Inmarsat: How Missing Flight MH370 Was Tracked

Malaysia Plane: Full PM Statement

Updated: 2:53pm UK, Monday 24 March 2014

The full statement made by Malaysian Prime Minister Nijab Razak about the fate of flight MH370:

"This evening I was briefed by representatives from the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB). 

They informed me that Inmarsat, the UK company that provided the satellite data which indicated the northern and southern corridors, has been performing further calculations on the data.

Using a type of analysis never before used in an investigation of this sort, they have been able to shed more light on MH370's flight path.

Based on their new analysis, Inmarsat and the AAIB have concluded that MH370 flew along the southern corridor, and that its last position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.

This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites. It is therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.

We will be holding a press conference tomorrow with further details. In the meantime, we wanted to inform you of this new development at the earliest opportunity.

We share this information out of a commitment to openness and respect for the families, two principles which have guided this investigation.

Malaysia Airlines have already spoken to the families of the passengers and crew to inform them of this development.

For them, the past few weeks have been heartbreaking; I know this news must be harder still. I urge the media to respect their privacy, and to allow them the space they need at this difficult time."

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Deadly Ebola Outbreak Spreading Fast In Guinea

More than 60 people have died in Guinea's first outbreak of the deadly flesh-eating virus Ebola.

Health officials in the West African country have brought in tight controls to try to stop the spread of the blood-borne disease, which kills up to 90% of people it infects.

The first cases of the haemorrhagic fever were spotted late last month.

The outbreak is centred in the town of Macenta, but the disease is highly contagious, and there are fears it could spread into neighbouring Sierra Leonne and Liberia.

Health workers are bringing in tons of medical equipment and mobile isolation units, where victims can be treated in safety.

There are fears the disease could spread to Sierra Leonne and Liberia

With no known cure or vaccine, the government has warned people to stay inside while they try to stop the virus spreading.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has urged Guineans not to attend funerals and to avoid all contact with the sick and the dead.

Local resident Mohamed Diaby said the outbreak was causing panic in Macenta and surrounding villages.

"We must find a solution now, but it's not easy because in Guinea nothing works. There's rubbish everywhere," he said.

"We don't know this disease. We must find a solution before it ends up in the capital Conakry."

So far, there have been no reported cases in Conakry.

Tests have shown no trace of the disease in the capital

Tests on three haemorrhagic fever cases in the city were negative, government officials said.

On Sunday, UNICEF said the virus had "quickly spread from the communities of Macenta, Gueckedou, and Kissidougou to the capital, Conakry."

Officials from the health ministry and the World Health Organisation are holding urgent talks on the crisis.

The disease is transmitted by direct contact with blood, faeces or sweat, through sexual contact or by handling contaminated corpses.

It was first discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976.

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Bond Girl 'Kicked Max Clifford Between Legs'

By Nick Pisa, Sky News Reporter

A woman who appeared in the James Bond film Octopussy has told a court how she kicked Max Clifford ''really hard between the legs'' after he lunged at her and tried to kiss her.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, described how she fought Clifford off after he had taken pictures of her posing in stockings and suspenders.

Publicist Clifford had told the woman he needed the pictures to send to actor Charles Bronson so he could secure her a part in his next film, but he then tried to grab her and pushed her onto a sofa in his office.

She told the jury at Southwark Crown Court: ''He lunged towards me and tried to kiss me. He was on top of me, his hands were all over the place. He was trying to kiss me.

''Then I got very frightened and I kicked him between the legs really hard.''

When asked by prosecutor Rosina Cottage QC if Clifford had said anything, she replied: ''I just remember his smelly breath.''

Earlier the woman told the court how she had secured a part in the 1983 film Octopussy and had gone to see Clifford in his central London office where he wanted to talk about representing her.

She said he told her he could get her a part in a Bronson film but he would have to take pictures of her in her underwear to send him as ''photographic evidence''.

The publicist denies all the charges against him

The woman said Clifford gave her money to buy lingerie and she bought a ''peach coloured bra, knickers, suspender belt and stockings,'' adding they were ''pretty but not too skimpy.''

She then explained how Clifford asked her to ''do the James Bond pose'' with her fingers in the shape of a gun and he took several pictures of her sat down and standing up.

