure at this stage whether or not the deceased died prior to the shark arriving on the scene, or whether the shark was a contributing factor towards the death," he said.

Insp Sillars said police shot the shark and they are making attempts to retrieve it. It is understood the man was a local and his family gathered at the scene.

People embraced in the surf club car park and were escorted into the club, the New Zealand Herald reported.

Earlier this week, surfer Bourne Nobel Buiski posted on Facebook that there had been a "massive" shark spotted near surfers on Monday at Piha, 14 kilometres south of Muriwai.

He said that a local man ran out of the water "white faced and terrified".

"He was saying that a great white, a massive great white had just swum right beside him," Mr Buiski said. No one believed him, he said. "As they are so rare here. There were about 60 people there, and no one came in."

Fatal shark attacks are relatively rare in New Zealand with just over a dozen deaths since record-keeping began in the 1830s.

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Pope Benedict Farewell: Thousands Expected

By Sally Arthy, Senior News Editor, Rome

More than 50,000 people are expected to gather in St Peter's Square later today for Pope Benedict XVI's final general audience.

The Pope stunned the Catholic Church earlier this month when he announced he no longer had the mental or physical strength to carry on in the role.

He will officially stand aside on Thursday evening, the first pope to do so in 600 years.

He will leave the Vatican and fly by helicopter to the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome, until renovations have been completed on a monastery inside the Vatican walls.

Benedict calendars are sold outside his summer residence Castel Gandolfo

The Pope will live out the rest of his days in the new monastery in prayer and meditation.

At precisely 8pm (Rome time) the villa gates at Castel Gandolfo will close and the Swiss Guard will withdraw - a symbol that Pope Benedict XVI's papacy is over.

Benedict will then be known as Emeritus Pope and wear a simple white cassock and brown shoes rather than his trademark red loafers.

The final general audience will take place in St Peter's Square

After the general audience today, the Pope will meet a select group of heads of state and make final preparations for his departure.

On Thursday morning, he will bid farewell to his cardinals who will begin a series of meetings to determine his successor.

The date for the conclave - when eligible cardinals vote in secret in the Sistine Chapel - has yet to be announced.

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Pistorius: Reeva's 'Last Text' Home Revealed

Reeva Steenkamp sent a text to her flatmate on the night she was shot dead, saying she would not be driving home because it was "too late".

Gina Myers, who shared a home with Miss Steenkamp in Johannesburg, told Sky News' Alex Crawford that the text was the last message she received from her friend.

Miss Myers said she had met Oscar Pistorius, who is accused of murdering his 29-year-old girlfriend at his luxury home in Pretoria, a few times and did not know him well but had liked him.

She said Miss Steenkamp had been happy with the gold medal winning Paralympian and would not have been with him otherwise.

She told Sky News: "It was like any other relationship. There was nothing that flashed a warning sign. She was happy. She was very happy.

"Reeva was not the kind of person to complain about stuff but she would never have been with anyone if she wasn't happy ... Her motto this year was 'to be happy and never settle'."

Miss Myers was speaking as it emerged that Pistorius held a private memorial service for Miss Steenkamp at his uncle's house in Pretoria.

The South African athlete has been staying at his uncle Arnold's house since he was released on bail last Friday after being charged with the model's murder.

Reeva Steenkamp was "happy" with her boyfriend Oscar Pistorius

His aides confirmed plans for a memorial service for Miss Steenkamp after details were leaked to the media.

The 26-year-old, who also competed in the Olympics last summer, denies murder and claims he shot Miss Steenkamp by mistake believing she was an intruder.

A statement from his representatives said: "Oscar Pistorius, will hold a private memorial service for Reeva Steenkamp at the house of his uncle, Arnold Pistorius tonight.

"Oscar specifically requested the memorial service as he continues to grieve and remains in deep mourning for the loss of his partner Reeva."

It added: "Since it is such a sensitive issue, Oscar has asked for a private service with people who share his loss, including his family members who knew and loved Reeva as one of their own."

Miss Steenkamp's funeral was held in Port Elizabeth last week, as her boyfriend appeared in court over her murder and insisted her death was an accident.

