Qatar&#39;s defence minister has signed a letter of intent to purchase 24 Typhoon jets from British defence group BAE Systems, in a move that could anger other Gulf countries boycotting Doha.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar on June 5, suspending air and shipping routes with the world&#39;s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, which is home to the region&#39;s biggest U.S. military base.

&quot;The letter of intent includes the ministry&#39;s intention to purchase 24 modern Typhoon aircraft with all their equipment,&quot; state news agency QNA reported on Sunday.

The agreement was signed by Minister of State for Defence Affairs Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah and his British counterpart Michael Fallon, QNA added.

&quot;This will be the first major defence contract with Qatar, one of the UK&#39;s strategic partners,&quot; Britain&#39;s Ministry of Defence said in a statement, adding that talks over a deal had taken several years.

&quot;We also hope that this will help enhance security within the region across all Gulf allies.&quot;

The Eurofighter Typhoon is a joint project between BAE, France&#39;s Airbus and Italy&#39;s Leonardo, previously known as Finmeccanica, and supports an estimated 40,000 jobs in Britain.

Neither statement gave the cost of the combat jet deal. BAE had agreed in 2014 to supply Saudi Arabia with 72 Typhoon jets in a deal worth 4.43 billion pounds ($6 billion).

Fallon told a conference in London on Saturday that the British government would step up efforts to help BAE Systems to sell more Typhoon jets with government-to-government deals.

The Typhoon has attracted fewer orders this year than the rival Rafale built by France&#39;s Dassault Aviation, which has agreed deals with Egypt and Qatar.

Qatar also signed a deal in June to buy F-15 fighter jets from Boeing Co in the United States for $12 billion and concluded a 5 billion euro ($6 billion) deal with Italy for seven navy vessels.

The wealthy Gulf state has been accused by its neighbours of supporting terrorism and meddling with Iran, Saudi Arabia&#39;s arch-rival in the region. Qatar denies the accusations.

The crisis has put the region on edge and prompted Turkey to send troops to Doha in a sign of support.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar on June 5, suspending air and shipping routes with the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, which is home to the region's biggest U.S. military base.

Qatar's defence minister has signed a letter of intent to purchase 24 Typhoon jets from British defence group BAE Systems, in a move that could anger other Gulf countries boycotting Doha. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Bahrain cut diplomatic and trade links with Qatar on June 5, suspending air and shipping routes with the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, which is home to the region's biggest U.S. military base. "The letter of intent includes the ministry's intention to purchase 24 modern Typhoon aircraft with all their equipment," state news agency QNA reported on Sunday. The agreement was signed by Minister of State for Defence Affairs Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah and his British counterpart Michael Fallon, QNA added. "This will be the first major defence contract with Qatar, one of the UK's strategic partners," Britain's Ministry of Defence said in a statement, adding that talks over a deal had taken several years. "We also hope that this will help enhance security within the region across all Gulf allies." The Eurofighter Typhoon is a joint project between BAE, France's Airbus and Italy's Leonardo, previously known as Finmeccanica, and supports an estimated 40,000 jobs in Britain. Neither statement gave the cost of the combat jet deal. BAE had agreed in 2014 to supply Saudi Arabia with 72 Typhoon jets in a deal worth 4.43 billion pounds ($6 billion). Fallon told a conference in London on Saturday that the British government would step up efforts to help BAE Systems to sell more Typhoon jets with government-to-government deals. The Typhoon has attracted fewer orders this year than the rival Rafale built by France's Dassault Aviation, which has agreed deals with Egypt and Qatar. Qatar also signed a deal in June to buy F-15 fighter jets from Boeing Co in the United States for $12 billion and concluded a 5 billion euro ($6 billion) deal with Italy for seven navy vessels. The wealthy Gulf state has been accused by its neighbours of supporting terrorism and meddling with Iran, Saudi Arabia's arch-rival in the region. Qatar denies the accusations. The crisis has put the region on edge and prompted Turkey to send troops to Doha in a sign of support.

Qatar to buy 24 Typhoon jets from UK's BAE Systems

British&nbsp;police&nbsp;released a&nbsp;new&nbsp;image&nbsp;on Wednesday in a fresh bid to trace a male&nbsp;jogger&nbsp;who appeared to push a woman into the path of an oncoming&nbsp;bus&nbsp;on a&nbsp;busy&nbsp;Londonstreet four months ago.

Video footage of the apparently callous incident on Putney Bridge, southwest&nbsp;London, has been repeatedly screened on British television but the runner has yet to be found.

Footage shows him jog past one man on the bridge on May 5 before knocking into the 33-year-old victim. She tumbled head-first into the path of an oncoming&nbsp;bus, which managed to swerve out of her way, missing her by inches.

The&nbsp;new&nbsp;CCTV still was taken from the&nbsp;bus, and shows a white man in a grey top and dark shorts.&nbsp;Police&nbsp;said he came back the other way across the bridge 15 minutes later but did not acknowledge the victim when she tried to speak to him.

&quot;Images of this alarming incident have been circulated widely and we continue to work through the information received to identify the man responsible,&quot; said Detective Sergeant Chris Griffith.

Two men arrested last month in connection with the incident have both been&nbsp;released without charge.

Video footage of the apparently callous incident on Putney Bridge, southwest?London, has been repeatedly screened on British television but the runner has yet to be found.

British police released a new image on Wednesday in a fresh bid to trace a male jogger who appeared to push a woman into the path of an oncoming bus on a busy Londonstreet four months ago. Video footage of the apparently callous incident on Putney Bridge, southwest London, has been repeatedly screened on British television but the runner has yet to be found. Footage shows him jog past one man on the bridge on May 5 before knocking into the 33-year-old victim. She tumbled head-first into the path of an oncoming bus, which managed to swerve out of her way, missing her by inches. The new CCTV still was taken from the bus, and shows a white man in a grey top and dark shorts. Police said he came back the other way across the bridge 15 minutes later but did not acknowledge the victim when she tried to speak to him. "Images of this alarming incident have been circulated widely and we continue to work through the information received to identify the man responsible," said Detective Sergeant Chris Griffith. Two men arrested last month in connection with the incident have both been released without charge.

UK police release new image of jogger in London bus mystery

British Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s government faces a vote of&nbsp;confidence&nbsp;on Thursday, three weeks after a disastrous election left her authority in tatters and her Brexit strategy in doubt.

Members of the House of Commons will vote on the Conservative leader&#39;s legislative plans -- the Queen&#39;s Speech -- in a key test of whether she can stay in power.

The government is expected to pass its programme after forming a deal with Northern Ireland&#39;s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), whose 10 MPs will vote with 317 Conservatives.

That tally is enough, barely, for a majority in the 650-seat chamber but May&#39;s authority has been deeply damaged by the election, which she called three years early expecting to win a landslide.

Instead, she finds herself hanging on by a thread.

The majority of the bills in the Queen&#39;s Speech concern Britain&#39;s departure from the European Union, on which the first formal negotiations took place last week.

But May&#39;s Brexit plan is under scrutiny as many saw the election as a rebuke to her move to pull Britain out of Europe&#39;s single market -- its largest trading market -- to prioritise cutting EU immigration.

May&#39;s government is also dealing with the fall-out of a string of terror attacks and the blaze at the Grenfell Tower block in London, which left at least 80 people presumed dead and saw the premier accused of being out of touch with the public mood by not acting quickly enough.

Brexit plans in flux

Calls to prioritise jobs and growth in Brexit are growing, including from Finance Minister Philip Hammond, who May was expected to sack after the election but who has stayed on.

Cabinet tensions have also seen Hammond take a swipe at eurosceptic Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson over his claim that Britain could &quot;have its cake and eat it&quot; in the negotiations.

&quot;I try to discourage talk of &#39;cake&#39; amongst my colleagues,&quot; the finance minister said during a speech in Berlin.

Hammond emphasised the need for transitional deals to avoid a damaging &quot;cliff-edge&quot; when Britain leaves, but in London, Brexit minister David Davis slapped him down, saying his views were &quot;not quite consistent&quot;.

Davis also introduced confusion by suggesting that Britain would not stay in the customs union as part of a transitional deal.

May&#39;s spokeswoman insisted that &quot;everybody is on the same page&quot;, and nothing had changed.

However, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was asked at a summit last week whether he was clear on Britain&#39;s position on Brexit, to which he replied: &quot;No.&quot;

&quot;Whatever May and Davis are saying in public, Brexit policy is in fact in flux,&quot; said Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform.

He noted the increased influence of Hammond and the Scottish Conservatives, who did well in the election and have also emphasised maintaining trade ties with the EU.

Meanwhile Labour, which won 262 seats, has accepted that Britain will be leaving the single market but wants &quot;full tariff-free access&quot; to protect jobs.

&#39;Ready and waiting&#39;

&quot;The easiest thing for May to do is to press ahead with the Brexit that her right-wing desires. But that is probably not sustainable in the long term,&quot; Grant said.

He added: &quot;If May doesn&rsquo;t reinvent herself as a soft-Brexiteer, she is likely to be defeated in parliament.&quot;

After more than two weeks of wrangling, May announced a deal with the DUP on Monday where they agreed to back her minority government in&nbsp;confidence&nbsp;and budget votes.

She promised to give Northern Ireland an extra &pound;1.0 billion (1.1 billion euros, $1.3 billion) in state aid over the next two years.

But there is doubt about how long the alliance can last.

The DUP&#39;s ultra-conservative views on abortion and gay marriage have caused disquiet among many Conservatives. There are also concerns that the deal could upset the fragile balance of power in Northern Ireland

Theresa May finds her government hanging by a thread after the disastrous election. Her Brexit strategy is also in doubt?

British Prime Minister Theresa May's government faces a vote of confidence on Thursday, three weeks after a disastrous election left her authority in tatters and her Brexit strategy in doubt. Members of the House of Commons will vote on the Conservative leader's legislative plans -- the Queen's Speech -- in a key test of whether she can stay in power. The government is expected to pass its programme after forming a deal with Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), whose 10 MPs will vote with 317 Conservatives. That tally is enough, barely, for a majority in the 650-seat chamber but May's authority has been deeply damaged by the election, which she called three years early expecting to win a landslide. Instead, she finds herself hanging on by a thread. The majority of the bills in the Queen's Speech concern Britain's departure from the European Union, on which the first formal negotiations took place last week. But May's Brexit plan is under scrutiny as many saw the election as a rebuke to her move to pull Britain out of Europe's single market -- its largest trading market -- to prioritise cutting EU immigration. May's government is also dealing with the fall-out of a string of terror attacks and the blaze at the Grenfell Tower block in London, which left at least 80 people presumed dead and saw the premier accused of being out of touch with the public mood by not acting quickly enough. Brexit plans in flux Calls to prioritise jobs and growth in Brexit are growing, including from Finance Minister Philip Hammond, who May was expected to sack after the election but who has stayed on. Cabinet tensions have also seen Hammond take a swipe at eurosceptic Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson over his claim that Britain could "have its cake and eat it" in the negotiations. "I try to discourage talk of 'cake' amongst my colleagues," the finance minister said during a speech in Berlin. Hammond emphasised the need for transitional deals to avoid a damaging "cliff-edge" when Britain leaves, but in London, Brexit minister David Davis slapped him down, saying his views were "not quite consistent". Davis also introduced confusion by suggesting that Britain would not stay in the customs union as part of a transitional deal. May's spokeswoman insisted that "everybody is on the same page", and nothing had changed. However, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was asked at a summit last week whether he was clear on Britain's position on Brexit, to which he replied: "No." "Whatever May and Davis are saying in public, Brexit policy is in fact in flux," said Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform. He noted the increased influence of Hammond and the Scottish Conservatives, who did well in the election and have also emphasised maintaining trade ties with the EU. Meanwhile Labour, which won 262 seats, has accepted that Britain will be leaving the single market but wants "full tariff-free access" to protect jobs. 'Ready and waiting' "The easiest thing for May to do is to press ahead with the Brexit that her right-wing desires. But that is probably not sustainable in the long term," Grant said. He added: "If May doesn’t reinvent herself as a soft-Brexiteer, she is likely to be defeated in parliament." After more than two weeks of wrangling, May announced a deal with the DUP on Monday where they agreed to back her minority government in confidence and budget votes. She promised to give Northern Ireland an extra £1.0 billion (1.1 billion euros, $1.3 billion) in state aid over the next two years. But there is doubt about how long the alliance can last. The DUP's ultra-conservative views on abortion and gay marriage have caused disquiet among many Conservatives. There are also concerns that the deal could upset the fragile balance of power in Northern Ireland

British PM Theresa May faces confidence vote today

Prime Minister Theresa May, leading a so-called &quot;zombie&quot; government after a disastrous election, on Wednesday unveiled a diluted programme of action that included the mammoth legislation needed to take Britain out of the EU.

