Nelson Mandela memorial service held at Westminster Abbey

Archbishop Desmond Tutu was among the speakers at the service, as Nicholas Witchell reports

• Obituary: Nelson Mandela
• Nelson Mandela: A life in pictures
• Mandela buried at ancestral home

A memorial service to celebrate the life of former South African President Nelson Mandela has taken place at Westminster Abbey in London.

The service was attended by up to 2,000 people including Prince Harry, David Cameron, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and South Africa's deputy president.
Earlier, the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall, announced a memorial stone to honour Mr Mandela would be placed in the abbey.
Mr Mandela died aged 95 in December.

At the scene: Daniela Relph

Nelson Mandela is the first non-Briton to be honoured with a thanksgiving service on this scale at Westminster Abbey.
He had described London as the second headquarters of the anti-apartheid movement - such was the level of campaigning here.
The thanksgiving service mixed the traditional British with the distinctly African.
David Cameron gave one of the readings, while Archbishop Desmond Tutu delivered the address.
A section of Mr Mandela's presidential inauguration speech was also played to the abbey.
It had been hoped the South African guests here would be led by President Jacob Zuma but he cancelled last week.
He spent the weekend at the wedding of Robert Mugabe's daughter in Zimbabwe.

South Africa's first black president and anti-apartheid hero led the country's transition from white-minority rule in the 1990s, after spending 27 years in prison for his political activities.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate became one of the world's most revered statesmen after preaching reconciliation.
Archbishop Tutu told the congregation there was worldwide veneration of Mr Mandela following his death because he had made everyone believe in peace.
"He made us believe that all, each one of us, we are made of goodness," he said.
"We are made for caring, we are made for loving, we are made for compassion, we are made for laughter, for peace."
Archbishop Tutu thanked those who supported the anti-apartheid movement.
He said Mr Mandela had been "appalled" by the apartheid system that spawned signs in South Africa reading: "Drive carefully - natives cross here."

Archbishop Tutu thanked international anti-apartheid campaigners

"Without the anti-apartheid movement, without you extraordinary human beings, Mandela could so easily have died in prison," Archbishop Tutu said.
"Wonderfully, exhilaratingly, the entire world glued to its TV sets watched as this man emerged from 27 years of incarceration."
The service was attended by royalty, politicians and celebrities, including actor Idris Elba who starred as Mr Mandela in the film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.

The Soweto Gospel Choir travelled from South Africa to take part in the service

Earlier, setting out plans for the memorial stone, Dr Hall described Mr Mandela as "one of the most remarkable world leaders of the last century".
He said: "His remarkable constancy under suffering stand as an example to everyone.
"In addition, his capacity for forgiveness and his generosity of spirit show what humanity at its best can achieve.
"His memorial in Westminster Abbey, justified in itself, standing amongst memorials to many of the greatest men and women of the world, not all of them British, will also prove to be a focus of contemplation and prayer for the gift of forgiveness and reconciliation in many communities and places in our troubled world."
Mr Mandela visited the abbey in July 1996 when, during a state visit, he laid a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.

Mr Mandela’s daughters Zindzi and Zenani Mandela were among those attending the thanksgiving

Former UK prime ministers Sir John Major and Gordon Brown were among the congregation

Connery says Scottish independence a chance 'too good to miss'

Sean Connery poses for photographers as he promotes his new book called 'Being a Scot' at the Edinburgh International Book Festival on August 25, 2008 (AFP Photo/Ed Jones)

London (AFP) - James Bond star Sean Connery urged his fellow Scots on Sunday to vote for independence in their referendum later this year, saying it was an opportunity "too good to miss".
The 83-year-old actor, one of the most high-profile backers of the Scottish National Party's campaign for a 'yes' vote in September, said independence would raise Scotland's profile.

This could encourage more investment in the Scottish film sector and lead to the "international promotion of Scotland as an iconic location", Connery wrote in the Sun on Sunday newspaper.

Connery, the star of 007 movies such as "Goldfinger" and "Dr No", was born in Scotland but has not lived there for years, instead spending his time in Spain, the Bahamas and New York.
In 2003, he said he would not return until Scotland broke with the rest of the United Kingdom.
"I fully respect the choice facing Scotland in September is a matter for the people who choose to work and live there -- that's only right," said the actor.

"But as a Scot with a lifelong love of Scotland and the arts, I believe the opportunity of independence is too good to miss."

He added: "A Yes vote will capture the world's attention. There will be a renewed focus on our culture and politics, giving us an unparalleled opportunity to promote our heritage and creative excellence."

A YouGov poll published on Saturday found 53 percent of Scots want to stay part of the United Kingdom, compared to 35 percent who think Scotland should be an independent country.

The NBA Nix LeBron James' black mask

LeBron James puts his face on. (AP/Alan Diaz)

After breaking his nose while dunking on Serge Ibaka during a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and sitting out the Miami Heat's next game against the Chicago Bulls, LeBron James said he would wear a face mask to protect his nose in returning to the lineup against the New York Knicks on Thursday night. While many expected him to wear a standard clear plastic mask in his comeback, he instead took the floor wearing a striking black carbon-fiber mask and went on to perform brilliantly, scoring 31 points on 13 for 19 shooting to go with four rebounds and four assists in 36 1/2 minutes as Miami hammered the woeful Knicks, 108-82.

While James' mask drew all sorts of attention on television, social media and beyond, it also drew the attention of the NBA's league office ... and while they're not necessarily the fashion police, they have called foul on James' choice of face-wear, and have asked him to make a change before Miami's Saturday night meeting with the Orlando Magic, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com:

"It is our understanding LeBron used the black mask because a clear one he was comfortable with wasn't ready," NBA spokesman Tim Frank said.

James appealed the decision and is still trying to get clearance to wear the black mask because he likes the lightness and fit of it, a source said. He also said he liked the style and how it matched the Heat's black throwback uniforms. [...]

The black mask was a huge hit among fans, and James and several teammates posted pictures with it on social media. On Friday, the Heat started selling T-shirts with a masked James on them.

