Humanitarian emergency on Libya’s borders
As more and more people flee the bloodshed in Libya, the authorities are warning that the rebellion in the country has become a humanitarian emergency on its frontiers.
The UN refugee agency estimates 100,000 have crossed Libya’s borders, the vast majority neighbouring Egyptians and Tunisians.
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Fifteen thousand are taking shelter at a hastily constructed camp at Ras Jdir in Tunisia.
An Egyptian refugee there said: “Gaddafi’s son said the rebellion was inspired by what happened in Egypt. Since that speech Gaddafi’s mercenaries tried to kill us. That’s why we’ve gone.”
More than half the total number of those fleeing are Egyptian according to the UN.
Among those who find themselves safe in Tunisia but a long way from home there is growing anger aimed at the government in Cairo.
One Egyptian refugee said: “We want to go home. Prime Minister of Egypt Ahmad Shafiq, this is your fault. Send us planes. This is your fault and your ministers’ fault. We thank the Tunisian people for looking after us.”
euronews correspondent Jamal Izzedini reported from the border crossing: “Thousands of Egyptians and other foreigners are flooding across the border at Ras Jdier, between Libya and Tunisia. We’ve seen big efforts have been made by the local Tunisian authorities to help and give aid to Egyptians and other foreigners by giving them food, drinks, blankets, and clothes.”
Fresh air strikes hit rebel Libyan town
Libyan military aircraft have launched fresh air strikes on the rebel-controlled town of Brega.
Brega, in the east of the country, is strategically important as it is key export hub for Libyan oil.
There were no reports of any casualties.
The attacks come one day after clashes between Gaddafi loyalists and anti-regime forces in the town left 14 people dead.
The rebels’ National Libyan Council yesterday called for the international community to intervene and stop the violence. They control a number of locations in the east of Libya.
The fighting has been concentrated in Brega and Ajdabiyah.
Colonel Gaddafi still holds the capital, Tripoli, and a number of cities in the west, including his home town, Sirt.
A spokesman for the rebels said military planes had also dropped bombs in Ajdabiya, another anti-Gaddafi stronghold.
Gaddafi has told the West not to intervene, warning that it would cause “another Vietnam.”
Fukushima locals told not to drink the water
Japan’s health ministry has told residents near the stricken Fukushima nuclear plant not to drink local tap water. High levels of radioactive iodine have been detected, making it unsafe.
There has been some good news regarding the quake-damaged plant – a power cable has now been installed to restart cooling machinery in reactors 5 and 6.
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Despite a growing death toll from the massive earthquake which triggered a devastating tsunami, it is the nuclear issue which is causing fear.
One nursery worker said she was very worried that if she’d been contaminated with radiation, the children could have been affected too. “The children mean more to me than myself,“she said.
And it is not just in Japan where people are worried. In Hong Kong, Greenpeace organised a vigil for the victims and to register their opposition to controversial plans to expand nuclear energy projects.
Philippine army promises reform after ‘torture’ video
The Philippine army on Tuesday vowed to reform its training procedures after a video emerged on the Internet purporting to show troops abusing young cadets.
The 14-minute clip uploaded on Youtube showed soldiers beating a group of young recruits using ropes and sticks.
The military has already confirmed it was filmed during an ‘escape’ training exercise; critics said it amounted to torture.
The country’s 130,000-strong army is under pressure to improve its image and weed out rogue soldiers.
A 2007 UN report said its troops had been behind numerous human rights abuses, including political killings and abductions.
Libya denies breach of ceasefire
The Libyan government is denying its forces have breached its ceasefire despite the latest pictures from the rebel stronghold of Benghazi.
The video, filmed on Saturday, appears to show a fighter plane falling from the sky, and then a column of balck smoke rising.
To read : Libya: a timeline of international diplomacy As well as the air attacks the insurgents say there have been running skirmishes with government forces on the ground.
There have also been claims that the town of Misrata came under attack, again after the ceasefire.
The claims cannot be verified at present and the Libyan government is denying any such attacks.
The announcement of a ceasefire by Libya’s Foreign Minister on Friday was unequivocal and was due to take effect immediately. But while it was welcomed those countries responding said they would treat it with caution and see what happens on the ground.
In the capital Tripoli Gaddafi supporters demonstrated in support of their leader on Friday.
In celebratory and defiant mood they chanted and held up banners scathing of the UN resolution, with France as one of their main targets for derision.
UK military release pictures of daring rescue
The British military have released pictures of a second daring mission to rescue oil workers from the remote Libyan desert.
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In an operation led by elite SAS special forces teams three C-130 Hercules aircraft flew at low level to pick up a total of 150 civilians trapped by Libya revolution. A similar rescue had been carried out the day before.
The aircraft had no permission, and one sustained minor damage from small arms fire.
A further 200 evacuees from several countries also arrived in Malta after being picked up by the British Royal Navy frigate HMS Cumberland on its latest trip to Benghazi.
The passage to Malta took 18 hours.
One British evacuee praised the people of Benghazi saying: “We made our own way to Benghazi and the people we met there were just fabulous. We couldn’t get on the boat that night so they took us in, four of us and they gave us dinner and a room for the night, did some ringing around for us, took us to the port, you couldn’t have wished more.”
It was the Cumberland’s second foray into the Libyan port since the revolution began.
There were 27 nationalities on board this latest mercy mission. 50 evacuees were UK citizens.
Ex Czech president’s film opens in Prague
A film by the former Czech president, Vaclav Havel, has premiered in Prague. “Leaving” is based on his own stage play, first published in 2007.
Lithuania passes controversial education law
Lithuania’s parliament has passed a controversial education law that has caused tension with neighbouring Poland, forcing ethnic minority schools to teach more classes in Lithuanian.
Officials say it will improve young people’s integration.
But many among the large Polish minority, which represents seven percent of the population, argue it amounts to forceful assimilation.
Amateur video captures first moments of Christchurch quake
Startling images have emerged of the first moments after the devastating earthquake that hit New Zealand earlier this week.
The never-before-seen amateur footage shows people scrambling in the immediate aftermath as buildings shake and collapse around them.
Three days on and much of Christchurch, the country’s second largest city, resembles a war zone.
It is now known that 113 people died but that figure is expected to rise with more than 200 others still missing. Search and rescue attempts are ongoing although authorities admit hopes are fading.
Emma Howard, is one survivor who will be willing rescue teams to continue their efforts.
The young accountant, together with six co-workers used their mobile phones to see in the dark. She was pulled, largely unscathed, from the rubble of a collapsed building after being trapped for six hours and has been able to wed her fiance Chris Greenslade as planned.