The state opening of parliament by Queen Elizabeth II came after a string of tragedies which have shaken the nation, and the election on June 8 in which May&#39;s Conservatives saw their parliamentary majority wiped out.

The queen, at an occasion shorn of its usual pageantry, read out the watered-down list of proposed legislation and lawmakers will then spend the next few days debating before bringing it to a vote.

May could be forced to resign if she loses the vote, expected on June 29, just as the country embarks on highly sensitive negotiations for Britain&#39;s withdrawal from the European Union.

Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he was ready to step in and build a rival government -- although he and other opposition parties lack the collective numbers to bring down May.

&quot;This is a government without a majority, without a mandate, without a serious legislative programme led by a prime minister who&#39;s lost her political authority,&quot; Corbyn told parliament.

&quot;Labour is not merely an opposition. We are a government in waiting,&quot; he said during hours of heated debate in which May fended off calls to resign.

After four terror attacks and a deadly tower block blaze that have darkened the national mood in the past three months, anti-government campaigners also staged &quot;Day of Rage&quot; protests that converged outside parliament.

&quot;Bring Down The Government&quot;, &quot;Austerity Kills&quot; and &quot;You Can&#39;t Trust Her&quot;, read some of the placards.

A banner said &quot;We Need Justice For Grenfell Tower&quot; -- a reference to the tower block fire last week in which 79 people died, prompting criticism of budget cuts and officials for ignoring warnings about fire safety risks.

May apologised for the chaotic official response to the fire, telling MPs it was &quot;not good enough&quot;.

&quot;As prime minister, I apologise for that failure,&quot; she said.

May humbled&nbsp;

The enfeebled premier, who is still locked in difficult talks with a Northern Irish party to prop up her administration, said her programme was about seizing opportunities offered by Brexit.

The queen said: &quot;My government&#39;s priority is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves the European Union.&quot;&nbsp;

She said her government would seek &quot;to build the widest possible consensus on the country&#39;s future outside the European Union&quot;, amid divisions within May&#39;s own cabinet over the best strategy.

Business leaders reacted positively to the change of tone in the speech and Corbyn said he also hoped for a Brexit deal &quot;that puts jobs and the economy first&quot;.

The speech announced no fewer than eight bills to implement Brexit, and new legislation aimed at tackling extremist content online after the terror attacks.

But the speech was notable also for what it did not contain.&nbsp;

There was no mention of May&#39;s hugely controversial invitation to US President Donald Trump to come on a state visit.&nbsp;

Also absent were key pledges the Conservatives had given in their manifesto for the recent election which analysts said had bombed with the electorate -- such as reform of social care for the elderly and more shake-ups in schools.

There was no mention too of May&#39;s controversial promise to allow a parliamentary vote to repeal a ban on fox hunting, which angered left-wingers.

The Times branded May&#39;s administration the &quot;stumbling husk of a zombie government&quot; and said she was now &quot;so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers&quot;.

&quot;Downing Street is a vacuum,&quot; the newspaper said, two days after Britain and the EU formally started their Brexit negotiations.

No deal yet

May called the snap general election in a bid to strengthen her mandate heading into the Brexit talks.

But the plan spectacularly backfired, leaving her with a minority government that is now trying to form a majority with Northern Ireland&#39;s ultra-conservative Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).

May has resisted calls to resign and is hoping for the support of the DUP&#39;s 10 MPs to boost her tally of 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, but a deal has proved elusive so far.

&quot;We are doing what is in the national interest, which is forming a government to address the challenges that face this country at the moment,&quot; May said.

But a DUP source said a deal was &quot;certainly not imminent&quot; as the talks &quot;haven&#39;t proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected&quot; and cautioned that the party &quot;can&#39;t be taken for granted&quot;.

Even with DUP backing, the government would command only a tiny majority, and just a few rebel MPs could be enough to undermine it fatally.

The Times branded May's administration the 'stumbling husk of a zombie government' and said she was now 'so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers'

Prime Minister Theresa May, leading a so-called "zombie" government after a disastrous election, on Wednesday unveiled a diluted programme of action that included the mammoth legislation needed to take Britain out of the EU. The state opening of parliament by Queen Elizabeth II came after a string of tragedies which have shaken the nation, and the election on June 8 in which May's Conservatives saw their parliamentary majority wiped out. The queen, at an occasion shorn of its usual pageantry, read out the watered-down list of proposed legislation and lawmakers will then spend the next few days debating before bringing it to a vote. May could be forced to resign if she loses the vote, expected on June 29, just as the country embarks on highly sensitive negotiations for Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he was ready to step in and build a rival government -- although he and other opposition parties lack the collective numbers to bring down May. "This is a government without a majority, without a mandate, without a serious legislative programme led by a prime minister who's lost her political authority," Corbyn told parliament. "Labour is not merely an opposition. We are a government in waiting," he said during hours of heated debate in which May fended off calls to resign. After four terror attacks and a deadly tower block blaze that have darkened the national mood in the past three months, anti-government campaigners also staged "Day of Rage" protests that converged outside parliament. "Bring Down The Government", "Austerity Kills" and "You Can't Trust Her", read some of the placards. A banner said "We Need Justice For Grenfell Tower" -- a reference to the tower block fire last week in which 79 people died, prompting criticism of budget cuts and officials for ignoring warnings about fire safety risks. May apologised for the chaotic official response to the fire, telling MPs it was "not good enough". "As prime minister, I apologise for that failure," she said. May humbled The enfeebled premier, who is still locked in difficult talks with a Northern Irish party to prop up her administration, said her programme was about seizing opportunities offered by Brexit. The queen said: "My government's priority is to secure the best possible deal as the country leaves the European Union." She said her government would seek "to build the widest possible consensus on the country's future outside the European Union", amid divisions within May's own cabinet over the best strategy. Business leaders reacted positively to the change of tone in the speech and Corbyn said he also hoped for a Brexit deal "that puts jobs and the economy first". The speech announced no fewer than eight bills to implement Brexit, and new legislation aimed at tackling extremist content online after the terror attacks. But the speech was notable also for what it did not contain. There was no mention of May's hugely controversial invitation to US President Donald Trump to come on a state visit. Also absent were key pledges the Conservatives had given in their manifesto for the recent election which analysts said had bombed with the electorate -- such as reform of social care for the elderly and more shake-ups in schools. There was no mention too of May's controversial promise to allow a parliamentary vote to repeal a ban on fox hunting, which angered left-wingers. The Times branded May's administration the "stumbling husk of a zombie government" and said she was now "so weak that she cannot arbitrate between squabbling cabinet ministers". "Downing Street is a vacuum," the newspaper said, two days after Britain and the EU formally started their Brexit negotiations. No deal yet May called the snap general election in a bid to strengthen her mandate heading into the Brexit talks. But the plan spectacularly backfired, leaving her with a minority government that is now trying to form a majority with Northern Ireland's ultra-conservative Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). May has resisted calls to resign and is hoping for the support of the DUP's 10 MPs to boost her tally of 317 seats in the 650-seat parliament, but a deal has proved elusive so far. "We are doing what is in the national interest, which is forming a government to address the challenges that face this country at the moment," May said. But a DUP source said a deal was "certainly not imminent" as the talks "haven't proceeded in a way that the DUP would have expected" and cautioned that the party "can't be taken for granted". Even with DUP backing, the government would command only a tiny majority, and just a few rebel MPs could be enough to undermine it fatally.

Brexit laws head agenda for UK's 'zombie government'

The leaders of France and Britain on Tuesday announced an anti-terror action plan to crack down on radicalisation through social media.

After talks with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said both countries agreed that social networks were not doing enough to stamp out terror propaganda.

Speaking after terror attacks in Manchester and London, Macron said the two countries had worked on a &quot;very concrete&quot; action plan.

He said one of the key measures would aim at preventing the incitement of &quot;hate and terrorism&quot; on the internet.

May said she and Macron agreed that &quot;more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online&quot;.

She said the British and French campaign was aimed to &quot;ensure the internet cannot... be used to host the radicalising material that leads to so much harm.&quot;

May said the British government was already working with social media companies &quot;to halt the spread of extremist material and poisonous propaganda that warps young minds&quot;, adding: &quot;But we know they need to do more.

&quot;Today we can announce that the UK and France will work together to encourage organisations to do more and abide by their social responsibility to step up their efforts to remove harmful content from their networks.&quot;

The campaign includes exploring the possibility of legal penalties against tech companies if they fail to take the necessary action to remove unacceptable content, May said.

Britain was rocked by a suicide bombing at a pop concert in Manchester on May 22 which killed 22 people, including children, followed two weeks later by a knife and van attack in central London, which left eight dead.

France has been a constant target for jihadist attacks since 2015, with more than 230 people killed.

After their press conference the two leaders headed to the Stade de France to watch a friendly match between the French and English football teams.

May and Macron agreed that 'more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online'

The leaders of France and Britain on Tuesday announced an anti-terror action plan to crack down on radicalisation through social media. After talks with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said both countries agreed that social networks were not doing enough to stamp out terror propaganda. Speaking after terror attacks in Manchester and London, Macron said the two countries had worked on a "very concrete" action plan. He said one of the key measures would aim at preventing the incitement of "hate and terrorism" on the internet. May said she and Macron agreed that "more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online". She said the British and French campaign was aimed to "ensure the internet cannot... be used to host the radicalising material that leads to so much harm." May said the British government was already working with social media companies "to halt the spread of extremist material and poisonous propaganda that warps young minds", adding: "But we know they need to do more. "Today we can announce that the UK and France will work together to encourage organisations to do more and abide by their social responsibility to step up their efforts to remove harmful content from their networks." The campaign includes exploring the possibility of legal penalties against tech companies if they fail to take the necessary action to remove unacceptable content, May said. Britain was rocked by a suicide bombing at a pop concert in Manchester on May 22 which killed 22 people, including children, followed two weeks later by a knife and van attack in central London, which left eight dead. France has been a constant target for jihadist attacks since 2015, with more than 230 people killed. After their press conference the two leaders headed to the Stade de France to watch a friendly match between the French and English football teams.

France and UK announce anti-terror action plan

Britain&#39;s armed forces will be deployed to boost security, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday, as the country raised its terror threat to the highest level of &quot;critical&quot; after a suicide attack in Manchester that killed 22 people, including children.

May said members of the armed forces would be positioned at key sites to free up police for patrols and military personnel might be deployed at public events such as concerts and sports events as a further attack was seen as potentially imminent.

May said the independent body which sets the threat level had recommended it be raised from &quot;severe&quot; after a man named by police as Salman Abedi set off an improvised bomb on Monday night as crowds streamed out of a concert.

&quot;It is now concluded on the basis of today&#39;s investigations that the threat level should be increased for the time being from severe to critical,&quot; she said in a televised statement after a meeting of the government&#39;s crisis response committee.

&quot;This means that their assessment is not only that an attack remains highly likely but that a further attack may be imminent.&quot;

Britain&#39;s international terror threat level was last at the critical level in June 2007.

May, who is due to contest a national election on June 8, said the man named by police as the attacker, Salman Abedi, was born and brought up in Britain and investigations into whether he was working alone were ongoing.

&quot;The work undertaken throughout the day has revealed that it is a possibility we cannot ignore that there is a wider group of individuals linked to this attack,&quot; she said.

(Reuters)

May said members of the armed forces would be positioned at key sites to free up police for patrols and military personnel might be deployed at public events

Britain's armed forces will be deployed to boost security, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday, as the country raised its terror threat to the highest level of "critical" after a suicide attack in Manchester that killed 22 people, including children. May said members of the armed forces would be positioned at key sites to free up police for patrols and military personnel might be deployed at public events such as concerts and sports events as a further attack was seen as potentially imminent. May said the independent body which sets the threat level had recommended it be raised from "severe" after a man named by police as Salman Abedi set off an improvised bomb on Monday night as crowds streamed out of a concert. "It is now concluded on the basis of today's investigations that the threat level should be increased for the time being from severe to critical," she said in a televised statement after a meeting of the government's crisis response committee. "This means that their assessment is not only that an attack remains highly likely but that a further attack may be imminent." Britain's international terror threat level was last at the critical level in June 2007. May, who is due to contest a national election on June 8, said the man named by police as the attacker, Salman Abedi, was born and brought up in Britain and investigations into whether he was working alone were ongoing. "The work undertaken throughout the day has revealed that it is a possibility we cannot ignore that there is a wider group of individuals linked to this attack," she said. (Reuters)

Britain's armed forces to be deployed to boost security: Theresa May

The first freight train to link China directly to the UK arrived in the eastern Chinese city of Yiwu Saturday after covering over 12,000-kilometres (7,500 miles), making it the second-longest route in the world.

The journey is the latest effort in China`s drive to strengthen trade links with western Europe along a modern-day &quot;Silk Road&quot; route.&nbsp;

The world`s top trading nation launched the &quot;One Belt, One Road&quot; strategy in 2013, and has since poured millions into constructing vast infrastructure links.

