Guinea Closes Borders To Stop Ebola Outbreak

Guinea has closed its borders with Sierra Leone and Liberia in an attempt to stop the spread of ebola in West Africa.

The outbreak - the most serious since the disease first emerged in Africa 40 years ago - has so far killed nearly 1,000 people in the three countries this year.

"We have provisionally closed the frontier between Guinea and Sierra Leone because of all the news that we have received from there recently," Health Minister Rémy Lamah told a news conference.

She said the border has also been closed with Liberia.

The World Health Organisation has declared an international health emergency and said the virus may continue spreading for months.

On Friday, Nigeria became the third African nation, after Sierra Leone and Liberia, to declare a national emergency as hospitals struggled to cope with increasing cases.

"The outbreak is moving faster than we can control it," WHO Director-General Margaret Chan told reporters at a news briefing in Geneva.

She said all countries with ebola should declare a national emergency, but said a ban on international travel is not needed.

Some 1,779 people have been infected and 961 people have died in the outbreak, according to the latest WHO figures.

Most of the cases are in the remote area where Guinea borders Sierra Leone and Liberia.

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Obama: Islamist Arms And Equipment Destroyed

US warplanes have succeeded in destroying arms and equipment that could have been used to attack the Kurdish capital Irbil, President Barack Obama has revealed.

The American commander-in-chief said the US is stepping up assistance to Kurdish forces in Iraq to counter the advance of Islamic State (IS) forces in Iraq, during a special address on the lawn of the White House.

Earlier the Pentagon said that two F/A-18 aircraft from a carrier in the Gulf had dropped laser-guided 500-pound bombs on the fighters' artillery.

The advance of IS, previously known as ISIS or ISIL, has forced up to 50,000 people from Iraq's Yazidi community from their homes in the north east into the Sinjar mountains.

A before and after shot showing the result of American airstrikes

Several witnesses said on Saturday that IS have threatened to kill more than 300 Yazidi families unless they convert to Islam and have advanced to within a half an hour of Irbil.

Three US cargo planes escorted by the F/A-18 combat jets dropped 28,224 individually packaged meals and 1,522 gallons of fresh drinking water.

He said the US was now working out, together with its allies, how to create a "safe corridor" that would allow Yazidi people trapped in the mountains to be moved to safety.

British aid is loaded on to an RAF Hercules to be taken to Iraq

The US president, who was about to head to Martha's Vineyard on holiday, said that the IS advance had been faster than expected and that it would take "some time" to solve Iraq's problems.

Among the most urgent needs, he said, was for Iraq to form a stable government that could work out how to tackle the problem of IS for itself.

"I'm not going to give a particular timetable, because as I've said from the start, wherever and whenever US personnel and facilities are threatened, it's my obligation, my responsibility as commander-in-chief, to make sure they are protected," he said.

He repeated comments he made earlier on Saturday, during his weekly address to the nations, that  US combat troops were not going to be dragged into fighting another war on the ground.

Thousands of Yazidis have fled the advance of Islamist militants in Iraq

Two British cargo planes are due to drop supplies including tents, blankets, food, water and solar lanterns "imminently", UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said.

The British minister said that the UK was fully supportive of the US operation.

Mr Hammond said: "We can expect a continuing drumbeat of airdrop operations working in co-ordination with the US and potentially with others as well.

"But more widely we are looking at how to support this group of people and get them off that mountain, how we are going to facilitate their exit from what is a completely unacceptable situation."

America has agreed to supply Kurdish Peshmerger fighters with weapons

The UK's Department for International Development has pledged £8m worth of aid and a fund raising campaign by the Disasters Emergency Committee had raised £4.5m by Saturday afternoon.

As Mr Obama was speaking, it emerged that Islamist militants had clashed with villagers in Lebanon, engaging in a firefight before withdrawing into Syria.

Because of the crisis, all US civilian aircraft and British Airways planes are no longer flying over Iraq. Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines have also halted their flights to Irbil until Monday.

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Chinese Drivers Forced To Stare At Headlights

Police in China have begun punishing drivers who dazzle other motorists by forcing them to stare at full-beam headlights for five minutes.

