Benghazi Attack: FBI Seeks Three Men At Scene

The FBI is seeking information on three people who were in the grounds of the US diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, when it was attacked on September 11.

The bureau has published photographs of the trio and said they may be able to provide information as officials continue to investigate the events of that night.

The blurry CCTV images show three different men walking the consulate grounds and carrying assault weapons.

"We need your help to solve this crime," the FBI said.

Heavily armed militants stormed the consulate last summer, killing US ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other Americans.

In a posting on the FBI's website, the agency urges anyone with information related to the men to come forward or report it confidentially.

Four Americans were killed in the attack

Eight months later Republican lawmakers continue to question the Obama administration about the attack.

A Congressional report released in January was highly critical of the State Department's handling of security at the mission, and its failure to ramp up protection after threats were made ahead of the attack.

The White House's response to the incident has also been called into question. The administration first classified it as a spontaneous protest instead of the deliberate attack it was later found to have been.

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North Korea Reactor 'Could Produce Plutonium'

New satellite images of North Korea suggest it is nearing completion of a reactor designed for generating electricity - but which will have the capability to produce plutonium.

US academics who visited the site at the Yongbyon nuclear complex in 2010 concluded the reactor was being built for electricity.

Kim Jong-Un shut down a reactor in 2007 during aid negotiations

But analysts say that once complete the reactor will have a residual capability to produce weapons-grade plutonium.

The pictures have been published on 38 North - the website of the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies.

The images - the most recent taken last month - show what appear to be external finishing touches made to the complex.

North Korea revealed an industrial-scale uranium enrichment facility in 2010 designed to provide fuel for the light-water reactor.

This development caused international alarm because of the potential for the centrifuges to be reconfigured to produce highly-enriched uranium - another means of creating fissile material for weapons.

If North Korea has produced enough low-enriched uranium to run the new reactor, it could commence the lengthy process of starting it up in the coming weeks, and be fully operational during the first half of 2014.

Containing the nuclear fuel and keeping the reactor cool pose major challenges - as would unforeseen events like natural disasters that caused a meltdown in Japan's Fukushima reactor in 2011, the analysis says.

"Pyongyang is probably planning to build additional power reactors to end its electricity shortage and help solve its economic problems," said Joel Wit, a former State Department official and editor of 38 North.

The latest image taken in March 2013 shows what could a water channel

"It may have some residual ability to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons, but the biggest concern about these reactors is whether they are safe or not," he added.

North Korea announced in April that it was restarting an older reactor at Yongbyon from which it is estimated to have derived enough plutonium for six bombs.

The reactor was closed in 2007 during aid-for-disarmament negotiations.

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Somali President Says Terrorists Are Defeated

By Alex Crawford, Special Correspondent, in Mogadishu

Al Shabaab terrorists operating in Somalia have been "defeated as a fighting force" after decades of creating havoc, according to the country's president.

But President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has warned that the extremists are an international network with links to al Qaeda and they still have the ability to mount attacks both inside Somalia and abroad.

The president is travelling to England next week to jointly chair an international conference with the British Prime Minister on Somalia's future.

He will be trying to convince backers like Britain and America that, despite more than two decades of financial support, their help is not only still needed but as crucial as ever.

"Somalia is so close to coming out of the quagmire," he told Sky News in his only television interview ahead of the conference.

"I say, please bear with us and stretch your patience just a little bit and you will get the kind of Somalia you have been dreaming of for 22 years."

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has asked for patience

The president is the first elected leader in more than two decades and is heading up the first permanent government in that time.

He has only been in his job for eight months but with United Nations support there finally seems to be some progress in a country known as being the world's most fragile state.

International money along with the 18,000 African Union peacekeepers in the country has meant tentative stability in a nation more used to war.

The extremists have mostly been driven out of the capital Mogadishu and the joint Somali and African Union troops continue to take territory once held by the Islamists.

Many Somalis who once fled to safety in exile are now returning from their bolt holes around the world to set up businesses and live once again in their homeland.

There are big efforts to train the newly bolstered national army and police force, and the first permanent government is widely seen as legitimate and progressive.

But the terrorists' capacity to wreak havoc was demonstrated just a few weeks ago when al Shabaab extremists stormed the capital's court buildings, firing guns and setting off explosions.

The attack triggered a gunfight between the terrorists and the Somali security forces and at least 20 people were killed.

And over the past few days the capital has been virtually locked down due to fears of another attack.

But there is still a definite feeling of confidence among the Somali forces and the African Union peacekeepers that progress is being made bit by bit.

A new British embassy has been opened in the terror-ravaged country

Colonel Kassim Roble is one of the returning diaspora, lured back to his motherland after becoming convinced Somalia has turned the corner.

He had spent the previous eight years in Leicester before deciding to return home last year.