The woman said: ''I had my legs apart but my hands were covering my private parts. He asked me to take my hands away...I felt things weren't quite right at all.''

She then added how she realised Clifford was not using a professional camera but an "instamatic one you wind forward.

"I think he didn't have a film in the camera and he was pretending to take photographs of me."

She said she confronted him, got dressed and left the room.

Minutes later Clifford lunged at her after telling her he had spoken with Bronson on the telephone telling the late actor she was "fantastic".

The woman said she told a number of people what happened, including a photographer friend, other cast members from the Bond film, the film's producer and gymnast Susanne Dando.

Jurors were also told of a contract she had signed with the producers which originally had Clifford's name on it as her agent, but was then crossed out.

During her evidence, Clifford, dressed in a white open-neck shirt and dark suit, passed several notes to his defence team.

Clifford, 70, from Hersham, Surrey, denies 11 counts of indecent assault between 1966 and 1984 on seven girls and women.

The trial continues.

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Putin 'Acting Like Hitler' Over Ukraine

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

Britain's former top soldier has accused the Russian President Vladimir Putin of acting like Hitler over Ukraine.

Lord Dannatt, the ex-head of the Army, has called for military cutbacks to be reversed to put "muscle" behind Western diplomacy.

His comments came as concerns grew of a fresh incursion into Ukraine by Russia, and world leaders gathered at a summit to discuss the crisis.

The Prime Minister David Cameron has said there will be no G8 meeting in Russia this year in a further bid to isolate Moscow.

Preparations for the planned June summit in Sochi had already been suspended as a result of Russia's actions in Crimea.

Lord Dannatt, who led the Army between 2006 and 2008, said with defence budgets being cut, Mr Putin saw the West as "looking pretty weak", which encouraged him to be "pretty bold on his own fringes".

Defence cutbacks will hit the Army hardest

He told Sky News: "I think it's an important part of peace and security more widely that we put a decent proportion of our national expenditure into defence to put a bit of muscle behind our diplomacy.

"Otherwise, when the bully's in the playground, I am afraid the bully gets too much of a run round at his own timing.

"If he thinks there is virtually going to be no reaction at all then he will be encouraged to nibble away at the boundaries.

"It may be a little bit dismal to make comparisons with the 1930s, but that's what Adolf Hitler was doing in the 1930's, seeing what he could get away with.

"And he got away with a lot until frankly the world had to stand up. We don't want to go back to that kind of situation, but I think there are lessons there to be learned from history."

Lord Dannatt said: "I think we are sending the wrong message to Mr Putin and indeed to others if the West would appear to be disarming and reducing its military capability.

"I think experience has shown that diplomacy is most effective when it has a strong military component behind it."

He said slashing the Army by 30,000 regular soldiers to a force of 82,000 by 2020, alongside plans to increase the number of reservists, was "too much".

He argued to reverse this cut by 3,000 troops, to be based in Germany.

Lord Dannatt added: "I think that would be sending a good message of solidarity to our Nato and European partners that we are continuing to keep soldiers on the mainland."

But Mr Cameron said: "I don't think its necessary to change our plans to base British soldiers in Britain, but I think what is important that we send a very clear message to our Nato partners and allies, that we believe in Nato and believe in their security.

"That's why for instance we are helping some of the Baltic states with their defence and their needs. That's what we should be doing and that's what we are very much committed to doing."

He said reports of Russian troops gathering on Ukraine's border were "concerning" and warned Mr Putin a fresh round of sanctions would follow if his forces moved any further into Ukrainian territory.

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Black Box Key To Missing Malaysia Jet Probe

New data analysis has led Malaysia Airlines to conclude that flight MH370 came down in the sea - but the data alone cannot reveal why it did so.

Key to finding out what caused the Beijing-bound plane to end up in the Indian Ocean are the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data log, both located inside its black box.

Australian and Chinese authorities located several objects that might be debris in the southern Indian Ocean in the 24 hours before Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak told the world that all those on board had been lost.

But the exact site of the crash has not yet been identified, and there is now a race against time to find the box before its locator beacon runs out of power.

A ground controller guides an Australian plane to a halt in Perth

Experts say that if it is not recovered, the cause of the crash may never be known.