Officers hope the ordeal will stop drivers blinding others

Officers in the southern city of Shenzhen are using the unusual penalty to crack down on motorists who inappropriately flash their lights.

Drivers are ordered to sit on a small plastic stool and stare at the front of a police vehicle while its headlights are turned on full beam for five minutes.

Shenzhen traffic police announced the optical ordeal on their Weibo account, a Chinese version of Twitter, saying it was an "appropriate experience" that would make offenders "sense the harm" of flashing their lights.

The punishment was announced on Shenzhen police's Weibo account

"From now on, traffic police will make those found carelessly using bright lights to look at them for five minutes," they warned.

Offenders are also lectured about properly using their headlights and fined 300 yuan (£30).

The punishment has sparked ridicule and anger on Chinese social media.

One blogger, called Darkcity2, said: "I live in Shanghai. Of all the absolutely mind-bogglingly inconsiderate **** drivers do on the road here, driving with your high beams on is low on the list."

However, some said the punishment did not go far enough.

"I'm hitting 'likes' with my hands and feet," @shenzhenlaocui wrote.

"Full-beam headlights are evil. I suggest they extend the stare time to 30 minutes, splitting it into three time periods, and let people take a 60-second break in between."

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Israeli Shells Pound Gaza As Fighting Resumes

Hamas has vowed it will not back down as Israel pounded Gaza with a fresh wave of strikes, killing five Palestinians.

The Israeli military has launched 30 airstrikes on Gaza since midnight on Saturday as talks to extend the temporary ceasefire stalled.

Palestinian health officials claim senior Hamas official Moaaz Zaid was among three Palestinians killed in an attack on a mosque. Two people travelling on a motorcycle died when they were struck by a bomb.

Another two Palestinians were shot dead by soldiers and dozens wounded in clashes with Israeli forces amid violent protests in occupied West Bank.

Palestinians pray over the bodies of three members of the same family

The deaths bring the number of dead in the month-long conflict to nearly 1,900. The United Nations, which has condemned Israel's actions, say 1,354 of those killed have been civilians.

Israel has lost 64 soldiers during the conflict, while three civilians have died from rocket fire into the country.

It comes after the UK, France and Germany issued a joint declaration on Saturday urging a ceasefire in Gaza.

Smoke rises from what witnesses said was an Israeli strike on Gaza City

Israel says Hamas has fired six rockets across the border since the 72-hour ceasefire ended on Friday morning.

Hamas spokesman Fawzy Barhum said: "There will be no going back, the resistance will continue. The occupier's intransigence will get it nowhere and we will make no concessions on the demands of our people."

Britain announced it would send a team of NHS experts to help victims wounded in Gaza.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: "The conflict in Gaza has taken a terrible toll.

Palestinian protesters clash with Israeli border guards in West Bank

"The NHS has always stepped up to the plate to help those in need and this expert team will play a crucial role in helping hundreds caught up in this conflict."

The UK team consists of doctors, nurses, surgeons, anaesthetists and paramedics - and their specialities include trauma and plastic surgery.

And the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) said its appeal for Gaza had raised £4.5m from the British public in less than 24 hours.

A Palestinian boy sleeps in a UN-organised shelter

Mr Cameron is under increasing pressure to suspend arms exports from British manufacturers to Israeli forces following the resignation of foreign minister Baroness Warsi over the Government's line on Gaza this week.

Lady Warsi said the Government's approach had been "morally indefensible" and has stepped up her call for action to be taken.

"For me at that moment the concern that I had was that even if the ceasefire had held, and I sincerely hoped it had, there was still no clear language from the Government in relation to the condemnation of what had happened," she said.

Protesters in London march on Hyde Park

"There was no clear commitment that we would lead the international effort on accountability on both sides for what had happened.

"Our language was not there. It was lagging behind. I don't think it was just words that would have stopped me from doing what I did.

"I think it was a combination of issues. It was the language that we were using, I think it was our lack of support for international justice and accountability for the crimes that had been committed."

