Russian Fighter Jets 'Enter Ukrainian Airspace'

It Is No Longer A Game For Separatist Militia

Updated: 12:32am UK, Saturday 26 April 2014

By Sam Kiley, Foreign Affairs Editor in Slavyansk

Their rifles were cocked. The safety catches off. Triggers were fingered. The car lurched to a stop.

Shrill nervous orders were barked in Russian. Men in an assortment of camouflage uniforms lay spread eagled on the roadside glaring down their sights.

A quick search followed. Then a man with a new AK74, probably nicked from the local police station, squinted, his face covered with a balaclava, perhaps attempting a faceless smile.

"Sorry for any inconvenience," he said and waved the car through.

The mixed messages of their behaviour, both aggression and politeness, both bravado and fear, point to a wider conundrum - do they really understand what they're getting in to?

One of their comrades had been shot dead that morning about a mile away on the road out of Slavyansk by an Ukrainian army patrol - probably probing the outer defences of these pro-Russian separatist militants.

Four more, the government said, had been killed in other clashes around the town.

They stand accused of kidnapping the city's elected mayor.

They have taken over city hall and are sandbagging it against an attack and yet they often appear to be no more than young or old boys playing at soldiers.

Occasionally one comes across a trained soldier. Fit and quiet they slink in the background of the occupied buildings.

They may be Russian agents, or former Ukrainian police from the disbanded Berkut who were responsible for sniper attacks on revolutionaries in Kiev.

But the ordinary militants, who are led by local politicians and allegedly funded either by Moscow or allied oligarchs, are clearly being used.

They are the teaspoons the Kremlin is using to keep the east of Ukraine swirling with dark rumours of anti-Russian ethnic cleansing.

Allegations of persecution of pro-Russian groups are entirely false.

But while the militants swagger about the streets, take over government buildings and harass their political opponents, they face a crack down from Kiev.

The nervous men at the road block feared an Ukrainian government attack on the bases in Slavyansk.

They were also facing the reality that what may have felt like a nationalistic camping trip with the added spice of gun play, may no longer be a game.

They may fold under a professional attack by Ukrainian troops.

But if they do not, there will be blood.

And if it flows from Putin's local pawns then so may Russian troops pour in from the east.

He may win, but they will not be around to see his victory.

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Paedophile Teacher 'One Of The Worst Predators'

Child Predator: Husband And 'Popular Teacher'

Updated: 11:44am UK, Thursday 24 April 2014

The serial child predator at the centre of an FBI investigation had a wife and two adult children and was a popular teacher among his students, officials have said.

William James Vahey travelled the world for four decades before his suicide in a Minnesota motel last March.

While teaching, he also served as coach on various school sports teams.

The FBI said he was a "popular and highly respected teacher".

"He had access to children because of his position of trust," said FBI special agent Patrick Fransen.

"He created a system that gave him the opportunity and the means to molest children."

The FBI says he may have carried out child molestation on an unprecedented scale, often drugging his victims.

Vahey told investigators he suffered molestation as a child and went on to prey on boys.

The New York native graduated from California State University, Long Beach, with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, according to a resume cited by the FBI.

He received a master's degree in curriculum development from Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont.

At the time of his death, he was 64, approximately 6ft (182cm) tall, and weighed about 190 pounds (86kg).

He was teaching ninth-grade world history and geography at the American Nicaraguan School in Managua.

Vahey maintained two residences, one in London, where he had taught at an elite school, and another on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, the FBI said.

In 1969, Vahey was arrested in California on six counts of child molestation.

He pled guilty to one count of child molestation and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, followed by five years' probation.

The conviction required Vahey to register with California's sex offender registry for the rest of his life.

However, Vahey eluded that requirement.

Officials said he had not renewed his registration as a sex offender since 1970. He went on to pursue his teaching career in Nicaragua, the UK, Venezuela, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Greece, Iran, Spain, and Lebanon.

His victims are believed to be multinational as many of those schools were attended by the children of American diplomats or military personnel stationed overseas.

Vahey coached boys on middle school, varsity boys' basketball, softball, flag football, and soccer, among other things.

He also served as activities director, student council adviser, cooking club adviser and forensics adviser. 

He often accompanied students on cultural studies or sports trips, the FBI said.