The train -- loaded with whisky, baby milk, pharmaceuticals and machinery -- departed London on April 10 and passed through France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan during its 20-day trip before arriving in Yiwu in eastern Zhejiang province, a major wholesale centre for small consumer goods.&nbsp;

The new route is longer than Russia`s famous Trans-Siberian railway, but about 1000 kilometres shorter than the record-holding China-Madrid link, which opened in 2014.

London is the 15th city to be linked to a new freight network offered by the state-run China Railway Corporation, which says its services are cheaper than air transport and quicker than shipping.

The journey should be 30 days faster than moving the goods by ship, the provincial government had said, but the pilot run took two days more than the 18 days expected.&nbsp;

And the train, named the East Wind, has much less carrying capacity -- just 88 shipping containers, according to the Yiwu government, compared to the 10,000 to 20,000 containers cargo ships can carry.

It is unclear how much the venture cost, and some experts have questioned whether the ambitious project makes economic sense.

&quot;It is hard to say at this stage what the economic return will be, as the economic benefits will come over a long time,&quot; He Tianjie of Oxford Economics Hong Kong told AFP.&nbsp;

&quot;However, the train is in some aspects more convenient and flexible. It can make multiple stops, allowing for the pick up and offloading of cargo along the way. Rail transport is also less affected by adverse weather conditions. Therefore, there may be a role for such long-haul rail links,&quot; he said.

China already has a regular direct freight train service to Germany, Europe`s largest economy.&nbsp;

One route links the Chinese megacity of Chongqing to Duisburg, a steel-making town and one of Germany`s most-important transportation and commercial hubs.

The other route links Beijing, the Chinese capital, to Hamburg, Germany`s second-largest city.

Roughly 80 percent of global trade is shipped by sea as freight train services face technical and bureaucratic hurdles which vary according to country.

The East Wind`s locomotive and carriages had to be changed en route because of the larger gauge on railways in the former Soviet Union.

Prime Minister Theresa May will visit China later this year, with talks likely to include closer trade ties for when Britain leaves the European Union, according to British officials.

(AFP)

The journey is the latest effort in China's drive to strengthen trade links with western Europe along a modern-day 'Silk Road' route

The first freight train to link China directly to the UK arrived in the eastern Chinese city of Yiwu Saturday after covering over 12,000-kilometres (7,500 miles), making it the second-longest route in the world. The journey is the latest effort in China`s drive to strengthen trade links with western Europe along a modern-day "Silk Road" route. The world`s top trading nation launched the "One Belt, One Road" strategy in 2013, and has since poured millions into constructing vast infrastructure links. The train -- loaded with whisky, baby milk, pharmaceuticals and machinery -- departed London on April 10 and passed through France, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan during its 20-day trip before arriving in Yiwu in eastern Zhejiang province, a major wholesale centre for small consumer goods. The new route is longer than Russia`s famous Trans-Siberian railway, but about 1000 kilometres shorter than the record-holding China-Madrid link, which opened in 2014. London is the 15th city to be linked to a new freight network offered by the state-run China Railway Corporation, which says its services are cheaper than air transport and quicker than shipping. The journey should be 30 days faster than moving the goods by ship, the provincial government had said, but the pilot run took two days more than the 18 days expected. And the train, named the East Wind, has much less carrying capacity -- just 88 shipping containers, according to the Yiwu government, compared to the 10,000 to 20,000 containers cargo ships can carry. It is unclear how much the venture cost, and some experts have questioned whether the ambitious project makes economic sense. "It is hard to say at this stage what the economic return will be, as the economic benefits will come over a long time," He Tianjie of Oxford Economics Hong Kong told AFP. "However, the train is in some aspects more convenient and flexible. It can make multiple stops, allowing for the pick up and offloading of cargo along the way. Rail transport is also less affected by adverse weather conditions. Therefore, there may be a role for such long-haul rail links," he said. China already has a regular direct freight train service to Germany, Europe`s largest economy. One route links the Chinese megacity of Chongqing to Duisburg, a steel-making town and one of Germany`s most-important transportation and commercial hubs. The other route links Beijing, the Chinese capital, to Hamburg, Germany`s second-largest city. Roughly 80 percent of global trade is shipped by sea as freight train services face technical and bureaucratic hurdles which vary according to country. The East Wind`s locomotive and carriages had to be changed en route because of the larger gauge on railways in the former Soviet Union. Prime Minister Theresa May will visit China later this year, with talks likely to include closer trade ties for when Britain leaves the European Union, according to British officials. (AFP)

First London-China train completes 12,000 km journey

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&nbsp;

&nbsp;

*****WORK IN PROGRESS, for the love of god do not publish yet***********************

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

There is much&nbsp;confusion, even in newsrooms, about just what constitutes Fake News. WION is not the&nbsp;first outlet to write about it, but I experienced the phenomenon first-hand.&nbsp;My story is illustrative of the&nbsp;real&nbsp;fake news.

Unsurprisingly,&nbsp;Twitter was unusually electric in the days leading up to the November 8, 2016 US election. That&#39;s to be expected. But with hindsight we know something was indeed very very wrong.

I had a small taste of what&nbsp;US intelligence agencies say was Russia advancing&nbsp;Trump&#39;s&nbsp;election campaign&nbsp;by&nbsp;putting&nbsp;forth a &quot;co-ordinated multifaceted cyber campaign&quot;.

An anonymous account supporting--the avatar wore a MAGA (Make America Great Again) hate, atop a Pepe frog--began harassing me, making Nazi jokes and asking &quot;triggered, liberal?&quot;&nbsp;

To this question I said, &quot;No not really&quot;, or something to that effect.

While I myself wasn&#39;t profoundly bothered by this stuff, I sent a complaint to Twitter, thinking comments about gas chamber jokes had no place on Twitter.

Twitter did nothing. But that isn&#39;t even what&#39;s noteworthy. After the election, the account disappeared!

I wouldn&#39;t have thought too much of it: It was only one account, perhaps the account had just been deleted

Only when a fellow journalist described blocking hundreds, if not thousands of such accounts, and having them all disappear immediately after the election did it occur to me that this is what happened to me.

It wasn&#39;t unreasonable to assume that Trump, who did indeed win millions of votes, had a lage presence on social media. Believing Trump supporters would make Nazi jokes was also, let&#39;s say, not difficult to believe.&nbsp;This was the point.

Countless fake accounts were designed to appear like&nbsp;real people. These accounts&nbsp;intimidated journalists and shared news stories favourable to Donald Trump. They had names like &quot;Moms for Trump&quot;, &quot;Vets for Trump&quot;, &quot;Deplorable for...&quot; and the like.

This is being investigated right now by the FBI in the investigation of President Trump himself. What effect this had on the US election this had is hard to say, but there were six Trump bots for every Clinton one (and none of Clintons had geolocations from Russia or any other hostile country).

&nbsp;

Breitbart, Infowars

Some of the stories these bots linked to were preposterous&nbsp;lies, like the Democrats rape and kill children in the basement of a Washington pizza parlour. This is the most flagrant kind of Fake News--a fake person spreading outrageous lies.&nbsp;

Stories from Breitbart and Infowars, while false, do not meet this criteria of Fake News. They twisted facts to reach a distorted narrative. But it must be said, these bots spread many stories from these sites, and the FBI is investigating both sites for their involvement&nbsp;

It may very well be that these sites produce stories that are simply untrue, or grossly so. It&#39;s possible that&nbsp;they were connected to the Trump-Russia world of Fake News, but that remains to be seen.

But it&#39;s important that Fake News as a concept does not conflated with other forms of dishonest journalism.

&nbsp;

Disingenuous news, while fake, is not the same as Fake News

If a reporter makes up a quote, or even a story, that is fraud, but there is an important distinction between this and the wider phenomeonon of Fake News.&nbsp;

One disingenous reporter making up stories&nbsp;inside an otherwise real news outlet is pernicious, but poses a different&nbsp;threat. In some ways the threat is greater and smaller. On the one hand, they benefit from operating within a respectable establishment, and for being taken more seriously for it. Once they are exposed, the normal newsroom will fire them immediately. The fraud is a&nbsp;threat&nbsp;to the real newsroom.

In the case of Fake News, the newsroom&nbsp;is&nbsp;the fraud. Remember, it&#39;s a metaphorical newsroom. The stories about Clinton and Podesta being killers and rapists were pumped out from Macedonia by frauds who deliberatey pumped out false stories to discredit people for money.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

because they are operating within a system that does have real fact-checking, that will&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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Breitbart and Infowars under investigation for ties to Russia: report <a href="https://t.co/EVokfwL7RE">https://t.co/EVokfwL7RE</a> <a href="https://t.co/lmBBUBr6vl">pic.twitter.com/lmBBUBr6vl</a>
&mdash; Raw Story (@RawStory) <a href="https://twitter.com/RawStory/status/844013056837541888">March 21, 2017</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Bad journalism should not be conflated with Fake News, and the people confusing the issue are usually the source of the Fake News itself

*****WORK IN PROGRESS, for the love of god do not publish yet*********************** There is much confusion, even in newsrooms, about just what constitutes Fake News. WION is not the first outlet to write about it, but I experienced the phenomenon first-hand. My story is illustrative of the real fake news. Unsurprisingly, Twitter was unusually electric in the days leading up to the November 8, 2016 US election. That's to be expected. But with hindsight we know something was indeed very very wrong. I had a small taste of what US intelligence agencies say was Russia advancing Trump's election campaign by putting forth a "co-ordinated multifaceted cyber campaign". An anonymous account supporting--the avatar wore a MAGA (Make America Great Again) hate, atop a Pepe frog--began harassing me, making Nazi jokes and asking "triggered, liberal?" To this question I said, "No not really", or something to that effect. While I myself wasn't profoundly bothered by this stuff, I sent a complaint to Twitter, thinking comments about gas chamber jokes had no place on Twitter. Twitter did nothing. But that isn't even what's noteworthy. After the election, the account disappeared! I wouldn't have thought too much of it: It was only one account, perhaps the account had just been deleted Only when a fellow journalist described blocking hundreds, if not thousands of such accounts, and having them all disappear immediately after the election did it occur to me that this is what happened to me. It wasn't unreasonable to assume that Trump, who did indeed win millions of votes, had a lage presence on social media. Believing Trump supporters would make Nazi jokes was also, let's say, not difficult to believe. This was the point. Countless fake accounts were designed to appear like real people. These accounts intimidated journalists and shared news stories favourable to Donald Trump. They had names like "Moms for Trump", "Vets for Trump", "Deplorable for..." and the like. This is being investigated right now by the FBI in the investigation of President Trump himself. What effect this had on the US election this had is hard to say, but there were six Trump bots for every Clinton one (and none of Clintons had geolocations from Russia or any other hostile country). Breitbart, Infowars Some of the stories these bots linked to were preposterous lies, like the Democrats rape and kill children in the basement of a Washington pizza parlour. This is the most flagrant kind of Fake News--a fake person spreading outrageous lies. Stories from Breitbart and Infowars, while false, do not meet this criteria of Fake News. They twisted facts to reach a distorted narrative. But it must be said, these bots spread many stories from these sites, and the FBI is investigating both sites for their involvement It may very well be that these sites produce stories that are simply untrue, or grossly so. It's possible that they were connected to the Trump-Russia world of Fake News, but that remains to be seen. But it's important that Fake News as a concept does not conflated with other forms of dishonest journalism. Disingenuous news, while fake, is not the same as Fake News If a reporter makes up a quote, or even a story, that is fraud, but there is an important distinction between this and the wider phenomeonon of Fake News. One disingenous reporter making up stories inside an otherwise real news outlet is pernicious, but poses a different threat. In some ways the threat is greater and smaller. On the one hand, they benefit from operating within a respectable establishment, and for being taken more seriously for it. Once they are exposed, the normal newsroom will fire them immediately. The fraud is a threat to the real newsroom. In the case of Fake News, the newsroom is the fraud. Remember, it's a metaphorical newsroom. The stories about Clinton and Podesta being killers and rapists were pumped out from Macedonia by frauds who deliberatey pumped out false stories to discredit people for money. because they are operating within a system that does have real fact-checking, that will Breitbart and Infowars under investigation for ties to Russia: report https://t.co/EVokfwL7RE pic.twitter.com/lmBBUBr6vl — Raw Story (@RawStory) March 21, 2017 ×

Fake News: What it's really about---work in progess, don't publish yet!!

The UK has conveyed to India that its request for extradition of industrialist Vijay Mallya, who has been declared a proclaimed offender, has been certified by the secretary of state.

&quot;The UK Home department on February 21 conveyed that the request of India for extradition of Mallya has been certified by the secretary of state and sent to the Westminster Magistrates&#39; Court for a district judge to consider the issue of releasing of warrant,&quot; External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said.

