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Cannot play media. You do not have the correct version of the flash player. Download the correct version Katy Watson reports: "For a man who saw huge success relatively late in his acting career, his premature death has come a great shock to many" Continue reading the main story James Gandolfini, the US actor best known for his role as a therapy-seeking mob boss in The Sopranos, has died at the age of 51. Gandolfini suffered a possible heart attack while on holiday in Rome, the US HBO TV network told the BBC. The New Jersey-born star had been in Italy to attend the Taormina film festival in Sicily. He won three Emmy awards for his role as Tony Soprano, a mafia boss juggling his criminal career and family life. "It is with immense sorrow that we report our client James Gandolfini passed away today while on holiday in Rome, Italy," said his managers, Mark Armstrong and Nancy Sanders, in a statement on Wednesday ni...

A schoolgirl and her married maths teacher exchanged explicit text messages and had "multiple" sex sessions, a court has heard. The girl was 15 when she started having a sexual relationship with 30-year-old Jeremy Forrest, after developing a crush on him at school in East Sussex. She told Lewes Crown Court he travelled with her to France because he feared she might commit suicide. Mr Forrest has denied a charge of child abduction. The girl, now 16, said she had been experiencing personal problems in the months leading up to the relationship with Mr Forrest, a teacher at Bishop Bell C of E School in Eastbourne. They included her mother going through a divorce and then finding a new partner and becoming pregnant. The court heard the pair agreed to go to France after the girl had her phone seized by police investigating rumours of a relationship between them. Mr Forrest booked them on a Channel ferry on 20 Sept...

Piracy off the coast of West Africa has now overtaken Somali piracy, a report by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) and other seafarers' groups says. It says 966 sailors were attacked in West Africa in 2012, compared with 851 off the Somali coast. West African pirates mostly steal fuel cargo and the crews' possessions, often resorting to extreme violence. Five of the 206 hostages seized last year off West Africa have been killed, the document says. 'Sadistic methods' Continue reading the main story “ Start Quote In Nigeria, money moves quite quickly unlike in Somalia” Seafarer The report, entitled The Human Cost of Maritime Piracy 2012, was released by the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), the Oceans Beyond Piracy (OBP) project and the Maritime Piracy Humanitarian Response Programme (MPHRP). It says that despite the growing number of pirate attacks in West Africa's Gulf of Guinea region "the area has ...

Yesterday the indian north side have been devastated by flood. The flood raged the whole north part of india.. As recorded 50 people have been rescued so far by rescue teams...

Yesterday the indian north side have been devastated by flood. The flood raged the whole north part of india.. As recorded 50 people have been rescued so far by rescue teams...

Eail View Photo rs/Reuters - Britain's Prince Andrew (L), Prince Harry (2nd L), Prince William (R) and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony in  … more   By Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - From Union Jack booties to "Born to Rule" sleepwear, the British royal family has joined retailers in offering baby products to mark the arrival of the royal heir. Analysts estimate the baby fever could boost the economy by 240 million pounds ($380 million). A baby sleepsuit modeled on a guardsman's outfit is one of the gifts on sale at palace shops by the Royal Collection Trust , which uses all profits for the upkeep of the royal palaces. Prince Charles , the grandfather-to-be, is selling handmade baby shoes through a shop on his country estate Highgrove, while the mother-to-be's parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, have added a range of baby goods to th...

The Supreme Court announced on Monday it has struck down an Arizona law that required voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship before registering to vote . In Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council, seven justices agreed that the Arizona law oversteps the state's authority by essentially invalidating the federal voter registration form. The form, established by a 1993 law, lets people register to vote by sending in a uniform document accepted by all states. Voters must swear they are citizens on the form. In a 2004 ballot initiative, Arizona voters decided they wanted to go beyond that federal requirement, by asking for proof of citizenship—such as a birth certificate, passport or tribal ID card—at the point of voter registration. Critics of the Arizona law argued that it stripped some voters of their ability to vote, because some civil rights groups estimate that about 13 million citizens do not have documentary proof of their citizenship. The law's supporte...

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya's economy will grow an estimated 5.7 percent in 2013 before accelerating to 6 percent in 2014, the World Bank said on Monday, but warned structural reforms were needed to improve the business environment and attract foreign investment. "The economy is still operating below its potential and remains vulnerable to external shocks, which undermines its prospects for growth and poverty reduction. This can be cushioned by increasing both domestic and foreign savings," the bank said in its latest economic update report for Kenya. Kenya's economy grew by 4.6 percent in 2012, according to the government, lagging its east African rivals.

NSA whistleblower: Hero or traitor? STORY HIGHLIGHTS Man said by The Guardian to be Edward Snowden answers questions online about leaks Snowden blog post says any possibility of fair trial has been destroyed Snowden post says Barack Obama "deepened and expanded" abusive national security programs A new Snowden leak discloses British surveillance of a 2009 economic summit Washington (CNN) -- The man who admitted leaking classified documents about U.S. surveillance programs purportedly went online live on Monday to declare the truth would come out even if he is jailed or killed, and said President Barack Obama did not fulfill his promises and expanded several "abusive" national security initiatives. According to the Guardian newspaper, Edward Snowden answered questions in an online chat about why he revealed details of the National Security Agency's secret surveillance of U.S. citizens. Snowden said he did so because Obama cam...