Vahey killed himself two days after agents in Houston sought a warrant to search a computer thumb drive belonging to him.

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South Korea Ferry: All 15 Crew In Custody

A prosecutor investigating the South Korean ferry sinking says all 15 crew members involved in the ship's navigation are now in custody after four more were arrested.

Yang Jung-jin, of the joint investigation team, said two helmsmen and two members of the steering crew were detained this morning.

Eleven other crew members, including the captain, were previously arrested.

All the crew are accused of negligence and of failing to help passengers in need as the ferry sank on April 16.

The captain initially told passengers to stay in their rooms and took half an hour to issue an evacuation order, by which time the ship was tilting too severely for many people to get out.

Meanwhile, officials said divers searching the submerged hull of the ferry found 48 bodies in a room designed to take 38.

Barack Obama and South Korean President Park Geun-Hye bow their heads

At least 35 rooms of the ferry's 111 rooms have been searched so far.

More than 80% of the 302 dead and missing are students from a single high school from the town of Ansan, south of Seoul.

The government has admitted some bodies had been misidentified and announced changes to prevent such mistakes from happening again.

There have been several reports in the South Korean media this week of bodies going to the wrong families, with the error sometimes being identified only after remains had been taken to a funeral home.

An "action plan" released by a government-wide emergency task force acknowledged that there had "been cases where the victims were wrongly transferred".

Divers have recovered 183 bodies so far, but 119 people remain missing feared dead in the dark rooms of the submerged vessel.

A woman at a memorial outside Danwon High School in Ansan

The ferry was on its way from the mainland to the resort island of Jeju when it went down.

President Barack Obama, who has been in South Korea as part of a state visit, offered his condolences for those who had lost their lives.

He presented President Park Geun-hye with an American flag that flew over the White House the day the ship sank.

He said: "So many were young students with their entire lives ahead of them. I can only imagine what the parents are going through at this point, the incredible heartache."

Accepting the flag, Ms Park drew a parallel between the way Americans pulled together after the 9/11 attacks and the resilience of South Koreans following one of the worst maritime disasters in their country's history.

"The Korean people draw great strength from your kindness," she said.

Prosecutors have raided and seized documents at the Korean Register of Shipping and the Korea Shipping Association, which regulates and oversees departures and arrivals of domestic passenger ships.

On Friday night, people in Ansan, where most of the victims came from, gathered to remember those who had died at a candle-lit vigil.

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Israel: Hamas Unity Deal 'Kills Peace Process'

Is Kerry's Mid-East Peace Initiative Finished?

Updated: 3:11am UK, Friday 25 April 2014

By Tom Rayner, Middle East Reporter, Jerusalem

The goal was perhaps unattainable from the outset.

A dream more than a plan.

John Kerry's frenetic diplomatic drive aimed to get Israeli and Palestinian leaders to thrash out the foundations of a final peace deal within nine months.

The deadline was supposed to be next Monday.

Hope of that lies in tatters.

What is worse for Secretary Kerry, is that this wasn't a sudden death.

The negotiations have not experienced a sudden spasm days before a deal - they've been rotting for months.

For weeks, both sides have been waiting to see who could point the finger and say: "There, you see! They didn't want peace in the first place. It's their fault."

Yesterday's announcement of a reconciliation deal between the Fatah party of Palestinian President Abbas and Hamas, gave Benjamin Netanyahu the opportunity to jab the accusatory finger.

The Israeli leader said he will never negotiate with Hamas - the governing power in Gaza, deemed by much of the international community to be a "terrorist organisation".

Abbas had chosen Hamas over peace, Mr Netanyahu said. Talks suspended.

The retort from the Palestinians is that Mr Netanyahu killed the talks long before.

He refused to release a tranche of prisoners and continued to grant permissions for construction of settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank - this, they say, was the moment it all collapsed.

So where does this leave John Kerry?

Deflated, but according to diplomatic sources in Jerusalem, reluctant to walk away.

The reason for this lies in the "constructive ambiguity" of the statements being made by Israel.

The language is tough, but it is not final.

Israel has seen attempts at reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas come and go before.

They know this reconciliation deal could disintegrate as quickly as it emerged.

For now the door remains ajar.

The suspension, therefore, is being seen as a five week hiatus, to see if the proposed "unity government" of Fatah and Hamas ministers can actually be put together.