"Security is getting better every day, every month, every hour," he told Sky from the newly renovated Ministry of Defence in the capital. "We are in charge of 85% to 90% of the city (of Mogadishu)."

He put much of the change down to a fresh focus by the country's new president who has insisted funds be used to improve conditions for the troops with better salaries, better food and better training.

"The morale is now very good," said the colonel.

His words were echoed by peacekeepers from the African Union who are involved in helping secure areas but also mentoring and training the Somali security forces.

"Peace is coming back to Somalia," one Nigerian commander said. "The people are out on the streets, doing business again. The danger is not so much now. There's is a lot of difference even since a few months ago."

But the insecurity is never far away and there are concerns that without international community help, the fragile stability will shatter and be reversed.

"Al Shabaab is an international operation. They are operating inside Somalia but they are part of an international terror network," the president told Sky News.

"Somalia is just a small country, ill-equipped and ill-trained. Shabaab is defeated as a fighting force. Soon there will be no front line or no place they are in control of.

"But when they are defeated militarily, the way they work is they go into the society - so the suicide bombers and roadside bombings and grenade-throwing will go on for some time.

"But they will be defeated. They are about to be defeated and they are on the run."

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Guantanamo: Obama Pursues Prison Closure Again

President Barack Obama has said he will "re-engage" Congress on his failed attempt to close down the US detention centre at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.

Mr Obama called for the controversial prison's closure as a candidate for the White House in 2008, and vowed to shut the centre's gates for good within his first year in office.

But lawmakers on Capitol Hill objected and the facility has remained open.

Obama promised to close down Guanatamo in the first hear of his presidency

"It needs to be closed," Mr Obama told a White House news conference on Tuesday. "I'm going to go back at this."

He said: "I think it is critical for us to understand that Guantanamo is not necessary to keep America safe.

"It is expensive. It is inefficient. It hurts us in terms of our international standing. It lessens co-operation with our allies on counter-terrorism efforts. It is a recruiting tool for extremists."

A spreading hunger strike by prisoners, who are protesting their indefinite detention without charges or trials, has drawn new attention to the controversial camp.

A majority of the prison's 166 inmates are said to be on hunger strikes

Mr Obama said he was not surprised there are problems at the facility, where a recent tally indicated 100 of the prison's 166 detainees are refusing food.

Asked about the strikes, he said: "I don't want these individuals to die", adding that the Pentagon was doing what it could to manage the situation.

Mr Obama warned the situation would only get worse, and said it made no sense to hold more than 100 people in a "no man's land" indefinitely.

Activists rally for the prison's closure outside the White House

He urged Congress to help him find a long-term solution that would allow for prosecuting terror suspects while shuttering the detention centre.

Rights groups, which have long branded the prison as a legal "black hole", welcomed the president's remarks.

Daphne Eviatar, of Human Rights First, said in a statement: "The writing is on the wall. It's time for the failed Guantanamo experiment to end and for our nation to return to the values that have kept us strong."

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Amanda Knox: I Want To Visit Meredith's Grave

Amanda Knox has said she wants to visit the grave of Meredith Kercher - but only with the permission of the murdered British student's family.

In her first television interview since being freed from an Italian prison, she said: "Eventually I can have their permission to pay my respects at her grave and I would also like them to know that she talked about them to me."

Italian prosecutors claim Miss Knox and her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, killed Miss Kercher, 21, in a drug-fuelled sex game along with another man in 2007.

Miss Knox's alibi rests on her claim that she was at Mr Sollecito's house on the night, and not at the Perugia flat she shared with Miss Kercher.

But during a police interrogation she admitted she was at home with Miss Kercher.

Miss Knox insists she was at Mr Sollecito's home on the night in question

When questioned by ABC News' Diane Sawyer as she launched her book on her experience, she insisted the partial confession was the result of her "breaking down".

"I didn't confess. I was interrogated," Miss Knox told ABC News. "(The police) acted like my answers were wrong, they told me I was wrong, that I didn't remember correctly, that I had to remember correctly, and that if I didn't I would never see her family.

"I can only describe it as breaking down, I didn't know what I remembered and what I didn't remember anymore. I was incredibly vulnerable at that time."

In the memoir, she writes about how she also considered suicide while in prison.

Miss Knox - who is facing a retrial over the killing - insists in the interview that she did not leave Mr Sollecito's home.

Miss Knox says she wants to visit the grave of Miss Kercher

"We stayed in, had dinner, we watched a movie, we smoked, we had sex, we were together.

"We just hung out together, we talked, we talked about his mum, we made silly faces at each other.

"We stayed in the whole night."

The 25-year-old said she returned to the home she shared with Miss Kercher the next morning, but despite the front door being wide-open and spotting blood on the sink she took a shower.

"At the sink when I was taking out my earrings I noticed there were speckles of blood. But speckles, a few drops."