Colonel Paul Edwards MBE, a former Army Aviation chief of staff, told Sky News that strong currents and high waves would make it difficult to find the precise point of impact.

"It's a huge challenge. First you have to locate the debris from the accident in currents which are swirling all over the place and in high seas," he said.

Wreckage from the plane may have drifted a long way from the original site, he added.

The black box could be attached to a large piece of debris from the plane, or it may have become detached and sunk to the sea floor.

Finding it as quickly as possible is crucial, as its locator beacon - which sends signals telling searchers where it is - may lose power after about 30 days.

The United States has sent a "Towed Pinger Locator" to the region, which is pulled behind a vessel at slow speeds.

It has a highly sensitive listening capability and can detect "pings" from a black box emitted at a depth of 20,000ft (6,000m).

A Japanese aircraft prepares to take off from RAAF Base Pearce in Perth

The sea in the southern Indian Ocean is up to 13,000ft deep - well inside the range at which depth the Boeing 777's black box recorder is designed to work.

Philip Baum, editor-in-chief at Aviation Security International, said that while the ocean was deep, the sea floor was relatively flat, which should help efforts to find it.

"We need to find out what brought about the incident in the first place and the black box is absolutely critical," he told Sky News.

"You could say that unless you find a significant piece of wreckage that indicates an explosion brought the plane down, then the black box is going to be the only way to determine what occurred."

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Reeva Text To Pistorius: 'I'm Scared Of You'

Reeva Steenkamp texted Oscar Pistorius to say "I am sometimes scared of you" just weeks before she died, the athlete's trial has heard.

An emotional message from Ms Steenkamp on January 27 last year accuses Pistorius of picking on her "incessantly" and denies flirting with her friend's husband at an engagement party.

It also accuses the athlete of being "nasty" and throwing tantrums in front of people.

"I'm scared of you sometimes and how you snap at me and how you act to me," says Ms Steenkamp.

She tells Pistorius the pair have a "double standard relationship" where he is "quick to act, cold and off-ish when you are unhappy".

Pistorius apologises for his behaviour in one message

Police IT expert Captain Francois Moller told the trial he had extracted text and WhatsApp messages from the phones of both Ms Steenkamp and Oscar Pistorius.

In a message displayed on court monitors, Pistorius admits he is "tired and sick" but says it is not an excuse for his jealous behaviour.

He accuses Ms Steenkamp of ignoring him while she spoke to another man and touched his arm.

Ms Steenkamp also complained Pistorius got upset if she ever mentions something about an ex-boyfriend, while "every five seconds I hear how you dated another chick".

This February 8 message says Pistorius does not treat her like a lady

"I just want to be loved and to love. Maybe we cannot do that for each other," she says.

A separate message from Pistorius also mentions Ms Steenkamp smoking "weed" and refers to her as "Angel", while she calls him "Baba".

Captain Moller told the trial in Pretoria he had "jailbroken" the mobile phones to access pages of messages between the pair.

He said there were also many normal and "loving conversations" between the couple.

More messages are expected to be revealed when the trial continues on Tuesday.

Earlier, the court heard from Pistorius' neighbour Annette Stipp, who said she woke at around 3am on Valentine's Day last year, the day Ms Steenkamp was killed.

She said she heard three sounds which sounded like gunshots and moments later heard a woman's "terrified, terrified screaming".

She then heard a man and woman screaming at the same time, before a second set of shots, and then silence.

Reeva Steenkamp was 29 when she was shot dead last year

Mrs Stipp recalled telling her husband: "It sounds like a family murder. Why else would a woman scream like that?"

The lights in Pistorius' bathroom were on from the moment she first woke up, Mrs Stipp told the court.

She said the screams did not sound muffled or like they were coming from an enclosed space.

The defence tried to discredit Mrs Stipp's evidence when, under tough questioning, she admitted an inaccuracy in her signed police statement.

She told the court she had not seen a male figure walking in Pistorius' bathroom, despite initially saying she had.

"This is not first time that it appears her memory has failed her," said defence lawyer Kenny Oldwadge.

The scene in court at the start of the trial's fourth week

He also suggested the second set of gunshots Mrs Stipp described was in fact the sound of a cricket bat as Pistorius smashed down the bathroom door.