The development is a step forward towards securing the extradition of the fugitive businessman wanted in India for loan default of over Rs 9,000 crore.

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<h5>The UK Home department on February 21 conveyed that the request of India for extradition of Mallya has been certified by the secretary of state and sent to the Westminster Magistrates&#39; Court for a district judge to consider the issue of releasing of warrant,&#39; external affairs ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said</h5>
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Baglay&nbsp;also noted that a formal extradition request in respect of Mallya as per Extradition Treaty between India and the UK was handed over to the British High Commission here through a note verbale on February 8.

While handing over the request, India had asserted that it has a &quot;legitimate&quot; case against Mallya and maintained that if an extradition request is honoured, it would show British &quot;sensitivity towards our concerns&quot;.

Earlier in January this year, a CBI court had issued a non-bailable warrant against Mallya in the Rs 720-crore IDBI Bank loan default case.

Mallya, whose now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines owes more than Rs 9,000 crore to various banks, had fled India on March 2, 2016.

(PTI)

Mallya is wanted in India for defaulting on a loan of over Rs 9,000 crore

The UK has conveyed to India that its request for extradition of industrialist Vijay Mallya, who has been declared a proclaimed offender, has been certified by the secretary of state. "The UK Home department on February 21 conveyed that the request of India for extradition of Mallya has been certified by the secretary of state and sent to the Westminster Magistrates' Court for a district judge to consider the issue of releasing of warrant," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said. The development is a step forward towards securing the extradition of the fugitive businessman wanted in India for loan default of over Rs 9,000 crore. The UK Home department on February 21 conveyed that the request of India for extradition of Mallya has been certified by the secretary of state and sent to the Westminster Magistrates' Court for a district judge to consider the issue of releasing of warrant,' external affairs ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said × Baglay also noted that a formal extradition request in respect of Mallya as per Extradition Treaty between India and the UK was handed over to the British High Commission here through a note verbale on February 8. While handing over the request, India had asserted that it has a "legitimate" case against Mallya and maintained that if an extradition request is honoured, it would show British "sensitivity towards our concerns". Earlier in January this year, a CBI court had issued a non-bailable warrant against Mallya in the Rs 720-crore IDBI Bank loan default case. Mallya, whose now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines owes more than Rs 9,000 crore to various banks, had fled India on March 2, 2016. (PTI)

UK certifies request to extradite Vijay Mallya to India

British MPs overwhelmingly backed a bill on Wednesday empowering Prime Minister Theresa May to start negotiations on leaving the European Union, bringing Brexit a significant step closer. Members of the House of Commons voted by 494 votes to 122 for a law enabling May to trigger Article 50 of the EU&#39;s Lisbon Treaty, which begins two years of talks on pulling out of the 28-nation bloc.

&quot;We&#39;ve seen a historic vote tonight -- a big majority for getting on with negotiating our exit from the EU and a strong, new partnership with its member states,&quot; said Brexit minister David Davis.

The unamended two-clause bill now moves to the House of Lords, where there may be more opposition from unelected peers -- and where May&#39;s Conservative party does not have a majority. But its passage through the Commons, where two-thirds of MPs had campaigned against Brexit ahead of the June referendum, puts May on course to begin the withdrawal process by the end of March, as she has vowed.

&nbsp;

Labour headaches

The referendum result sent shockwaves around Europe, spooking investors and raising fears for the future of the EU itself. In the early weeks, there was speculation that pro-European lawmakers might try to delay or even stop the Brexit process.

May initially sought to bypass parliament, prompting an appeal to the Supreme Court that last month ruled she must obtain their approval to trigger Article 50. But during five days of debate on the resulting government bill, it became clear that most MPs would not stop the process -- even if some warned that leaving Europe&#39;s single market could be disastrous.

The opposition Labour party and the smaller Scottish National Party (SNP) tabled amendments demanding guarantees on market access, workers&#39; rights and those of EU citizens in Britain. Each was defeated, although during the process the government was forced to promise lawmakers a vote on the final Brexit deal before it is concluded.

Labour imposed a &quot;three-line whip&quot;, a tough disciplinary measure ordering its MPs not to oppose the legislation, ensuring it would pass. But some 52 Labour MPs rebelled in Wednesday&#39;s vote, including business spokesman Clive Lewis who resigned shortly beforehand, bringing a fresh headache for embattled leftist leader Jeremy Corbyn.

After two-thirds of Labour voters backed Brexit, many of them driven by concerns over mass immigration from the rest of the EU, Corbyn decided his party could not block the process.

&quot;Real fight starts now. Over next two years Labour will use every opportunity to ensure Brexit protects jobs, living standards &amp; the economy,&quot; Corbyn wrote on Twitter following the vote. But he was swiftly reprimanded in a reply by SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon: &quot;How? You&#39;ve just handed the Tories a blank cheque. You didn&#39;t win a single concession but still voted for the bill. Pathetic.&quot;

&nbsp;

&#39;Ode to Joy&#39; 
SNP lawmakers voiced their frustration during Wednesday&#39;s vote by singing Beethoven&#39;s &quot;Ode to Joy&quot;, the EU&#39;s anthem, before being told off by Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle. But the outcome was celebrated by Brexiteers such as Nigel Farage, former leader of the UK Independence Party.

&quot;I never thought I&#39;d see the day where the House of Commons overwhelmingly voted for Britain to Leave the European Union,&quot; he wrote on Twitter. Liberal Democrat lawmaker Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister, said the vote would allow the government to pursue its aim of a hard Brexit, which will see Britain pull out of the single market.

&quot;There is no mandate for the hardest of hard Brexits the government favours, which risks leaving us poorer, weaker and more isolated,&quot; he said. May has promised to prioritise controlling migration in the Brexit negotiations, even if that comes at the expense of giving up membership of Europe&#39;s single market and its 500 million customers.

(AFP)

The overwhelming majority vote brings Britain a significant step closer to leaving Europe

British MPs overwhelmingly backed a bill on Wednesday empowering Prime Minister Theresa May to start negotiations on leaving the European Union, bringing Brexit a significant step closer. Members of the House of Commons voted by 494 votes to 122 for a law enabling May to trigger Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, which begins two years of talks on pulling out of the 28-nation bloc. "We've seen a historic vote tonight -- a big majority for getting on with negotiating our exit from the EU and a strong, new partnership with its member states," said Brexit minister David Davis. The unamended two-clause bill now moves to the House of Lords, where there may be more opposition from unelected peers -- and where May's Conservative party does not have a majority. But its passage through the Commons, where two-thirds of MPs had campaigned against Brexit ahead of the June referendum, puts May on course to begin the withdrawal process by the end of March, as she has vowed. Labour headaches The referendum result sent shockwaves around Europe, spooking investors and raising fears for the future of the EU itself. In the early weeks, there was speculation that pro-European lawmakers might try to delay or even stop the Brexit process. May initially sought to bypass parliament, prompting an appeal to the Supreme Court that last month ruled she must obtain their approval to trigger Article 50. But during five days of debate on the resulting government bill, it became clear that most MPs would not stop the process -- even if some warned that leaving Europe's single market could be disastrous. The opposition Labour party and the smaller Scottish National Party (SNP) tabled amendments demanding guarantees on market access, workers' rights and those of EU citizens in Britain. Each was defeated, although during the process the government was forced to promise lawmakers a vote on the final Brexit deal before it is concluded. Labour imposed a "three-line whip", a tough disciplinary measure ordering its MPs not to oppose the legislation, ensuring it would pass. But some 52 Labour MPs rebelled in Wednesday's vote, including business spokesman Clive Lewis who resigned shortly beforehand, bringing a fresh headache for embattled leftist leader Jeremy Corbyn. After two-thirds of Labour voters backed Brexit, many of them driven by concerns over mass immigration from the rest of the EU, Corbyn decided his party could not block the process. "Real fight starts now. Over next two years Labour will use every opportunity to ensure Brexit protects jobs, living standards & the economy," Corbyn wrote on Twitter following the vote. But he was swiftly reprimanded in a reply by SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon: "How? You've just handed the Tories a blank cheque. You didn't win a single concession but still voted for the bill. Pathetic." 'Ode to Joy' SNP lawmakers voiced their frustration during Wednesday's vote by singing Beethoven's "Ode to Joy", the EU's anthem, before being told off by Deputy Speaker Lindsay Hoyle. But the outcome was celebrated by Brexiteers such as Nigel Farage, former leader of the UK Independence Party. "I never thought I'd see the day where the House of Commons overwhelmingly voted for Britain to Leave the European Union," he wrote on Twitter. Liberal Democrat lawmaker Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister, said the vote would allow the government to pursue its aim of a hard Brexit, which will see Britain pull out of the single market. "There is no mandate for the hardest of hard Brexits the government favours, which risks leaving us poorer, weaker and more isolated," he said. May has promised to prioritise controlling migration in the Brexit negotiations, even if that comes at the expense of giving up membership of Europe's single market and its 500 million customers. (AFP)

Brexit: British MPs vote to start EU exit negotiations

Britain scrambled fighter jets on Tuesday to escort a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft to Stansted airport.

&quot;Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon aircraft were launched this afternoon from RAF Coningsby to intercept a civilian aircraft,&quot; the Ministry of Defence official told Reuters.

&quot;The aircraft was intercepted and safely escorted to Stansted airport,&quot; the ministry said. Reports said there was a bomb on board the flight.&nbsp;

Media reports said officials are scanning passengers, their luggage and sweeping the plane for any suspicious objects.

Flight tracking websites said PIA flight PK757 from Lahore to Heathrow had been diverted to Stansted in south-east England. PIA did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reports said.

(WION with agency inputs)

Media reports said officials are scanning passengers, their luggage and sweeping the plane for any suspicious objects.

Britain scrambled fighter jets on Tuesday to escort a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) aircraft to Stansted airport. "Quick Reaction Alert Typhoon aircraft were launched this afternoon from RAF Coningsby to intercept a civilian aircraft," the Ministry of Defence official told Reuters. "The aircraft was intercepted and safely escorted to Stansted airport," the ministry said. Reports said there was a bomb on board the flight. Media reports said officials are scanning passengers, their luggage and sweeping the plane for any suspicious objects. Flight tracking websites said PIA flight PK757 from Lahore to Heathrow had been diverted to Stansted in south-east England. PIA did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reports said. (WION with agency inputs)

?UK fighter jets escort Pakistan Airlines flight to Stansted airport over bomb threat

British MPs debated until midnight on Tuesday over the merits of a bill giving Prime Minister Theresa May the power to start the country&#39;s departure from the European Union.

The government is hoping to rush through the legislation in time to trigger Article 50 of the EU&#39;s Lisbon Treaty, which opens two years of divorce negotiations, by the end of March.

While the two-clause bill is expected to swiftly pass the lower House of Commons, it could be delayed in the upper House of Lords, where May&#39;s Conservative Party does not have a majority.

Its ultimate adoption is in little doubt, however.

&quot;It is not a bill about whether or not the UK should leave the EU, or how it should do so,&quot; Brexit minister David Davis said as he opened the first, two-day debate on the legislation.

&quot;It is simply about implementing a decision already made, a point of no return already passed.&quot;

The government had originally sought to bypass parliament, insisting it had the power to trigger Article 50 on its own, but the Supreme Court last week ruled it must consult lawmakers.

A majority of both houses of parliament opposed Brexit, but May has urged them to respect last year&#39;s historic referendum when 52 per cent of Britons voted to leave the EU. At just 143 words, the &quot;European Union Notification of Withdrawal Bill&quot; has been tightly drafted, making it difficult to amend either to delay the government&#39;s plans or to tie its hands in the talks.

Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has promised not to block the bill, although his party, like the wider country,&nbsp;is deeply divided and dozens of his MPs are expected to rebel.

&quot;I am not failing to trust the people, I just disagree with some of them and I agree with the 48 per cent who chose to remain,&quot; Labour MP Paul Farrelly said during the debate on Tuesday.

But fellow Labour lawmaker Emma Reynolds urged MPs to back the Article 50 bill: &quot;Those of us on the remain side might not like the (referendum) result, but we have to accept it.&quot;

The Liberal Democrats&#39;&nbsp;Sarah Olney, elected in December on an anti-Brexit platform, said parliament had been presented with no evidence the country would benefit from immediately triggering Article 50.

&quot;We are effectively being asked to jump out of an aeroplane, without knowing whether or not we are securely attached to a parachute,&quot; she said.

Dozens of May&#39;s Conservative MPs are also opposed to her plan to pull Britain out of Europe&#39;s single market, but most of her party&#39;s lawmakers have promised to back the government as long as ministers keep parliament updated and involved in the process.&nbsp;

May has already promised MPs a vote on the final divorce deal.

Pro-Brexit Conservative MP Steve Baker warned fellow lawmakers they would &quot;suffer the kind of political implosion in this country which we can scarcely imagine&quot; if they refused to pass the bill.