Reeva Steenkamp's funeral was held last week

He was released on bail but has to abide by strict conditions, including reporting to a police station in Pretoria twice a week.

The athlete was also ordered to surrender his two passports, post bail of one million rand (£75,000) in cash and guarantees, and refrain from drinking alcohol until his case resumes on June 4.

Pistorius was also ordered to hand in any guns he owns and keep away from his home in a gated community in Pretoria, which is now a crime scene.

Prison service officials can drop in at his uncle's house at any time of day or night to ensure the athlete is complying with the bail terms.

Pistorius, who had his lower legs amputated at the age of 11 months after he was born without either fibula, rose to global fame with his fight to be allowed to run in the Olympics against able-bodied athletes.

He reached the semi-finals of the 400 metres at last year's London Games.

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Nuclear Talks: Powers To 'Make Offer' To Iran

By Lisa Holland, Foreign Affairs Correspondent

World powers will meet Iranian nuclear negotiators in Kazakhstan this week for the first time in eight months.

It is understood there will be what diplomats are calling a "new offer" to the Iranians to try to make progress in the stalled nuclear stand-off.

A senior diplomat said: "We will take an offer with us. It is substantial and serious and will involve significant new elements."

Tehran insists its nuclear programme is for civilian energy and medical research.

The European Union and members of the UN Security Council including the US suspect Iran has a covert atomic weapons programme.

Washington and Brussels have adopted a dual-track approach to Iran - pursuing nuclear talks while pressing sanctions to try to force Tehran to make a deal.

A US proposal for a one-on-one meeting with Iran on the sidelines of the talks in the Kazak city of Almaty remains on the table.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has defied Western pressure

The diplomat told Sky News: "Iran has a great deal to gain from the talks. It wants sanctions lifted. The talks present an opportunity to re-shape relations.

"The prize is a great one, but the negotiations are difficult and complex. We have a good offer. We hope the Iranians will respond positively."

Negotiators hope the Almaty talks will give them some sense of whether the Iranians have any interest in genuinely pursuing diplomacy.

The diplomat said: "We have to be patient and make sure when the Iranians reach a point when they want to do a deal we are at the table."

Iran has seen elevated levels of inflation. Some suggest it is at 27%, while others think it could be double that.

The UN has passed six Security Council resolutions on Iran, and diplomats hope that the economic impact of sanctions will force the Iranians to re-think their stance against the West.

The Western thinking is that the centrifuges may keep spinning but the sanctions keep biting.

It has been more than half a year since the last round of talks with countries known as the E3 + 3 -  the US, France, Britain, Germany, China and Russia.

There has been anxiety about a possible military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities by Israel.

Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu discusses Iran at the UN in September 2012

Iran is still expanding its nuclear programme with the installation of more advanced centrifuges which will multiply its enrichment capability.

But Iran has also reportedly converted some of its medium-enriched uranium into fuel plates for its medical reactor, making it harder to convert that material into bomb-grade fuel, and is slowing down its accumulation of what is known as 20% enriched uranium.

A new report by the international nuclear watchdog IAEA suggests that Iran has a stockpile of 167kg of 20% enriched uranium.

The 20% enriched uranium is seen as the barometer for proliferation concern as it could relatively quickly be further enriched into weapons-grade fissile material.

At the time of the last IAEA report three months ago, Iran had a stockpile of nearly 135kg of 20% uranium.

According to the watchdog, this means that Iran's 20% stockpile has increased by 32kg in the past three months - a growth rate of under 11kg a month.   

At that rate Iran could take more than six months to reach a red line laid down by Israel of 240 kg - which is in theory enough to make one nuclear warhead, if further enriched.

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Italy Election: Split Vote Leads To Stalemate

Results in crucial elections in Italy show no clear winner and raise the possibility of a hung parliament.

The uncertainty does not help the nation's efforts to pass the tough reforms it needs to heal its economic woes and prevent a new round of global financial turmoil.

In the lower chamber of parliament, the Democratic Party leader Pier Luigi Bersani and his leftist coalition scraped a razor-thin victory over Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right, winning by 29.55% to 29.18% with 99.9% of the ballots counted.