In London protesters calling for an end to the "massacre" in Gaza marched on Hyde Park.

Baroness Warsi's resiganation has placed pressure on David Cameron

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has urged the coalition to halt arms export licences for ammunition, drone parts and armoured vehicles, which are being used in Operation Protective Edge. He had indicated on Thursday an announcement would be imminent.

The United States said it still hoped the three-day ceasefire could be revived and Egypt, which attempting to broker peace between Israelis and Palestinians with US and European mediators, insisted negotiations were making progress.

However, little movement seems to have been achieved and the two sides are still far apart on meeting terms of agreement.

In an interview with the New York Times on Friday, Barack Obama urged Israel to recognise Palestinians had a right to land and space to live.

He said: "It has consistently been my belief that you have to find a way to live side by side in peace with Palestinians ... You have to recognise that they have legitimate claims, and this is their land and neighbourhood as well."

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Woman Kidnapped At Gunpoint Found In Garage

A woman who was kidnapped at gunpoint and held for ransom for two days without any food or water has been rescued, police say.

The 44-year-old victim was found tied up with duct tape in a garage in Los Angeles County.

She was weak and dehydrated but was expected to make a full recovery.

Authorities say she was taken on Monday after a woman she had worked with for years offered her a ride home.

The victim's family received a telephone call demanding $110,000 (£65,000) and warning she would be harmed or killed if it was not paid.

No ransom was paid.

About 25 sheriff's detectives, who worked around the clock to find the woman, discovered her on Wednesday.

Two couples from the Rowland Heights area of LA County remain in custody after pleading not guilty to kidnapping for ransom and conspiracy.

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Sinister Edge To Israel's Divisions Over Gaza

Five years ago I covered Operation Cast Lead, the precursor to Israel's recent offensive against Hamas in Gaza. This week I went back for the latest sequel and its aftermath.

Some things were different, but depressingly despite the passage of the time, many things were the same.

This time the Israelis allowed the world's media into Gaza, rather than keeping them out and stuck on one hill overlooking the coastal strip.

Israel's Iron Dome system has made them better at shooting down Hamas rockets. Hamas has become more effective at killing Israeli soldiers and firing longer range rockets.

But, more broadly speaking, the fundamentals haven't changed. 

It was another futile exchange of missiles across the Gaza border with massive loss of civilian life inside the strip, ending in a stalemate that both sides know means they will be at it again before long.

A Palestinian flag flies among the ruins of destroyed buildings

Israel prides itself on being the only democracy in the Middle East.

It's always been a vibrant rambunctious democracy with room for sharp differences and fierce argument. Israelis would have it no other way.

But there's been a sinister edge to the divisions thrown up by this war that seems new.

Protest has always played an important role in Israeli political life. For the first time they were accompanied with violent counter protest. 

Leftist groups taking to the squares of Tel Aviv to protest against the war were set upon by nationalist thugs, hurling abuse, spitting and in some cases assaulting the demonstrators. 

The police in some cases intervened to protect the victims but not always in time.

Some Israel left-wing protesters have been spat at and attacked

The Israelis were shown little of what British news audiences saw every night on their television screens of the carnage in Gaza. And there was little criticism.

One journalist who dared speak out against that consensus received death threats so serious his newspaper has been forced to hire him a bodyguard.

Left-wing journalist Gideon Levy broke an Israeli taboo by using his column in Haaretz newspaper to criticise the Israeli Air Force pilots bombing civilian homes in Gaza while trying to kill Hamas fighters. 

The backlash on the streets has left him stunned.

There are parts of Tel Aviv he no longer visits because of the abuse he can expect from the public. On Facebook, people warned him he could soon be the "late Gideon Levy".

Israeli soldiers rest near the Gaza border

The response to his article baffles him. He says: "I try to raise my voice, which is quite a lonely voice here, and I really wonder why do they freak out so much. 

"The majority is so clear. The media is speaking so much in one voice, why does one single voice in one single newspaper (matter)?"

Levy views it as a dangerous development in a country that has long regarded its liberal democracy as one of its greatest assets.

"Above all, it worries me about the future because I'm not sure that this is reversible. 