"Only LeBron can make breaking your nose look cool," Heat forward Shane Battier said.

James isn't the first player in recent years to choose a black mask only to change course toward the more common clear alternative, whether of his own devices or due to a league request.

After sustaining a concussion and a broken nose on a foul by Dwyane Wade during the 2012 NBA All-Star Game, Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant returned to the court with a clear model before switching to a thin, Kato-evoking black mask that he said felt more comfortable than the other options available to him. He switched back to the clear one, though, after shooting 2 for 10 from the floor in the first half of his first game with the black mask.

After breaking a bone in his face in December 2012, Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving also donned a black mask — albeit a more full-faced version — and promptly scored a career-high 41 points on 15 for 25 shooting against the Knicks. The league asked him to switch to a clear model as soon as he had one available, and he obliged.

The switch itself isn't a problem — James had practiced with a clear mask for two days before deciding do go all-black-everything against the Knicks — and Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra says his star's on-board with doing what's been asked of him:

That said, according to Windhorst, James "still may find a way to personalize" the clear mask. I'm not sure if he can work any Marvel or DC motifs, or some other sort of unique design element, into the clear canvas, but if he shoots 68 percent of the floor in another blowout win, I'm sure plenty of folks will still see a superhero when they look at that masked man. (Or a supervillain.)

By Dan Devine

Giant crocodile takes to surf, prompting beach closure in Australia

Experts hope to capture and relocate 12-foot reptile, to keep waters safe

by Pete Thomas

Photo showing giant crocodile in surf at Cable Beach is courtesy of Sharon Scoble.

It’s hard to imagine a creature more menacing than a great white shark swimming in the surf, but a giant crocodile comes close.
An estimated 12-foot crocodile was spotted cruising in the swells this past week at Cable Beach in Broome, Western Australia, prompting officials to close the beach to swimmers and surfers for a day.
It’s unclear what lured the reptile into the surf zone, but the unusual sighting generated quite the spectacle.

Photo showing giant crocodile in surf at Cable Beach is courtesy of Sharon Scoble.

Sharon Scoble, a Broome local, captured the images that accompany this report after receiving a call from her son, who spotted the croc while driving to the beach.
Scoble told Perth Now: “It was absolutely awesome. But it wouldn’t have been so awesome if I was swimming and noticed it.”
The croc remained in the surf zone for most of the day, before presumably finding its way back to one of the creeks. (The Broome region’s saltwater crocodiles typically remain in inland waterways.)

Photo showing giant crocodile in surf at Cable Beach is courtesy of Sharon Scoble.

“Rangers were making sure no one was going near it,” Scoble said.
Dave Woods, a Parks and Wildlife officer, said this croc might be the same animal that appeared in the surf in December.
Woods added that the croc has been targeted for capture and will be relocated to a remote wilderness park, leaving Cable Beach swimmers with only one genuine worry: sharks.

California school's ban on US flag T-shirts allowed

Cinco de Mayo is a popular holiday marked by parades and festivities in the US

In pictures: Mexico's Cinco de Mayo

• Americans join the Mexican fiesta

A California high school which barred students from wearing American flag T-shirts on a Mexican holiday did not violate their rights, a federal appeals court has ruled.

The Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals found Live Oak High School near San Jose used the ban to avoid violence.

The school has had a history of problems between Latino and white students on Cinco de Mayo.

A lawyer for the students has said he plans to appeal the verdict.

"It was reasonable for school officials to proceed as though the threat of a potentially violent disturbance was real," Judge Margaret McKeown wrote in Thursday's unanimous opinion.

'A sad day'

School staff at the 5 May 2010 event reportedly told students wearing US flag T-shirts to turn them inside out, take them off or go home.

Four of the students chose to go home, and parents of three of the youths involved later filed lawsuits alleging the school had violated federal and state constitutional rights to freedom of expression.

The boys' lawyers said they would ask an 11-judge panel of the appeals court to rehear the case, and appeal up to the US Supreme Court if necessary.

Robert Muise, a lawyer who argued the case before the Ninth Circuit, said: "It is truly a sad day when government officials are permitted to ban the American flag on a public high school campus for any reason."

Cinco de Mayo celebrates the Battle of Puebla on 5 May 1862 when Mexican troops defeated Napoleon III's French army.

Friends star Lisa Kudrow must pay ex-manager $1.6m

 Kudrow is currently playing a congresswoman in TV series Scandal

Friends star Lisa Kudrow must pay her former manager $1.6m (£955,000), after a jury agreed she owed him money from earnings received from repeats.

Scott Howard worked as Kudrow's manager for 16 years, before she terminated their contract in 2007.
Howard took legal action in 2008 claiming he was owed five percent of Kudrow's earnings from continuing residuals of work negotiated by him.
The actress has denied agreeing on the payments and is planning to appeal.
The 50-year-old is best known for playing Phoebe Buffay in the hit show Friends, which ran from 1994 to 2004.
A jury in Los Angeles ruled in favour of Howard following testimony from expert witness Martin Bauer, a long-standing Hollywood agent and manager, whom the judge - who had initially ruled in Kudrow's favour - allowed on appeal.
The witness said he had never had a commission cut off because he had been fired. "I would never make that deal," Bauer told the jury. "The only consequence of a termination is on future projects."
Bauer testified that it was common practice in the industry to take a cut of earnings made from ongoing repeats.
In the UK alone, Friends was on constant rotation on Channel 4 and E4 for seven years - between the end of the show in 2004 and 2011.
It is now shown on Comedy Central.
Oral agreement
Kudrow claimed she and Scott had an oral agreement which stated that the actress would pay a cut only on the first round of repeats. In court, she claimed he had at first refused her terms, but later relented.
However since no terms were submitted in writing, the jury found in favour of Scott claims that Kudrow was liable for breach of contract.
"The jury's verdict is merely one step in the legal process," said Kudrow's lawyer, Gerard Sauer.
"This case ultimately will be resolved at the appellate level. Ms. Kudrow has faith in the judicial system, and she believes that the eventual outcome of this contractual dispute will be in her favour."
Speculation had suggested the actress could be ordered to pay as much as $8m (£4.8m) dollars to her former manager.
The manager earned $11m (£6.6m) during their long working relationship, with Kudrow earning more than $1m (£598,000) an episode by the end of Friends' run in 2004.