Grillo: his protest group M5S appears the real winner

But in the 305-seat Senate, preliminary results from the interior ministry showed that the coalition led by former Prime Minister Mr Berlusconi could win 110 seats to the left's 97 seats, with neither group winning a majority, which is required in both chambers of parliament to form a government.

This leaves Italy in a state of limbo with a hung parliament that is unprecedented in its post-war history.

Bersani: narrow victory for his leftist coalition in the lower chamber

"It is clear to everyone that this is a very delicate situation for the country," Mr Luigi Bersani said.

US stocks closed sharply lower with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1.55% on the news. Stocks in Tokyo opened 1.83% lower.

The new Five Star Movement (M5S) led by former comedian-turned activist Beppe Grillo, who has stirred anger at politicians and budget cuts, became the country's third political force, creating dozens of new lawmakers.

Comparing single parties without coalitions, the M5S is now the biggest party in the lower house with 25.55% to the Democratic Party's 25.41% - a shock success that analysts predicted would reverberate around an austerity-weary Europe.

"This is fantastic! We will be an extraordinary force!" Mr Grillo said on his website, warning mainstream politicians they would "only last a few more months".

"We'll have 110 people in parliament and we'll be millions outside."

Berlusconi: doing better in the Senate

European capitals fear the lack of a clear winner could bring fresh instability to the eurozone's third largest economy after Germany and France and plunge it back into the debt crisis storm.

Some Democratic Party officials suggested fresh elections may have to be held within a few months after a reform of Italy's complex electoral laws. Others said some form of agreement could be found with the anti-austerity Five Star Movement.

Political analysts suggested a possible return to the grand coalition agreement between right and left seen over the past 18 months, or even dissolving the Senate alone to hold fresh elections for only one chamber of parliament.

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Brits Among 19 Dead In Hot Air Balloon Crash

A hot air balloon has crashed near the ancient Egyptian city of Luxor, killing 19 foreign tourists.

The balloon was carrying 21 people at the time and was flying at a height of 1000 feet over Qurna, in Luxor's West Bank.

An Egyptian security official says there was a fire and an explosion on-board the balloon, which fell to the ground and crashed into sugar cane fields.

The casualties include British, French, Japanese and other foreign nationals.

The crash occurred in Luxor, Egypt

Two survivors from the crash, including the balloon's pilot, have been taken to hospital.

Hot air ballooning is popular with tourists who go to Luxor to visit its ancient temples and the tombs of the Valley of the Kings.

Egypt's tourism industry has suffered a sharp downturn in visitor numbers since the 2011 uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak, with two years of political instability scaring off foreign tourists.

More follows...

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Oscar Pistorius Due At Pretoria Police Station

Oscar Pistorius is due to appear at Pretoria police station as a condition of his bail.

It will be the Paralympian's first public appearance since he was granted bail on Friday.

He denies the premeditated murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his Pretoria home on Valentine's Day.

Pistorius claims he killed the 29-year-old model accidentally, mistaking her for an intruder.

The athlete must sign in at Brooklyn police station - where he had been held for over a week during his bail hearing - twice a week as part of his bail conditions.

The double amputee has also had to hand in his two South African passports and his guns, as well as agree to stay away from the estate where he lived.

He is also banned from contacting any witnesses and from drinking alcohol and has been staying with his uncle Arnold since he was released on bail.

Magistrate Desmond Nair set bail at one million rand (£73,000) and postponed the case until June 4.

On Sunday it emerged his older brother, Carl, who was a constant presence in court last week, is himself facing trial over the death of a woman.

Carl Pistorius is charged with culpable homicide over the death of a woman motorcyclist in a traffic accident in 2008.

The case has no relation to the charges against Oscar Pistorius.

It is the second time someone associated with the Pistorius case has been found to face a serious charge that has been dropped and then reinstated.

It was revealed that the chief police investigator in the case is facing charges of seven counts of attempted murder for shooting at a vehicle with seven passengers.

Following the revelations, Hilton Botha was removed from the Pistorius investigation and a new chief detective - Lieutenant General Vineshkumar Moonoo - was appointed on Thursday.