After the preliminary debate, a vote on Wednesday allowing the bill to move to its next stage is viewed as largely procedural.

Over three days next week, however, the Commons will consider substantive amendments on issues such as access to Europe&#39;s single market.

There are also demands for greater involvement from the devolved parliaments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with the latter two voting in June for Britain to remain in the EU.

The bill will then move to the Lords for debate from February 20, with the government hoping for their approval by March 7.

The Times newspaper said this could mean that Britain,&nbsp;the first country to vote to leave the EU,would trigger Article 50 at an EU summit on March 9-10, although Downing Street dismissed this.

(AFP)

A majority of both houses of parliament opposed Brexit, but May has urged them to respect last year's historic referendum

British MPs debated until midnight on Tuesday over the merits of a bill giving Prime Minister Theresa May the power to start the country's departure from the European Union. The government is hoping to rush through the legislation in time to trigger Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, which opens two years of divorce negotiations, by the end of March. While the two-clause bill is expected to swiftly pass the lower House of Commons, it could be delayed in the upper House of Lords, where May's Conservative Party does not have a majority. Its ultimate adoption is in little doubt, however. "It is not a bill about whether or not the UK should leave the EU, or how it should do so," Brexit minister David Davis said as he opened the first, two-day debate on the legislation. "It is simply about implementing a decision already made, a point of no return already passed." The government had originally sought to bypass parliament, insisting it had the power to trigger Article 50 on its own, but the Supreme Court last week ruled it must consult lawmakers. A majority of both houses of parliament opposed Brexit, but May has urged them to respect last year's historic referendum when 52 per cent of Britons voted to leave the EU. At just 143 words, the "European Union Notification of Withdrawal Bill" has been tightly drafted, making it difficult to amend either to delay the government's plans or to tie its hands in the talks. Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has promised not to block the bill, although his party, like the wider country, is deeply divided and dozens of his MPs are expected to rebel. "I am not failing to trust the people, I just disagree with some of them and I agree with the 48 per cent who chose to remain," Labour MP Paul Farrelly said during the debate on Tuesday. But fellow Labour lawmaker Emma Reynolds urged MPs to back the Article 50 bill: "Those of us on the remain side might not like the (referendum) result, but we have to accept it." The Liberal Democrats' Sarah Olney, elected in December on an anti-Brexit platform, said parliament had been presented with no evidence the country would benefit from immediately triggering Article 50. "We are effectively being asked to jump out of an aeroplane, without knowing whether or not we are securely attached to a parachute," she said. Dozens of May's Conservative MPs are also opposed to her plan to pull Britain out of Europe's single market, but most of her party's lawmakers have promised to back the government as long as ministers keep parliament updated and involved in the process. May has already promised MPs a vote on the final divorce deal. Pro-Brexit Conservative MP Steve Baker warned fellow lawmakers they would "suffer the kind of political implosion in this country which we can scarcely imagine" if they refused to pass the bill. After the preliminary debate, a vote on Wednesday allowing the bill to move to its next stage is viewed as largely procedural. Over three days next week, however, the Commons will consider substantive amendments on issues such as access to Europe's single market. There are also demands for greater involvement from the devolved parliaments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with the latter two voting in June for Britain to remain in the EU. The bill will then move to the Lords for debate from February 20, with the government hoping for their approval by March 7. The Times newspaper said this could mean that Britain, the first country to vote to leave the EU,would trigger Article 50 at an EU summit on March 9-10, although Downing Street dismissed this. (AFP)

Brexit: British MPs debate Article 50 bill till midnight

US President-elect Donald Trump said that Brexit would turn out to be a great thing and other countries would follow Britain out of the European Union but promised to strike a swift bilateral trade deal with the United Kingdom.

Speaking in an interview with The Times of London newspaper five days before his inauguration, Trump described himself as a big fan of Britain and endorsed last year&#39;s vote to leave the European Union.

&quot;I think Brexit is going to end up being a great thing,&quot; Trump said. &quot;I&rsquo;ll tell you, the fact that your pound sterling has gone down? Great. Because business is unbelievable in a lot of parts in the UK.&quot; The June 23 vote took many investors and chief executives by surprise, triggering the deepest political and financial turmoil in Britain since World War II and the biggest ever one-day fall in sterling against the dollar.&nbsp;Sterling has since fallen further against the US&nbsp;dollar as traders, businesses and investors fret about the type of relationship Britain will have with its biggest single trading partner after it leaves the European Union.

Trump&#39;s election campaign seized on the Brexit vote as an example of disillusioned voters rising up against the political establishment, and he forged a friendship with leading Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage - a fierce critic of Prime Minister Theresa May.&nbsp;Trump&#39;s election has raised questions over the future of the so-called &#39;special relationship&#39; that has underpinned close British-American ties for decades.&nbsp;But in the Times&nbsp;interview Trump played up his ancestral ties to Britain, saying his Scottish mother was &quot;so proud&quot; of Queen Elizabeth, and said he was eager to get a trade deal done.

&ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to work very hard to get it done quickly and done properly. Good for both sides,&rdquo; Trump said. &ldquo;I will be meeting with May. She&rsquo;s requesting a meeting and we&rsquo;ll have a meeting right after I get into the White House. We&rsquo;re going to get something done very quickly.&rdquo;

However, he predicted that more countries would seek to follow Britain&#39;s example and quit the EU.

&quot;I believe others will leave,&quot; he said. &quot;If refugees keep pouring into different parts of Europe . . . I think it&rsquo;s going to&nbsp;be very hard to keep it together because people are angry about it.&quot;

He singled out German Chancellor Angela Merkel - whose open-door policies have allowed about 1.1 million refugees from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere into Germany since mid-2015 - calling her immigration policy a catastrophic mistake.

US President-elect Donald Trump said other countries would follow Britain out of the European Union

US President-elect Donald Trump said that Brexit would turn out to be a great thing and other countries would follow Britain out of the European Union but promised to strike a swift bilateral trade deal with the United Kingdom. Speaking in an interview with The Times of London newspaper five days before his inauguration, Trump described himself as a big fan of Britain and endorsed last year's vote to leave the European Union. "I think Brexit is going to end up being a great thing," Trump said. "I’ll tell you, the fact that your pound sterling has gone down? Great. Because business is unbelievable in a lot of parts in the UK." The June 23 vote took many investors and chief executives by surprise, triggering the deepest political and financial turmoil in Britain since World War II and the biggest ever one-day fall in sterling against the dollar. Sterling has since fallen further against the US dollar as traders, businesses and investors fret about the type of relationship Britain will have with its biggest single trading partner after it leaves the European Union. Trump's election campaign seized on the Brexit vote as an example of disillusioned voters rising up against the political establishment, and he forged a friendship with leading Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage - a fierce critic of Prime Minister Theresa May. Trump's election has raised questions over the future of the so-called 'special relationship' that has underpinned close British-American ties for decades. But in the Times interview Trump played up his ancestral ties to Britain, saying his Scottish mother was "so proud" of Queen Elizabeth, and said he was eager to get a trade deal done. “We’re going to work very hard to get it done quickly and done properly. Good for both sides,” Trump said. “I will be meeting with May. She’s requesting a meeting and we’ll have a meeting right after I get into the White House. We’re going to get something done very quickly.” However, he predicted that more countries would seek to follow Britain's example and quit the EU. "I believe others will leave," he said. "If refugees keep pouring into different parts of Europe . . . I think it’s going to be very hard to keep it together because people are angry about it." He singled out German Chancellor Angela Merkel - whose open-door policies have allowed about 1.1 million refugees from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere into Germany since mid-2015 - calling her immigration policy a catastrophic mistake.

Brexit a great thing, EU countries may follow Britain: Trump

A UK-based Sikh campaign group today said it has launched an appeal to make public the secret files believed to hold details of Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the 1984 Operation Blue Star that killed hundreds of people.

Sikh Federation UK&#39;s appeal with the UK&#39;s Information Tribunal will be heard in the New Year.

It centres around four files &quot;withheld&quot; during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron into Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the military action on Golden Temple in 1984.

&quot;The first tier tribunal will consider this case in the New Year and it would be inappropriate to comment any further,&quot; a UK Cabinet Office spokesperson said. 
The files include one titled &quot;UK/Indian relations: situation in Punjab; activities of Sikh extremists; proposed visit to UK by Rajiv Gandhi in June 1985&quot;.

The other documents include a Joint Intelligence Committee file on India; one with details of then British PM Margaret Thatcher&#39;s meetings with a close adviser of Indira Gandhi; and other papers under &quot;India: Political&quot; related to events around Mrs Gandhi&#39;s assassination in October 1984.

Sikh Federation UK, which believes the closed files will shed more light on the extent of Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the military operation in Amritsar, had earlier complained to the UK&#39;s Information Commissioner to make these documents public but it was decided to keep the files closed as they were &quot;too sensitive&quot;.

The group has now issued an appeal against this decision on the grounds that the Commissioner did not take into account the &quot;thousands of civilian casualties during the Amritsar massacre as a public interest factor in favour of disclosing the information&quot;.

It claims the decision to keep the documents secret is &quot;political&quot; rather than security related and that the &quot;public has a right to know what happened 30 years ago&quot;. 
Bhai Amrik Singh, chair of Sikh Federation UK, said in a statement: &quot;This shows the lengths we are having to go to try and get to the truth and why we believe an

independent public inquiry is necessary to get to the information the UK government will continue to withhold.

&quot;We will take legal and other steps in 2017 to get to the truth of UK involvement and the ongoing conspiracy against Sikhs. Working with like-minded Sikhs in Punjab we will expose the role of Akali leaders, the Congress and BJP in the attempted genocide of the Sikhs to simply hold on to power.&quot;

In 2014, Cameron had ordered the Heywood Review into the exact nature of British involvement in the operation at Golden Temple in June 1984 after documents released previously under the 30-year declassification rule had implied British SAS commanders had advised the Indian government as it drew up plans?for the removal of militants from the Sikh shrine.

The report concluded that the nature of the UK&#39;s assistance was &quot;purely advisory&quot; and provided to the Indian government at an early stage of planning.

(PTI)

The files were "withheld" during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron

A UK-based Sikh campaign group today said it has launched an appeal to make public the secret files believed to hold details of Britain's alleged involvement in the 1984 Operation Blue Star that killed hundreds of people. Sikh Federation UK's appeal with the UK's Information Tribunal will be heard in the New Year. It centres around four files "withheld" during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron into Britain's alleged involvement in the military action on Golden Temple in 1984. "The first tier tribunal will consider this case in the New Year and it would be inappropriate to comment any further," a UK Cabinet Office spokesperson said. The files include one titled "UK/Indian relations: situation in Punjab; activities of Sikh extremists; proposed visit to UK by Rajiv Gandhi in June 1985". The other documents include a Joint Intelligence Committee file on India; one with details of then British PM Margaret Thatcher's meetings with a close adviser of Indira Gandhi; and other papers under "India: Political" related to events around Mrs Gandhi's assassination in October 1984. Sikh Federation UK, which believes the closed files will shed more light on the extent of Britain's alleged involvement in the military operation in Amritsar, had earlier complained to the UK's Information Commissioner to make these documents public but it was decided to keep the files closed as they were "too sensitive". The group has now issued an appeal against this decision on the grounds that the Commissioner did not take into account the "thousands of civilian casualties during the Amritsar massacre as a public interest factor in favour of disclosing the information". It claims the decision to keep the documents secret is "political" rather than security related and that the "public has a right to know what happened 30 years ago". Bhai Amrik Singh, chair of Sikh Federation UK, said in a statement: "This shows the lengths we are having to go to try and get to the truth and why we believe an independent public inquiry is necessary to get to the information the UK government will continue to withhold. "We will take legal and other steps in 2017 to get to the truth of UK involvement and the ongoing conspiracy against Sikhs. Working with like-minded Sikhs in Punjab we will expose the role of Akali leaders, the Congress and BJP in the attempted genocide of the Sikhs to simply hold on to power." In 2014, Cameron had ordered the Heywood Review into the exact nature of British involvement in the operation at Golden Temple in June 1984 after documents released previously under the 30-year declassification rule had implied British SAS commanders had advised the Indian government as it drew up plans?for the removal of militants from the Sikh shrine. The report concluded that the nature of the UK's assistance was "purely advisory" and provided to the Indian government at an early stage of planning. (PTI)

Sikh group to UK tribunal: Release Operation Blue Star files

The number of Britons who hit the shops on Boxing Day morning, a traditional shopping day, fell 6 per cent versus the same period last year, while online transactions rose 11.5 per cent year-on-year, retail data company Springboard said.

British retail sales grew at the fastest rate in more than a year in late November and early December, which may have taken some of the buzz out of the period around the Christmas holiday.

Boxing Day sales have traditionally been an indicator of the strength of the Christmas shopping period. But as online transactions grow in importance, discounting periods are being spread more evenly over the year and fewer people are visiting shops to make purchases.