She said that when she got out of the shower she noticed a bloodied bath mat, adding: "I thought it was strange."

She returned to Mr Sollecito's home, and says she told him of her concerns after breakfast. He called police, who discovered Miss Kercher's body.

"It never occurred to me that I would ever be considered a suspect. Ever."

Miss Knox denied claims there had been any tension with Miss Kercher in the run-up to her death.

"It bothers me when people suggest that she wasn't my friend," she said. "I was stunned by her death, she was my friend."

During her original trial, much was made of Miss Knox's apparent lack of grief following Miss Kercher's death.

Miss Knox admitted she "could have been more sensitive" but said people deal with grief in different ways.

Her murder conviction was overturned in October 2011, but in March an Italian court ordered a retrial for both her and Mr Sollecito, 29.

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Three British Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan

Three British soldiers have been killed in a roadside bomb attack in Helmand Province in Afghanistan.

The soldiers from The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, were killed when their vehicle struck an improvised explosive device (IED) whilst on a routine patrol, the Ministry of Defence said.

The attack took place on Tuesday in the Nahr-e Saraj district. The three were evacuated by air to the military hospital at Camp Bastion but could not be saved, the MoD said.

Their families have been informed.

Sky's Defence Correspondent Alistair Bunkall says another six have been injured.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the country has paid a "very high price" for the work it is doing in Afghanistan.

The soldiers were aboard a heavily-armoured Mastiff vehicle

"It is important work because it's vital that country doesn't again become a haven for terrorists - terrorists that can threaten us here in the UK," Mr Cameron added.

"But today our thoughts should be with the families and friends of those that have suffered."

The deaths bring the total number of British troops killed in Afghanistan to 404 in the past 12 years, with total losses at 444.

Six have now died in 2013.

A ministry spokesman said the attack "underlines the threats faced by our personnel as they continue to hand over security operations to their Afghan counterparts ahead of UK combat operations concluding by the end of next year".

"Security in Helmand, where most UK forces are based, is steadily improving with Afghan forces already responsible for the bulk of the province - but the environment in which our troops operate remains risky and dangerous, including the threat of improvised explosive devices and insurgent attack.

"We will continue to do all we can to minimise these risks but they can never be removed entirely."

The attack came on the third day of what the Taliban has called its spring offensive. In past years, spring has marked a significant upsurge in fighting between the Taliban and Nato forces with their local allies.

This fighting season is a key test, as the international coalition is scheduled to hand over security responsibilities to Afghan forces next year.

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Libya Facing 'Perilous' Security Situation

Some 200 gunmen have surrounded Libya's Foreign Ministry in Tripoli and demanded the government hire former fighters who helped overthrow the regime of former leader Colonel Gaddafi.

Armed men also stormed the Interior Ministry and a state-owned television station causing employees and security personnel to flee the building.

The men allege the ministry has not paid their salaries and that many supporters of the old regime are still holding senior positions in the Libyan government.

PM Ali Zidan warned that Libya is facing a perilous security situation

Libya's Prime Minister, Ali Zidan, has warned the country is facing a perilous security situation two years after the civil war that left many thousands dead.

Gunmen who stormed the al Wataniya TV channel, forcing employees out and live shows to be taken off air, demanded the removal of what they claimed were Gaddafi-era officials from the station.

The station was temporarily shut down recently when employees protested against armed militias providing security for the building instead of regular forces.

Mr Zidan told reporters in Tripoli that the situation could weaken Libya's standing in the international community.

"If the situation persists, it will give Libya a bad reputation and lead to foreign companies pulling out and embassies closing down," he warned.

Mr Zidan was himself besieged in his office last month by militiamen over remarks he made threatening to summon outside help to confront the armed groups.

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Dubai: British Trio Jailed For Four Years

Three British men, who say they were beaten by Dubai police and had guns held to their heads, have been sentenced to four years in prison for drug offences.

Grant Cameron, 25, Karl Williams, 26, and Suneet Jeerh, 25, were found guilty of possession of synthetic cannabis, known as spice.

The men, from London, were arrested last July while they were on holiday in the Gulf state.

Cameron's mother, Tracy, told Sky News her son was subjected to electric shocks and beatings at the hands of police.

The three also claimed they were forced to sign documents in Arabic - a language none of them understands - after having guns put to their heads.

Mrs Cameron said on Sunday: "When he was initially arrested, the three boys were separated, handcuffed, put into cars and driven into the desert.

"It did appear that the CID officers were using different tactics to try and disorientate the boys.

"They were beaten while handcuffed while in separate cars. Beaten around the head, guns were held to their head and they received various Taser injuries as well."

Tracy Cameron

Williams also said he had electric shocks administered to his testicles.