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Cuban President Raul Castro To Retire In 2018

Cuban President Raul Castro has said he will stand down from power in 2018.

The 81-year-old announced his retirement shortly after he was re-elected to a second five-year term.

The new parliament also named 52-year-old rising star Miguel Diaz-Canel as first vice president - effectively Castro's successor if he fails to serve out his final full term in office.

Former President Fidel Castro joined the National Assembly meeting on Sunday in a rare public appearance.

Since falling ill in 2006 and ceding the presidency to his brother, the elder Castro, 86, has given up official positions except as a deputy in the National Assembly.

The new government will almost certainly be the last spearheaded by the Castro brothers and their generation of leaders who have ruled Cuba since the 1959 revolution.

Raul Castro addresses the National Assembly on Sunday

"This will be my last term," Raul Castro told the legislative gathering.

He said Cuba was at a moment of "historic transcendence", and that Diaz-Canel's promotion represented "a definitive step in the configuration of the future leadership of the nation through the gradual and orderly transfer of key roles to new generations".

However, he dismissed any idea of the country abandoning socialism.

"Our greatest satisfaction is the tranquility and serene confidence we feel as we deliver to the new generations the responsibility to continue building socialism," he added.

While the country remains under Communist Party rule, since taking over from Fidel in 2006 Raul Castro has instituted a slate of important economic and social changes including expanding private enterprise, encouraging farming, minor manufacturing and retail and relaxing hated travel restrictions.

The party plan also includes an opening to more foreign investment.

The pledge of a change at the top could also have deep significance for US-Cuba ties.

The wording of Washington's 51-year economic embargo on the island specifies that it cannot be lifted while a Castro is in charge.

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Oscars: Historic Win For Daniel Day-Lewis

Daniel Day-Lewis has made Oscar history after becoming the first man to win the best actor trophy three times.

The British-born actor was honoured for his portrayal of President Abraham Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's historical drama.

He spent a year preparing for the role and, in his customary method, remained in character during the production.

Accepting his Oscar from Meryl Streep, Day-Lewis said: "I really don't know how any of this happened, I do know I've received more than my fair share of good fortune in my life."

Christoph Waltz won the first award of the night

He joked Streep had been the first choice to play Lincoln and he had been committed to play Margaret Thatcher - the role that won Streep an Oscar last year - before tearfully thanking his mother.

He previously won in 1989 for My Left Foot and in 2007 for There Will Be Blood.

It was a good night for British talent with Adele winning the Oscar for best original song for her Bond theme Skyfall.

The tearful singer thanked her songwriting partner Paul Epworth for "believing in me all the time, and my man, I love you baby".

She wowed the audience of A-listers in the Dolby Theatre with her first ever live performance of the 23rd Bond film's title track.

Dame Shirley Bassey wowed the audience in the theatre

Ben Affleck's Iran hostage thriller, Argo, won the Oscar for best picture, despite the star being snubbed in the best director category.

The nominees for best film were introduced by First Lady Michelle Obama from the White House, before she named Argo as the winner.

Affleck, who also starred in the film, paid tribute to the "genius" Spielberg whose film, Lincoln, lost out in the category.

Referring to his success with 1997's Good Will Hunting, he said: "I never thought I would be back here and I am because of so many of you who are here tonight."

He added: "It doesn't matter how you get knocked down in life, all that matters is that you get up."

The cast of Les Mis took to the stage

It was the first time since Driving Miss Daisy in 1990 that a film won the top prize at the Oscars without its director also being nominated.

The show's host Seth MacFarlane, the man behind hit cartoon Family Guy, started proceedings by poking fun at the Academy for not nominating Affleck, saying the plan was "so top secret the film's director is unknown to the Academy".

Taiwanese director Ang Lee picked up the statuette for best director for Life of Pi, beating Spielberg who many expected would collect the award for Lincoln. Lee collected the same award for Brokeback Mountain in 2005.

In a night that was otherwise short on shocks Jennifer Lawrence claimed the best actress gong for Silver Linings Playbook.

The 22-year-old fell as she climbed the steps to the stage to claim her prize.