Subrata Roy: India detains Sahara group chief

Subrata Roy, with his rags-to-riches life story, is a household name in India

One of India's most flamboyant tycoons, Subrata Roy, has been taken into police custody after surrendering himself for arrest in a fraud case.

The Supreme Court ordered the arrest of the Sahara group chief when he failed to appear before judges on Wednesday.

Two Sahara firms are accused of raising 240bn rupees ($3.9bn; £2.3bn) through illegal bonds.

Market regulators say Mr Roy failed to refund money to millions of investors despite a court order.

He was remanded to police custody until 4 March when it is expected the Supreme Court will hear the case.

Indian media reports say he has requested to be kept under house arrest.

'Law-abiding citizen' Earlier on Friday, Mr Roy issued a statement denying he was trying to avoid arrest, after police in Lucknow said they had raided his house on Thursday but failed to find him.

Mr Roy said he was in Lucknow but had left his home to consult doctors about his mother's health.

Who is Subrata Roy?

• Chairman of Sahara, an $11bn business group
• Business empire spans finance, housing, manufacturing, aviation and media
• Owns New York's Plaza Hotel and London's Grosvenor House
• Employs 1.1 million workers, India's biggest private employer
• Sponsors India hockey team, owns a stake in F1 racing team Force India
• Owns a fleet of private jets, helicopters, Rolls-Royces, Bentleys and BMWs

On Wednesday, judges ordered the businessman's arrest after his lawyer said the Sahara chief had been unable to appear in court because his 92-year-old mother was unwell.

The case stretches back to August 2012, when the court ordered the two Sahara firms implicated to refund money to 22 million small investors within 90 days and with 15% interest.

In December 2012, the court gave the firms more time to repay.

In February last year, market regulators froze the firms' bank accounts saying they had failed to refund the money.

But Sahara disputes the amount it should pay back, saying its liability should be no more than the 51.2bn rupees it has already paid back.

Mr Roy is a household name in India.

His group, worth $11bn, has businesses ranging from finance, housing, manufacturing, aviation and the media.

It also has interests overseas - it owns New York's landmark Plaza Hotel and London's iconic Grosvenor House.

Sahara also sponsors the Indian hockey team and owns a stake in Formula One racing team, Force India.

With more than 1.1 million workers, the group is India's biggest private sector employer.

Northern Lights illuminate the UK

The Aurora Borealis - better known as the Northern Lights - has been giving rare and spectacular displays over parts of the UK, from the north of Scotland to as far south as Jersey.

The lights have also been visible in places such as Essex, Gloucestershire, Norfolk and south Wales.

The display, which is caused by electrically charged particles from the Sun entering the Earth's atmosphere, led to scenes such as this one at the Stonehaven war memorial, Aberdeenshire.

Mark Thompson, presenter of the BBC's Stargazing Live, said he had not been expecting a display as spectacular as it was in places such as Wick, in Caithness.

Mr Thompson said the display, which was also seen in Corbridge, Northumberland, happens when solar wind - electrically charged particles - is ejected from the Sun. He said: "They take two or three days to get here and when they do get here they cause the gas atoms in the sky to glow. It is as simple as that."

The astronomer said: "Three or four days ago the Sun will have thrown a lot of this stuff out in an event called a coronal mass ejection, and they would have been travelling towards the Earth since. It all depends how active the Sun has been." This photograph was taken in Boulmer, Northumberland.

Mr Thompson said the particles were usually pulled towards the North Pole but if there were enough of them "they will travel further down towards the equator and cause the lights to go further south" as shown in this picture, taken in Gloucestershire.

Unusually, this time they were even seen as far south as Jersey, as Marc Whitehead captured in this image. "It is just good luck," Mr Thompson said. "The last time I have seen it this spectacular was probably 20 years ago."

The Northern Lights were also seen in Northern Ireland. Martina Gardiner was at Dunluce Castle in County Antrim and captured this colourful image.

Lucie Green, of the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, said: "At the moment we are at the height of the Sun's activity cycle, and it's ultimately energy from the Sun that creates the Northern Lights." The lights were seen from many parts of the UK, including here at Bow Fiddle Rock in Portknockie, Moray.

Ms Green said: "When we were watching the Sun on 25 February we saw that a particularly large and fast eruption leapt off from the Sun's atmosphere, and the models predicted that we would probably get a glancing blow from this eruption, and they were right." This picture was taken at Embleton Bay in Northumberland.

Ollie Hughes travelled from Edinburgh to Pitlochry at midnight to catch a glimpse of the lights and took this picture.

Many parts of Wales also experienced the rare phenomenon. Rob Price photographed this scene near Machynlleth in Powys.

Many people took photographs of the illuminated skies. This one shows St Mary's Island, Tyne and Wear.

Ghana hospital given 14 days to find 'missing babies'

Ghana's health minister has given a hospital in the city of Kumasi 14 days to produce the bodies of five babies that were allegedly stillborn.

Seven people were charged with stealing and conspiracy to steal a baby from the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital earlier in February.
Suwaiba Mumuni, whose baby is among the five missing, told the BBC she believes her child is still alive.
The hospital, the second largest in Ghana, has denied the allegations.

"The ministry will leave no stone unturned until the truth is established”

  Sherry Ayittey Health minister

The BBC's Sammy Darko in the capital, Accra, says the case of the missing babies has caused outrage in Ghana.