The hope, particularly for those in the Israeli cabinet supportive of talks, is that the lack of detail in the reconciliation deal will render it unachievable.

For Mr Kerry there is another dimension - that the reconciliation deal may have achieved more than the Palestinians are letting on.

No detail has yet emerged of what reconciliation will mean for the internal security relationship between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

No detail has emerged on whether Hamas prisoners will be freed from Fatah's jails, or on what terms.

No detail has emerged on whether a unity government including Hamas, would stick to the Quartet Principles – the recognition of Israel and renunciation of violence,  which are key to recognition of the Palestinian Authority by the international community.

The answer to whether talks can resume lies in the answers to those questions - the last in particular.

It may be unlikely that Hamas has been coaxed tentatively in from the cold, but until that is clear, Kerry's unattainable dream might have further to run.

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US Accuses Russia Of Ukraine 'Deception'

US Secretary of State John Kerry has accused Russia of "deception" and "destabilisation" in Ukraine and hinted at imposing more sanctions.

Speaking at the State Department in Washington, Mr Kerry warned Moscow time was running out for it to change course.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia face a choice," he said in unusually blunt language.

"If Russia chooses the path of de-escalation ... all of us will welcome it. But if Russia does not, the world will make sure that the costs for Russia will only grow."

Mr Kerry added this would be a "grave" and "expensive mistake".

A woman bandages the head of an injured pro-Russian activist in Mariupol

He also said the Kremlin has not honoured an agreement aimed at defusing the crisis, echoing earlier comments by US President Barack Obama.

The Geneva accord between Russia, Ukraine, the US and EU compelled armed groups to put down their weapons and vacate official buildings.

The US says Moscow is stoking unrest and separatist sentiment in the east of Ukraine after its annexation of Crimea.

Russia accuses Washington of encouraging a pro-Western government to adopt anti-Russian policies.

Pro-Russian separatists fill sandbags at a checkpoint in Slavyansk

The crisis in Ukraine is becoming increasingly more violent as separatists take control of public buildings and roads. The government has launched a campaign to remove them.

On Thursday, Ukraine's interior ministry said up to five "terrorists" had been killed during an operation to clear checkpoints in the eastern town of Slavyansk.

Russia announced military exercises involving ground and air forces near its border with Ukraine in response to the operation.

Mr Putin has said there will be "consequences" if Kiev has used its army against the activists.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon has warned the crisis is threatening to "spin out of control" and urged all sides to "refrain from violence".

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Virgin Passenger Arrested After Hijack Scare

A drunken passenger sparked fears of a hijack after trying to break into the cockpit of a Virgin passenger plane.

The plane is currently at Bali's international airport and a man has now been arrested, an Indonesian air force spokesman said.

All passengers are unharmed and have been evacuated from the aircraft, the spokesman added.

It is understood that the aircraft was a Virgin Australia plane, flying from Brisbane. 

Plane was flying from Brisbane and landed in Bali

"We got information that a 737-800 from Brisbane to Bali has been hijacked," Indonesian air force spokesman Hadi Tjahjanto told Metro TV television station.

According to an Indonesian transport official the captain raised the alarm after a passenger tried to enter the cockpit. 

However, a Virgin official later denied that the plane had ever been hijacked, TV sources said.

He said that the incident had been a "misunderstanding".

Palani Mohan, a passenger on a Garuda flight that was about to take off from Bali, said: "The captain of my plane made an announcement saying we were delayed indefinitely because a hijack was going on in Bali airport, about 150 metres away from us.

"I saw at least five vehicles including military-style trucks, filled with men in uniform, rushing towards the plane.

"Then the Virgin plane taxied away, followed by the convoy of security forces. The flight attendant said it's been taken off to a different part of the airport.

"Bali airport seems to be in lockdown, we've been told no planes will be departing or arriving. The pilot's not allowing anyone off our plane."

Virgin Australia Airlines, formerly Virgin Blue Airlines, is Australia's second-largest airline as well as the largest by fleet size to use the Virgin brand. 

More follows...

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FBI Hunts For UK Victims Of Paedophile Teacher

British detectives are helping an international investigation into a suspected child predator whose 90 known victims may include boys at an elite London school.

William James Vahey, 64, killed himself in a Minnesota motel room on March 21 - two days after FBI agents filed for a warrant to search a computer thumb drive containing child abuse images featuring at least 90 children aged from 12-14.