Some had predicted the award would go to French actress Emmanuelle Riva who starred in Amour and at 86 was the oldest woman ever to be nominated. She won a Bafta award earlier this month for the role.

Jennifer Lawrence fell on the stairs to the stage

Anne Hathaway picked up the best supporting actress statue for her role in the musical Les Miserables.

The star, who only featured as Fantine in the film for around 15 minutes, fought back tears as she said "it came true" and thanked her husband and everyone who worked on the film.

She had been widely predicted to win the award in a tough category where Sally Field, Helen Hunt, Amy Adams and Jacki Weaver were also nominated.

Christoph Waltz won the first award of the night, best supporting actor, for his role in Django Unchained.

Waltz offered thanks to his character and "to his creator and the creator of his awe-inspiring world, Quentin Tarantino".

It was the second time in three years he has won the category - his first Oscar was for his role in Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds.

Waltz beat off stiff competition from Alan Arkin, Robert De Niro, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Tommy Lee Jones.

Some of host Seth MacFarlane's jokes were a bit close to the bone

Tarantino went on to collect the prize for best original screenplay.

Brave, the Scottish story of a rebellious, red-headed princess, won the Oscar for best animated feature.

Amour, a French-language film about an elderly couple won best foreign language film which was accepted by its Austrian director Michael Haneke.

Skyfall also won the trophy for best sound editing, which was tied with Zero Dark Thirty. It is only the third time in Oscar history that winners have been tied.

The night of British success started with Jacqueline Durran winning for her costume design on Anna Karenina and the make-up and hairstyling award went to Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell for Les Miserables.

The presentation of awards was broken up by a series of musical performances including Catherine Zeta-Jones singing All That Jazz from Chicago and Jennifer Hudson performing I'm Telling You from Dreamgirls.

A tribute to the Bond films and music made up of classic clips of 007's adventures was introduced by one-time Bond girl Halle Berry.

And 76-year-old Dame Shirley Bassey took to the stage in a gold dress to sing Goldfinger which received a standing ovation.

But it was a medley of Les Miserables songs sung by the cast that left the audience with goosebumps.

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Oscar Pistorius Tweet Thanking Fans Is Fake

A tweet claiming to be from Oscar Pistorius thanking his fans for praying for him was a fake, the Paralympian's family has said.

The message, thanking "every person that has prayed for both families" and signed by "Osca" was posted using his older brother's handle, @carlpistorius.

It was initially believed to have been the double-amputee's first direct comment since he was freed on bail over the killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day.

But his family said the Twitter account had been hacked, prompting the accounts of his siblings to be taken down.

Pistorius family spokeswoman Janine Hills said: "It is most unfortunate that during this sensitive time someone would choose to hack into Oscar Pistorius' older brother Carl Pistorius' Twitter handle.

"Carl did not tweet this afternoon, out of respect to Oscar and Reeva. We are busy cancelling all the social media sites for both Oscar's brother and his sister."

It came as Ms Hills told Sky News the athlete "wants this time to be alone" and was "feeling a lot of remorse" over the death of the law graduate.

Pistorius is accused of premeditated murder. He denies murder.

The athlete arrived at his uncle's house on Friday after paying 10% of his one million rand (£73,000) bail at Pretoria's Brooklyn police station, where he had been held for a week.

His uncle, Arnold, has reportedly told eNews Channel Africa (eNCA) that his nephew wants to contact the parents of Ms Steenkamp and said he would "never be the same" again.

Earlier, Ms Steenkamp's father said Pistorius would "suffer" if it turned out he was lying about how she died.

South Africa's Beeld newspaper quoted Barry Steenkamp as saying Pistorius would have to "live with his conscience" if his assertion that he accidentally shot the 29-year-old is false.

He said: "There are only two people who really know what happened and it's Oscar Pistorius and the Lord.

"It does not matter how much money he has and how good his legal team is, he must live with his conscience if he let his lawyers tell lies on his behalf.

"He will have to live with his conscience. But if he speaks the truth, I can perhaps someday forgive him."

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Fears Of Chaos As Italy Goes To The Polls

By Robert Nisbet, Europe Correspondent

Polls have opened in Italy amid concern the elections could lead to political gridlock in Europe's fourth largest economy.