General Motors is recalling almost 194,000 SUVs in the United States because an electronic module could short circuit, causing a fire. The vehicles being recalled are 2006 model year Chevrolet Trailblazer EXT and GMC Envoy XL SUVs and 2006 and 2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Buick Rainier, SAAB 9-7x, and Isuzu Ascender SUVs. Some 2005 model year 9-7Xs are also being recalled. Water could get into an electronic module inside the door causing it to corrode and, ultimately, short circuit. When that happens, power door lock and power window switches could stop working. The short could also cause the module to overheat, smoke and burn. Since a fire could start even when the vehicle is not in operation, owners are being advised not to park the vehicle in their garages where a fire could spread to the home. GM offers big rebates on the Chevy Volt GM had recalled the same vehicles in August, 2012, for this problem but that recall only included vehicles in ...

Google is pledging a total of $7 million, and has launched new tools, to help fight child sex abuse on the Web. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Google spending a total of $7 million to ramp up fight against child porn Search giant's "fingerprinting" helps find images, prosecute those who post them Child Protection Technology Fund will look for new tools       Google says it will spend $5 million on an effort to wipe pictures of child sexual abuse from the Web and another $2 million to research more effective ways to find, report and eradicate the images. "The Internet has been a tremendous force for good -- increasing access to information, improving people's ability to communicate and driving economic growth," Jacqueline Fuller, the director of Google Giving , said in a blog post . "But like the physical world, there are dark corners on the web where criminal behavior exists." Part of the $5 million will go to established child-pr...

Iran is ready to show more transparency on its nuclear programme, says President-elect Hassan Rouhani. In his first news conference since Friday's election, Mr Rouhani described as "unfair" sanctions imposed on his country. He also said Tehran would not suspend uranium enrichment activities. The West suspects Iran of trying to build nuclear weapons. Iran says its programme is entirely peaceful. The UK said it hoped Mr Rouhani would act on his pledge to resolve the issue. "The government hopes that following Dr Rouhani's election, the Iranian government will take up the opportunity of a new relationship with the international community by making every effort to reach a negotiated settlement on the nuclear issue," said UK Foreign Minister William Hague. At his news conference, which covered a wide range of issues, Mr Rouhani also said: Continue reading the main story Analysis Mohsen Asgari BBC ...

Cannot play media. You do not have the correct version of the flash player. Download the correct version David Cameron and Vladimir Putin disagree on Syria but aim to build on "common ground" Continue reading the main story Syria conflict Behind the battle lines The city that died Who is arming whom? Guide to conflict The leaders of the G8 nations are to begin a summit in Northern Ireland, with Syria's conflict set to dominate. UK PM David Cameron met Russian leader Vladimir Putin - Syria's key ally - on Sunday. They will each hold separate talks with President Barack Obama, who has indicated he will arm the rebels. Mr Cameron, the host, is also keen to focus on global economic issues. He hopes to oversee the launch of talks for an EU-US free trade deal and achieve ...

bbc.co.uk Cannot play media. You do not have the correct version of the flash player. Download the correct version Petr Necas told a televised briefing that he was aware of his "political responsibility" Continue reading the main story Related Stories More pressure on Czech PM to quit Czech mate? PM faces lurid claims Czech PM aide held in police raids Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas has announced that he will resign on Monday after days of political turmoil. His ruling coalition will try to form a new government led by someone nominated by his Civic Democratic Party (ODS). Pressure had been growing on Mr Necas to quit since prosecutors on Friday charged his chief of staff Jana Nagyova with corruption and abuse of power. Two former MPs, an ex-minister and the current and former heads of military intelligence have also been detained. ...

Los Angeles (CNN) -- Slain Santa Monica gunman John Zawahri left behind a note on his body apologizing for killing his father and his brother and hoping his father's estate would support his mother, police said Friday. Zawahri, 23, who lived with his father in a house that was also set afire, wrote a three- to four-page handwritten letter in which he spent a "larger" measure of it saying good-bye to his friends than talking about his family, police said. Authorities described the tone of the letter as "conversational talk" without "overall hatred to anything," a police spokesman said. "He was sorry for having killed his father. He was sorry for having killed his brother, that he hoped his mother would be looked after financially and that she would receive financial recompense from the father's estate, and he said goodbye to his friends," said Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks said. Police: Santa Moni...

A lawyer for Maria Lourdes Afiuni said a court in Caracas rescinded the detention order on health grounds after a request from the attorney general. The 50-year-old judge has reportedly been suffering kidney problems. She has been on trial since November for corruption, abuse of authority and aiding an inmate's escape, but has dismissed proceedings as rigged. Opposition leaders consider her to be Venezuela's highest-profile political prisoner, while human rights groups and international organisations have called her detention arbitrary and demanded her release. Ms Afiuni was arrested on the day she authorised the conditional release of banker Eligio Cedeno who had spent almost three years in prison awaiting trial - a year longer than Venezuelan law generally permitted. Mr Cedeno later fled the country. The day after the judge's arrest, President Hugo Chavez publicly called her a "bandit" who should be se...

Early results from Iran's presidential election put the reformist-backed candidate, Hassan Rouhani, in the lead. Official figures give him just over half the 16 million votes counted so far - well ahead of second-placed Tehran mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. Mr Rouhani could win in the first round if he finishes with more than 50%. Electoral officials said turnout was high among the 50 million Iranians eligible to vote on Friday for a successor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. His eight years in power have been characterised by economic turmoil and Western sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme. Surge of support Final results are expected later in the day. Preliminary figures began to emerge early on Saturday after a delay of several hours. Continue reading the main story Iranian presidential elections Six candidates running Race is seen as contest between Ayatollah Ali Khamenei loyalists and moderate ...