Youths stormed the hospital in Kumasi, 270km (167 miles) north-west of Accra, on Thursday, temporarily closing the maternity wards, he says.
'Overwhelmed' Ms Mumuni said after she gave birth on 5 February, she was told that her baby was stillborn and it was taken away by attendants.
When her relatives arrived later in the day to collect the body for burial, it could not be found, she said.
"The only news I am expecting to hear is that my baby has been found," Ms Mumuni told the BBC.
"They told me my baby is dead, but they have not been able to produce the body... I am confident my baby is alive."
The bodies of another four babies allegedly delivered stillborn that day are also missing.
"The ministry will leave no stone unturned until the truth is established," Health Minister Sherry Ayittey said in a statement.
Ms Ayittey said the hospital had 14 working days to find the bodies of the babies "for burial by the families".
Staff at the hospital, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they often felt overwhelmed and there were inadequate resources to deal with demand.
Our reporter says the seven people charged on Thursday over Ms Mumuni's missing baby were given bail.

L.A. council votes to ban stores from selling non-rescue dogs, cats

Los Angeles lawmakers on Wednesday voted in favor of an ordinance that will make L.A. the largest city in America to ban pet stores from selling dogs, cats and rabbits obtained from commercial breeders.
The ordinance, which the City Council voted 12-2 to approve, targets puppy mills and is designed to cut down on the tens of thousands of animals euthanized each year in city shelters.
Under the law, individuals will still be allowed to buy directly from breeders, and pet stores will be allowed to sell animals that come from shelters, humane societies and registered rescue groups. Stores found to be selling animals from breeders may face misdemeanor charges and a first-time penalty of $250.
Animal rights activists hailed L.A.’s approval of the ban as a signal to other large cities to follow suit. Irvine, Hermosa Beach and West Hollywood are among the more than 30 cities across the United States and Canada that have passed similar measures in recent years, according to Elizabeth Oreck, who has been leading the legislative effort on behalf of Best Friends Animal Society.
L.A.'s ban also sends a message, she said, to breeders who frequently cut corners to keep costs low at the expense of the animals.
“They’re inbred, they’re overbred, they're irresponsibly bred,” Oreck said.
But pet shop owners complained the ordinance is misguided and unfair.

“It’s just making us suffer,” said Candice Ro, whose family has been selling small dogs, including Yorkshire Terriers and English Bulldogs, at its Koreatown pet shop for 11 years.

Ro said her store, Olympic Pet Shop, buys nearly all of its dogs from local breeders who take good care of their animals. “If we were getting puppy mill puppies that were sick we wouldn’t have stayed in business this long,” she said.

The ban was championed by Councilman Paul Koretz, a longtime supporter of animal rights who said lawmakers have a duty to stick up for animals who “cannot speak for themselves.”

The measure was opposed by Councilman Mitchell Englander, who voted against the ban along with Councilman Bill Rosendahl.

Englander said the city doesn’t have the resources to enforce the law, and said it will put L.A. pet stores at a disadvantage. During economically difficult times like these, he said, government should be focusing on other things.

“With the limited resources we have, we’ve got to focus on the core services,” Englander said.

Because Wednesday's vote was not unanimous, it must come back for a second reading next week.

Three-person baby details announced      By James Gallagher Health and science reporter

How the creation of babies using sperm and eggs from three people will be regulated in the UK has been announced.

The draft rules will be reviewed as part of a public consultation and could come into force by the end of 2014.

Doctors say three-person IVF could eliminate debilitating and potentially fatal diseases that are passed from mother to child.

Opponents say it is unethical and could set the UK on a "slippery slope" to designer babies.

Using the parents' sperm and eggs plus an additional egg from a donor woman should prevent mitochondrial disease.

Mitochondria are the tiny, biological "power stations" that provide energy to nearly every cell of the body.

One in every 6,500 babies has severe mitochondrial disease leaving them lacking energy, resulting in muscle weakness, blindness, heart failure and even death.

As mitochondria are passed down from mother to child, using an extra egg from a donor woman could give the child healthy mitochondria.

However, it would also result in babies having DNA from two parents and a tiny amount from the donor as mitochondria have their own DNA.

Scientists have devised two techniques that allow them to take the genetic information from the mother and place it into the egg of a donor with healthy mitochondria.

1) Two eggs are fertilised with sperm, creating an embryo from the intended parents and another from the donors 2) The pronuclei, which contain genetic information, are removed from both embryos but only the parents' is kept 3) A healthy embryo is created by adding the parents' pronuclei to the donor embryo, which is finally implanted into the womb

1) Eggs from a mother with damaged mitochondria and a donor with healthy mitochondria are collected 2) The nucleus, containing the majority of the genetic material, is removed from both eggs 3) The mother's nucleus is inserted into the donor egg, which can then be fertilised by sperm.

The Department of Health has already backed the technique and says this consultation is not about whether it should be allowed, but how it is implemented.

The woman who lost all her children

Every time Sharon Bernardi became pregnant, she hoped for a healthy child.
But all seven of her children died from a rare genetic disease that affects the central nervous system - three of them just hours after birth.
When her fourth child, Edward, was born, doctors discovered the disease was caused by a defect in Sharon's mitochondria.
Edward was given drugs and blood transfusions to prevent the lactic acidosis (a kind of blood poisoning) that had killed his siblings.
Five weeks later Sharon and her husband, Neil, were allowed to take Edward to their home in Sunderland for Christmas - but his health slowly began to deteriorate.
Edward survived into adulthood, dying in 2011 at the age of 21.
Now Sharon is supporting medical research that would allow defective mitochondria to be replaced by DNA from another woman.

• Sharon's full story

The regulatory body, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, will have to decide in each cases that there is a "significant risk" of disability or serious illness.

It is anticipated that only the most severely affected women - perhaps 10 cases per year - would go ahead.

The regulations suggest treating the donor woman in the same manner as an organ donor.

Any resulting children will not be able to discover the identity of the donor, which is the case with other sperm and egg donors.

Prof Doug Turnbull, who has pioneered research in mitochondrial donation at Newcastle University, said: "I am delighted that the government has published the draft regulations.

"This is very good news for patients with mitochondrial DNA disease and an important step in the prevention of transmission of serious mitochondrial disease."

The chief medical officer for England, Prof Dame Sally Davies, said: "Allowing mitochondrial donation would give women who carry severe mitochondrial disease the opportunity to have children without passing on devastating genetic disorders.