In further evidence of changing shopping habits, Springboard said the number of people in shopping centres on Boxing Day morning fell 16.6 per cent versus the same period last year.

Britain&#39;s The Telegraph newspaper said huge volumes of returns from Black Friday in November meant that many items would not make it back into shops in time for Boxing Day, hampering shops&#39; sales further, citing data from Clear Returns which tracks online shopping returns.

A record 1 billion pounds worth of items are expected to be returned after this year&#39;s Black Friday as online customers adopted a &quot;buy now and decide later&quot; stance, The Telegraph said.

Clear Returns was not immediately available to comment.

(Reuters)

As online transactions grow more frequent, discounting periods are being spread more evenly over the year

The number of Britons who hit the shops on Boxing Day morning, a traditional shopping day, fell 6 per cent versus the same period last year, while online transactions rose 11.5 per cent year-on-year, retail data company Springboard said. British retail sales grew at the fastest rate in more than a year in late November and early December, which may have taken some of the buzz out of the period around the Christmas holiday. Boxing Day sales have traditionally been an indicator of the strength of the Christmas shopping period. But as online transactions grow in importance, discounting periods are being spread more evenly over the year and fewer people are visiting shops to make purchases. In further evidence of changing shopping habits, Springboard said the number of people in shopping centres on Boxing Day morning fell 16.6 per cent versus the same period last year. Britain's The Telegraph newspaper said huge volumes of returns from Black Friday in November meant that many items would not make it back into shops in time for Boxing Day, hampering shops' sales further, citing data from Clear Returns which tracks online shopping returns. A record 1 billion pounds worth of items are expected to be returned after this year's Black Friday as online customers adopted a "buy now and decide later" stance, The Telegraph said. Clear Returns was not immediately available to comment. (Reuters)

UK Boxing Day online sales up 11.5%, in-person shopping down 6%

A British soldier who cited Shakespeare after killing an injured Taliban fighter could be home on bail in time for Christmas, three years after being found guilty of murder in a landmark conviction.

The case of Alexander Blackman, who was identified only as &quot;Marine A&quot; during his trial, has fascinated and divided public opinion in Britain.&nbsp;

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<h5>&#39;There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil ... It&#39;s nothing you wouldn&#39;t do to us,&#39; said Blackman, paraphrasing Shakespeare&#39;s &#39;Hamlet&#39; after shooting the fighter at close range with a 9mm pistol</h5>
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On September 15, 2011, the 42-year-old Royal Marine shot a Taliban fighter who had been seriously injured by fire from an Apache helicopter in Helmand province.

&quot;There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil ... It&#39;s nothing you wouldn&#39;t do to us,&quot; said Blackman, paraphrasing Shakespeare&#39;s &quot;Hamlet&quot; after shooting the fighter at close range with a 9mm pistol.

&quot;Obviously this doesn&#39;t go anywhere, fellas. I just broke the Geneva Convention,&quot; he said to his fellow Royal Marines, in reference to international law governing the treatment of prisoners of war.&nbsp;

Footage of the incident was captured on a camera mounted onto the helmet of one of the soldiers, and two years later Blackman was convicted of murder by a court martial.

The case was the first time since the Second World War that a British soldier was convicted of a murder carried out on the battlefield.&nbsp;

&quot;You treated that Afghan man with contempt and murdered him in cold blood,&quot; judge Jeff Blackett told Blackman in December 2013 as the soldier was given a life sentence with a 10-year minimum.&nbsp;

&quot;By doing so you have betrayed your corps and all British service personnel who have served in Afghanistan, and you have tarnished their reputation,&quot; Blackett added.

The conviction was supported by Britain&#39;s then chief of defence staff, Nicholas Houghton, who said: &quot;Murder is murder, this is a heinous crime.&quot;

But now Blackman is making a bid for freedom, with a court hearing in London on Wednesday set to decide if he will be granted bail.

&#39;Icing on the cake&#39;&nbsp;

The soldier&#39;s legal team ultimately aims to overturn the conviction and have the crime lessened to manslaughter, following a Royal Navy review which suggests Blackman was suffering from post-traumatic stress at the time of the shooting.&nbsp;

Blackman has denied murder and claimed he shot the Taliban fighter once the insurgent was already dead.&nbsp;

His wife, Claire Blackman, told the BBC she hoped to have her husband home for Christmas.

&quot;Bail would be the icing on the cake,&quot; she said.

Dozens of veterans are due to gather on Wednesday outside the Royal Courts of Justice to call for &quot;Justice for Marine A, abandoned by the government,&quot; according to a poster.

Blackman&#39;s supporters include Richard Kemp, a former commander in Afghanistan, who said the soldier had been &quot;thrown to the wolves by cowards&quot;.

MP Richard Draw and author Frederick Forsyth have promised to pay the &pound;200,000 bail.

The Daily Mail newspaper has also campaigned against the murder conviction.

&quot;Did a man who for 13 years risked his life defending his country, often in the most appalling environment... really deserve to be tried for murder and thrown in jail like a common criminal?&quot; the right-wing newspaper wrote.

Beyond the &quot;Marine A&quot; case, British tabloids have campaigned against former soldiers facing trial for alleged crimes committed while on duty.

They received support from Prime Minister Theresa May, who in October promised to &quot;put an end to the industry of vexatious claims that has pursued those who served in previous conflicts&quot;.

(AFP)

He shot a Taliban fighter who had been seriously injured by fire from an Apache helicopter, then quoted Shakespeare

A British soldier who cited Shakespeare after killing an injured Taliban fighter could be home on bail in time for Christmas, three years after being found guilty of murder in a landmark conviction. The case of Alexander Blackman, who was identified only as "Marine A" during his trial, has fascinated and divided public opinion in Britain. 'There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil ... It's nothing you wouldn't do to us,' said Blackman, paraphrasing Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' after shooting the fighter at close range with a 9mm pistol × On September 15, 2011, the 42-year-old Royal Marine shot a Taliban fighter who had been seriously injured by fire from an Apache helicopter in Helmand province. "There you are. Shuffle off this mortal coil ... It's nothing you wouldn't do to us," said Blackman, paraphrasing Shakespeare's "Hamlet" after shooting the fighter at close range with a 9mm pistol. "Obviously this doesn't go anywhere, fellas. I just broke the Geneva Convention," he said to his fellow Royal Marines, in reference to international law governing the treatment of prisoners of war. Footage of the incident was captured on a camera mounted onto the helmet of one of the soldiers, and two years later Blackman was convicted of murder by a court martial. The case was the first time since the Second World War that a British soldier was convicted of a murder carried out on the battlefield. "You treated that Afghan man with contempt and murdered him in cold blood," judge Jeff Blackett told Blackman in December 2013 as the soldier was given a life sentence with a 10-year minimum. "By doing so you have betrayed your corps and all British service personnel who have served in Afghanistan, and you have tarnished their reputation," Blackett added. The conviction was supported by Britain's then chief of defence staff, Nicholas Houghton, who said: "Murder is murder, this is a heinous crime." But now Blackman is making a bid for freedom, with a court hearing in London on Wednesday set to decide if he will be granted bail. 'Icing on the cake' The soldier's legal team ultimately aims to overturn the conviction and have the crime lessened to manslaughter, following a Royal Navy review which suggests Blackman was suffering from post-traumatic stress at the time of the shooting. Blackman has denied murder and claimed he shot the Taliban fighter once the insurgent was already dead. His wife, Claire Blackman, told the BBC she hoped to have her husband home for Christmas. "Bail would be the icing on the cake," she said. Dozens of veterans are due to gather on Wednesday outside the Royal Courts of Justice to call for "Justice for Marine A, abandoned by the government," according to a poster. Blackman's supporters include Richard Kemp, a former commander in Afghanistan, who said the soldier had been "thrown to the wolves by cowards". MP Richard Draw and author Frederick Forsyth have promised to pay the £200,000 bail. The Daily Mail newspaper has also campaigned against the murder conviction. "Did a man who for 13 years risked his life defending his country, often in the most appalling environment... really deserve to be tried for murder and thrown in jail like a common criminal?" the right-wing newspaper wrote. Beyond the "Marine A" case, British tabloids have campaigned against former soldiers facing trial for alleged crimes committed while on duty. They received support from Prime Minister Theresa May, who in October promised to "put an end to the industry of vexatious claims that has pursued those who served in previous conflicts". (AFP)

British soldier who killed Taliban fighter divides UK

In a symbolic victory, British Prime Minister Theresa May today won a vote in Parliament backing her timetable for negotiating Britain&#39;s exit from the European Union (EU).

MPs voted in the House of Commons 461 to 89 in favour of May triggering Article 50 by the end of March 2017, which will begin the formal process of exit negotiations from the 28-member economic bloc.

The win followed a compromise between Opposition Labour and the ruling Conservatives, which saw May committing to revealing the official plan for Brexit before the actual process begins, without committing to any detailed account.

The vote also supported a Labour motion calling for Parliament to &quot;properly scrutinise&quot; the government in its proposals for leaving the EU by 448 votes to 75 - a margin of 373.

Labour&#39;s Brexit spokesman, Sir Keir Starmer, has said his party would continue to challenge the government if its plan was &quot;not detailed enough&quot;.

He said: &quot;I think it&#39;s got to be pretty detailed, they&#39;ve got to set out what those objectives are. I don&#39;t think it needs to be in a particular form, but if it&#39;s not detailed enough they can expect further challenge.&quot;

Brexit Secretary David Davis responded: &quot;The simple fact is that the mandate (in June&#39;s referendum) was to leave the European Union - full stop. We need to keep that in mind when we are going through that process.

&quot;This is a negotiation; it&#39;s not a policy statement. And, therefore, where you are aiming for may not be the exact place you end up.&quot;

The debate today came after a procedural battle between the parties over the wording of the motion to be put to MPs. Mrs May had been refusing to provide a &quot;running commentary&quot; on Brexit after the UK voted to leave the EU in a referendum in June.

As the Supreme Court in London continues to hear a case to establish the extent of British PM?s power in launching into a Brexit without parliamentary approval, Downing Street put forward an amendment agreeing to publish a plan before triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.

Starmer described it as &quot;a welcome and hugely significant climbdown&quot;, while the government believes receiving this parliamentary backing for the timetable would avoid delays to the Brexit process.

The government&#39;s amendment was opposed by 23 Labour MPs and one Conservative - former chancellor Ken Clarke. Five Liberal Democrat MPs, three Welsh Plaid Cymru MPs and 51 SNP MPs also voted against it.

&nbsp;

(PTI)

Lawmakers voted 461 to 89 in favour of May triggering article 50 by end of March 2017, beginning the formal process of exit negotiations

In a symbolic victory, British Prime Minister Theresa May today won a vote in Parliament backing her timetable for negotiating Britain's exit from the European Union (EU). MPs voted in the House of Commons 461 to 89 in favour of May triggering Article 50 by the end of March 2017, which will begin the formal process of exit negotiations from the 28-member economic bloc. The win followed a compromise between Opposition Labour and the ruling Conservatives, which saw May committing to revealing the official plan for Brexit before the actual process begins, without committing to any detailed account. The vote also supported a Labour motion calling for Parliament to "properly scrutinise" the government in its proposals for leaving the EU by 448 votes to 75 - a margin of 373. Labour's Brexit spokesman, Sir Keir Starmer, has said his party would continue to challenge the government if its plan was "not detailed enough". He said: "I think it's got to be pretty detailed, they've got to set out what those objectives are. I don't think it needs to be in a particular form, but if it's not detailed enough they can expect further challenge." Brexit Secretary David Davis responded: "The simple fact is that the mandate (in June's referendum) was to leave the European Union - full stop. We need to keep that in mind when we are going through that process. "This is a negotiation; it's not a policy statement. And, therefore, where you are aiming for may not be the exact place you end up." The debate today came after a procedural battle between the parties over the wording of the motion to be put to MPs. Mrs May had been refusing to provide a "running commentary" on Brexit after the UK voted to leave the EU in a referendum in June. As the Supreme Court in London continues to hear a case to establish the extent of British PM?s power in launching into a Brexit without parliamentary approval, Downing Street put forward an amendment agreeing to publish a plan before triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. Starmer described it as "a welcome and hugely significant climbdown", while the government believes receiving this parliamentary backing for the timetable would avoid delays to the Brexit process. The government's amendment was opposed by 23 Labour MPs and one Conservative - former chancellor Ken Clarke. Five Liberal Democrat MPs, three Welsh Plaid Cymru MPs and 51 SNP MPs also voted against it. (PTI)

British PM Theresa May wins Brexit timetable vote in parliament

British teenagers drink a bathtub full of sugary drinks every year, Cancer Research foundation said on Tuesday.

According to CRUK, Children aged 11 to 18 consume on an average about 234 cans of sugar-sweetened soft drinks each year.