Following the sentencing Mrs Cameron said she was "ecstatic" with the result - the men's families had originally been warned they could face the death penalty.

She told Sky News she was confident the men will be granted pardons during an amnesty in Ramadan in July and will be free by the end of the year.

She said she had seen her son for two hours last Thursday and that he is being held in a maximum security prison in "quite harsh conditions".

Pressure group Reprieve, which campaigns on behalf of prisoners, said the men should be granted clemency and their torture allegations should be thoroughly investigated.

Reprieve investigator Kate Higham said: "The central fact of this case remains that these men were tortured by police, but there has been no proper investigation into their abuse.

"The only reasonable course of action for the UAE authorities now is to grant these men clemency, release them and allow them to return home to their families.

"David Cameron must push for this when UAE President Sheikh Khalifa arrives on a state visit tomorrow."

The UAE has said it has investigated the allegations of torture and found them "baseless".

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has called for a full, independent and impartial inquiry into the torture allegations and has raised them with "very senior officials" in the UAE.

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Syrian Prime Minister Survives Bomb Attack

Syria's prime minister Wael Nader al Halqi survives a bomb attack in central Damascus, according to reports.

State-run TV reported that the blast went off near a school in the capital's western neighbourhood of Mazzeh.

It said: "The terrorist explosion in al Mazzeh was an attempt to target the convoy of the prime minister.

"Doctor Wael al Halqi is well and not hurt at all."

Mazzeh is where many government and military institutions are situated and where senior Syrian officials live.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the assassination attempt killed the prime minister's bodyguard.

Damascus has been hit by a string of bomb blasts in recent months that has left hundreds of people dead or wounded.

The Syrian government blames Muslim extremists trying to overthrow President Bashar al Assad for the attacks.

In July last year, an explosion at the Syrian national security building in the capital during a meeting of Cabinet ministers killed the defence minister and his deputy - Assad's brother-in-law.

More follows...

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Obama Warns Syria Over Weapons 'Game Changer'

Syria: Evidence Is No Smoking Gun

Updated: 2:39pm UK, Friday 26 April 2013

By Lisa Holland, Foreign Affairs Correspondent

Vital questions remain unanswered over the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Like the scale of casualties. Who fired the weapons? Who gave the orders?

To get that kind of information the Syrian government would need to allow in international inspectors and that isn't going to happen.

If chemical weapons have been deployed by government forces President Bashar al Assad won't cooperate in arranging a noose for his own neck.

If there is to be conclusive proof of the crossing of a "red line" Mr Assad would have to carry out an atrocity akin to the actions of Saddam Hussein against the Kurds in Halabja in 1988, where chemical weapons were used to kill at least 5,000.

It's estimated a further 7,000 were injured or suffered long-term illnesses. The nerve agents tabun, sarin and VX, as well as mustard gas, were believed to have been used at Halabja.

But Mr Assad is far too clever to carry out an attack like Halabja. He knows such an undeniable use of chemical weapons would leave the international community with no choice but to make good on its threats.

It would leave the Russians with no option but to finally and publicly turn their backs on him. For now having the Russians sitting on the diplomatic fence renders the United Nations Security Council impotent. Russia has the power of veto enabling it to block meaningful sanctions and actions against Syria.

The UN says it has a  fact-finding team on stand-by in Cyprus ready to go into Syria within 24 hours. They may well have a long wait.

The UN team has been given permission to investigate claims of chemical weapons use in Syria's second city of Aleppo but they say they will not go in unless they are given permission for a country-wide investigation. That's something the Syrians have refused.

The British Government is keeping up diplomatic pressure to try to get investigators and evidence-gatherers into Syria. But just like all other aspects of diplomacy in Syria right now there's a lot of "keeping up pressure" but little progress.

David Cameron knows only too well the consequences of rushing to conclusions without proof. Anyone remember the fruitless hunt for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq?

Astonishingly, the US Republican Senator John McCain said "it's pretty obvious that red line has been crossed".  Sorry Mr McCain but where is the evidence of a smoking gun?

US President Barack Obama is being much more cautious. With America now out of Iraq and heading towards the finishing line in Afghanistan he doesn't want to rush into another war in another Muslim country.

And keeping Americans safe isn't all about the Middle East. The despot who cried wolf in North Korea - otherwise known as Kim Yong Un - hasn't entirely gone away.

North Korea's new young leader has been threatening to launch a war against America. It seems like a cry for attention rather than a promise.

But just in case Mr Kim means business it wouldn't be ideal to have American troops deployed to north-east Asia and Syria just as quickly as they had got out of Iraq and Afghanistan - which leads us to the conclusion that we are no nearer military intervention in Syria than we were before this latest round of intelligence claims.

So whatever Mr McCain says this is not a game-changing moment. Expect more deaths, more refugees, more atrocities and more heart-rending stories of despair from Syria.

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