"It would also keep the UK at the forefront of scientific development in this area.

"I want to encourage contributions to this consultation so that we have as many views as possible before introducing our final regulations."

Dr David King, the director of Human Genetics Alert, said this was a decision of "major historical significance" which had not been debated adequately.

"If passed, this will be the first time any government has legalised inheritable human genome modification, something that is banned in all other European countries.

"The techniques have not passed the necessary safety tests so it is unnecessary and premature to rush ahead with legalisation.

"The techniques are unethical according to basic medical ethics, since their only advantage over standard and safe egg donation is that the mother is genetically related to her child.

"This cannot justify the unknown risks to the child or the social consequences of allowing human genome modification."

Katy Perry Dark Horse video edited

The video for Dark Horse features Perry as an Egyptian queen

The video for Katy Perry's track Dark Horse has been edited following claims from some Muslims it was blasphemous.

More than 65,000 people signed a petition which stated the clip - featuring a pendant with the Arabic word for God on it being reduced to sand - was offensive.

The music video has not been cut, but the pendant has now been digitally "scrubbed" out of the scene.

Petition instigator Shazad Iqbal, said he was "thrilled" with the outcome.

"The name of Allah has been removed from the Dark Horse video - we couldn't have done it without everyone's support so I thank each and every one of you deeply, our voices have been heard," he wrote on Change.org.

"I feel that the impact we have made and the total number of signatures obtained does convey just how worthy a cause this is, it is a significant step towards the right direction."

 

Before and after - the pendant featuring Allah, the Arabic word for God, has been digitally removed from the scene

It is unclear whether YouTube made the change or if it was instructed to by Perry's record company.

The parties have yet to respond to BBC requests for a comment on the move.

Perry's video features the pop star as an Egyptian queen who transforms suitors into sand by disintegrating them.

Mr Iqbal, from Bradford, began the petition after he spotted one of the suitors wearing the pendant.

Explaining his reasons for starting the petition, Mr Iqbal wrote: "Blasphemy is clearly conveyed in the video, since Katy Perry - who appears to be representing an opposition of God - engulfs the believer and the word God in flames.

"Using the name of God in an irrelevant and distasteful manner would be considered inappropriate by any religion," he added.

The Dark Horse video has attracted more than 37 million views since it premiered on YouTube on 20 February.

Briton Lauri Love faces new US hacking charges

 

Lauri Love, arrested in Suffolk, faces up to 12 years in prison if convicted of new charges

A British man has been charged with hacking into US Federal Reserve computer servers and stealing the personal information of users.

Lauri Love of Stradishall, Suffolk, faces one count each of computer hacking and aggravated identify theft.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 12 years in prison.
They are the latest charges against Mr Love, previously accused of breaching the security of Nasa and FBI, among other US government agencies.
A 2013 US department of energy audit report on Mr Love's activities found personal information on 104,000 people could have been taken.
It estimated the fallout of this to cost the US at least $3.7m (£2.2m), including $1.6m spent on establishing a call centre to deal with people affected by the data breach.
Mr Love is accused of working with at least three other people - who have not been named - to breach the security of the US military, US space agency Nasa, the Environmental Protection Agency and FBI computers.
A campaign has been started to fight any possible extradition bid by the US.

Rare songbird faces fire ant threat

By Ella Davies Reporter, Nature

Rain, rats and fire ants threaten the survival of the rare Tahiti monarch, despite a record best year for its conservation.

Just 10 breeding pairs remain in the wild population, which numbers fewer than 50 mature birds in total.

Efforts to save the birds won an award from conservation partnership BirdLife International.

But experts warn that poor weather and predators could dramatically affect the current breeding season.

The Tahiti monarch (Pomarea nigra) is a species of monarch flycatcher that lives in four forested valleys on the island of Tahiti in French Polynesia.

Adults are black with pale blue beaks and juveniles are a red-brown colour.

Populations of the songbirds have declined throughout the 20th Century, but a local conservation programme that has been running for the past 16 years has succeeded in boosting breeding figures.

In 2013, conservationists at Manu, the Polynesian Ornithological Society, saw a record four-fold increase in chicks compared with the previous year.

Their efforts to manage the forest home of the critically endangered monarchs won the BirdLife International People's Choice Award, voted for by the public.

Adult birds are black

The breeding season for the birds lasts from September to June and last year some were able to produce two broods.

But so far this season, the birds have faced torrential tropical rains and conservationists are concerned by an encroaching colony of little fire ants.

"Eight chicks have survived the rain so far. But I am worried for the fledglings; they are so inquisitive they are not afraid of the introduced predators," explained Caroline Blanvillain, Head of Land Birds at Manu.

Ms Blanvillain monitors the steep valleys where the Tahiti monarchs live and describes them as "friendly little birds".

Martin Fowlie from Birdlife International identifies the bird's behaviour as "ecologically naive".

"They are typical of island endemic species that evolved with very few predators, if any," he said. "They don't see humans as potential predators as you might if you went into my garden in the UK."

The biggest predator of the birds is the black rat, a non-native species that arrived on the island with European trade ships.

School children have been replanting native trees

"Rats are not supposed to be on Tahiti, they arrived on boats and have killed thousands of birds," said Ms Blanvillain.

"And now there are fire ants on the edge of the valley. If the ants reach the nest they will eat the chicks and adults in minutes.''

Little fire ants, also known as electric ants because of their stinging bite, were first discovered in Tahiti in 2004 and have since colonised large areas of the island.

The predatory ants are native to South and Central America and are considered a pest species elsewhere in the world where they disturb the native ecology.

"Alien invasive species are the second biggest threat to birds," said Mr Fowlie.

"Across the Pacific, we know a lot of birds have gone extinct because of introduced species," he said citing destructive animals such as pigs, through plants that provide unsuitable nest sites, down to mosquitoes that can spread alien diseases.

Manu have installed hundreds of rat trapping stations throughout the forest and recruited local school children to help plant native trees in an effort to restore the birds' natural habitat.