"I'm very worried that this lack of tolerance towards any kind of critics in times of war might turn also into a lack of tolerance for any minority and any criticism in times of peace."

Some 1,900 Palestinians have been killed and thousands more wounded

Opinion polls suggest Israel has moved further to the right during the war and were an election to be held today politicians on the right would benefit.  

That has implications for whatever is left of hopes for the two-state solution to the conflict.

Danny Danon, a rising star of the right, was fired from his job of Deputy Defence Minister for accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being too soft during the conflict. But he remains a powerful force in the ruling Likud party.

Israel should have stayed in Gaza and finished the job, Danon believes. 

And the events of recent weeks, he says, are further grounds for rejecting the idea of a Palestinian state.

"I don't want to see a terror state in my backyard," he told me.

Ex-Defence Minister Danny Danon wanted tougher action in Gaza

"If we were to allow a Palestinian state today to be evolved in Judea Samaria it's only a matter of time until Hamas will take over in Judea and Samaria, so you do a copy and paste to what is happening today in Gaza into Judea and Samaria."

Many people have reservations about the idea of a two-state solution, though for wildly diverging reasons.

It is still the only peace plan in town but many here and some in Western governments fear its time has already come and gone.

William Hague told me the window of opportunity for the creation of a Palestinian state was closing more than three years ago. 

When I asked him about that 18 months later he said some windows close slower than others.

Publicly, policymakers may still support the idea but they sound less and less convincing and less and less convinced.

The problem is no one else seems to have a clue what to do instead. 

Mr Danon's plan is for a three-state solution.

Egypt takes some kind of responsibility for Gaza, which it will not want. Jordan does the same for the West Bank, as if the addition of more than a million Palestinians to those already within its borders would be welcome. 

And all Israeli settlements on occupied land stay with Israel leaving a Bantustan network of isolated Palestinian towns and villages. 

Serious attempt to address the interests and needs of 2.5 million people or Zionist fantasy? You take your pick.

There are several other imaginative solutions, none of them likely to fly with Palestinians or the international community.

And without the support of either, peace will not come, which means a lot more of what we've seen in the last few weeks.

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Britain Braced For Flash Floods From Bertha

Heavy rain has caused flash flooding in parts of the UK - and forecasters are warning of further storms on Sunday as the remnants of Hurricane Bertha hit.

The Met Office says Bertha's transition from a tropical to an extra-tropical storm is a "particularly hard one to forecast" but it is expected to affect the UK tomorrow.

The British Red Cross said it was on standby and has enlisted hundreds of volunteers to help people in affected areas.

Lightning hits Eggborough Power Station in Yorkshire. Pic: Phil Lowe

Residents had to be evacuated after heavy rain flooded several streets in the Lincolnshire town of Louth on Friday.

Downpours also led to waterlogged roads in and around York and in Maidstone, Kent.

There were reports of power outages in Cambridgeshire, where the A14 was flooded.

Old Trafford, where England's test match has been disrupted by heavy rain

Environment Agency flood warnings and alerts remain in place in numerous parts of the country.

Friday's rainy weather - which saw more than a month's rainfall overnight - was unconnected to Hurricane Bertha, which has been travelling across the Atlantic.

Bertha wreaked havoc in the Caribbean islands with gusts of more than 90mph, leaving thousands of homes without power.

A flash flood following heavy rain in Maidstone, Kent

Sky News weather presenter Isobel Lang said: "Ex-hurricane Bertha has become more of a typical depression now, albeit with very warm, moist air wrapped up within it.

"It is looking likely that the storm will reach southwest England and Wales by around 6am on Sunday and then track northeast across northern England during the afternoon, to eventually lie off the east coast of Scotland on Sunday night.

There could be more floods on Sunday

"Gusts of 50mph to 60mph are expected, especially along the south coast with large waves, spray and the chance of some coastal flooding.

Met Office chief meteorologist Paul Gundersen said there was still a chance that the storm may pass to the south of the country, giving the UK a brighter day.