The victims appeared to be drugged and unconscious in the images dating back to 2008 - although FBI agents believe Vahey may have abused children on an unprecedented scale during a teaching career spanning more than 40 years and at least 10 countries.

In 2008 the history and geography teacher was working in Venezuela before moving to London, where he taught pupils aged 11-16 at the £25,000-a-year Southbank International School from 2009-2013.

The thumb drive was handed to the US Embassy by one of Vahey's co-workers at the American Nicaraguan School in Managua after it was discovered by one of his domestic staff, who first raised the alarm.

In a statement on its website the FBI said: "When confronted about the images by a school administrator, Vahey confessed that he was molested as a child and had preyed on boys his entire life, giving them sleeping pills prior to the molestation."

Vahey taught at Southbank International School. Pic: Joe Tidy

The FBI is appealing for public help to identify potential victims, who appear to have been abused during overnight field trips led by the US citizen.

Parents have been showing "considerable concern" after receiving confirmation that Vahey took part in several field trips while working in London, the Southbank International School reportedly confirmed.

The school's chair of governors and former chief inspector of schools Chris Woodhead told the Guardian criminal records bureau checks had been carried out and the school was "deeply, deeply shocked" by the FBI's announcement.

The newspaper said the school is planning to either hold a meeting or write to parents within 24 hours about the crisis, while families are also to be offered psychological counselling.

The FBI said Vahey was jailed for child molestation in California in 1969, but the conviction does not appear to have shown up when checked by schools.

FBI special agent Patrick Fransen said some of the alleged victims may not know they were abused.

He said: "He created a system that gave him the opportunity and the means to molest children.

"The manner in which he committed these acts - while the boys were unconscious - may have inhibited them from knowing what happened, making it impossible for them to come forward at the time."

He added: "I've never seen another case where an individual may have molested this many children over such a long period of time."

A Met Police spokesman said: "Officers from the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Investigation Team are assessing and evaluating intelligence passed to the MPS by US authorities, and actively seeking any evidence whilst working with partner agencies to ensure that potential victims are supported."

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Facebook Profits Triple As Apple Sales Jump

A surge in advertising sales helped Facebook triple its profits in the first three months of 2014, the social networking site has revealed.

The company posted a Q1 profit of $642m (£380m) on the back of a 72% surge in revenues, driven by mobile advertising.

The amount of money it makes from advertising is up 82% on the same period last year, with mobile ads accounting for about 60% of all sales.

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said: "Facebook's business is strong and growing and this quarter was a great start to 2014."

In an apparent nod to the company's $19bn (£11.4bn) acquisition of WhatsApp, he added: "We've made some long term bets on the future while staying focused on executing and improving our core products and business.

"We're in a great position to continue making progress."

Facebook released its figures at almost the same time as Apple, which reported first-quarter sales of $45.6bn (£27.2bn) - up about 5% year-on-year - and a $10.2bn (£6.1bn) profit.

The company's CEO, Tim Cook, promised "new products and services that only Apple could bring to the market".

Much of Facebook's growth is linked to soaring mobile use among its 802 million daily active users.

Its iPhone sales boost was helped by growing access to the world's biggest mobile market, China.

Around eight in every 10 users log in to the site using a mobile device - up more than 40% year-on-year.

Apple said it sold 44 million iPhones between January and March - a rise of 17% on the first three months of 2013.

It shifted 16 million iPads and four million Macs in the same period but iPod sales continued to slump, down more than 50% on the start of last year.

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'Ukraine A Pawn In US Game Against Russia'

Russia has accused the West of instigating a "revolution" in Ukraine as part of a "geopolitical game" against Moscow.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed the US and EU were behind the uprising that ousted Viktor Yanukovych - the pro-Kremlin president of Ukraine - in February.

"In Ukraine, the United States and the European Union tried to stage - let's call things what they are - another 'colour revolution', an operation to unconstitutionally change regime," the Interfax news agency quoted Mr Lavrov as saying.

He reportedly added that Ukraine was being used as a "pawn in geopolitical game" against Russia.

A pro-Russia activist guards an administrative building in Donetsk

The comments comes as Barack Obama warned Russia could face "consequences" after accusing the Kremlin of not honouring an international agreement aimed at defusing the Ukraine crisis.