"This is a bird that evolved for this particular island and this particular habitat. It's always difficult to say what would happen if the species went extinct, we just don't know," said Mr Fowlie.

"But it's one part of a complex fabric of ecosystem and as you start to lose bits the whole thing can unravel. It's important to keep everything in place."

Briton Polly McCourt gives birth in New York street

Cian and Polly McCourt are already parents to two other children

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A British woman gave birth in a New York City street after rushing out of her apartment as she went into labour.

Polly McCourt, 39, left her Upper East Side home on Monday and tried to hail a cab until she realised her baby would not wait.

Passers-by offered their scarves and coat to Ms McCourt and her newborn daughter, Ila, to keep them warm until emergency crews arrived at the scene.

Mother and baby were taken to hospital in good condition.

'Miracle on 3rd Avenue'

"She was like, 'Oh my God, the baby's coming,'" one witness told a Fox 5 television crew, which happened to be in the area at the time.

"And then I could see the baby's head coming out. As soon as the head came out, by the time we laid her down on the street the baby was out."

Ms McCourt, who is originally from the village of Black Bourton, Oxfordshire, gave birth on the pavement at the junction of East 68th Street and 3rd Ave.

She was smiling as she was placed in an ambulance and taken to Lennox Hill Hospital.

"A miracle on 3rd Avenue," a woman who helped deliver the baby told Fox 5.

Ms McCourt's 40-year-old Irish husband, Cian McCourt, who works for a law firm in New York, was stuck in traffic when he got the call.

The couple have two other children, Conor, six, and Adele, four, according to the New York Daily News.

They reportedly moved to New York four years ago from Dublin in the Republic of Ireland.

Smell of forest pine can limit climate change - researchers

By Matt McGrath Environment correspondent

The fresh scent of pine trees has a significant impact on climate change

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New research suggests a strong link between the powerful smell of pine trees and climate change.

Scientists say they've found a mechanism by which these scented vapours turn into aerosols above boreal forests.

These particles promote cooling by reflecting sunlight back into space and helping clouds to form.

The research, published in the journal Nature, fills in a major gap in our understanding, researchers say.

One of the biggest holes in scientific knowledge about climate change relates to the scale of the impact of atmospheric aerosols on temperatures.

Perfumed air

These particles form clouds that block sunlight as well as reflecting rays back into space.

They can be formed in a number of ways, including volcanic activity and by humans, through the burning of coal and oil.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), they "continue to contribute the largest uncertainty to estimates and interpretations of the Earth's changing energy budget."

“If you go into a pine forest and notice that pine forest smell, that could be the smell that actually limits climate change”

Dr Mikael Ehn University of Helsinki

One of the most significant but least understood sources of aerosols are the sweet-smelling vapours found in pine forests in North America, northern Europe and Russia.

These aerosols have confounded climate models as scientists haven't been able to accurately predict how many of the particles form.

Now an international team of researchers say they have solved the chemical mystery by which the rich odours become reflective, cooling particles.

They've long understood that the smell of pine, made up of volatile organic compounds, reacts with oxygen in the forest canopy to form these aerosols.

The scientists now found that, in fact, there is an extra step in the process, what they term a "missing link".

They've discovered ultra-low volatility organic vapours in the air that irreversibly condense onto any surface or particle that they meet.

"These vapours are so crazy in structure from what we had known before," said one of the authors, Dr Joel Thornton, from the University of Washington

Technology has been critical in helping the scientists capture forest particles

"It turns out that this level of craziness is what gives them the special properties to stick to those smallest particles and help grow them up in size to become aerosols."

The scientists say that having a clear understanding of the way in which forest smells become aerosols will improve the accuracy with which they can predict the ability of these particles to limit rising temperatures.

"It's certainly crucial for explaining the response of the boreal forest to a changing climate," said Dr Thornton.

"It's thought that the vapours being emitted from the vegetation in the pine forests are contributing roughly half of the aerosols over the forest," he said.

"We've found the reasons how the vapours get converted into particles, so we are basically explaining around 50% of the aerosol particles."

Cooling effect

The authors believe that this is playing a significant role in reducing the impact of rising temperatures. They argue that this effect is likely to strengthen in the future.

"In a warmer world, photosynthesis will become faster with rising CO2, which will lead to more vegetation and more emissions of these vapours," said lead author, Dr Mikael Ehn, now based at the University of Helsinki.

"This should produce more cloud droplets and this should then have a cooling impact, it should be a damping effect."

The researchers sampled the air in the forests of Finland and carried out experiments at an air chamber at the Julich Research Centre in Germany.

This is the forest in Finland where the researchers gathered samples of the pine-scented air

They believe that the discovery was down to a combination of technique and technology.

"One very important thing is that before now, people haven't had the instrumentation to detect these ultra-low volatile compounds," said Dr Ehn.

"When you pull them through a metal tube into your instrument they come into contact with the tube walls and they are lost, you won't detect them."

"We have an instrument that is as wall-less as can be, we have a very high flow of air and a very short inlet line so that it is almost sampled right from atmosphere."

The scientists stress that the new understanding is not a panacea for climate change as forests will stop emitting vapours if they become too stressed from heat or lack of water.

However, Dr Ehn believes the vapours could have a significant impact in the medium term.

"If you go into a pine forest and notice that pine forest smell, that could be the smell that actually limits climate change from reaching such levels that it could become really a problem in the world."

Katy Perry Dark Horse video 'portrays blasphemy'

The video for Dark Horse features Perry as an Egyptian queen

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Katy Perry has been accused by some Muslims of "portraying blasphemy" in the video for her single Dark Horse.

The video features the pop star as an Egyptian queen who transforms suitors into sand by disintegrating them.

Shazad Iqbal, from Bradford, has started an online petition for it to be removed from YouTube after he spotted one of the suitors wearing a pendant with the Arabic word for God on it.

More than 60,000 people have signed the petition, saying the clip is offensive.