Paralympic star Pistorius is accused of the premeditated murder of his girlfriend but says he shot her by mistake because he thought she was an intruder.

He is also accused of illegally possessing ammunition and two further counts related to shooting a gun in public in two separate incidents before the killing.

He denies all the charges.

The prosecution's case is expected to finish this week and Pistorius is likely to be the first witness for the defence.

Originally expected to last for three weeks or so, the trial has now been extended until the middle of May.

Both sides agreed to an extension after just 18 of 107 possible witnesses were heard in the first three weeks,

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Relatives Scream As They Are Told News By Text

Relatives of the 239 people on the doomed Malaysia Airlines plane screamed in anguish as they were told the jet had crashed - by text message.

Sky's Jonathan Samuels, in Beijing, said there were "very, very distressing" scenes as Malaysia Airlines broke the news.

"Some people were in tears, others are helping those struggling and a woman is screaming in absolute anguish. It's very tough to watch," he said.

Relatives had to be helped away after watching the news conference

The text message said: "Malaysia Airlines deeply regrets that we have to assume beyond any reasonable doubt that MH370 has been lost and that none of those on board survived.

"As you will hear in the next hour from Malaysia's Prime Minister, we must now accept all evidence suggests the plane went down in the Southern Indian Ocean."

Families had gathered at the Lido Hotel In Beijing to learn the jet's fate

Malaysia Airlines stressed they did not only inform relatives by text message but informed them "via all channels".

TV pictures showed distressed families being helped away amid chaotic scenes in the Lido Hotel in Beijing.

Paramedics treated some people who were overcome by grief.

Relatives were told of the jet's fate around 30 minutes before Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak told a news conference the plane had crashed.

UK satellite data confirmed flight MH370 crashed into the southern Indian Ocean.

The flight vanished from civilian radar screens less than an hour after take-off from Kuala Lumpur on March 8.

No confirmed sighting of the plane has been made, but debris found in remote waters off Australia might be from the missing plane.

Families of the passengers will be taken on chartered flights to Australia, according to Sky News sources.

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Malaysia Plane 'Crashed Into Indian Ocean'

Satellite data has confirmed that Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 crashed into the southern Indian Ocean.

The Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak held a news conference today confirming that all those on the flight have been lost.

He said satellite data provided by a UK company, Inmarsat, showed the plane's last recorded position was in the middle of the Indian Ocean, west of Perth.

"This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites," Mr Razak said.

"It is therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean."

Sky's Jonathan Samuels in Beijing said there were "very, very distressing" scenes as relatives were told the news.

"Some people were in tears, others are helping those struggling and a woman is screaming in absolute anguish. It's very tough to watch," he said.

Malaysia Airlines told relatives they should "assume beyond any reasonable doubt" that all those on the plane have been lost.

The text message sent to relatives by Malaysia Airlines

"Malaysia Airlines deeply regrets that we have to assume beyond any reasonable doubt that MH370 has been lost and that none of those on board survived," the airline said in a text message to relatives.

"As you will hear in the next hour from Malaysia's Prime Minister, we must now accept all evidence suggests the plane went down in the Southern Indian Ocean."

The flight vanished from civilian radar screens less than an hour after take-off from Kuala Lumpur on March 8 with 239 people on board.

No confirmed sighting of the plane has been made since, but debris has been found in remote waters off Australia which might be part of the missing plane.

The confirmation came after Sky sources said families of those on-board will be taken from Beijing to Australia.

An Australian navy ship is close to finding possible debris from the plane after a number of sightings of floating objects some 1550 miles west of Perth.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority said the entire crew of HMAS Success is keeping a lookout for the objects.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told parliament: "I caution ... that we don't know whether any of these objects are from MH370, they could be flotsam.

A Japanese search aircraft prepares to take off in Perth

"Nevertheless, we are hopeful that we can recover these objects soon and they will take us a step closer to resolving this tragic mystery."

The objects are separate from several "suspicious" floating objects sighted by a Chinese search plane earlier today.

The crew of the military Ilyushin-76 aircraft saw "white and square" objects dispersed over several miles in the southern Indian Ocean.

They included two "relatively big" objects and several smaller ones.