The country is in its worst recession for two decades, unemployment is above 11% and rising, while the public debt mountain as a proportion of GDP is second only to Greece in the eurozone.

The current administration, led by the unelected economist Mario Monti, has prescribed a tough medicine of economic reform, budget cuts and tax increases.

While the austerity programme was welcomed by those trying to stabilise the single currency, it has been deeply unpopular among Italian voters.

Support for his small coalition of centrist parties has foundered, while those who have taken an EU-critical, anti-austerity position have seen their popularity increase.

Voter intention surveys are banned in the days leading up to elections in Italy, but pollsters use elaborate ruses to disguise their findings. The most common features the political parties as competitors in fictional horse races.

Beppe Grillo could at a rally in the run-up to the election

They suggest the unconventional anti-corruption Five Star Movement, led by the comedian Beppo Grillo, could take up to 20% of the vote, which political analysts believe could throw parliament into chaos.

Franco Pavoncello, the president of Rome's John Cabot University, told Sky News: "Mr Grillo will not even be a member of parliament (because of a conviction for vehicular  manslaughter in 1981).

"So the question is what's going to happen when you have 70 young and inexperienced people as MPs without the leader who got them elected?

"I think we might be in for some very interesting phenomena after the election.".

Italy's European neighbours, including Britain, don't want interesting phenomena. They want calm in the crisis-wracked Eurozone.

Because of the quirks of the Italian electoral system it seems unlikely the two-day poll will deliver a clear working majority for any single party.

Can Berlusconi make a comeback? His career had largely been written off

While the centre left's Pierluigi Bersani, leader of the Democratic Party, is likely to emerge as Prime Minister with a bonus of 55 seats for becoming the biggest party in the Chamber of Deputies, he may find it hard to win over the Senate.

A law brought in by former leader Silvio Berlusconi apportions extra seats in the upper house to the most populous regions. That favours the media magnate's centre right PdL party, which is polling well in areas such as Sicily and Lombardy.

Mr Berlusconi, who was considered a spent force after his resignation in November 2011, may find he holds the balance of power as any law needs the approval of both houses.

Giovanni Ragusa, an economist from LUISS University, says a political stalemate could be disastrous for Italy and for Europe.

"When Italian voters realise there's not going to be a strong government able to pass new laws and that the tax increases they have been subjected to for the past few years are not going to be temporary, then the discontent is going to spill over onto the streets," he warned.

Any political problems in Italy could effect the ability of the EU to bring about reforms which would ensure the stability of the Euro, which the British Government insists is necessary to help the struggling UK economy.

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Pistorius Brother To Stand Trial Over Death

The brother of Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius is facing charges over the death of a woman in a car crash in 2010, Sky News has learned.

Oscar Pistorius was granted bail

Carl Pistorius, who was present in court over the past week to support Oscar, is charged with culpable homicide over the alleged accidental death of a female motorcyclist.

His lawyer, who also represents Oscar Pistorius, confirmed the charges to Sky's Alex Crawford.

Carl Pistorius appeared in court just two days before his brother's bail hearing last week.

Crawford said in Britain the equivalent charge to culpable homicide is manslaughter.

Carl Pistorius' trial is set to begin at the end of March.

Oscar Pistorius, meanwhile, spent Saturday at his uncle's home in an affluent suburb of Pretoria, the South African capital, after a judge released him on bail on Friday.

He has been charged with premeditated murder in the shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine's Day.

But the athlete denies murder, saying he killed the 29-year-old model accidentally. He says he opened fire after mistaking Miss Steenkamp for an intruder in his home.

Carl Pistorius, with his sister, was in court this week to support Oscar

The Oscar Pistorius case took a dramatic turn last week when it was revealed the lead investigator, Hilton Botha, was facing charges of attempted murder himself.

Botha, who denies the charges, was questioned at the 26-year-old athlete's bail hearing, where he gave an often confused testimony.

But the day after he was questioned in court, a judge dropped him from the case because of the charges.

Prosecutors admitted that the timing of the attempted murder charges had been "totally weird".

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