The figure is equal to almost a bath full and more than double for children between four and 10, their average annual intake adding up to 110 cans.

The data is from a recent report carried out by the British government&#39;s health department and the Food Standards Agency.

The study found a drop in the amount of sugar-sweetened soft drinks consumed by children, and a more significant fall recorded in the under-10s than teenagers.&nbsp;

However, despite the improving data, CRUK said there is &nbsp;an urgent need to further reduce children&#39;s intake of sugary drinks and voiced its support behind government proposal to introduce a sugar tax.

&quot;The ripple effect of a small tax on sugary drinks is enormous, and it will give soft drinks companies a clear incentive to reduce the amount of sugar in drinks,&quot; Alison Cox, director of prevention at CRUK told AFP.

&quot;But the government can do more to give the next generation a better chance.

&quot;The UK has an epidemic on its hands, and needs to act now,&quot; she added.

British Prime Minister Theresa May &nbsp;in August had said that she plans &nbsp;to introduce a sugar tax aimed at tackling childhood obesity, tooth decay and type 2 diabetes.

The sugar levy was first unveiled in March by former prime minister &nbsp;David Cameron&rsquo;s administration.

The tax is meant for drinks with more than five grams of sugar per 100 millilitres and will be introduced in two years, despite strong opposition from the drinks industry.

Only &nbsp;France, South Africa and Mexico have attempted such a tax.

 
(WION with inputs from AFP)

 
&nbsp;

Cancer Research UK has voiced its?support for government proposal to introduce a sugar tax after the report

British teenagers drink a bathtub full of sugary drinks every year, Cancer Research foundation said on Tuesday. According to CRUK, Children aged 11 to 18 consume on an average about 234 cans of sugar-sweetened soft drinks each year. The figure is equal to almost a bath full and more than double for children between four and 10, their average annual intake adding up to 110 cans. The data is from a recent report carried out by the British government's health department and the Food Standards Agency. The study found a drop in the amount of sugar-sweetened soft drinks consumed by children, and a more significant fall recorded in the under-10s than teenagers. However, despite the improving data, CRUK said there is an urgent need to further reduce children's intake of sugary drinks and voiced its support behind government proposal to introduce a sugar tax. "The ripple effect of a small tax on sugary drinks is enormous, and it will give soft drinks companies a clear incentive to reduce the amount of sugar in drinks," Alison Cox, director of prevention at CRUK told AFP. "But the government can do more to give the next generation a better chance. "The UK has an epidemic on its hands, and needs to act now," she added. British Prime Minister Theresa May in August had said that she plans to introduce a sugar tax aimed at tackling childhood obesity, tooth decay and type 2 diabetes. The sugar levy was first unveiled in March by former prime minister David Cameron’s administration. The tax is meant for drinks with more than five grams of sugar per 100 millilitres and will be introduced in two years, despite strong opposition from the drinks industry. Only France, South Africa and Mexico have attempted such a tax. (WION with inputs from AFP)

British teens drink a 'bathtub' of sugary drinks a year: Report

&nbsp;

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in collaboration with five research universities in the UK, have found a possible cure for HIV infection after a patient showed no signs of the virus after the treatment, the NIHR website said.&nbsp;

According to ANI, the man was the first to finish treatment and his blood tests did not detect the virus. However due to the Antiretroviral Therapy, the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disappears from the body.&nbsp;

Mark Samuels, the managing director of the NOCRI &quot;This is one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV. We are exploring the real possibility of curing HIV. This is a huge challenge and it`s still early days but the progress has been remarkable,&quot; ANI quoted him saying.

The NIHR&#39;s Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure is leading the clinical trial called &#39;kick and kill&#39; study with 50 HIV patients. The researchers activate the HIV cells which are asleep. They treat these activated cells with an HDAC drug to facilitate the body to fight the virus.&nbsp;

Professor of HIV Medicine at Imperial College London, Sarah Fidler, who is leading the trial, told BBC &quot;All the participants are taking antiretrovirals and so will have an undetectable viral load, which shows the great success of current treatment.&quot;

However, ART is effective only on active HIV cells and not the ones which are &quot;resting or sleeping&quot;. These cells store the HIV virus which allows the virus to return one ART stops attacking the active cells.&nbsp;

Currently, the Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) which is being used to treat the disease stops the virus from multiplying, which allows the immune system to recover.&nbsp;

Mark Samuels&nbsp;said &quot;HIV is able to hide from the immune system in dormant cells where highly sophisticated modern testing cannot find it, and therefore resist therapy,&quot; ANI reported. &nbsp;

The participating universities include Oxford University, University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, King&#39;s College London and University College London.

(WION)

The HIV virus could not be detected in a clinical trial patient after he was given the ART treatment along with an HDAC drug

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in collaboration with five research universities in the UK, have found a possible cure for HIV infection after a patient showed no signs of the virus after the treatment, the NIHR website said. According to ANI, the man was the first to finish treatment and his blood tests did not detect the virus. However due to the Antiretroviral Therapy, the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disappears from the body. Mark Samuels, the managing director of the NOCRI "This is one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV. We are exploring the real possibility of curing HIV. This is a huge challenge and it`s still early days but the progress has been remarkable," ANI quoted him saying. The NIHR's Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure is leading the clinical trial called 'kick and kill' study with 50 HIV patients. The researchers activate the HIV cells which are asleep. They treat these activated cells with an HDAC drug to facilitate the body to fight the virus. Professor of HIV Medicine at Imperial College London, Sarah Fidler, who is leading the trial, told BBC "All the participants are taking antiretrovirals and so will have an undetectable viral load, which shows the great success of current treatment." However, ART is effective only on active HIV cells and not the ones which are "resting or sleeping". These cells store the HIV virus which allows the virus to return one ART stops attacking the active cells. Currently, the Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) which is being used to treat the disease stops the virus from multiplying, which allows the immune system to recover. Mark Samuels said "HIV is able to hide from the immune system in dormant cells where highly sophisticated modern testing cannot find it, and therefore resist therapy," ANI reported. The participating universities include Oxford University, University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, King's College London and University College London. (WION)

Possible cure for HIV developed by UK researchers

The ministry of defence in United Kingdom (UK) is moving its computing from secure millitary network that it used in the last decade to newly-launched data centres owned by the tech giant Microsoft, the Telegraph reported today.&nbsp; 
 
The announcement comes as Microsoft&nbsp;opens its data centres&nbsp;in London, Cardiff and Durham.&nbsp;The tech giant&#39;s first data centres in UK,&nbsp;its second biggest market for cloud-based software after the United States, are up and running&nbsp;as demand for data localisation spreads across Europe and around the world. &nbsp;Microsoft&nbsp;is the first international company to build complete cloud data&nbsp;centres in the UK.&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Right from the start I&#39;ve felt that for defence the only appropriate place to have our data was here in the UK,&quot; Mike Stone, the MoD&#39;s chief digital and information officer told The Telegraph.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Technically our data could be held anywhere in the European economic area, but I wouldn&#39;t ever want to be in a position where we had data being held elsewhere and this coming under scrutiny.&quot; 
 
Microsoft&#39;s Office 365 and Azure will allow customers&#39; and citizens&#39; information to be kept on the cloud and permit operations to be run over the internet. Security concerns have sparked fears as the MoD, which employs 230,000 people and spends more than $3 billion per year on technical infrastructure, moves away from its traditionally safe military computer network.&nbsp; 
 
Stone, however, said the software contains safeguard for data to protect individual documents.&nbsp; 
 
Other initial UK cloud customers include automaker Aston Martin, and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, the country&#39;s largest mental health agency, and Capita Plc, Britain&rsquo;s largest business process outsourcing. 
 
Meanwhile, cloud computing is more efficient and cheaper than using data servers because users are charged only for the data they use which can be modified on a short notice too.&nbsp; 
 
Local storage of data has grown more desirable as US technology companies have become dominant.&nbsp; 
 
Britain&#39;s vote to leave the European Union has also raised concerns over the status of data stored and processed in the UK. 
 
(WION with inputs from Reuters)

Microsoft's Office 365 and Azure will allow citizens' information to be kept on the cloud and permit operations to be run over Internet

The ministry of defence in United Kingdom (UK) is moving its computing from secure millitary network that it used in the last decade to newly-launched data centres owned by the tech giant Microsoft, the Telegraph reported today. The announcement comes as Microsoft opens its data centres in London, Cardiff and Durham. The tech giant's first data centres in UK, its second biggest market for cloud-based software after the United States, are up and running as demand for data localisation spreads across Europe and around the world. Microsoft is the first international company to build complete cloud data centres in the UK. "Right from the start I've felt that for defence the only appropriate place to have our data was here in the UK," Mike Stone, the MoD's chief digital and information officer told The Telegraph. "Technically our data could be held anywhere in the European economic area, but I wouldn't ever want to be in a position where we had data being held elsewhere and this coming under scrutiny." Microsoft's Office 365 and Azure will allow customers' and citizens' information to be kept on the cloud and permit operations to be run over the internet. Security concerns have sparked fears as the MoD, which employs 230,000 people and spends more than $3 billion per year on technical infrastructure, moves away from its traditionally safe military computer network. Stone, however, said the software contains safeguard for data to protect individual documents. Other initial UK cloud customers include automaker Aston Martin, and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, the country's largest mental health agency, and Capita Plc, Britain’s largest business process outsourcing. Meanwhile, cloud computing is more efficient and cheaper than using data servers because users are charged only for the data they use which can be modified on a short notice too. Local storage of data has grown more desirable as US technology companies have become dominant. Britain's vote to leave the European Union has also raised concerns over the status of data stored and processed in the UK. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

UK's ministry of defence switches to cloud as Microsoft opens its first data centres

A report by UK&#39;s Department of International Trade (DIT) reveals India has emerged as the second largest international job creator in the last fiancial year.&nbsp; 
 
India also retained its spot as the third largest source of foreign direct investment in the UK, Indian news agency PTI reported today quoting DIT.&nbsp; 
 
In 2015, Indian companies created 7,105 jobs through 140 projects the report revealed. While US created 25,694 jobs taking the lead, Germany came third with 5,291 jobs from 99 projects. 
 
Liam Fox, secretary of state for International trade said the UK has broadened its reach with emerging markets, on his three-day visit to India. 
 
India is also the third largest investor in bringing foreign direct investment (FDI) to the UK for the second time. 
 
China is ahead of India with 156 projects while the US provided 570 projects, becoming UK&#39;s largest source of inward investment. 
 
In 2015, there was a 65 per cent increase in foreign direct investment flow from India to the UK, creating 7,730 jobs and saving 1,620 more in th eyear 2014-15. 
 
Dominic Asquith, British high commissioner to India said, &quot;With India we share a two way relationship of growth as the UK is also India&rsquo;s largest G20 investor.&quot; 
 
Although the report has estimated job creation figures for the last financial year, there is some fear as to how Brexit will affect the outflow of FDI to the UK. 
 
(WION with inputs from PTI)

In 2015, Indian companies created 7,105 jobs through 140 projects and also retained its spot as the third largest source of FDI in the UK

A report by UK's Department of International Trade (DIT) reveals India has emerged as the second largest international job creator in the last fiancial year. India also retained its spot as the third largest source of foreign direct investment in the UK, Indian news agency PTI reported today quoting DIT. In 2015, Indian companies created 7,105 jobs through 140 projects the report revealed. While US created 25,694 jobs taking the lead, Germany came third with 5,291 jobs from 99 projects. Liam Fox, secretary of state for International trade said the UK has broadened its reach with emerging markets, on his three-day visit to India. India is also the third largest investor in bringing foreign direct investment (FDI) to the UK for the second time. China is ahead of India with 156 projects while the US provided 570 projects, becoming UK's largest source of inward investment. In 2015, there was a 65 per cent increase in foreign direct investment flow from India to the UK, creating 7,730 jobs and saving 1,620 more in th eyear 2014-15. Dominic Asquith, British high commissioner to India said, "With India we share a two way relationship of growth as the UK is also India’s largest G20 investor." Although the report has estimated job creation figures for the last financial year, there is some fear as to how Brexit will affect the outflow of FDI to the UK. (WION with inputs from PTI)

India second largest job creator in UK, says Department of International Trade

Voting will begin today to decide if veteran leftist Jeremy Corbyn will remain leader of Britain&#39;s Labour party, with an ill-tempered campaign deepening divisions that threaten the party&#39;s future. 
 
Ballots and online voting forms were due to be sent to party members, who will have until September 21 to decide whether to replace Corbyn with MP Owen Smith, previously little known outside Westminster. 
 
The 46-year-old triggered the election by declaring his candidacy last month, warning that Corbyn&#39;s leadership was making the possibility of a split in the party &quot;dangerously real&quot;. 
 
Smith, a former member of Corbyn&#39;s top team, is also targeting voters to the left of the party, promising a &quot;socialist revolution&quot;. 
 