The objects cited by the Chinese were seen near an area identified by satellite imagery as containing possible debris from the missing airliner.

The US Navy has also announced it is sending one of its high-tech black box detectors to the southern Indian Ocean.

More follows...

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Mudslide: 108 People Now Unaccounted For

The number of people missing or unaccounted for after a mudslide in Washington at the weekend has risen to 108.

At least eight people have been confirmed killed in the disaster in a rural area northeast of Seattle.

More follows...

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Ukraine: 'No G8 Summit In Russia' Over Crisis

David Cameron has said a G8 summit scheduled to take place in Russia this June cannot go ahead as the EU and US attempt to isolate Moscow over its actions in Ukraine.

Speaking in The Hague ahead of a meeting of G7 leaders he said it was "absolutely clear" the summit could not take place.

He said: "We should be clear there's not going to be a G8 summit this year in Russia. That's absolutely clear."

Mr Cameron warned Vladimir Putin Russia would face further sanctions if forces moved further into Ukraine after reports troops were massing near the border.

David Cameron says the G8 summit in Russia "cannot go ahead"

He said: "These reports are concerning and we need to send a very clear message to the Russian government and to President Putin that it would be completely unacceptable to go further into Ukraine, and that would trigger sanctions from the EU, from the US, from other countries as well."

The G7 meeting is expected to discuss possible responses to Russian actions in Ukraine as well as concerns that Moscow could be looking to extend its control beyond Crimea.

Preparations for the summit in Sochi had already been suspended as a result of Russia's actions in Ukraine.

On Monday, the Ukrainian Defence Ministry was told to pull all its forces from Crime as Russian troops extended their control over the disputed territory.

Monday's seizure came two days after Russian troops stormed the Belbek base

Speaking in parliament, acting president Oleksander Turchinov said the decision was taken in the face of "threats to the lives and health of our service personnel".

He said: "The National Defence and Security Council has instructed the Defence Ministry to carry out a re-deployment of military units in Crimea and carry out the evacuation of their families."

Russian troops, backed by helicopters and armoured personnel carriers, forced their way into the base in Feodosia in the early hours of Monday morning.

President Obama will hold crisis talks with G7 leaders later on Monday

Ukrainian defence ministry spokesman Vladislav Seleznyov said: "The invading troops were using stun grenades and also firing automatic weapons... The interior of the compound is full of Russian troops."

In a statement on his Facebook page, Mr Seleznyov added that paratroopers descended into the base from four helicopters hovering above.

He said three Russian vehicles were then seen leaving the base with Ukrainian marines whose hands had been tied up.

General Breedlove is concerned about the size of Russia's troop build-up

Ukrainian army officer, First Lieutenant Anatoly Mozgovoy, confirmed shots were fired at unarmed Ukrainian soldiers during the seizure, however there are currently no reports of any injuries.

The Feodosia base had been one of the last few military facilities still flying Ukrainian flags after Russia's annexation of Crimea. Those flags have now reportedly been removed.

Speaking in Amsterdam on Monday US President Barack Obama said Europe and the United States are united in their support for the Ukrainian interim government.

There are fears Russian forces are eyeing Ukraine's Transdniestria region

He said both the EU and US were prepared to "impose a cost" on Russia for its actions so far.

Nato's top commander in Europe, General Philip Breedlove, has warned that Russia's military force massing on Ukraine's border was "very, very sizeable and very, very ready".

He said he was worried the Russian military could make a move for Moldova's breakaway Transdniestria region.

Transdniestria, a narrow strip of land to Ukraine's southwest, already has a Russian military presence and most people there favour a union with the country.

Crimea landgrab 'cannot be won back', say experts

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week signed papers making Crimea part of Russia, saying it was complying with international agreements and had no plans to invade.

It has also called the soldiers who took over Ukrainian bases in Crimea "self-defence forces".

On Monday ex-Chief of the General Staff Lord Dannatt said Western "weakness" had allowed Putin to "become bold on his own fringes" and seize the region.

He called for heightened military spending in the UK and as well as tougher sanctions against Russia.

The US and European Union have already targeted some of Mr Putin's closest political and business allies with personal sanctions and have threatened broader economic sanctions if his forces encroach on other parts of Ukraine with large Russian-speaking populations.

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