Explaining his reasons for starting the petition, Mr Iqbal wrote: "At 01:15 into the video Dark Horse a man is shown being burned, whilst wearing a pendant (also burned) forming the word Allah.

"Blasphemy is clearly conveyed in the video, since Katy Perry (who appears to be representing an opposition of God) engulfs the believer and the word God in flames."

He added: "Using the name of God in an irrelevant and distasteful manner would be considered inappropriate by any religion.

"My only request is to all artists in the music industry: You have wealth, fame and success - please do not use the foundations of other religions in a mockery to carry out your fame."

One of Perry's suitors is disintegrated while wearing a pendant with Allah, the Arabic word for God, on it

As well as the UK, signatories have come from countries including Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Morocco, Lebanon and the US.

However, some of the 60,000 petitioners have posted spam and offensive messages against the petition.

In a follow-up post, Mr Iqbal said he had not started the campaign "to cause controversy or to cause hate but rather to gain support in having the video removed", and asked those posting comments to "please write thoughtfully".

Gregoire Singer from Switzerland wrote: "I'm a tolerant Muslim, but there are limits to ignorance, which here leads to blasphemous acts. It's a matter of respect."

Mohamed Maan, from the Netherlands, added: "I am offended as a Muslim. It shows no respect. You can compare the feeling to someone burning a picture of somebody you love dearly."

While Ayesha Akthar, from London, said: "[I] used to like her songs before but now I have deleted them all from my MP3 player and laptop."

The Dark Horse video has attracted more than 34 million views since it premiered on YouTube on 20 February.

Perry grew up in a devout Christian home, and both of her parents are Pentecostal ministers.

The singer began singing Christian gospel music before launching a pop career.

She recently told Marie Claire magazine she does not identify with any particular religion, but feels "a deep connection with God".

"I pray all the time—for self-control, for humility. There's a lot of gratitude in it. Just saying 'thank you' sometimes is better than asking for things," she added.

Perry's record label and YouTube have yet to respond to BBC requests for a comment on the petition.

The Girl Who Fought Her School's Antigay Actions (And Won)

By Beth Greenfield

(Photo via Facebook)When Skye Wyatt, 21, was a high school student in Kilgore, Texas, she had a secret: She was a lesbian, and she had a girlfriend. Only 16, she hadn’t come out to her mom. So it was all the more painful when her softball coaches, who found out about the relationship (and were disdainful of it), took care of that for her. But in a surprise twist, their breach of trust led Wyatt’s mother, Barbara Wyatt, to sue the school for violating the girl’s right to privacy — and on Monday, six years later, the school settled for $77,000. National experts in LGBT rights are calling it a rare and encouraging outcome, with lawyer Jennifer Doan deeming it a “positive story” at the end of what was, for her client, “a horrific experience.”

“It sends a really important message,” Texas Civil Rights Project legal director Wayne Krause Yang, who also worked on the case, tells Yahoo Shine. “In this day and age, we have athletes coming out, and sexual orientation is front and center. Any school or entity that doesn’t educate its employees on privacy rights involving sexual orientation is opening itself up to danger.” He calls the outcome "a big victory."

The parties arrived at the settlement less than two weeks before a scheduled trial. In addition to making the payout, the Kilgore school district has agreed to hold annual staff trainings on discrimination issues.

“The Kilgore ISD board believes that the actions of its employees were in all things lawful. … No new policies are going to be adopted," reads a statement issued by the school, and obtained by Yahoo Shine. It adds, "The plaintiff’s counsel in this case attempted to bully the board into changing its policies by threatening long, expensive and protracted litigation," and, “The Kilgore ISD Board of Trustees has no power to oppose the payment of settlement funds in this case, that matter being solely within the discretion of the insurance carrier. It is a business decision of the insurance company.”

While news of celebrities suing for defamation over gay claims is not unheard of, it’s less common to hear of such suits coming from outed students—mainly because a minor needs a parent or legal guardian to go to court. And, notes Paul Castillo, staff attorney with the national gay-rights organization Lambda Legal, “When a family rejects a child, that can’t happen.”

A handful of cases have dealt with the issue. In 2000, a court ruled that Pennsylvania police officers were at fault for a gay teen’s suicide after the teen was caught having sex by cops, who then threatened to out him to his family. And in 2011, a Utah school would not back down after outing a student to allegedly counteract bullying.

For Skye, the saga began back in 2009, when two softball coaches cornered her in the high school locker room, according to the court documents. The coaches then allegedly bullied Skye into admitting that she was gay and told her that she couldn’t play in that day’s game unless she came out to her mother. When she refused, the coaches called her mom, asked her to meet them at the field, and told her themselves. The next day, Skye was kicked off the team.

In the months and years that followed, Skye was harassed by classmates as a result of her outing. She also said in a sworn statement that she began cutting herself and had contemplated suicide. Her mother filed a complaint with the school, which held three levels of hearings; in 2010, Barbara Wyatt filed a suit on her daughter’s behalf. By then, Doan explains, Texas state law had changed to include policies concerning privacy and communication between educators and students, and the Kilgore school district had quietly instituted a policy against anti-gay discrimination. Maintaining the policy and educating staffers about it is part of the settlement’s agreement. “This is exactly what we wanted,” she adds.

“I think it’s an incredible decision, particularly because it shows that a student had the courage to stand up for what she thought was right,” Jenny Betz, education manager for the national Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN), tells Yahoo Shine. “The only reason it’s ever OK to disclose to anyone a student’s sexual orientation is if you have that student’s permission to do so. [Otherwise] it’s never OK.” That’s because one can never know how a parent or guardian will respond to such news, she notes — and it could lead to students' being abused, kicked out of their homes, or worse. “So it's not only a disrespectful act, but it can be a dangerous one, too," she says.

GLSEN research shows that, while eight out of 10 LGBT students report being verbally harassed because of their orientation, for those involved in sports, like Skye, it can actually be worse. “Over a quarter say they have been verbally harassed by those on their own team,” Betz notes. “And anyone who has played sports knows how important it is to have that camaraderie and trust.”