The Geneva accord between Russia, Ukraine, the US and EU called for an end to violence in eastern Ukraine and compelled armed groups to surrender weapons and leave official buildings.

But a week on, the US President said he was ready to "ramp up further sanctions" if Russia continued to disregard the spirit of the agreement.

"So far at least we have seen them not abide by the spirit or the letter of the agreement in Geneva," said Mr Obama.                

"Instead we continue to see malicious, armed men taking over buildings, harassing folks who are disagreeing with them, destabilising the region, and we haven't seen Russia step out and discourage it.

"On the other side you have seen the government in Kiev taking very concrete steps, introducing amnesty law, offering the whole range of reforms with respect to the constitution, that are consistent with what we discussed in Geneva."

Barack Obama warned Russia could face "consequences"

The West has already issued asset freezes and visa bans targeting Russian officials in response to Moscow's annexation of Crimea. 

But Speaking in Japan at the start of an Asian tour, Mr Obama again ruled out a military intervention in Ukraine by Western forces.

"We have already applied sanctions that have had an impact on the Russian economy," he said. "We have continued to hold out the prospect, the possibility to resolve the issue diplomatically.

"We've been very clear about the fact that there is not going to be a military solution to the problem in Ukraine."

Mr Obama's warning follows an announcement by Ukraine on Wednesday that it was re-launching a campaign against pro-Russia insurgents occupying government buildings.

Ukraine's Interior Minister, Arsen Avakov, used Facebook to report on Thursday that the country's military had liberated a town hall in eastern Mariupol without any casualties.

Sergey Lavrov has also accused Kiev of violating the Geneva deal

Mr Avakov also claimed 70 people led by Russian soldiers raided a Ukrainian base at Artemivsk, wounding one soldier.

Russia reacted to Ukraine's campaign against insurgents by warning there would be a response if its interests in Ukraine were attacked.

Mr Lavrov drew parallels with 2008, when Russia fought a brief war with Georgia. It started after Georgia sent troops into the breakaway region of South Ossetia to regain control from Russian-backed rebels.

In an interview with Russia Today, Mr Lavrov said: "If our interests, our legitimate interests, the interests of Russians, have been attacked directly, like they were in South Ossetia, for example, I do not see any other way but to respond in full accordance with international law."

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Missing Plane Search 'Could Take 5 to 7 Days'

By Nick Martin, News Correspondent, in Perth

Australian officials supervising the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight have said that an underwater search for the black box recorder based on "pings" possibly from the device could be completed in five to seven days.

It comes as search teams say the submarine currently scanning the ocean floor remains "the best lead" in finding the plane.

The US Navy-operated Bluefin-21 autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) has now covered an area of 82 square miles (133 sq km) and has completed six missions.

But its sonar scanners have detected nothing, Sky News understands.

The Bluefin-21 submersible has already carried out six descents

After nearly six weeks without any sign of the plane, the current underwater search has been narrowed to a circular 6.2-mile (10km) area around the location where one of the pings thought to come from the missing flight's black box was detected earlier this month.

The submersible is likely to take up to a week to cover the refined search area.

The Bluefin-21 has now started its seventh descent to the bottom of the Indian Ocean.

It takes two hours for the unmanned submersible to travel more than 4,500m to the seabed where it spends 16 hours at a time using sonar scanners to map the ocean floor. Data is then downloaded at the surface.

The Chinese ship Hai Xin 01 conducts a search in the southern Indian Ocean

No sign of the plane has been picked up, said search officials based in Perth, Australia.

"Overnight, Bluefin-21 AUV completed mission six in the underwater search area. Data from the sixth mission is currently under analysis. No contacts of interest have been found to date," said an official.

"This is the best lead we have in the search for missing flight MH370."

Hishammuddin Hussein, acting Malaysia Transport Minister, told a news conference on Saturday: "The immediate search area that the Bluefin-21 is scouring should be completed within the next week.

"All efforts will be intensified in the next few days in regards to the search."

The underwater hunt is complicated by the depth of the largely unexplored sea floor. The US Navy's unmanned sub has already gone beyond its recommended limit of 4,500 meters (15,000 feet).

Malaysia flight MH370 took off from Kuala Lumpur on March 8 bound for Beijing. But an hour into the flight it disappeared from radar. There were 239 people on board, mostly Chinese citizens.