&quot;Not some misty-eyed, romantic notion of a revolution where we are going to overthrow capitalism and return to a socialist nirvana... but a cold-eyed, practical socialist revolution where we build a better Britain,&quot; he said last month. 
 
Corbyn, 67, is favourite to stay as leader, retaining the support of most trade unions and many who signed up last year to propel him to a shock win in the leadership election called following the party&#39;s thrashing in the general election. 
 
But he has failed to win over many of the party&#39;s MPs, 80 per cent of whom backed a recent vote of no-confidence in their leader. 
 
Britain&#39;s vote on June 23 to leave the European Union provided the catalyst for the leadership challenge, with many in the party criticising Corbyn&#39;s performance during the campaign. 
 
London mayor slams Corbyn&nbsp; 
 
At a recent debate, Smith accused the veteran socialist of &quot;sloganising&quot; rather than holding the Conservative Party to account, and of failing to campaign hard enough to prevent a vote to leave the EU. 
 
Loud boos, cheers and heckling have characterised many of the debates between the two men while local party meetings have been suspended during the contest due to allegations of intimidation levelled against Corbyn&#39;s supporters, exposing the party&#39;s growing rift. 
 
Some commentators have warned the outcome could even split the party, which grew out of Britain&#39;s trade union movement in the 19th century. 
 
Corbyn has the support of many Labour members, and since February 2015 party membership has surged from 200,000 to 540,000. 
 
He is also backed by Momentum, a mass movement of party members who have turned out in their droves to support him at events around the country in recent days. 
 
However, he received a setback earlier this month when a court ruled that 130,000 new party members who joined in the six months up to July 12 could not vote in the leadership contest. 
 
Labour&#39;s London Mayor Sadiq Khan also delivered a blow on Sunday by declaring his support for Smith. 
 
&quot;Jeremy&#39;s personal ratings are the worst of any opposition leader on record and the Labour party is suffering badly as a result,&quot; Khan wrote in the Observer, the Sunday version of the centre-left Guardian newspaper. 
 
&quot;Jeremy has already proved that he is unable to organise an effective team and has failed to win the trust and respect of the British people,&quot; he added. 
 
Smith appears to be targeting pacifist Corbyn&#39;s grassroots base, causing controversy by calling for the British government to &quot;get round the table&quot; with the Islamic State group. 
 
The result is to be announced on September 24 during a special congress in Liverpool, north-west England. 
 
(Reuters) 
 
&nbsp;

Party members will have until September 21 to decide whether to replace Jeremy Corbyn with MP Owen Smith

Voting will begin today to decide if veteran leftist Jeremy Corbyn will remain leader of Britain's Labour party, with an ill-tempered campaign deepening divisions that threaten the party's future. Ballots and online voting forms were due to be sent to party members, who will have until September 21 to decide whether to replace Corbyn with MP Owen Smith, previously little known outside Westminster. The 46-year-old triggered the election by declaring his candidacy last month, warning that Corbyn's leadership was making the possibility of a split in the party "dangerously real". Smith, a former member of Corbyn's top team, is also targeting voters to the left of the party, promising a "socialist revolution". "Not some misty-eyed, romantic notion of a revolution where we are going to overthrow capitalism and return to a socialist nirvana... but a cold-eyed, practical socialist revolution where we build a better Britain," he said last month. Corbyn, 67, is favourite to stay as leader, retaining the support of most trade unions and many who signed up last year to propel him to a shock win in the leadership election called following the party's thrashing in the general election. But he has failed to win over many of the party's MPs, 80 per cent of whom backed a recent vote of no-confidence in their leader. Britain's vote on June 23 to leave the European Union provided the catalyst for the leadership challenge, with many in the party criticising Corbyn's performance during the campaign. London mayor slams Corbyn At a recent debate, Smith accused the veteran socialist of "sloganising" rather than holding the Conservative Party to account, and of failing to campaign hard enough to prevent a vote to leave the EU. Loud boos, cheers and heckling have characterised many of the debates between the two men while local party meetings have been suspended during the contest due to allegations of intimidation levelled against Corbyn's supporters, exposing the party's growing rift. Some commentators have warned the outcome could even split the party, which grew out of Britain's trade union movement in the 19th century. Corbyn has the support of many Labour members, and since February 2015 party membership has surged from 200,000 to 540,000. He is also backed by Momentum, a mass movement of party members who have turned out in their droves to support him at events around the country in recent days. However, he received a setback earlier this month when a court ruled that 130,000 new party members who joined in the six months up to July 12 could not vote in the leadership contest. Labour's London Mayor Sadiq Khan also delivered a blow on Sunday by declaring his support for Smith. "Jeremy's personal ratings are the worst of any opposition leader on record and the Labour party is suffering badly as a result," Khan wrote in the Observer, the Sunday version of the centre-left Guardian newspaper. "Jeremy has already proved that he is unable to organise an effective team and has failed to win the trust and respect of the British people," he added. Smith appears to be targeting pacifist Corbyn's grassroots base, causing controversy by calling for the British government to "get round the table" with the Islamic State group. The result is to be announced on September 24 during a special congress in Liverpool, north-west England. (Reuters)

Voting to begin in bitter Labour leader contest in UK

Britain beat defending champions the Netherlands on Friday to take home their first Olympic gold medal in women&#39;s hockey, winning 2-0 in a tense shootout following a hardfought 3-3 draw. 
 
After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were hot favourites going into the Rio Games. 
 
Despite winning every game to finish top of their group, however, the top-ranked Dutch team only scraped into the final after beating ninth-ranked Germany 4-3 in a shootout following a 1-1 draw. 
 
Britain also finished the group stages with a perfect record and were gunning for gold in their first Olympic final having won bronze four years ago in London. Germany beat New Zealand 2-1 to take the bronze medal. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve done it,&quot; British midfielder Nicola White told reporters, brandishing her medal with a grin plastered across her face. &quot;We&#39;ve trained our arses off for so long, this is what we&#39;ve dreamed of and now we&#39;ve got it. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve now gone unbeaten through an Olympic tournament, which is unreal,&quot; she added. &quot;We are just over the moon.&quot; 
 
That the near sell-out crowd at the Olympic Hockey Centre, a venue which has struggled to fill seats during the Rio Games, were in for a show was clear from the pushback. 
 
A boisterous British tackle and ensuing penalty flick gave Dutch captain Maartje Paumen an early chance to score, but her shot was batted aside by British keeper Maddie Hinch. 
 
&#39;SHAME IT&#39;S SILVER&#39; 
 
Britain&#39;s Lily Owsley claimed the first score of the night, emerging victorious from a mad scramble in front of the Dutch goal to put her side 1-0 ahead. 
 
A Dutch equaliser came courtesy of forward Kitty van Male who broke away for a one-on-one with the British keeper, skilfully drawing her aside and putting the ball into the top of the net with an audacious reverse stick sweep. 
 
The Netherlands&#39; second goal promptly followed with Paumen scoring off the last of three penalty corners in the space of four minutes. Seconds later, Britain&#39;s Crista Cullen picked up a cross in the opposition circle to level the scores at 2-2 going into the break. 
 
The goals kept coming in the second half. Both teams netted one each after a series of penalty corners, leaving the score deadlocked at 3-3 on the final whistle and forcing a shootout to decide the match. 
 
Of the 10 goals available, only two were scored. Britain&#39;s Helen Richardson-Walsh and Hollie Webb found the back of net to secure victory and their team&#39;s first Olympic gold medals. 
 
&quot;We played very well during the game. I think we played way better than them,&quot; said the Netherlands&#39; Eva de Goede. &quot;But shootouts are fifty-fifty. They won, we lost, it&#39;s tough.&quot; 
 
&quot;Shame it&#39;s silver,&quot; she added, gesturing to the medal which will join the two gold ones she already has at home. &quot;We were really going for a third gold. But it didn&#39;t work out.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were favourites going into the Rio Games

Britain beat defending champions the Netherlands on Friday to take home their first Olympic gold medal in women's hockey, winning 2-0 in a tense shootout following a hardfought 3-3 draw. After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were hot favourites going into the Rio Games. Despite winning every game to finish top of their group, however, the top-ranked Dutch team only scraped into the final after beating ninth-ranked Germany 4-3 in a shootout following a 1-1 draw. Britain also finished the group stages with a perfect record and were gunning for gold in their first Olympic final having won bronze four years ago in London. Germany beat New Zealand 2-1 to take the bronze medal. "We've done it," British midfielder Nicola White told reporters, brandishing her medal with a grin plastered across her face. "We've trained our arses off for so long, this is what we've dreamed of and now we've got it. "We've now gone unbeaten through an Olympic tournament, which is unreal," she added. "We are just over the moon." That the near sell-out crowd at the Olympic Hockey Centre, a venue which has struggled to fill seats during the Rio Games, were in for a show was clear from the pushback. A boisterous British tackle and ensuing penalty flick gave Dutch captain Maartje Paumen an early chance to score, but her shot was batted aside by British keeper Maddie Hinch. 'SHAME IT'S SILVER' Britain's Lily Owsley claimed the first score of the night, emerging victorious from a mad scramble in front of the Dutch goal to put her side 1-0 ahead. A Dutch equaliser came courtesy of forward Kitty van Male who broke away for a one-on-one with the British keeper, skilfully drawing her aside and putting the ball into the top of the net with an audacious reverse stick sweep. The Netherlands' second goal promptly followed with Paumen scoring off the last of three penalty corners in the space of four minutes. Seconds later, Britain's Crista Cullen picked up a cross in the opposition circle to level the scores at 2-2 going into the break. The goals kept coming in the second half. Both teams netted one each after a series of penalty corners, leaving the score deadlocked at 3-3 on the final whistle and forcing a shootout to decide the match. Of the 10 goals available, only two were scored. Britain's Helen Richardson-Walsh and Hollie Webb found the back of net to secure victory and their team's first Olympic gold medals. "We played very well during the game. I think we played way better than them," said the Netherlands' Eva de Goede. "But shootouts are fifty-fifty. They won, we lost, it's tough." "Shame it's silver," she added, gesturing to the medal which will join the two gold ones she already has at home. "We were really going for a third gold. But it didn't work out." (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Britain wins first gold in women's hockey

The Jammu and Kashmir National Independence Alliance (JKNIA), a UK-based umbrella alliance comprising Kashmiri diaspora and civil organisations, today held a protest demonstration outside the Pakistani High Commission in London seeking global pressure on Pakistan for human rights violations in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit. 
 
The demonstrators demanded fundamental rights for Kashmiris in Pakistan and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). 
 
They said Pakistan had thrown an iron curtain across Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit. Slogans were also raised for Pakistan to leave the region. 
 
Shabir Chaudhry, spokesperson of the Kashmir National Party, who participated in the demonstration, while speaking to the media, stated that the protest had been organised to raise the issue of human rights atrocities against Kashmiris in Pakistan and Gilgit. 
 
Referring to the killing of Arif Shahid, leader of the All Parties National Alliance in Rawalpindi in 2013, Chaudhry said there was no doubt that Shahid had been killed by the Pakistani establishment simply because he had raised his voice for the basic rights of the people of Pakistan and Gilgit. 
 
Chaudhry further said that it was odd that the Pakistani Government could refer to Burhan Wani, commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen as a martyr but people like Shahid, who never raised a gun against Pakistan, are labelled as terrorists. 
 
Chaudhry said that Shahid must be declared a martyr for having spoken all his life for the rights of the marginalised in Pakistan. 
 
(ANI)

Demonstrators demanded fundamental rights for Kashmiris in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan

The Jammu and Kashmir National Independence Alliance (JKNIA), a UK-based umbrella alliance comprising Kashmiri diaspora and civil organisations, today held a protest demonstration outside the Pakistani High Commission in London seeking global pressure on Pakistan for human rights violations in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit. The demonstrators demanded fundamental rights for Kashmiris in Pakistan and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). They said Pakistan had thrown an iron curtain across Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit. Slogans were also raised for Pakistan to leave the region. Shabir Chaudhry, spokesperson of the Kashmir National Party, who participated in the demonstration, while speaking to the media, stated that the protest had been organised to raise the issue of human rights atrocities against Kashmiris in Pakistan and Gilgit. Referring to the killing of Arif Shahid, leader of the All Parties National Alliance in Rawalpindi in 2013, Chaudhry said there was no doubt that Shahid had been killed by the Pakistani establishment simply because he had raised his voice for the basic rights of the people of Pakistan and Gilgit. Chaudhry further said that it was odd that the Pakistani Government could refer to Burhan Wani, commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen as a martyr but people like Shahid, who never raised a gun against Pakistan, are labelled as terrorists. Chaudhry said that Shahid must be declared a martyr for having spoken all his life for the rights of the marginalised in Pakistan. (ANI)

Pakistan high commission in UK under siege by Kashmir groups over human rights violations

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