Saddle Ridge Hoard: Buried gold coin stash 'worth $10m'

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The coins were in uncirculated, mint condition, adding to their worth to collectors

A California couple found a stash of gold coins buried on their property last year valued at as much as $10m (£6m), rare coin dealers have said.

The 1,427 coins, which date from 1847-1894, were never circulated and are in mint condition, numismatist David Hall told the Associated Press.

The unnamed couple found them buried in rusting metal cans under a tree while on a walk last April.

It is seen as the largest haul of buried treasure in US history.

"We've seen shipwrecks in the past where thousands of gold coins were found in very high grade, but a buried treasure of this sort is unheard of," David McCarthy of currency firm Kagin's, who is advising the couple, told Reuters news agency.

"I've never seen this face value in North America and you never see coins in the condition we have here."

The coins were buried in rusted old metal cans

The couple live in a rural area of California known as Gold Country for the swarms of prospectors who descended on the region during the 19th Century gold rush.

They found the coins in an area of their land they called Saddle Ridge, and the coin dealers who have seen the haul have taken to calling it the Saddle Ridge Hoard.

It is a mystery who buried the coins - and why.

Mr Hall of Professional Coin Grading Service of Santa Ana, California, which recently authenticated the coins, told the Associated Press the coins' face value adds up to about $27,000. But some of the coins are so rare they could sell for $1m each,

The couple plan to sell the coins on Amazon.

US marijuana legalisation fuels Mexico drugs war debate

Will Mexico's drug cartels see a drop in profits as a result of changes in the US?

Mexico's drugs war

Earlier this month, two US states voted to legalise, regulate and tax marijuana. The BBC's Will Grant in Mexico City looks at what this shift in stance could mean for Mexico and its fight against the drug gangs.

Every year, pro-marijuana campaigners in Seattle hold their annual Hempfest, a two-day festival along the city's shoreline.

Thick pungent clouds of pot smoke waft over the crowd who are sitting out with a joint in their hand, listening to the live music, or pottering among the dozens of stalls selling bongs, pipes and other smoking paraphernalia.

The police are on hand to ensure there is no open buying or selling of the drug. But at the next 'Hempfest', they may not even need to do that.

On the day voters in Washington state chose to re-elect President Barack Obama, they also chose to legalise the recreational use of marijuana. Over the Rockies in Colorado, it was a similar story.

Continue reading the main story

“Start Quote

What has happened in the US has moved things forward, because this debate is crucial”

End Quote Fernando Belauzaran Mexican politician

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"What happened in Colorado and Washington was truly revolutionary," says Beau Kilmer, the co-director of the Rand Drug Policy Research Centre in California. "No modern country has ever removed the prohibition on the production and distribution of marijuana for non-medical purposes."

When the measure comes into effect in Colorado in early December, it will be legal to possess 1oz (28g) of marijuana if you are over 21; it will be legal to grow up to six marijuana plants in your house; and it will be legal to give away up to 1oz.

There are still complex questions about creating a regulatory framework for the production and distribution of the drug, which may take at least another year.

Needless to say, such a move puts the two states on a legal collision course with the federal government and its drug enforcement policies. But Dr Kilmer believes it is a mistake to view the Obama administration as a single entity in this regard.

"At this point no-one knows how the federal government is going to respond to these two states. But it's important that we don't think of it as a homogenous actor."

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Marijuana is the main cash crop for Mexico's violent drug cartels

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the US Attorney-General's office and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) all have a degree of jurisdiction, and discretion, over these issues, Dr Kilmer points out.

Use of force

Meanwhile, thousands of kilometres away, in a "smoke shop" in Mexico City, the news of Colorado and Washington's decision has been warmly welcomed. Surrounded by glass cabinets full of expensive-looking vaporiser, the proprietor tells me that many of his customers are hoping for a similar law in Mexico.

"People don't want to contribute to the drug cartels' profits any more and I've sold a lot of copies of this recently," he says, holding up a book called The Ecological Cultivation of Cannabis.

“Continent-wide, there are obviously many discussions still to be had”

The man in Mexico currently leading the charge to change the law is left-wing politician Fernando Belauzaran. He has introduced a bill in Congress along similar lines to the one in Colorado, which would bring marijuana under the same regulation as alcohol.

"What has happened in the US has moved things forward, because this debate is crucial," Mr Belauzaran told the BBC on the day he formally presented the proposal.

"We need to ask if it makes sense to carry on with this full-frontal military campaign which has generated so much destruction and death in our country in order to impede the entrance into the United States of a substance which is now permitted and regulated."

Mr Belauzaran does not necessarily expect his measure to pass in this legislative session. But what is important, he says, is the new discourse on the issue.

The US states are likely to fall foul of federal drug policies

In some parts of the US and Mexican media, the decision in Washington state and Colorado has been called a "game-changer" in the bilateral relationship between Mexico and the United States on the war on drugs.

Both the outgoing administration and the incoming one in Mexico have indicated that they expect things to develop with respect to marijuana during President Obama's second term.

Hosting several central American leaders recently, Mexican President Felipe Calderon said the decision in the US was a "change in paradigm" on drug consumption. He called for the United Nations and the Organisation of American States to help clarify the situation.

The new government went even further.

"Obviously, we can't handle a product that is illegal in Mexico, trying to stop its transfer to the United States, when in the United States - at least in part of the United States - it now has a different status," Luis Videgaray, President-elect Enrique Pena Nieto's top adviser, told journalists.

But it is not just in Mexico that the debate on marijuana is shifting. Uruguay too, under left-wing President Jose Mujica, is moving to put the state in charge of regulating the cultivation and consumption of legal cannabis.

Continent-wide, there are obviously many discussions still to be had.

Advocates and opponents disagree about the extent to which legalisation of marijuana would hurt the drug cartels' profits - some quoting figures in the billions, others in the mere tens of millions. And there is still a long way to go before President Obama formulates a coherent response to the voters' decision in the two states.

But amid the smoke and mirrors, one thing seems clear: when it comes to marijuana in the Americas, the seeds of change have been sown.