Tag: InternationalNews

{{Hundreds of police will monitor traffic in Paris on Monday after pollution levels prompted the French government to impose major restrictions.}}

Only motorists whose cars have odd-numbered registration plates will be allowed to drive.

On Tuesday, if the restrictions remain in place, it will be the turn of those with even-numbered plates.

Ministers acted after air pollution exceeded safe levels for five days running in Paris and surrounding areas.

The smoggy conditions have been caused by a combination of cold nights and warm days, which have prevented pollution from dispersing.

The measure has been tried once before, in 1997. Paris air quality monitoring body Airparif says it had a noticeable impact on improving air quality, although critics have disputed its findings.

Motorcycles will also be covered by the ban, which runs from 05:30 (04:30 GMT) to midnight on Monday. There are exceptions for electric and hybrid vehicles, and for cars carrying three or more passengers.

Those flouting the restrictions will face a small fine although there will be free parking for those with number-plates ending in an even number.

Delivery companies are already complaining of lost income, BBC Paris correspondent Hugh Schofield says. Politically the stakes are high, with elections for Paris mayor due to start next week.

Opposition leader Jean-Francois Cope complained that the ban “lacks coherence, explanation and on the ground it’s really panic”.

On Friday, public transport was made free of charge for three days in an attempt to encourage people to leave their cars at home. This measure will continue on Monday.

The capital’s air quality has been one of the worst on record, French environmental agencies say, rivalling the Chinese capital, Beijing, one of the world’s most polluted cities.

On Friday, pollution levels hit 180 microgrammes of PM10 particulates per cubic metre, more than double the safe limit of 80.

PM10 particulates are emitted by vehicles, heating systems and heavy industry.

Pollution levels were said to have fallen on Sunday but were expected to rise again on Monday.

The government is to review pollution levels again, before deciding whether to extend the driving restrictions for longer.

Officials say one heavy rainfall would have more effect than a one-day ban.

BBC

{{Moscow has blocked access to four websites run by opponents and critics of President Vladimir Putin.}}

The blog of opponent Alexei Navalny, two news sites and one run by Garry Kasparov were blocked on the orders of Russia’s prosecutor general’s office.

In a statement, it said the blocks were imposed because of the sites’ role in helping stage recent illegal protests.

Critics said the blocks were just the latest in a series of moves by Russia’s government to stifle dissent.

The blocks come as Russia’s central bank reported that hackers had targeted its main website. The site, and that of the Kremlin, were briefly unavailable with authorities saying “technical reasons” were making them hard to reach.

{{Control order}}

Opposition leader Alexei Navalny is currently under house arrest for two months – a punishment imposed for violating the terms of a five-year suspended sentence given after he was tried on charges of embezzlement. The terms of his house arrest demand that he does not receive visitors or use the net.

Anna Veduta, a spokeswoman for Alexei Navalny, said in a tweet that the block was a “political decision taken as part of the cleansing of the media space”.

The block also extends to the Russian news sites Ej.ru and grani.ru as well as the kasparov.ru website.

Alexander Ryklin, editor of the Ej.ru website, said the imposition of the block was “monstrous” and a “direct violation of all the principles of freedom of speech”.

“These sites contain incitement to illegal activity and participation in public events held in violation of the established order,” said a statement from Russia’s state communications monitoring agency Roskomnadzor.

The imposition of the blocks became possible on 1 February after a law drawn up in late 2013 to police sites involved in illegal protests took effect.

It is not clear how successful the blocks will be as followers of Mr Navalny have widely published details of how to reach the sites and avoid official censorship.

Wirestory

{{The communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were deliberately disabled, Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.}}

According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven hours.

He said the “movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane”.

The plane disappeared a week ago with 239 people on board.

Mr Razak stopped short of saying it was a hijacking, saying only that they were investigating “all possibilities”.

He said the plane could be anywhere from Kazakhstan to the Indian Ocean.

The developments have added further uncertainty to the relatives of the 239 people on board the Kuala Lumpur to Beijing flight.

Some in the Chinese capital said the news had made them more hopeful that their loved ones are alive, but one woman said they were on an emotional rollercoaster and she felt “helpless and frustrated”.

{{‘New phase’}}

The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers’ screens at about 01:20.

Mr Razak told a news conference that new satellite evidence shows “with a high degree of certainty” that the one of the aircraft’s communications systems – the Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System – was disabled just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia.

ACARS is a service that allows computers aboard the plane to “talk” to computers on the ground, relaying in-flight information about the health of its systems.

Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic control, the plane’s transponder – which emits an identifying signal – was switched off, he said.

According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.

A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time – more than seven hours after it lost radar contact – although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said.

He went on to say that based on this new data, investigators “have determined the plane’s last communication with a satellite was in one of two possible corridors”:

The UAE, Qatar and Bahrain are among Middle Eastern countries banning Hollywood epic Noah as it breaks Islam’s taboo of depicting a prophet.

“There are scenes that contradict Islam and the Bible, so we decided not to show it,” Juma Al-Leem from UAE’s National Media Centre said.

Director Darren Aronofsky’s film stars Russell Crowe as the ark-building Biblical figure.

Paramount Pictures recently admitted the movie takes “artistic licence”.

“It is important to respect these religions and not show the film,” Mr Al-Leem told the Associated Press.

A separate statement from Al-Azhar in Egypt, one of Islam’s most revered religious institutions, said it objects to the film because it violates Islamic law and could “provoke the feelings of believers.”

The film, which is thought to have cost more than its $125m (£78m) to make, received negative reactions following test screenings across the US.

The movie also prompted controversy among conservative Christians, leading Paramount to add a disclaimer to marketing material that artistic licence had been taken with the retelling of the story.

There are differences between Biblical and Qu’ranic interpretation of Noah, referred to in Arabic as Nuh, but both mention the flood and his vessel saving a pair of each animal species.

Many children’s films and cartoons have told the story in Islam without showing his face.

Other Muslim countries have said it is unlikely censors will approve the Hollywood blockbuster.

Mohammad Zareef from Pakistan’s Central Board of Film Censors said they tended to steer clear of films with a religious theme, adding: “We haven’t seen it yet, but I don’t think it can go to cinemas in Pakistan.”

In Tunisia, Culture Ministry spokesman Faisal Rokh said there had not been any requests from local distributors to show the movie, but they did not usually screen films featuring a prophet.

There were riots and demonstrations in the country in October 2011, after a private television station screened the animated film Persepolis, which includes a portrayal of God.

The head of the TV station was later fined 1,200 euros after being convicted of an “attack on the sacred”.

Saudi Arabia and the Gaza Strip do not have any cinemas, but one theatre manager in the West Bank said it has ordered Noah.

“The fact that some countries in the region prohibit it makes it the more fun to watch,” said Clack Cinema manager Quds Manasra.

He added: “The production is magnificent, the story is beautiful.”

Hollywood’s depiction of religion have provoked controversy before, including Mel Gibson’s Passion of Christ, which shows the crucifixion of Jesus.

It was screened across much of the region, but it was not shown in most cinemas in Israel and parts of the Gulf.

{Wirestory}

{{The US has sent surveillance teams to the Indian Ocean to help search for the missing Malaysian plane, after claims emerged that it may have flown for longer than investigators had thought.}}

Unnamed officials said the plane sent signals to satellites for up to five hours after its apparent disappearance.

However, investigators said the data were not conclusive and Malaysia refused to comment on the claims.

Flight MH370 vanished last Saturday with 239 people on board.

The plane, which was flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, last made contact with air-traffic control over the South China Sea to the east of Malaysia.

The US, which is one of a number of countries helping in the search for the plane, has sent a navy destroyer and a sophisticated surveillance aircraft to the Indian Ocean, hundreds of miles west of Malaysia.

The Indian navy, air force and coast guard are also now assisting after a request for help from the Malaysian government.

The BBC’s Jonathan Head in Kuala Lumpur says there have already been a number of false leads in the search for the missing plane.

However, he says the latest claims are being taken seriously by the US.

{agencies}

The European Space Agency is asking people to choose a name for British astronaut Tim Peake’s next mission.

Citizens and residents of all the Agency’s member nations are eligible to enter the competition.

The winning entry needs to be short and snappy and will be the official mission name and incorporated into the logo.

Major Peake is due to go to the International Space Station towards the end of 2015 and spend six months there carrying out scientific experiments.

It is customary for the public to help choose mission names every time a European astronaut goes into orbit.

Names that reflect an astronaut’s nationality are encouraged, but they should also have a wider European flavour, and be easy to pronounce.

Previous mission names have included “Marco Polo” for the Italian Astronaut Roberto Vittori, “Odissia” for Belgian Frank de Winne, and “DELTA Mission” for Dutch astronaut Andre Kuipers’ flight to the ISS. DELTA was an acronym for “Dutch Expedition for Life Science, Technology and Atmospheric Research”.

The aim of the competition, according to Rosita Suenson of the European Space Agency, is to engage the public.