But Environment Agency flood risk manager, Craig Woolhouse, said: "Heavy rain on Sunday may lead to localised surface water flooding in some parts of England and Wales.

"On Sunday and Monday a combination of high spring tides and strong westerly winds brings a risk of large waves and spray and possible flooding to the South West coast of England and along the Severn Estuary."

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Supersonic 'Flying Saucer' Video Released By Nasa

Footage of a supersonic "flying saucer" has been released by Nasa, as the agency attempts to find a process for landing heavier spacecraft on Mars.

The video of the spinning saucer, launched from Hawaii, shows it being shot 120,000ft into orbit by a giant balloon.

A giant balloon launches the craft into space

Officially called a Low Density Supersonic Decelerator, the spacecraft is part of a system designed to slow down landings in space.

The device borrows the rapid inflation technique of the Hawaiian puffer fish to slow the landing - reducing its velocity from four times the speed of sound to two and a half times the speed of sound.

The parachute is ripped to pieces

The footage, shot on June 28, shows a giant parachute being shot out once the slower speed is reached and then being ripped to pieces as the spacecraft punches a hole in the atmosphere.

Landing exploratory vehicles on Mars presents greater problems than landing spacecraft on Earth because the planet's atmosphere is much thinner.

The flying saucer is important for the future of Mars exploration

Giant parachutes, several times the size of those used for Earth landings, and a deceleration device are needed to put the brakes on so that rovers can be landed on the Red Planet safely and in one piece.

Nasa is working on the system because future missions to Mars will need heavier landers than the current one-ton Curiosity Rover.

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Russian Navy 'Chases Away American Submarine'

The Russian navy reportedly claims to have driven away a submarine, believed to be American, that entered its waters.

The Northern Fleet apparently sent several vessels and an anti-submarine Il-38 aircraft to persuade what was thought to be a Virginia class fast attack sub to leave.

No force was used in the operation and a naval official said contact with the vessel lasted 27 minutes.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions between the West and Russia over Moscow's role in the Ukraine conflict.

Russian state news agencies cited an unnamed representative of the navy's general staff as saying the incident happened on Thursday in the Barents Sea in its northern waters.

Thanks to "active measures by the Northern Fleet's anti-submarine forces, the submarine was 'pushed away'", the official was quoted as saying.

The deputy head of the Russian parliament's foreign affairs committee, Leonid Kalashnikov, said such incidents are quite common.

He told Echo of Moscow radio: "Occasionally other countries test how the submarine location service is working."

The Barents Sea lies off northwest Russia and the Northern Fleet is based on its shores.

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Ukraine Rebels 'Willing To Accept Ceasefire'

A Ukraine rebel leader in Donetsk says the city is surrounded by Ukrainian forces and rebels are willing to accept a ceasefire.

Aleksandr Zakharchenko, the so-called prime minister of the pro-Russian separatists in the region, said rebel forces were calling for the move to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.

It comes as Prime Minister David Cameron and US President Barack Obama agreed any "humanitarian" mission by Russia into Ukraine would be "unjustified and illegal" during a telephone call on Saturday.

Russia, which the Ukrainian government and the West has claimed is supporting the rebels, has repeatedly called for a humanitarian mission into the east of Ukraine.

One person was killed and 18 injured in shelling in Donetsk on Saturday

The claim by Mr Zakharchenko could increase international pressure to allow a Russian mission to take place.

A statement from Number 10 said: "On Ukraine, both expressed grave concern about reports that Russian military vehicles have crossed the border into Ukraine and that Russian armed forces are exercising for a 'humanitarian intervention'.

"The Prime Minister and President are absolutely clear that such a so-called humanitarian mission would be unjustified and illegal."

Russia has denied allegations it attempted to send a convoy, including troops and military hardware, towards the border with eastern Ukraine under the guise of a humanitarian mission.

Valeriy Chalyi, deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, claimed Ukraine had blocked the move on Saturday.

At least one person was killed and 18 wounded after artillery fire hit apartment blocks in Donetsk during clashes.

Some 300,000 people have fled the city to escape the conflict.

The Ukrainian government has not responded to the rebel statement.

More follows...

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