Some families of those on board refuse to believe the aircraft crashed into the sea and have instead denounced the search effort as a cover-up.

Up to 11 military aircraft and 12 ships are assisting the search over the long Easter bank holiday weekend. The total search area is 31,000 square miles (50,200 sq km), across three areas.

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Ukraine: 'Five Killed At Separatist Checkpoint'

Russian state TV has reported that five people were killed at a checkpoint manned by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.

State-run Rossiya 24 news station said the five died when gunmen attacked the post near the Ukrainian city of Slavyansk.

Rossiya 24's correspondent in Slavyansk said three of the dead were with the pro-Russian separatists who control Slavyansk, and the other two were from the group that attacked their checkpoint.

A witness later told Reuters TV that he had seen two bodies at the checkpoint, one of them with gunshot wounds to the head and face.

One of the dead was dressed in combat fatigues and the other in civilian clothes, the witness said

Police were at the scene carrying out an investigation, he added.

More follows...

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South Korean Ferry Families Clash With Police

Distraught relatives of hundreds of missing passengers on board the sunken South Korean ferry have clashed with police as the official death toll rises.

Up to 100 relatives gathered near a bridge linking the southwestern port city of Jindo to the mainland and tried to march across to take their protest to the capital, Seoul.

But police formed two lines to prevent the pushing and shoving relatives reaching the bridge.

"The government is the killer," some of the relatives shouted, as they pressed against the police lines.

An angry relative at the police barricade

"We want an answer from the person in charge about why orders are not going through and nothing is being done," Lee Woon-Geun, father of missing passenger Lee Jung-in, 17, said.

"They are clearly lying and kicking the responsibility to others."

Divers have recovered more bodies inside the South Korean sunken ferry, pushing the confirmed death toll to 50, officials say.

The discovery came after divers gained access to the inside of the ferry for the first time after three days of failed attempts due to strong currents and poor visibility.

"At 11.48pm the joint rescue team broke a glass window and succeeded in getting inside the vessel," the South Korean government said in a statement.

Divers have entered the ship for the first time

Officials said the bodies were found inside the ferry but did not provide further details.

Hundreds of government, military and civilian divers have been involved in the search.

It is thought 252 people, most of them children on a school trip, are still missing. There are 174 known survivors.

The 69-year-old captain of the ferry, Lee Joon-Seok, has been arrested on suspicion of negligence and abandoning people in need.

Two other crew members have also been taken into custody.

Ferry Captain Lee Joon-Seok has apologised to families of the victims

They include a 25-year-old female third mate who prosecutors claim was steering the ferry for the first time through dangerous waters when the accident occurred on Wednesday.

Early reports suggest that the ferry, on a 300-mile (400km) voyage from the mainland port of Incheon to the resort island of Jeju, may have turned sharply and then listed before capsizing.

Investigators are looking at how the cargo was stowed, the safety record of the ship operator and the actions of the crew.

Witnesses say Lee and other crew members left the sinking ship before many of the passengers and that orders to evacuate were either not given, or not heard.

A man identified as Cpt Lee is seen being rescued from the sinking ferry

Lee said he feared that passengers would be swept away by the ferocious currents in the area if they leapt into the sea, but has not explained why he left the vessel.

In a TV address Lee, who has more than 40 years of experience at sea, said: "I am sorry to the people of South Korea for causing a disturbance and I bow my head in apology to the families of the victims.

"I gave instructions regarding the route, then I briefly went to the bedroom and then it happened.

"At the time, the current was very strong, temperature of the ocean water was cold, and I thought that if people left the ferry without (proper) judgement, if they were not wearing a life jacket, and even if they were, they would drift away and face many other difficulties.

Family members wait for news from rescue teams in a gym in Jindo

"The rescue boats had not arrived yet, nor were there any civilian fishing ships or other boats nearby at that time. There was a mistake on my behalf as well but the steering (gear of the ship) turned further than it was supposed to."

Hundreds of relatives gathered in a gymnasium in Jindo have spent days and nights awaiting news of their relatives on the ship.

Out of all the people on the ferry, 339 were either pupils or teachers from Danwon High School near Seoul.

The vice principal of the school who was on the ferry and survived was found hanged on Friday.

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